With a heavy sigh, you start filling up the bathtub and take off your shirt. With the weather as hot as it is these days, it's probably going to need a good washing, so it doesn't start to smell - maybe you'll ask Sakuya to take care of that, later. The door doesn't appear to have a lock, so you rip out a page from your sketchbook and write "OCCUPIED" on it, leaving it outside the door. In hindsight, it might have been easier to just leave your shoes out, but what are ya gonna do.

Ahhh. A nixe, relaxing bath is certainly something you needed about now. Putting your mind and body to rest, you submerge yourself, leaving out only your face, closing your eyes and meditating on the day's events.

School... That Rumia girl attacking you. Your neck's better now, thankfully.
Flandre's outrage. Keine calling them into their office, Flandre's mood upon coming back out. Was she keeping something from you, when you asked about it?
How the heck you got on the island is still a mystery to you. Was there actually a boat or something? Did you get seasick, pass out, and forget about it? Who knows...
Dinner time with the sisters. Flandre being disinterested in the food struck you as somewhat odd, back then.
The tour of the mansion. You try to picture an overhead map of the layout, finding it somewhat difficult. The architects must have been crazy. You had some... moments, there, with both of the sisters. Did those mean anything?
The book you borrowed from the library. It's unlike anything you've ever read before... the subtext seems to literally speak to you, if you clear your mind before reading it. You'll have to examine it again, later.
Remilia's scent... Flandre's naked chest... Sakuya's shapely legs and rear... wait, wait, stop.
You're not exactly thrilled with the idea of getting an erection in someone else's mansion, naked in the bath, when the door doesn't even have a lock.

Luckily, your bath goes uninterrupted. You dry yourself off and decide to borrow what appears to be a bathrobe meant for guests. It strikes you as a little... fluffy and girly, but it'll have to do. You leave your clothes in a hamper found in the bathroom for the moment, making a mental note to pester Sakuya about getting them washed, later.

Outside the door, your note is missing. Strange... In any case, you grab your bag and exit the bathroom. Now, where exactly was your room meant to be?
Ah, there's your note. Under a nearby door. You knock, just to be sure, and open it cautiously. Empty. It's a nice little room, fit with a bed, a desk, a small wardrobe, and even an electric reading lamp. This must be the room Sakuya prepared for you.

The bed is a lot less soft and bouncy than Remilia's bed, but that's probably a good thing - that bed of hers felt like it could swallow you up whole. You shrug to yourself and sit in the bed, leaning yourself against the wall and pulling that book out of your bag. Hesitating for a moment, you open it. You skim over the text briefly. Nothing. Just an ordinary book.

You turn the pages until you get to where you left off. Then you close your eyes, and inhale deeply. The smells, sounds, feelings, tastes, sights around you, you put them aside for now, leaving just you. A perfect nothingness, you alone in the middle of it all. You open your eyes and start reading; no, -knowing- the words.

"...reality is subjective. The laws of physics only apply to those who accept them as truth. Humans claim unaided flight to be impossible, they cling to the laws of gravity. However, if you forsake gravity, so too shall gravity forsake you. The examples are endless..."

"...strength of body is not the sole source of fortitude. Through strength of WILL, you may survive punishments that would fell lesser men, endure pain that would drive others catatonic..."

"...to begin your journey towards mastery of your own will, you must come to understand yourself. Have you ever had a lucid dream? Have you ever viewed yourself from a third-person point of view? You must learn to apply this to reality. You alone must decide what is real and what is not. What happens, and what does not. Whether you live or die..."

"...Mankind in its infinite ignorance impedes its own evolution. A woman is born with an innate strength of will, and she demonstrates this by forcing the heart of a frog to stop with her mind alone. She is treated as a freak, and handed over to skeptical scientists, determines to prove her a fraud..."

"...you must become the object you wish to dominate. Eventually, you must become the world. The world must become your dream, and you must maintain the awareness to manipulate it to your heart's desire..."

"...Willpower is not a matter of want or desire, but of an edict. In your mind, you must declare something to be true, and you must accept it. If your conviction and will are strong, the object of your declaration will be forced to accept it as well, bending to your will..."

"...I did not write this to be an instruction manual. You must be the one to discover your potential. You are currently nothing more than a stain, an ant, a microbe, easily stomped under the feet of greater beings. Yet out of nothing, you may arise to become... everything..."

...

Gah! You tear yourself from the book, slamming it shut. Pain... a migraine, pain jolting through your skull as if someone's been taking a hammer and chisel to it. You taste something coppery, touching your upper lip. Your fingertips are stained red - you've got a nosebleed? You haven't had one of those since you were a kid. Not wanting to mess up the robe and bedsheets, you duck into the bathroom - luckily close to your room - and wash your face.

...Hm. There's an empty glass standing on the edge of the sink. Willpower, huh... Well, why not, just for laughs.
You stand upright, eyes firmly focused on the glass. Be the glass... the glass is a part of you. It's just like moving a limb, right? Slowly, you raise your hand. The glass seems to vibrate slightly. You pul your hand toward yourself.
Nothing.
You do it again. You focus harder - the glass is you. You are the glass. It -will- come to you. You decided so, and that's how it's going to be. The glass almost seems to wobble slightly.
Again.
...get over here, damnit!

You almost topple over, grabbing onto the sink to avoid collapsing. Your headache's gotten worse, tenfold. The glass fell. Shit. It didn't break, but it's got a nasty crack running from the top edge to the bottom, now. You didn't cause it to fall with your mind, did you? Nah, you must've knocked it down when you fell.

Gah, what a mess you've made... At least you didn't get any of your blood anywhere.

Your head hurts like a bitch.



[] Try to ignore the pain and go to sleep, you're too tired to do anything else tonight.
[] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
-{} Ask her if she could wash your clothes.
-{} Ask her if she has anything for a killer headache.
-{} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her. (Specify topic/questions. Anything goes.)

[x] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
{x} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
[x]Compliment her on dinner.
[x]Apologize for staring at her like a creep, can't help it on such a pretty lady.
[x]She seems to know the sisters quite well, ask her about their relationship.

[x] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
{x} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
[x]Compliment her on dinner.
[x]Apologize for staring at her like a creep, can't help it on such a pretty lady.
[x]She seems to know the sisters quite well, ask her about their relationship.

Good write-in, seconded

[x] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
{x} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
[x]Compliment her on dinner.
[x] Ask about the wings.

[x] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
{x} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
[x]Compliment her on dinner.
[x]Apologize for staring at her like a creep, can't help it on such a pretty lady.
[x]She seems to know the sisters quite well, ask her about their relationship.

[X] You can't sleep like this. Might as well go find Sakuya.
[X] Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
-{x} Compliment her on dinner.
-{x} Apologize for staring at her like a creep, can't help it on such a pretty lady.
-{x} She seems to know the sisters quite well, ask her about their relationship.

>{x} Maybe the headache will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.

I don't know if we want that. We could be on the edge of epiphany here. The protagonist seems quite knowledgeable for his age, and in a broadly general sense, given he was able to identify and date Remilia's entire weapon collection without effort.

[x] Are you feeling pain? The muscles in your head have been strained due to excessive concentration. C-fibers carry a signal to your spine resulting in activation of neurons in the dorsal horn. But at no specific point does this electrical activity jump from pure physical phenomenon to the mental sensation of pain, and even if this could be isolated, there is no mechanism to explain how the material could affect the immaterial. There should be no reason you have to be feeling pain.
-{x} If there must be a link, if the mind must affect the body (and it can, just move your arm), then the body can affect the mind by will of the mind: There are endorphins that will fully inhibit the spinal transmission of pain.
[x] It's not time for sleep yet. Might as well go find Sakuya.
-{x} Ask her if she could wash your clothes.
-{x} Give her the cracked glass. Apologize, and tell her it was an accident.
-{x} Maybe the headache (if it's still there) will wear off eventually; kill some time by chatting with her.
--(x) Apologize if you made her feel like a piece of meat before, but she really does pull off the 'maid' look perfectly.
--(x) She handles the cooking herself, right? Compliment her on dinner, but ask her why Flan seemed to have no appetite.
--(x) Tell her you appreciate all the help the Scarlet sisters have given you adjusting yourself to this very different world, and while you can't do much now, you'll be sure to repay their kindness someday.
--(x) She seems to know the sisters quite well; ask her about their relationship, if that wouldn't require her overstepping her boundaries as maidservant.
-{x} If she mentions you look injured or otherwise different, agree that you probably are, but tell her that it doesn't matter in the least.

The headache is your body resisting the influence of your mind. It's dominant right now, and wants to keep it that way. But why should the mind be a prisoner of the body, when we've seen it doesn't have to be?

You saw it yourself with the glass: Normally the glass would not move, no matter how hard you concentrated. The mental must affect the physical, otherwise we could not will our arms to move, but why should it stop there? We know now, it doesn't have to: You moved the glass with your mind. The mental affected the physical, through non-physical, non-local means. The physical can't do that. This should be clear evidence of the mind's natural superiority.

>>90872
>>--(x) Apologize if you made her feel like a piece of meat before,

I like this. Probably the whole thing.

[x] >>90872

Psionics awakenin gaems.

[x] >>90872

[x] >>90872

[Q] >>90872

Bandwagon, why not. Hopefully not a BAD END.

[x] >>90872
Prefer it to the alternative.

[x] >>90872

Can someone seed the Kaiji OST torrent?

I think I'll want to be listening to it when reading the next update. Especially 'Beginning'.

[X] Yeah that >>90872

[X] >>90872

>>90857
>>I am not HY, and I am aware that the sole reason some people would think so was more the obscene amount of shoutouts to EoSD than the actual quality of writing.

Don't be so damn hard on yourself. Your style is decidedly different from HY's, but that doesn't make it worse. In terms of quality, the only real difference probably lies in experience.
Moreover, accusing new/Anonymous writers of being HY is a bit of a running joke here. I'm pretty sure it happened at least once in Fallout Gensokyo, despite the fact that the author writes nothing like HY.

And why the hell would HY see fit to combine two scenarios he's already written on THP?

[O]>>90872

>>90883

>And why the hell would HY see fit to combine two scenarios he's already written on THP?

He DOES change stories every month or two, so yea.

Obviously this Anon isn't him. Why?
I haven't enjoyed an HY story since the end of his SDM runs

Oh god, with the typos, and the stray words, and the punctuation, and the... I need to do my proofreading -after- my coffee.

By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time? I keep hitting the character limit when pasting it onto the board.

----------

Your head hurts like a bitch.

Or does it? The muscles in your head have been strained due to excessive concentration. C-fibers carry a signal to your spine resulting in activation of neurons in the dorsal horn. But at no specific point does this electrical activity jump from pure physical phenomenon to the mental sensation of pain, and even if this could be isolated, there is no mechanism to explain how the material could affect the immaterial. There should be no reason you have to be feeling pain. At times like this, you feel glad for your broad general knowledge.

...Yep, you're definitely feeling pain. Just plain stating facts won't make it go away. Hm. If there must be a link, if the mind must affect the body - well, this much is true, it's how you make concious movements after all - then the body can affect the mind by will of the mind: There are endorphins that will fully inhibit the spinal transmission of pain.

Come on, endorphins, do your stuff. You're WILLING the pain away. You're NOT in pain anymore. No sir.

...

Wow. Whether it actually worked, or you're experiencing some sort of self-induced placebo effect, you actually feel better. The pain's not gone by a long shot, but it's not excruciatingly horrible anymore.
You recall a memory from your childhood; your dad telling a very young you to suck it up, after you started crying from falling and scraping your knee. Maybe he wasn't just being mean, after all - pain does seem to obey one's will, to a degree. You're still unconvinced about that glass, but... this deserves more looking into. More practice. If you can learn to will pain away, learn to push your body past its limits... the whole mind-over-matter deal. You're not the most physically strong individual you've ever known, so learning to harness your willpower for tangible results sounds like a skill worth striving for.

Telekinesis still sounds somewhat sci-fi to you... at least for now. The likely explanation is that you knocked the glass over when you fell from the spike in your headache. You're almost certain you say it move, though... The mental must affect the physical, otherwise we could not will our arms to move, but why should it stop there? You decide to explore this possibility further sometime when you've got more of a clear head.

Utterly pleased with your newfound ability of concious pain suppression, you feel just a little bit too excited to go to sleep just yet. Eight hours of sleep, seven hours, six, what's the difference. Your previous drowsiness has all but vanished, wiped away by the light adrenaline rush you just experienced.
You look down at the cracked glass somewhat sadly - your first time at a friend's exquisite mansion, and you're already breaking things. Well, it would be irresponsible of you to just leave it here and hope nobody notices, so you take it with you - Sakuya should still be awake. Might as well go look for her. She said she'd be in the kitchen, right? Leaving your clothes behind for now, dressed in the bathrobe and a handy pair of slippers, you head off, trying to figure out where exactly you're going from memory. Kitchen's downstairs, right...

There we are. You can hear noises from inside; running water, and light humming. It's almost as if every single female in this mansion has their own little theme tune they start humming when they're bored.
"Can't sleep?" The humming is interrupted, as the silver-haired head maid washing dishes turns her head sideways in your direction, looking at you from the corner of an eye. You nod in response, walking to the small table near the middle of the kitchen, being careful not to hit your toe this time as you sit down, patiently waiting for her to finish - which seems to happen immediately as soon as you've plopped yourself down. She's fast.

After drying her hands, she turns to you, slowly walking to the table, heels tapping against the kitchen floor with a light echo - the mansion is eerily silent. You two must be among the last ones awake at the moment.
"I see you've had your bath. So, what can I do for you?" Before you can answer, she cocks her head to the side, and... sniffs at you? "Hm. Every time I see you, you seem to look more and more beat up. I even smell some blood on you. Are you sure you haven't been fooling around with my mistress? She can be very, ah... rough."

"It's just a nosebleed... and a headache. Wait, you could smell it?" You're perplexed by the concept.

"It takes a keen nose to be the head maid of the house. Speaking of smells... Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm guessing you'll be wanting to have those clothes of yours washed? The weather has certainly been hot these days." Before you can apologize for your offensive odor, she stops you, wagging her index finger at you with a soft smirk. "I told you. Keen nose. Don't take it the wrong way. It wouldn't bother anyone else. I'll take care of it in a bit." Well, that's one question out of the way, though you feel a little awkward about how she put it into words.

She sits down in the chair next to you, leaning her elbow against the table and resting her head on her hand. "Headache, huh... Want me to go see if we've got anything for that?"

YES.

"Nah, it's okay," you force yourself to say. This is an exploitable opportunity for diplomacy! Flexing that charisma modifier, getting in the head maid's good graces, getting to know her and the sisters better, and all that. "You can help me wait for it to wear off by chatting with me a little; if you're not busy, that is."

"I'm always busy." She says that with a jarringly carefree, easygoing tone. "But I think I can fit five or ten minutes of conversation into my schedule. After all, it is the job of the help to entertain the guests of the mistress..." Oh yeah, you'd like her to 'entertain' you, all right... Wait, bad, bad. That reminds you of something.

"Well, for starters, I'd like to, ah... apologize if I made you feel like a piece of meat before. I didn't mean to stare like a creep," you gather up those charisma points, try to go for a nice compliment, "but a man cannot help it, when faced with such a pretty lady." She raises an eyebrow once again, neither smiling nor frowning. "You honestly do pull off the 'maid' look perfectly and elegantly."

"Is that so?" She leans just a little bit closer - you're not sure what to make of this. "You really are a polite one, aren't you. I wonder, do you simply tell women what they want to hear, or is your current behavior sincere?"

"Well..." You pull out the cracked glass.

"Ah! Showering me with compliments, so I wouldn't be as harsh on you for breaking the property of my mistress. How clever of you." Even though she snickers at you, it's a little difficult to tell if she's joking or actually upset. In any case, she takes the glass and puts it away for the moment. "It's nothing valuable. I can easily replace this one."

"It was an accident. I can pay for it." Gotta keep up that good impression, even if it means your wallet's gotta take a hit.

"Don't be ridiculous. An outsider boy your age is probably living off a modest allowance given by your host family. You'd be broke for a month if I made you pay for this." Bullseye. It also seems 'not expensive' means something a little different for the rich folk than it does for you.

"Well, then. Any further apologies preceded by compliments? Or are you spent?" A smug smirk spreads across her face, azure eyes penetrating through you along with her words painfully.

"I'm all out of apologies, but I did mean to compliment you on dinner today. It was completely out of this world. You handle the cooking yourself, don't you?"

"Naturally. The rest of the maids could hardly boil an egg or make toast, much less cook a proper meal for three people." Not a hint of pride in her voice, at all. "I don't mean to sound arrogant, but the competence of most of the employees here leaves much to be desired." She rubs her chin in thought, looking you up and down. "You're a little scrawny, but we can work on that. We're hiring. Want to work here? You'd look pretty good in a butler's uniform, I'd wager..." Wait, is she checking YOU out now?

"I'm a student."

"Ah, yes, of course. A shame. I'll have to pester you about it again when you graduate." She actually looks disappointed, sitting back down at the table, this time resting both elbows on the table, fingers interlocked and chin resting on them. Legs crossed.

"Back on the subject of food... Flandre seemed to not have much of an appetite. Is she alright, health-wise?" She chuckles lightly in response.

"Flandre has a special diet. While she can eat normal food as well, it doesn't feed her nearly as well. I could tell she wanted to eat together with you and mistress Remilia, though."

"Oh?" Well, ever since you implied that you wanted to be friends with the sisters, Flandre has been awfully clingy. You don't mind this at all, though - she's adorable like that, like a sweet innocent child. A little sister you never had? Who can say what time will bring.

"You know... I'm really grateful to both Remilia and Flandre for helping me cope with my new life in Gensokyo, and becoming friends with me so easily. They really are wonderful for that. I can't do much now, but... I'll be sure to repay their kindness somehow, some day." You feel like you made that statement more to yourself than to Sakuya just now, though she stares back at you, looking somewhat... impressed?

"Hmm... And here I thought you were just trying to get into mistress Remilia's bed." Is it really that obv-... does it really seem like that? "But... I guess you look like too much of a nice guy to have such selfish motives. Don't take that as a compliment, nor an insult. It's just what I think."

"I am thankful for your opinion, regardless." You really are. She really does seem like a perfectly likable woman, once you sit down and chat with her a little.

"Say, you seem to know the Scarlet sisters quite well... Out of curiosity, could I ask about your relationship towards them?"

"Relationship? How do you mean?"

"For example - when and how did you come to work here?" She leans her head back. Even her slender neck conceals strong muscles - she's certainly in very good health, at an exemplary level of fitness - especially for someone expected to do little more than cooking and cleaning all day. You're almost beginning to experience that general feeling of wussiness you get around anyone except Patchouli, again.

"Many years ago, I was working for a different employer, in an entirely different field of work." She's staring off into a distance that isn't there, reminiscing. "I was younger and more restless - reckless, even. But I was good at what I did. Eventually, I had some business matters to deal with regarding my current mistress, Remilia Scarlet. It didn't go well." She sighs, as if recalling an old shame. "But, lose one job, gain another. I was offered the position of head maid in the Scarlet Devil Mansion." A light chuckle. "To this day, I cannot figure out if she hired me out of generosity, pity, or..." She turns silent, before softly smiling at you. "Well, let's not dwell on that. It's all in the past, after all."

"Do you like working here, then?"

"I don't know if I liked it back then. But today? I can honestly say that I wouldn't trade this job for any other." From the look on her face, you know she's telling the truth.

"Wait... How long ago was this? You don't look that old at all."

"Ah, again with the flattery... Quite the silver-tongued devil, aren't you?"

"You barely look older than me, if even that!"

"Now you're just trying to get into my pants."

You open your mouth to apologize for the implication, before the both of you burst out into light-hearted laughter.

"Ahh... Well, off to bed you go. Early wake-up call in the morning. If I don't force you to sleep right now, you won't get rested at all." Deciding to be a good boy, you bid her good night and wander back towards your room, removing the robe, kicking off the slippers and collapsing into bed. You fall asleep almost immediately.

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

You open your eyes. An endless blackness, in all directions. You blink a little, eyes adjusting - stars. Millions of them, everywhere. It's beautiful in a way, and yet somehow you can feel no joy. Nor sadness. You feel hollow, and weightless. A sensation of everything and nothing at the same time, blending into one another to create a feeling of wholeness... and yet you feel like you've hit a dead end. There is nowhere else to go. You're at your limit.

You look down. You're hovering. A slightly elliptical blue orb is visible beneath you - you rotate yourself to face it. It's earth. Sure enough, the moon can be seen in orbit around it. Nearly six point eight billion people. Your family. Your friends.
You are above them now. You've hit the apex, the zenith of being. No... you must continue to advance. You must wipe clean your progress in this world, and begin anew. You hold out your hand - something forms in your palm. A bright, glowing sphere: the eye of the world.

Without hesitation, you clench your fist, crushing it.

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

You open your eyes. Holy shit. You're covered in cold sweat, slowly regaining your senses. That was one hell of a strange dream. Is it morning yet? You lean over to the side, eyeing the old-fashioned clock on the nightstand. 5:30 AM. Well, no point going back to sleep anymore... and come to think of it, you don't feel like seeing any dreams like that again anytime soon.
With a huge yawn, you get out of bed, stretching yourself. Given Sakuya's warning last night, you half-expected to be woken up at five. Oh well. Might as well pass the time until everyone else wakes up and it's time to go to school. You stumble out of your room and manage to find the bathroom again. Scouring around a bit, you discover toothpaste and an unused toothbrush - you make a mental note to apologize for not asking permission to use them, later, but dental health is important. While brushing your teeth, you wonder what to do next. Well, aside from taking a leak, of course.



[] Go see about making yourself some breakfast. You're hungry now, why wait for others?
[] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already. (Optional: Specify destination.)
[] Go wake Remilia and Flan. You're bored.
[] Actually, screw all that. Go back to bed, a few more minutes of sleep sounds great.
[] (Other: Write-in.)

>>90889
>By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time? I keep hitting the character limit when pasting it onto the board.

Hahahaha... haha... haa...

Dude, most writers (and readers) wish they could do that. As long as you can keep it up, by all means, do it.

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

Two posts is awesome, large updates are awesome.

[X] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already.

Two post updates are not bad, at the very least. If anything else, they're good.

>>90889
>By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time?
>>>/sdm/19439

>>A bright, glowing sphere: the eye of the world.
>>Without hesitation, you clench your fist, crushing it.

NO FLANDRE NO!
...Wait, what?

>>[X] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already.

Possible Koakuma option. Tempting, but...

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

[X] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already.

Grind that book later, not first thing in the morning when we have things to do later. Things that we don't want to have a splitting and headache throughout.

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

>>90889
>By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time?
AHAHAHAHAHAHAAA
Oh, you card.

What am I supposed to say here? "No, I hate having lots of a great story to read. Shame on you for writing so much!"

Bitch, please.

WRITE ALL YOU GODDAMN WANT.
I will read it all and love it.

>By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time? I keep hitting the character limit when pasting it onto the board.

Are you kidding? We love walls.

[x] Wait a minute. Your clothes. Where are your clothes?
-[x] Cover yourself immediately with a towel, and make a break for the bedroom. At least there's the robe in there.
[x] Read the book you borrowed in bed until Sakuya brings you your clothes and tells you breakfast is ready.
-[x] You could try practicing your technique again. Test it on something more sensitive and less valuable this time, like a light bulb. Exerting tension on the fragile filament inside would cause it to 'burn out', and the effect would be something hard to chalk up to just your eyes tricking you.
-[x] Don't get frustrated if your headache gets in the way; remember that controlling the pain is yet another avenue for you to flex these mental abilities.

Being in a physically relaxed posture might facilitate the effect, since your body's discomfort won't be interfering with your concentration so much.

>>90905
Yeah, at least we'll be able to pay for a new lightbulb.

>By the way, does it bother anyone that my updates tend to take up two posts at a time?

I think he's just being cautious because he's relatively new to the boards and doesn't want to offend customs unknowingly.

Probably a smart idea, considering how many other new writers have made that mistake recently.

[x] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already.

Stop reading the fucking book before we get a nosebleed in front of Flandre.

>>90908
wait, we have customs? that can be offended unknowingly by newcomers?

...is this elitist faggotry I smell?

>>90911

Yes, yes we do have customs. There's a reason that anyone who uses emoticons is bombarded with cease and desist notices.

>>cease and desist notices.

Haha.

>>90909
>Stop reading the fucking book before we get a nosebleed in front of Flandre.

Oh, this chestnut. I can't expound enough on how much antipathy I have for it.

That dream we just shared with her, of her destroying the world? It means she's thought of it before. But, it also means she's thought of it before, and decided against it, even though she's spent most of her life locked in a basement by her sister.

That's what being a good, rational person is, so shame on you for assuming she would do something terrible to us for such base reasons. She's a vampire, not an animal.

>>90917
I didn't say she'd kill us. At the least, though, it would be awkward and Remi would probably freak out. Not a good way to start the morning.

>>90920

But Remi freaks out at everything Flan does, says, or sees. She's her neurotic, overprotective elder sister.

>>90921

Y'know, if Flandre actually almost destroyed the world, I'd freak out at everything she does, too.

Never mind they're vampires, never mind one has the power to possibly single-handedly bring about the apocalypse, isn't the high likelihood that Flandre would be upset when her new friend not only winds up once again spacing out in an almost catatonic-like state, but bleeding profusely from his head while he does it reason enough to hold off on the mysterious book that stuffs information in your brain?

It's not like you don't have at least a month before you have to return it, after all. Plenty of time to learn, to grow, and develop your newfound potential.

...until a routine trip to the doctor's office reveals that it's not actually arcane knowledge on how to tap into and maximize human potential, but an inoperable tumor the size of a walnut that has left you with barely a month left to live.

>>90922
Psh, after a small thing like that?
Over-reactors, all of you.

>>90922
Yeah, and as a result, she locked her in a basement for a few centuries. It's something she's gotta get used to, being that she lives in Gensokyo now, which is filled with people who will ruin your whole fucking day. Some of whom are as--if not more--dangerous as Flandre and just as 'insane'.


>>90924
>Never mind they're vampires, never mind one has the power to possibly single-handedly bring about the apocalypse, isn't the high likelihood that Flandre would be upset when her new friend not only winds up once again spacing out in an almost catatonic-like state, but bleeding profusely from his head while he does it reason enough to hold off on the mysterious book that stuffs information in your brain?

We're surrounded by people with world-shattering powers and they're all extremely excitable! Quick, quick, catastrophize about it!

Get a fucking grip, man; the protagonist doesn't know any of that shit. All he knows is a little girl attacked him yesterday for incomprehensible reasons and that he had no way to defend himself. Until possibly now. I sure as fuck would make reading that book a priority.

>It's not like you don't have at least a month before you have to return it, after all. Plenty of time to learn, to grow, and develop your newfound potential.

Rumia nearly ate you alive on your second day of school. You could very well be dead within the month if you don't find some way to protect yourself.

>...until a routine trip to the doctor's office reveals that it's not actually arcane knowledge on how to tap into and maximize human potential, but an inoperable tumor the size of a walnut that has left you with barely a month left to live.

The only doctor you can expect to see here is Eirin. And being that this is Gensokyo, I'm sure she has 'psychokinetic ability' on the list of differential diagnoses to rule out before she assumes it must be brain cancer.

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

[-] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

>>You could very well be dead within the month if you don't find some way to protect yourself.

And naturally, the only possible means of doing just that also happens to have the not-at-all encouraging side-effects of leaving you completely oblivious to the outside world for several minutes at a time, to say nothing of the recent additions of excruciating pain in the head and bleeding from a major orifice. Of course.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm pretty sure that pain inside your head combined with blood coming out from inside your head are generally not "good" signs.

Is it wrong that I'm more worried about nosebleeding in front of Flan and having everyone assume we're a pedophile, rather than Flan attacking us?

>>90936
>And naturally, the only possible means of doing just that also happens to have the not-at-all encouraging side-effects of leaving you completely oblivious to the outside world for several minutes at a time, to say nothing of the recent additions of excruciating pain in the head and bleeding from a major orifice. Of course.

Good thing we're in a safe place, with fair certainty a maid who can smell blood from across the room is soon coming to fetch us, who can if necessary stop time to clean us up before anyone else arrives.

Also, the pain is tolerable, and it seems it will be more tolerable the more we work at it. It's also completely explainable, as the character notes himself in the monologue.

The bleeding too: Concentration causes your facial muscles to contract, which among other things, such as giving you a headache, puts pressure on the fragile capillaries in the mucosal lining of the nose. These capillaries become dilated after an exposure to warm and humid environs, like a hot bath, which leads to heavier bleeding if they become broken.

Moreover, we were trying too hard, too fast. Moving a glass across a counter was not a good place to start. A light bulb filament should be significantly less migraine-inducing, along with giving us more certainty as to the effect of our ability.

>Maybe it's just me, but I'm pretty sure that pain inside your head combined with blood coming out from inside your head are generally not "good" signs.

Did you know some people have headaches every day? As well as nosebleeds? Did you also know that these are self-limiting conditions with no underlying physical pathology most of the time?

One common cause is be constant anxiety, whether from paranoia, hypervigilance to bodily sensations, or excessive concern about one's health. Lucky for our protagonist, he's rather blithe and easygoing. He doesn't freak out because weird things happen, at least not when they're apparently benign. That's a very good thing, because a lot of weird things happen in Gensokyo.

>>90937

It means you've been watching way too many bad shounen romantic comedies.

[x] Read the book you borrowed until Sakuya calls for you.

>>90938
>The bleeding too: Concentration causes your facial muscles to contract, which among other things, such as giving you a headache, puts pressure on the fragile capillaries in the mucosal lining of the nose. These capillaries become dilated after an exposure to warm and humid environs, like a hot bath, which leads to heavier bleeding if they become broken.

Correct, an intranasal tumor, heart problems or cancer in the nasal region are not likely in his case.

>>90938
Let me get this straight.
The fact that we're experiencing excruciating pain and bleeding after reading a book, is not cause for concern because headaches and nosebleeds are common ailments that can be brought on for any number of reasons. One such possible reason being anxiety, except that our protagonist here doesn't seem to be the type inclined to have such anxiety, which means that's most likely not the cause for the pain and bleeding.

Neither should we be concerned about the drastic increase in pain due to the failed attempt at using the Force to move a glass off a sink, pain at such an intensity we had to grab hold of said sink to keep from collapsing, and all because we were just trying "too hard, too fast".

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't think there are merits to going along with this. But, if this is what happens when we try to do too much, too quickly, too soon, then I don't think it's unreasonable to take it a sign to slow the hell down, exercise some degree of caution, and not rush it.

Yet, as far as I can tell, that's exactly what you're doing if you're going to jump right back into it after not even a full night of sleep.

I'm not saying "don't read the book again, EVER." I just don't think it's exactly in our best interest to disregard what happened the last time we did just because you're keen on getting your super powers ASAP or die trying. Much like Rome, you can't expect to build an arsenal of psychokinetic powers in just a day or two.

Baby steps, gentlemen. Baby steps.

[x] Explore! Who knows, maybe someone else is up already.
Eh, it'd make a nice change for anon to go through one of these stories without developing some superpower or whatever.

>One such possible reason being anxiety, except that our protagonist here doesn't seem to be the type inclined to have such anxiety, which means that's most likely not the cause for the pain and bleeding.

No, see, that was Anon subtly implying that you're a spastic.

>Neither should we be concerned about the drastic increase in pain due to the failed attempt at using the Force to move a glass off a sink

Who said he failed? We don't know if it worked or whether we knocked it off the sink in his pain. That's why we need a more sensitive test, an example of which was suggested earlier.

>pain at such an intensity we had to grab hold of said sink to keep from collapsing, and all because we were just trying "too hard, too fast".

Yeah, actually. Severe cases result in 'panic attacks' where the person desperately thinks there is something physically wrong with him, even after reassurance that he is in fact in perfect health. The nature of sensory gating is such that you can feel anything if you're searching deeply enough for it.

The kid witnessed something he couldn't adequately fit into his previously held conceptions about the world. This often results in mental states like depersonalization, derealization, fear of going insane, or the sense of impending doom, which can all bring a grown man to his knees, make him vomit or loose his bowels, panic, or even send him into catatonic or fugue state. Lucky for us, our guy happens to be made of more elastic stuff.

He was able to pass many of those other things off as hallucinations, because they were brief and not something he was actively trying to effect or experience. Here he was concentrating, making it difficult for his mind to filter out what 'doesn't fit'. That's why he blanked out; not because he tried too hard and failed, but because he succeed and couldn't accept the result.

>Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't think there are merits to going along with this. But, if this is what happens when we try to do too much, too quickly, too soon, then I don't think it's unreasonable to take it a sign to slow the hell down, exercise some degree of caution, and not rush it.

No, you won't have to, because you'll be forced to. Your body knows its limits better than you do. If it's too much to handle, you'll simply faint. But so much as long as you're in a safe location, like in a bed, you don't have to worry about the soundness of your body.

>Yet, as far as I can tell, that's exactly what you're doing if you're going to jump right back into it after not even a full night of sleep.

Here's a protip: Sleep after exhaustion is more restful than any other form of sleep! Slow-wave sleep, stages 3 and 4 NREM, which mostly consist of delta brain waves, are increased proportionally, which are the stages required in humans for homeostasis, and are correlated strongly with easy rising, daytime alertness, and task performance. REM is suppressed, which itself is positively related to next-day hypnagogia, hypersomnolence, irritability, depressed mood, poor task performance, retarded motor control, and memory impairment. REM is surprisingly inessential to humans, being completely abolished in the normal sleep EEG of some healthy humans. Abolishment of slow-wave sleep however, results in metabolic derangement, frank psychosis, catatonia, and eventually death through the loss of the autonomic ability to thermoregulate.

>I'm not saying "don't read the book again, EVER." I just don't think it's exactly in our best interest to disregard what happened the last time we did just because you're keen on getting your super powers ASAP or die trying.

Well, it's more like 'get your superpowers when you have time with nothing else obvious to do so that that you don't die trying to survive a normal day'. You honestly think overexertion is more of a threat to the protagonist than being in a world he has not come to terms with, literally surrounded by monsters who want to eat him? Nigger please.

>Much like Rome, you can't expect to build an arsenal of psychokinetic powers in just a day or two.

This is Gensokyo, where even the most mundane villagers have 'superpowers' such that they're able to fend off youkai. Especially now that we've been accelerated both by an enchanted book and by now almost certainly Remilia's fate manipulation, no I honestly don't think it's too much to expect. In fact, we already know we're adept at it, able to move an object without having even finished to read the book.

That you're struggling so hard leads this Anon to believe it's the gaining of an ability itself you have an issue with, preferring him to remain helpless. That's okay. I can see the appeal of that too. Unfortunately, this train has already started moving, and there's no getting off of it.

>Baby steps, gentlemen. Baby steps.

Baby steps, of course. But what you seem to be calling for are 'maybe steps' or even 'no steps'.

>Eh, it'd make a nice change for anon to go through one of these stories without developing some superpower or whatever.

Read more stories.

>>90937

The superstition that a nosebleed means perverted thoughts is strictly Japanese.

Flandre and Remilia are not Japanese. Neither are we.
Sakuya almost definitely isn't, but even if she is, who cares what the dog thinks?

Oh, and I'd also like to point out that reading the book didn't put us in our present state; attempting to put what we learned to practice did. Just reading it probably won't have any serious negative effects.
Sure, we may veg out again... but aren't we supposed to be asleep right now?

>>90905
Coincides with winning primary option, baking in the extras.

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

After taking care of the most obvious bodily need you had at the moment, you look in the mirror. You look somewhat tired, and your hair is a mess. It's not too bad, though. You probably could use a good workout now and then, but...

...wait a minute. Your clothes. Where are your clothes?
You're in a mansion full of women, naked.
Oh, shit.

Grabbing the first towel within reach, you frantically dash back towards your bedroom. Sure enough, just as you reach the door a red-haired woman in a black-and-white dress carrying a wobbly tower of books passes by an intersection in the hallways. She looks right at you, and you exercise the force of will to not wave at her like an idiot, inavertently dropping the towel for comedic relief. You take notice of the matching pairs of bat wings on her back and her head, making her look like some sort of Darkstalkers cosplayer. She turns red in the face, and scurries off, barely managing not to drop any of the books.

With a heavy sigh, you close the door from inside the room. At least there's the robe, in here. Somehow, you're still uncomfortable walking around the place without even wearing boxers. Oh. Hey. Sakuya's been touching your underwear...

You flop down in your bed lazily. What to do to pass the time until everyone else wakes up? After staring into the ceiling for a few minutes, you tilt your head to the side. Poking out of your bag on the floor is that strange book; feeling somehow compelled, you reach for it, pulling it out. Would it be a good idea to just read it until Sakuya comes calling for you?

You scan the pages casually. Nothing. Just reads like a mediocre self-help book. It's more likely to bore you back to sleep than help pass the time. Well, reading it 'properly' seems to become easier with every attempt...

"...progress is key to survival. Yet progress need not happen in leaps and bounds. Even the mightiest of creatures had humble beginnings as single-cell organisms, taking millions of years of evolution to achieve their current level of power..."

"...to learn how to kill the man, you must first learn to kill the cockroach. The difference is more sutble than you would believe..."

...

You look at the time. It's almost 6 AM, yet it feels like you've only been reading for two minutes or so. This book really does absorb you into it, somehow. Men and cockroaches... was that a metaphor trying to tell you to practice your abilities on something smaller, more fragile and sensitive, to begin with?

Telekinetics, heh... You have an idea. The reading lamp - more specifically, the light bulb. Exerting tension on the fragile filament inside would cause it to 'burn out', and the effect would be something hard to chalk up to just your eyes tricking you, right? Can't hurt to try... Well, yes it can; you recall the skull-splitting migraine you had last night.

Oh well, here goes nothing - at least you'll be in a relaxed position this time. You set the lamp on the table further away and get back into bed. Partially for aiding your focus, partially just because it looks cool, you point your hand at the lightbulb and concentrate.

And concentrate.

And concentrate some more. The light flickers a little. You feel a tingling in your brain, followed by a light spike of pain. No, there is no pain. You refuse to feel pain. It's gone already; no, it was never there. You concentrate some more. Harder. Your brain struggles to cope, the pain comes back. You will it away again. The pain fades. So does your conciousness... No. You refuse to black out. The light flickers some more. You've almost got it.

You black out.

NO YOU DON'T.

*pop*

The sound of glass shattering. The lightbulb exploded. Apparently, so did a blood vessel, somewhere, because there's blood on the bedsheets. Sure enough, you touch your nose, and your fingertips are stained red. Just in case, you check your other bodiliy orifices. Nothing.

You ought to go wash up. And throw up. Before you can get out of bed, the door opens as Sakuya enters the room, carrying your clothes, her shoes crunching up the pieces of glass on the floor. She looks down with a grim expression, then lets out a long, heavy sigh.

"You just keep causing property damage, don't you." She turns her eyes to you, frowning. "I was just bringing your clothes for you, but it looks like I've got more washing to do now." Why did the bedsheets have to be white? She leans closer to you, all of a sudden, grabbing your chin with a serious look on her face. What is she doing? She turns your head to the left, then to the right. "Hm. Another nosebleed, then? You should probably go get checked out at the school nurse, if you're having them this frequently."
A soft chuckle follows. "The mistress would be disappointed if you ran dry, after all. Anyway, get up. It's time for breakfast, and I've got to take care of this bedsheet you've managed to ruin."

"I can at least afford to pay for the lightbulb." You figure it's not much, but at least it's something. How DID that lightbulb explode, anyway? Was it really because of what you were trying? It's hard to think... Your head is throbbing, though not exactly in pain anymore, and you feel nauseous. You quickly duck into the bathroom and wash the blood from your face. Your thoughts are strangely slow and cloudy.
Did you just make a lightbulb explode with your mind? Really? Thinking about it pushes you past your limit and you duck your face into the toilet.

"Honestly... Next time you come for a visit, remind me to shove some cotton up your nose when you get here." Sakuya shakes her head when you return to your room, gathering up the bloody bedsheets as you stand behind her, feeling somehow uncomfortable. She glances over her shoulder.
"Well? Get changed, the mistresses are waiting for you."

"Er, would you kindly..."

"I won't stare, stupid. Besides, it's not like it's anything I haven't seen before." That's a reply you certainly didn't expect. Oh well, guess it can't be helped - within a split second, you manage to slip on your boxers. That's the hard part done, then; the rest of your clothes go on somewhat more comfortably. Sakuya knees you in the butt before hurrying off with the sheets.
"Get yourself to the dining room already. I'll take care of things here. You can pay me for the lightbulb later." You nod at her, thankful that she didn't make a big deal out of things. Making your way towards the dining room (it was this way, and then that way, right?) you wonder if you should've explained to her what exactly happened. 'I made the lightbulb explode with my mind and it made me get a massive nosebleed.' Yep, sure sounds convincing...
Just to make sure you're not still bleeding, you run your finger under your nose briefly. It's clean. Good.

The dining room. Remilia and Flandre are already seated, the former yawning widely with a glum facial expression and the latter still tying her hair into her trademark sidetail. They're already wearing their school uniforms.

"Flandre, darling, don't play with your hair at the table. You'll get hair all over peoples' food, which is disgusting." Flandre looks somewhat upset by her sister's sharp remark, and leaves her hair down for the moment. She looks pretty cute like this, too. As you step closer to the table, however, she perks up and smiles at you - the smile fades almost instantly, however, and she just stares at you. As does Remilia. You swear Flan's eyes just glowed a little in the dim light of the dining room.

"...what. Good morning to you, too." That might have been a little rude of you, but you're somewhat moody after starting your morning with a headache, bleeding all over the bed, possibly accidentally blowing up a lightbulb and vomiting. Remilia calmly places her hand on Flandre's, clenching it just a bit.

"Good morning yourself. Are you... feeling alright?" Her voice is a mix of concern and something else, something you can't quite figure out. Flandre just stares at you silently, lips slightly parted, breathing slowly.

"Just felt a little sick after waking up, that's all. I'm fine now."

"Are you sure that's all?" Did she just sniff at you?

"I'm sure." She doesn't seem satisfied with your answer, but lets it go anyway.

"Flandre, darling, do say good morning. You're being quite rude." Her sister nods softly, bright red eyes still fixated on your face, and mumbles a quiet 'good morning' at you, which you return.

You sit down. Although you just felt like you probably couldn't eat anything for a while, looking at what's for breakfast instantly makes you reconsider. A traditional full English breakfast: bacon, eggs, grilled tomatoes, fried mushrooms, toast, and sausages. On the side is a mug of tea. You think back to the last time you had a nice rousing cup of coffee... Screw it. Real men drink tea.

As expected of Sakuya, the food is absolutely delicious. You'd almost be tempted to marry that woman for her food alone. As with dinner last night, Remilia drips some red stuff on her food, and Flandre seems more interested in the sausages than anything else. Well, you suppose everyone has their own tastes in food, and how to eat it.

"Did you sleep well?" Remilia breaks the silence. She's busy cutting a neat little piece out of a fried egg, not looking at you. She seems somehow... cautious, towards you. Did something happen while you were reading your book?

"I had some strange dreams, but I'm more or less well-rested, I suppose."

"Strange dreams? Like what?"

You think about it for a moment, trying to recall what exactly it was that you saw. "...I can't remember. It was pretty random." Remilia shrugs in response. Hrm, what's gotten into her... You look over at Flandre. She's chewing on a piece of sausage. And staring at you. You stare right back at her. It takes a good twenty seconds or so for her to realize, and avert her eyes, turning red in the face.
You can't help but chuckle lightly. "Flan, if you don't like your food, I'll take it."

"Out of the question!" Remilia slams the handle of her fork against the table. "A girl needs her nutrition, especially before a long, hard day of school."

"But you two pay about as much attention in class as I do."

"That's beside the point!" She fumes at you, lower lip stuck out and eyes narrowed. The fact that they're both cute as buttons makes them almost impossible to take seriously when they're angry over non-serious matters like this. You can't help but snicker obnoxiously, making Remilia twitch, and provoking Flandre into giggling alongside you. The atmosphere in the room has certainly brightened up quite a bit.

You finish breakfast and go grab your schoolbag, as do the sisters. Flan clings to your arm, humming to herself happily again, her other hand holding her bag, whereas Remilia walks next to you to your other side. It's time for school. By the large front door of the mansion, Sakuya seems to be waiting for you. As you see her, you think back at what happened in your room earlier this morning... It makes no sense. But in that case, why did you even try? Out of boredom? Or do you actually believe in that sort of thing, deep inside? Unlocking the untapped potential of the mind... You're not so sure if you can shrug it off or disbelieve it anymore.
You just don't know, at this point. Everything has been weird ever since you got here, apparently now including yourself.

"Mistress, if I must struggle so hard with waking you in the mornings, you will end up late for school one of these days. Please do try to go to sleep earlier tonight." Sakuya smiles softly at her difficult employer, even as she's shood off by Remilia, who walks right on past her, heading outside ahead of everyone else. "Have a safe trip," Sakuya wishes to the three of you, looking after her. Before you can follow the girls, you feel a hand come to rest on your shoulder, stopping you.
"Ah, you." Sakuya holds something out in front of you. It's a box, wrapped neatly in a large red handkerchief. You look at her, somewhat puzzled.

"What's this?"

"It's your lunch for the day. I hear the cafeteria at the school isn't quite finished yet, and it's unhealthy to starve yourself. I took the liberty of packing something along for you."
You're touched. Sakuya has just saved you from the fate of starving in school again.

"I could kiss you, right now."

"Please, do not say such strange things within earshot of the mistress." She smirks at you, pushing you towards the exit lightly. "Off you go then. I expect you to come back someday and return that handkerchief - the mistress would most likely be disappointed if you didn't visit again."

"What about you?"

"Hmm?"

"Would you be disappointed?" You're not quite sure what you're getting at, here.

"Haha! All you do is break things and make a mess. I have quite enough work as it is, thank you very much." She turns around and heads back inside, stopping for a brief moment before closing the doors. "Though, maybe for the conversation..."

She's gone. What a woman. You eye the box in your hands - wonder what's inside? Well, whatever it is, if it's Sakuya's cooking, it's bound to be delicious.

"Hey, hurry up! We're going to be late because of you!" Remilia's voice booms from the distance, as bossy as ever. Flandre is also waving at you excitedly, laughing to herself. Well, it'd be rude to keep the ladies waiting, so you jog on over to them. Hm, where's that gate guard...

Now how the hell are you supposed to get across the lake again? As you ponder the issue, you notice Remilia eyeing you up and down cautiously again, frowning slightly. You wonder if you've done something to upset her...

"Hey sis, hey sis, can we go that way today?" Flandre yanks on your arm as well, pointing off to the side. A section of the lake is covered in ice. What, in this weather? Not only that, but that light-blue-haired girl you recall being unbelievably terrible at math appears to be skating across the ice, in the direction of the school.

"Well... sure, why not. It's a little out of the way, but what the heck, right?" Remilia seems to have cheered up somewhat - you think back to yesterday, finding yourself unable to recall how you got here in the first place, and wonder if Remilia's behavior has something to do with that.

A little cautious at first, you try putting some weight on the ice with one foot. It seems to be pretty thick. Still, if you intend to cross it, it'd be a good idea to hurry - the lake isn't exactly tiny, and the weather is pretty hot. Where the hell the ice came from is an issue you're honestly not too concerned with at this point.

"Come on, come on, slowpokes! Nyahahaha!" Flandre's already halfway across the lake, skating on her shoes in a zig-zag pattern, occasionally stopping to twirl around merrily, all the while giggling to herself. You and Remilia just stare at her for a moment.

"...she's really a kid at heart, isn't she."

"...you have no idea. Try living with her."

Still, the two of you can't help but chuckle a bit, before following her. The ice holds, and you make it across safely.
"I win! I win!" Flandre jumps over to you, giggling to herself, pride in her voice. Your give her hair a congratulatory ruffle and nod, when she suddenly yelps.
"Ahhh..! I forgot to fix my hair before we left. Uuuuh..." Come to think of it, she is missing her usual sidetail.

"Well... Personally, I think this look suits you as well." You give her a friendly smile, trying to cheer her up. "Besides, isn't it fun to change your appearance once in a while?"

"I... I guess you're right." She glances over at Remilia for a moment, looking happy again. "I look more like sis now." She does. Although her features are a little bit more childish, if she dyed her hair blue they'd be pretty difficult to tell apart - well, aside from those wings.

"That you do, Flan." You grab her hand and continue on towards the school - Remilia is already waiting for you up ahead, smiling warmly.

"It's about time you two finished your little chat." You make a mock-shooing motion at her, causing her to twitch uncomfortably until she realizes you're just joking. She elbows you in the side, and the three of you continue walking. You look over your shoulder, at the lake, and briefly visualize yourself flying over it, using nothing but the power of your mind.

Heh, ridiculous. Turning your gaze back forward, the yellow school building becomes visible on top of the little hill. It's about time to start your third day.



[] Chat with the sisters while walking. (Specify subject)
[] Is that Reisen you see over there?
[] Try to catch up to the blue-haired first-year girl, maybe she knows where the ice came from.
[] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.

-----------

Goddamn, 2 and a half posts. It'll have to make up for the fact that I'll probably have to skip the nighttime-update today, got work in the morning.

[X] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.

School is important.

[X] Is that Reisen you see over there?

Bamboo Forest is on the opposite side of the village, isn't it? Man, just how out of it does she get in the mornings? Well, best not to abandon her.

>>"I won't stare, stupid. Besides, it's not like it's anything I haven't seen before."

I'll bet.

>>Outside the door, your note is missing. Strange...

[x] Chat with the sisters while walking.
-[x] "Agh! I can't hold it in any longer! It's strange; even though I felt so physically sick, the memory leaves me mentally elated. See, this morning, and I'll tell you even if I can hardly believe it myself, I [state your name] after 20 minutes of intense research and self-reflection unlocked the hidden potential within the recesses of human psyche: I was able, with significant exertion, to explosively overcharge a lightbulb, from 10 yards, with mind bullets--that's telekinesis, Remilia!"
-[x] "On the downside, I ruined the linens and now owe you a lightbulb. Sorry."
-[x] "I should thank Sakuya again for cleaning it up, and Patchouli for lending me that book, which was instrumental."
-[x] Bid the girls adieu, you'll meet them again at lunch, maybe?
[x] Try to catch up to the blue-haired first-year girl, maybe she knows where the ice came from.

When a Touhou is in one of those update pics but she hasn't yet been introduced? That's alerts you to a plot hook. And you always follow the plot hook.

[X] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.
[X] Wave to Reisen as you pass by.

>[] Is that Reisen you see over there?
As much as I love Reisen, ditching the Scarlets is not a good idea.

[X] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.
[X] Wave to Reisen as you pass by.

Reasonable compromise.

[X] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.
[X] Wave to Reisen as you pass by.

You know we don't actually have to ditch the Scarlet Sisters to talk to Reisen. If she's sleepwalking again we can just start directing her to the school while we talk to the Scarlets.

>>90983
I didn't mean run off with Reisen and literally ditch the sisters. Poor word choice I suppose. It's paranoia, but I'd rather avoid interest in other girls at least while the two are present. Plus, this isn't Kira's GA, but seems to be the actual Gensokyo only with a high school. So it's possible that Remilia and Sakuya attacked Eientei and one of the parties harbors a grudge.

[x] Chat with the sisters while walking. (Specify subject)
[x]Thank them for being such gracious hosts, you had a great time.
[x]Wave to Reisen.

Manners anon, manners.

>>90984

Yeah, that's paranoia. One of our goals is to help Flan make friends, isn't it? The wider our own pool of friends, the more help we can give her, and this could even be a chance to lead by example. Show her how helping people out is a good way to make friends; a lot of people are afraid of her, but if she was nice to everyone, that would do a lot to dispel the preconceptions people have about her.

>So it's possible that Remilia and Sakuya attacked Eientei and one of the parties harbors a grudge.

No need to worry. This is Gensokyo, where those incidents generally end with the conflicting parties sharing a cup of tea, then... well, a party.

>>90986
No, REIMU ends incidents with tea parties. In the IN end with the Scarlet team, Remi, Sakuya, and Patch are drinking in the mansion. They didn't invite the Eientei people like all the others did (Although only Eirin came to Hakugyokuro, and Yuyuko promptly tried to poison her)

>>90987

Even accepting that, in SSiB the Eientei group show up at the SDM party. They don't express any real distaste for the residents; hell, Eirin is basically the reason the group makes it to the moon.

Granted, Reisen had a "that shit will never work" reaction to seeing the wooden rocket and broke down in laughter, but no one was there to take offense at that.

>One of our goals is to help Flan make friends, isn't it? The wider our own pool of friends, the more help we can give her, and this could even be a chance to lead by example.

That's difficult when the potential friends are well aware of her dangerous reputation, while also knowing that we are not, especially when the potential friend is a historically flighty moon rabbit. The more intelligent girls will come around to Flandre eventually when they realize just how much time we've been spending with her, and yet are still alive.

A more reckless youkai, yet one not so stupid and incorrigibly bloodthirsty as Rumia, especially one with a natural immunity to Flandre's ability (HINT HINT), would be a far better candidate for her first personal friend--one she won't have to share with Remilia as she must with us.

>Granted, Reisen had a "that shit will never work" reaction

/r/ the shop of the scan

>>90989

In fairness, while Reisen may well be flighty, she's also generally regarded as one of the most reasonable of the girls. She seems like one of the better candidates for a friend for Flan, if only because she would likely be more inclined to actually think about the situation rather than trust in knee-jerk reactions. If she sees us hanging out with Flan often, even accompanies us on some of those occasions, she's liable to give Flan a chance.

That aside, access to the immortals is liable to helped along in at least some fashion by being close to Reisen.

Trying to get Flandre some friends too soon will just cause them to run away and hurt poor Flan's feelings. It looks like the best way would be to continue doing what we're doing now: Hang out with the sisters and show everyone how alive we still are.

>>90993

You sir are a gentleman and a scholar.

>>90991
>>In fairness, while Reisen may well be flighty, she's also generally regarded as one of the most reasonable of the girls. She seems like one of the better candidates for a friend for Flan, if only because she would likely be more inclined to actually think about the situation rather than trust in knee-jerk reactions. If she sees us hanging out with Flan often, even accompanies us on some of those occasions, she's liable to give Flan a chance.

Or she could just run away "like a scared rabbit".

Simply being seen with Flandre isn't going to counteract all the bad rumors that have been circulated. Given her current reputation, only someone with no sense of danger whatsoever would risk trying to befriend her; Reisen is out. On the other hand...

[x] Try to catch up to the blue-haired first-year girl, maybe she knows where the ice came from.
[x] Introduce her to the sisters.

[X] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.
[X] Wave to Reisen as you pass by. Talk if given a chance to do so without leaving the Scarlet sisters.

[O] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.
[O] Wave to Reisen as you pass by.

[x] Just hurry up and get to school already, there's time for chat during the breaks.

Bamboo Forest is on the opposite side of the village, isn't it? Man, just how out of it does she get in the mornings? Well, whether she's sleepwalking or awake - you can't tell from this distance - she seems to be going in the right direction. You hardly have the time to walk her to school every day, or at least not today; the lessons are about to start any minute now.

"Come on, let's pick up the pace a bit." Still holding Flandre's hand, you accelerate to a light jog. Neither her nor Remilia seem to have any trouble keeping up with you, by the looks of it. As you pass by Reisen, you wave at her - sure enough, her eyes are closed, and you can barely hear her slow, peaceful breathing.

"Good morning, Reisen!" you shout to her. It seems that her sleep isn't as deep today as the last time you caught her sleepwalking, since her eyes snap open in mild shock at your voice, though she smiles at you upon recognizing your face.

"Good morning to you, too!" She waves back at you, though her arm slows to a halt and drops after she notices who you're with. Remilia shoots a light glare in her direction, before putting on a brilliant grin and also waving.

"Good morning! Wonderful day, isn't it?" She sounds astonishingly sincere, though by now you know she's pretty good at faking it when necessary. While not necessarily a good talent to have in relationships with other people, you're reminded of her little excerpt from Hamlet last evening. Reisen cautiously returns the wave, a bit of a nervous smile on her face.

"G-good morning!"

Meanwhile, Flandre simply hides behind you, avoiding Reisen's line of sight. It's strange... She seems to become more of a cheerful child when she's at home, amongst familiar surroundings, yet turns into a shy, timid young girl when outside, in unfamiliar places - especially school. Somehow, you doubt she's being physically bullied, but... Well, bullying doesn't always have to be physical. The other kind can be much worse. You grip her hand lightly as you make it to the school gates; she stares at the ground briefly, before wriggling her hand free and dashing inside, much to the apparent chagrin of her sister.

"Honestly, that girl... Well, it can't be helped right now. Guess we'd better get to class." She yanks on your tie (male school uniforms are sexy too!), then sniffs her hand, curiously.
"This is... Did Sakuya wash your clothes?"

"Y-yeah."

"Tsk! I need to tell that woman not to waste the good detergent on the guests!" Ah, now you understand. The head maid needs to have a keen sense of smell to match that of her mistress. Speaking of whom, she cocks her head back lightly and laughs. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Come on, the bell's about to ring."

You make it just in time, the bell rings just as you enter the auditorium that serves as your multi-class classroom. Everything is pretty much the same as what you're already getting used to - a bunch of first-years chattering about nonsense, your classmates looking as lazy as you feel, and the third-years tending to more important activities, such as painting their nails. Not exactly the best atmosphere to encourage serious study. Keine is sitting at her desk, sending menacing glares at certain students, and motherly looks in your general direction. You can't help but blush slightly, hoping her faith in you doesn't end up being misplaced.

Flandre comes into the class just a moment after you and Remilia. She goes to sit by her sister, but she's stopped - Remilia wags her finger at Flandre, whispering something to her in French. Flandre squeaks softly, then whispers something back to her sister at an alarming speed. They exchange whispers like this for a brief moment, before Flandre looks at you, gulps, then walks closer.
"C-could I sit next to you from now on?"
Pretty much EVERYONE stares at her from behind; the look on her face shows all too clearly that she can sense this. The stares then shift onto you - some excited, sone frightened, some just plain curious. Vultures, all of them...

"Sure, I'd like that." It takes a second or two for her to react, but Flandre seems to smile softly. You remove your bag from the seat next to you, placing it under your table, allowing her to sit down next to you.

"Well, then! Children, from today onwards, we will be doing our best to be more like a PROPER Japanese highschool! It turns out I've been faaaaaaar too lenient on all of you!" Keine jumps up from her chair, excitedly pointing her finger at all of you in a sweeping motion - the air is tense.

"To begin with, each class must select a class representative."

"Ooh, ooh! Me! Me!" The light-blue-haired first-year girl from earlier today waves her hand about maniacally, provoking a deep sigh from your poor teacher.

"Anyone other than Cirno, from the first-years?"
Dead silence. You could hear a pin drop, and it would echo.
"Fine. Cirno, you're the class rep for the first-year students."

"Hurray!"

"Now, the second-year students..." Uh-oh. Why is she looking at you like that.

"Naturally, I should be the one to represent the class. After all - I've got the most class here! Haha!" Remilia does her noblewoman laugh, Keine is not amused.

"Thank you for your input, miss Scarlet... However, I believe it would be a splendid idea to give the role to our transfer student! Let's give him all of our trust and support, shall we?" She smiles at you so warmly that you cannot even bring yourself to protest; and so it is decided. Crap.

"And the third-year students..." She squints at the back of the classroom. "Not a lot of you, are there... Miss Onozuka. MISS ONOZUKA."

"Bwah!" Forgive me, Eiki-sama! I DO appreciate that you wish for me to get a proper education! Eh? Where am I?" You're stunned to see that Keine was yelling at the tallest, bustiest, most mature looking girl in the classroom, who happened to be sleeping like a baby. And the lessons haven't even properly begun yet.

Keine's stare looks absolutely venomous. "You happen to be in school, miss Onozuka. That's it! You're the third-year class rep!" So it's a punishment now? Wasn't it a sign of trust and support just a moment ago? Oh dear...
"Well then, let's begin! Each class representative will stand up, then give the commands to the rest of the class - 'stand', 'bow,' and 'sit'. Cirno, would you kindly..."

"Hokay! Ahem, hem..." The little girl springs up eagerly, clearing her throat and taking a deep breath.

"Bow! Sit! Stand! Bow! Stand! Sit!" The other first-year students end up utterly confused, sitting and standing randomly, some falling over in resignation. Cirno looks so very proud of herself, it's ridiculous. Keine looks mortified.

"Thank you, Cirno... That will do." She turns her chocolate brown eyes to you, expression instantly brightening. "Your turn, if you would."

You stand up, somewhat nervous. It's your third day, you don't really know most people here, and you're forced into such a bossy position. Oh well, deep breath, it's nothing big.
"Stand." Grumbling quietly, everyone slowly stands up. You wait until everyone is standing.
"Bow." Everyone bows to the teacher, who looks on delightedly.
"Sit." Everyone takes a seat. Keine looks more than satisfied.

"Excellent! And now the third-years? Miss Onozukaaaa!?" The girl jumps up; she was dozing off again. She barks the commands out rapidly, and the whole process ends up being completely awkward. At least it went better than Cirno's performance.

"Next on our list... cleaning duties. It's improper for the teacher to have to clean the classroom and blackboard, after all!" A roaring noise of protest and outrage crashes around you like a tidal wave, though it is instantly silenced the moment Keine slams a wooden ruler against her desk, peppering the first-year students with splinters.
"As I was saying... hmmm." Here it comes. "How about..."

"Yes, of course, it's no trouble at all." You knew she was going to recommend you again anyway, so you might as well be nice about it. Not like you have much else to do after school.

"Wonderful! Then, if you're on classroom cleaning duty, who do we put on the blackboard..."

A slender, delicate hand shoots up in front of you. "I volunteer." It's Remilia. How... unexpected of her. You'd have thought the young mistress of a mansion would consider such a thing demeaning and beneath her.

"Miss Scarlet, is it? Very well, then, you will be partnered with miss Scarlet. I do hope the two of you will get along well and do a good job at keeping the class clean and proper for us all!" That disarming smile of hers, again... "We will change cleaning assignments every three months."

Three months!" You didn't sign up for THIS.

"Hm, am I forgetting anything... Well, I'm sure it will come to me soon enough! Then, let us begin with the lesson..." The smile on her face curves into a wicked grin, sending chills down your spine into your bladder. "Now, has everyone done their homework!?"
Everyone in the class seems to almost visibly shrink; some students even hide under their desks. Keine goes from one girl to another, shaking her head at some, nodding in approval at a few. When she gets to Cirno, she simply stares at the notebook she's presented with for a brief moment, then leans down, placing her hand on the back of Cirno's head.

Good lord, she's really going to do it!

*Tap.*
"Owie..." She only lightly tapped their foreheads together. Her hat magically stays on top of her head. Still, the class seems to be affected by it; you notice the second- and third-years scribbling corrections to their homework rapidly, before Keine makes it to them. And just like that, she's gotten to you.

"Hmm, hmm... Well... Aha... Hm." Doesn't sound good. "This here is wrong..." She outlines a section, and writes some... corrections? "I've written some tips for guidance; see if you can figure out how to correct the errors yourself, alright?" And as usual, you're graced with that warm, motherly smile. You feel a little spoiled; a handful of students are glaring at you like a teacher's pet.
That little scare earlier created a certain need in you, though. You lean closer and whisper to Keine.

"Teacher... Can I please go to the bathroom?"

"You mean 'may I'."

"May I please go to the bathroom?"

"Of course! But do hurry, we're about to continue the lesson." You nod with gratitude, and run off to find the boys' room. It feels a little weird having this place all to yourself, like this. You wonder if today is going to continue the trend from Monday and Tuesday - being utterly weird, that is. Granted, you did have fun at the Scarlet Devil Mansion. You'll have to visit again sometime. You've promised to play with Flandre, and you'll have to return Sakuya's handkerchief.

You can't wait for lunch break.

After you return to the auditorium, the math lesson continues rather non-eventfully. You help Flandre a little bit, though as time goes on she ends up helping you instead - it's somewhat embarassing for some reason, but numbers seem to come naturally to her, after a bit of an encouraging prod in the right direction. Even so, she seems really happy when you clumsily try to help her, smiling at you all along.

And before you know it, the lesson is over. Remilia heads to the blackboard, and you rach for the broom, only to have Keine stop you.
"There's no need for that right now. Since we're still using the one room for all classes, cleaning the floors and such can wait until after all lessons are over." You nod, and head over to Remilia.

"Come on, give me that, let me do it," you insist on cleaning the blackboard in her place.

She seems appalled. "How chauvinistic of you! You think a short, weak little girl like me can't handle it?"

"Wouldn't it be chauvinistic of me to -let- you do it instead of offering to help?"

She pauses, poking her lower lip with her index finger as she does when she's in thought; this leaves some chalk on her face, as she had already started cleaning. "You have a point there. I suppose us women are simply unpleasable! Haha~!" In any case, you do end up cleaning the blackboard. Remilia drags her sister off somewhere while you're busy. The blackboard is stupidly large compared to what you're used to; though, this is a large auditorium, not a normal classroom, so it's probably meant to be like this so the students in the back can see it. It takes a large portion of the break, but you finish, blackboard sparkling clean. By this time, everyone besides you and Keine - readying herself for the next lessons - has left for the break.

What now, you wonder.



[] Talk to Keine. (Specify subject)
[] Go see if you can find the sisters.
[] Go see if you can find someone else (Specify person)
[] Go to the nurse's office and get checked out, like Sakuya suggested. Your head still feels a little... slow.
[] Go outside for some fresh air, you're coughing up chalk.

[X] Go outside for some fresh air, you're coughing up chalk.

[X] Talk to Keine
[X] Ask her if she minds talking over lunch. Surely she must eat, right?
[X] About that incident yesterday... it wasn't Flandre's fault.
[X] Ask her about Gensokyo, specifically about the rather skewed... gender ratio... and about how it used to be before this program started
[X] Point out the strangeness of this place. Ice on the lake, the Scarlet's wings, Reisen's ears...

I'm sure there's more, but I can't think of anything else. Excellent update, by the way.

[X] Talk to Keine.
- [X] Talk to her about her treatment of you. While you very much appreciate her support, doesn't it seem like the other students will resent you for it?
- [X] Talk to her about Flan's situation. You promised you'd take responsibility for that, didn't you?

Both of these seem important.

[X] Go outside for some fresh air, you're coughing up chalk.

[X] Talk to Keine.
- [X] Talk to her about her treatment of you. While you very much appreciate her support, doesn't it seem like the other students will resent you for it?
- [X] Talk to her about Flan's situation. You promised you'd take responsibility for that, didn't you?

[X] Talk to Keine.
- [X] Talk to her about her treatment of you. While you very much appreciate her support, doesn't it seem like the other students will resent you for it?
- [X] Talk to her about Flan's situation. You promised you'd take responsibility for that, didn't you?

[X] Talk to Keine.
- [X] Talk to her about her treatment of you. While you very much appreciate her support, doesn't it seem like the other students will resent you for it?
- [X] Talk to her about Flan's situation. You promised you'd take responsibility for that, didn't you?

[X] Talk to Keine.
- [X] Talk to her about her treatment of you. While you very much appreciate her support, doesn't it seem like the other students will resent you for it?
- [X] Talk to her about Flan's situation. You promised you'd take responsibility for that, didn't you?

There's not much time until the break ends; no real point going anywhere at this point, is there? Hm, what to do... Ah. Right. You promised something to someone yesterday evening, didn't you.

You walk up to the teacher, who appears to be busily pulling out various books, maps, a small globe and other assorted things - the next lesson is supposed to be geography, yes? In any case, you have something to say to her before the break is over.
"Excuse me... Miss Keine?"

She looks up at you curiously, before gracing you with one of her lovely smiles, standing up after pulling some dusty old atlases out of a section of her desk - it looks a lot more spacious up close, somehow.
"Yes, what is it? How can I help you? Did you have any more questions regarding math?" Her eyes narrow, the smile on her lips corrupting itself into a smirk that would scare the living daylights out of a deranged serial killer. "Or... Have you come to tell me you haven't done your homework?"

"We haven't had any geography lessons yet, miss Keine..."

"Hehe, I'm sorry, it was just a joke. Very well then, what can I do for you?" You wonder how to put this into words - you hadn't really given it that much thought up until now, but you have to say it. It's only fair to the poor girl.

"The, ah, incident, yesterday - between Rumia and myself - Flandre had nothing to do with that. She and her sister were simply passing by. I probably inadvertently started the whole conflict myself, anyway..." She listens to you intently as you mumble up some sort of summary of the events, making sure to specify that Flandre was innocent and uninvolved. She's leaning her elbows against the table, having sat back down when you started, fingers interlocked before her face, eyes firmly fixed on you. Nodding to your words.

"I see." She leans back a little in her chair, putting one leg over the other under that long dress of hers, and resting her hands on her knee. "That's not exactly what I heard from another party involved in the incident."

"You mean Rumia."

She doesn't answer. "I heard Flandre threatened Rumia. Regardless of whether or not what Rumia was doing with you was unacceptable - and rest assured, I've spoken with her on the matter - I cannot ignore the risk of such conflicts escalating." She pauses for a moment. "Especially when things are concerning Flandre Scarlet."

"But-..."

"No. No buts." She sighs for a moment. "I noticed you've been getting along with them quite well."

"With all due respect, teacher - I'm not lying for her because she's my friend, if that's what you're implying..." Clenching your fist, you feel somehow powerless. Can you really not convince her?

"We'll get back to that topic in just a moment..." The smile returns to her face, though it's much lighter than before. "I wanted to ask you how you're doing, in general. Do you feel that you're blending in alright? Making friends? Not getting much trouble from the other students?" She looks outside the window for a moment; some of the first-years are playing something similar to soccer with a round object you can't quite make out from this distance. "Discounting that one incident, of course."

"...I'm making progress at my own pace. There are no complaints."

She frowns a little. "I'm sorry. I did not mean to upset you, or to make you hate me. But..." She stands up, slowly, and leans closer to you, staring you right in the eye, a deadly-serious look on her face. "...how much do you actually know about your friend? About Flandre Scarlet."

...not a lot. It's only, what, your third day of knowing her? You fall silent, unable to give a good answer to that last question.

"Exactly. That girl has a history, of sorts... as do we all, of course. Our history is what defines what we are. Don't you agree?"

"People change." You put it somewhat bluntly, but you say it anyway. After all, you feel you've changed a whole lot from just three days of being here, in several ways - some of which you can hardly even explain.

"They do. However, you can't expect a lion to one day suddenly turn vegetarian; so too can you not expect a problem child to abruptly turn over a new leaf in their life and become a good girl." A problem child? Is that what she considers Flandre? That sweet, innocent, childlike little girl? That's...

"That's impossible. She's simply too pure to be a problem child." Your stare of disbelief is met with a sad pair of brown eyes.

"She was considered a problem child even before enrolling in this school. And that's still after her sister came to me in person, on her behalf, to defend her case and plead with me to allow her to be admitted."

...

"I allowed it, then. I'm still unsure if I've made the right choice. I don't know if I'll ever know for sure. By the time I find out, it might be too late." She sits back down with a slow motion. "But I allowed it, under one condition. That there would be no... episodes. No... outbursts. I was repeatedly assured that these would not become an issue..."

You find it hard to believe what you're hearing. "Episodes? Outbursts? What are you talking about? Is she alright?"

"It's not really my place to tell you these things..."

"Damnit, stop being so cryptic and tell me! I need to know these things!" The first-years outside stop playing and stare inside the window. They heard you. You just yelled at the teacher in a fit of rage. She gives you a long, stern look - you feel as if you're being judged in the flames of purgatory. Silence floods the world.

She coughs, clearing her throat a little.

"Well. Let's just say that right now we were speaking as one person to another; not as teacher to student. Therefore, I'll overlook that... just now." Cold sweat. You're drenched in it. But she's willing to be magnanimous. That’s a good sign.

You take a deep bow. "I am so sorry." She simply nods at you in response.

"It is still not my place to tell you... However, you saw it yourself, didn't you?" Her eyes narrow again, gaze locked with your own. "When Remilia and Flandre Scarlet walked in on your... incident, with Rumia. Did you notice anything different from the Flandre Scarlet that you know and are friends with?"

You think back to that moment... Those eyes. If nothing else, you can clearly remember those eyes. You don't think you'll ever be able to forget them. Wide open, pupils impossibly large. At one point you swear they looked almost glazed over. Such a blind, berserker rage, contained in such a small and delicate body...

"There you go, then." She shifts some notes and papers on her desk around, still preparing for the next lesson. "I'll say this. There aren't many doctors in Gensokyo qualified enough to give much of an opinion on that girl. Although..." She eyes you for a moment, as if considering whether or not to tell you something. "...the nurse working at this school has taken a good look at her, several times. She also assured me that there should - in theory - be no potential triggers for any episodes in day-to-day school life."

...

"I can't be sure. There's a chance you were the trigger, somehow. Maybe indirectly, maybe neither of you realized it at the time. Or, maybe you're the one who managed to keep her from becoming a danger to herself and others, that day. Maybe both." She grips her head, stsring into the wooden surface of her desk. "I don't know. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do about that girl. I gave her another chance, that day, because in the end nothing terrible happened. But if I keep giving her chances, and one day... No. I don't want to think about that possibility."

There's a long moment of silence. You feel uncomfortable; as if you've just opened some sort of Pandora's box, exposing a mysterious darker side of your new friend to yourself.

Does this make you feel any different towards her?

...well, in the end, what was left in the box was hope. And, though you don't quite understand what the issue with Flandre is, you hope to find out - and possibly help her, if it is within your power.

"There was something else." You recall the other reason you had intended to speak to Keine about.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to thank you." She seems somewhat perplexed. "Thank you, for giving me such a warm welcome, and treating me so nicely all this time. I may not be an honor student - I doubt I could ever aspire to become one - and yet you still showed such good faith in me. I wanted to thank you for being kind, and to let you know that I hope not to misuse the faith you've put in me." You pause for a moment, letting it sink in. She's listening intently, not interrupting nor reacting in any particularly obvious manner. "However... I'm somewhat concerned. Won't the other students, ah... take offense? I..."

"Ah... I think I understand. Very well. I apologize - I suppose I have been rather unfair as of late. It's just..." Looking somewhat more relaxed, she lightly leans her head on her hand, elbow resting on the desk. "...I love new faces, new names. When I first heard your name, and when I first saw your face when you finally got here, I knew you were going to be someone special. Special to all of us, here in Gensokyo, in some way. Yes, I still have that faith in you." After a brief smile, she suddenly chuckles to herself. "But you're right. I'm going to have to become more strict on you, too. I'll give you some bonus homework today, so you can really work hard and catch up to the rest of the class in your problem subjects."

"T-thank you... (I guess...)"

You head back towards your desk - lesson's about to start, after all. Before you get far, though, Keine's calm, motherly voice can be heard from behind you once more: "The one that told me what really happened that day... It was Flandre. Rumia just kept repeating about how she didn't do anything wrong. Flandre was being honest, because she didn't want you to get in trouble."
You stop, mid-step. So that's how it was.
"I think she cares for you a lot more than you give her credit for. Maybe, if she finds a good friend in you... Well, maybe you can prove wrong my prejudice."

A soft sigh, from behind you. You can't bring yourself to move - too many thoughts rushing through your mind, like a maelstrom of conflicting emotions and unanswered questions.
"The nurse might be able to let you know more... But I wouldn't count on it."

Suddenly, you feel her hand on your shoulder; you turn your head, and your upper body, and you're looking right at her, standing behind you. She's looking you right in the eyes - you notice hers being strangely shiny, more wet than normal, yet there's no sign of her having actually cried.

"Do you hate me, for what I'm doing to her?"
And for the first time, you sense she can't bare to look at you any longer; she averts her eyes, looking away to the side. A minute or two until the lesson begins, at maximum.
"I just... want to make the right choices... for everyone's sake."



[] (Write-in only.)

[x] Give me a chance, I'll try to make sure there are no "episodes".

Feel free to re-word it.

[X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."

Keine, Keine, Keine...

[x] Don't worry, Miss Keine, you're doing the right thing; you're trying to keep all of your students safe, and you're doing a great job of it. Give me a chance to help and some responsibility as the class rep, I'll try my best not to let any of these 'episodes' happen. Flandre trusts me, I'm sure I can help her.

Nice update.

X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."

BELIEVE IN ME, WHO BELIEVES IN HER

[X] "I guess I'll...do my best, then, too?"

I actually did try to construct something witty or deep, but after a while I got thoroughly sick at my pretentiousness and wrote down, uh, this.

So.

X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."
[X] "I guess I'll...do my best, then, too."

[X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."
[X] "I guess I'll...do my best, then, too."

[X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."
[X] "I guess I'll...do my best, then, too."

[X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."

Excellent.

[X] Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
[X] "Of course I don't hate you. I just want for her to have a fair chance. She's not just her reputation, so... don't let that stuff creep into how you judge her. If you can be impartial for me, then you can be impartial for her too. I'm sure of it."

Yes.

Uh guys, we're a high school student this time around. Trying to act all mature and shit to an older woman just makes us look condescending. Initiating intimate physical contact with our newly introduced teacher is also extremely awkward. None of us would do that in real life, nor did we while in high school. Protagonist-kun is shaping up to be ridiculously mature, far beyond his age, and rather bland because of it. Do something more fitting for his age and level of wisdom.

>>91064
>Do something more fitting for his age and level of wisdom.
[x] Get drunk and pass out in the middle of class

You're forgetting that while we are in a Teacher-Student relationship, at least some of the voting anons want to change that to a Student-Teacher love relationship, and such that a development is also (most likely) possible. Being realistic is fine... but this isn't exactly a realistic setting in the first place.

>>91064

So what do you suggest? Standing there like an idiot, gaping like a fish out of water, and stuttering out a bunch of drivel?

Besides, there's no reason Taisa can't just make the execution of the write-in slightly awkward without detracting from the spirit of it. This is largely a matter of writer's discretion.

>>91071
>[x] Get drunk and pass out in the middle of class

So, Suika route then? or Komachi?

>>91064
>Trying to act all mature and shit to an older woman just makes us look condescending. Initiating intimate physical contact with our newly introduced teacher is also extremely awkward.
She put her hand on our shoulder and asked us a complicated question. Are you trolling or incredibly dense?

>Initiating intimate physical contact with our newly introduced teacher is also extremely awkward
>Initiating intimate physical contact with our newly introduced teacher
>Initiating intimate physical contact with our teacher
>Initiating intimate physical contact with our hot female teacher

DO WANT KEINE ROUTE.
Anyone who had a smokin' female teacher in high school will understand. Which you obviously didn't; or a troll

[X] "I guess I'll...do my best, then, too."

>>91074

As far as physical contact goes a hand on the shoulder isn't that intimate. It's friendly and comforting, but holding one's hand is something else altogether.

>>91064
>>Uh guys, we're a high school student this time around. Trying to act all mature and shit to an older woman just makes us look condescending. Initiating intimate physical contact with our newly introduced teacher is also extremely awkward. None of us would do that in real life, nor did we while in high school. Protagonist-kun is shaping up to be ridiculously mature, far beyond his age, and rather bland because of it. Protagonist-kun is shaping up to be ridiculously mature, far beyond his age, and rather bland because of it.

As opposed to turning down Remilia's initial invitation due to a typical teenage lack of confidence, chattering like a bitch every time he sees a touhou with wings, horns, animal ears, etc., and generally being quiet and angsty because he's a student in a strange new town where he doesn't know anyone?
Yeah, you're right. Acting slightly more mature than a "real high-schooler" is totally dumb and boring.
And never mind that nearly every character is, mentally, at least a few centuries older than the protagonist, or that a beautiful schoolmarm is clearly looking for some degree of comfort in his response.

[x] "Uhhh... n-n-no, it's ok-okay... e-excuse me..."
[x] Slink home. Don't talk to anyone on your way out, you're too embarrassed. Your Japanese probably sounds like shit anyway, and you can't expect people to really like you. Remilia and Flandre just felt sorry for you. That's all.
[x] Curl up in the corner of your room and cry like the pimply little girl you are. No one will ever love you.

[/overthetopsarcasm]

It's quiet. Even the noise of the girls playing outside has ceased, leaving behind a deafening silence. The quiet rythmic ticking of the clock on the wall above the blackboard ends up being the only thing reminding you that time still marches on. Keine loosens her grip on your shoulder - not that it was particularly strong to begin with - beginning to withdraw her hand.

Shit. You should probably say something to dispel this atmosphere, instead of letting it carry over to the next lesson. Also, the sight of an upset Keine simply does nasty things to you on the inside. Unfortunately, you're not exactly the most qualified person to be giving someone else a rousing pep-talk, backed up by lifetime experience and dripping with wisdom.

Still.

You carefully place your hand on hers before she can remove it. She stops.
"M-miss Keine..." Deep breaths, now. "What I'm about to say... I don't mean to sound pretentious for my age, but it's probably going to sound like that no matter what I do about it, so..."
Your eyes are nailed to the floor, trying to piece together the right words and phrases rapidly. Sixty seconds until the lesson starts, give or take? The fact that you're touching her hand like this doesn't exactly help you concentrate either.

"N-no. I don't hate you." You can feel her eyes on the back of your head, looking at you intently once again. "It's just... I... ah... I want her to have a fair chance. Yes, that's what I wanted to say..." A short pause as you try to piece more words together in your mind. That incessant ticking noise! "She's not just her reputation... I probably sound pretty stupid, defending her like this, having only known her for three days, but..."
But what? "But I still don't think that should creep into how you judge a person. Their reputation, that is... After all, if you can be impartial for me, surely you can be impartial for her?" You turn your head again, looking back at her - she's considering your words. You hope you didn't come off as condescending towards an older woman, just now. Ah well, what do you have to lose? You turn around to face her properly, and exclaim, in full dramatic bravado: "Belive in me, who believes in her!"

That last line succeeded in provoking a soft chuckle from her; it feels good to see her smile again, regardless of how foolish you just made yourself look.

"What an interesting line... Is that from somewhere, or did you come up with it on your own? Maybe you should think about getting into acting, some day?" As she seems to cheer up somewhat, the bell rings. Looking over to the door, satisfied, you can see a bunch of first-years hiding in the hallway, peeking through the door.
Crap, they didn't hear anything, did they? As the other students start stampeding into the room, they're knocked onto the floor in front of the door in a tumbling mess. Keine walks up to them, slowly and calmly, then begins tapping her foot, arms crossed.
"And just what do you think you are doing? Take your seats, all of you, the lesson has started." Having said that, she goes to sit at her desk, to the sound of Cirno and her gang scampering to their places in a mild panic. "Well then! During the first lesson, I completely forgot to check for absentees. Whoever managed to sneak in during the break, I expect you to be honest and inform me on the matter after the lesson."

The first few minutes are spent on Keine yelling peoples' names over the auditorium - she's certainly got a strong voice, to be able to easily reach the back of the room as well.
"Fujiwara no Mokou? ...I see, absent again..." That person hasn't been to school even once so far - Keine seems to become saddened rather than angry, whenever she checks for this Mokou. In any case, she goes on for a while, threatening to mark Komachi Onozuka as absent for sleeping during class yet again - the usual spiel. All of a sudden, the door is kicked open, and a blonde, long-haired girl with golden eyes casually steps inside, carrying her schoolbag over her shoulder, and emanating such a strong aura of a delinquent even you can sense it from here.
"Miss Kirisame? So glad you could join us... Late, even to the second lesson. I wonder, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"Yo." Waving at the teacher with a wide grin, the girl just skips over to the seat next to another second-year and sits down. Hey, that's the dark-haired girl you bumped into on your first day - Reimu, you think her name was. Fuming a little, Keine spits some reprimanding remarks at Marisa, wagging her finger through the air furiously, only to have them bounce off the girl with no effect.

Suddenly, geography! The lesson goes on normally, as is to be expected, until the last few minutes, when Keine suddenly leaps to her feet in excitement - not necessarily a good sign for anyone, illustrated by the fact that the students sitting in the front row immediately cower and start trembling.

"Ah, I almost forgot! The nice foreman of the rennovation and construction going on at our school has informed me that they've finished some of the rooms on the second floor of the building!"

"A bit of a waste of resources to finish those first, wouldn't you say? Oh, but of course, you're the one who requested them to do so..." A quiet, tired-sounding voice comes from outside the door, and Patchouli Knowledge enters the room, looking as energetic as ever. That is to say, you wouldn't be surprised if she collapsed right here and now from anemia.
"Those aren't classrooms, so the students will still have to be packed up in this one auditorium for a while longer."

"Yes, well... It can't be helped now, can it?" The two teachers stare at one another, one putting on a scary grin, the other looking entirely emotionless.

"I suppose not." You can't be sure, but it feels like Patchouli is sending suspicious looks at you from the corner of her eye. Or is it the sisters that she's looking at? No, it's both. Remilia shuffles about in her seat, seeming somehow uncomfortable... She must've noticed, also. Flandre looks entirely oblivious to this, however, casually swinging her legs back and forth in the air beneath her chair.

"Children! The rooms that were finished were intended to be used for clubs. So, I expect evvvvery single one of you to either create a club, or join one!" She raises her hand towards the sky (well, ceiling), index finger extended for emphasis. "Extracurricular activities are important! It'll end up looking good on your permanent record, and may even help you find employment in the future! And, above all... have fun with it!" How inspiring... But, you're not entirely sure if you can be bothered to take part in such things.

While at first the other students seem to share your general disinterest, it takes a mere moment or two for some of them to start discussing the matter among one another vigorously. A few go up to Keine's desk, where they receive some paper - presumable for recruitment posters. Wow, they're all taking this so seriously... Keine certainly is, though despite her determined eyes, her lips form one of her more gentle smiles right now.

The bell rings - the lesson is over. You pull your little notebook/sketchbook out of your pocket, eyeing the timetable you've drawn yourself. After this break, it's time for art, and after that, lunch.



[] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[] Ask Flandre if she has any hobbies - it would be good for her to have something she enjoys doing, and might get her friends over time, if she joins a club.
-{} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.
[] This does not interest you. Go do something else to kill time until the next lesson. (Specify)

[X] This does not interest you. Go do something else to kill time until the next lesson.
[X] Doodle.

Totally been neglecting our artistic nature.

>>91083
Better yet...
[X]Make an art club.
You are the second-year's class representative, why not make a club of your own?

>Suddenly, geography!
I chuckled and I'm not entirely sure why.

[x] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.
Drama is meh. Flandre's hobbies are probably meh as well.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.

[x] Make/join music club. Girls love musicians, especially since this anon has creative talent.

[X]Make an art club.

>>91080
I wasn't aware that hyperbole was a legitimate form of arguing. Setting up a strawman will not change the fact that Protagonist-kun is rapidly losing believability in his role.

[X]Make an art club.

[X] Make/join music club. Girls love musicians, especially since this anon has creative talent.

Sounds good.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

No rules against joining more than one club, though I wouldn't try to get into more than two (since we're also the class rep, and four extracurricular activities might be a bit much.)

Making an art club seems redundant, since we already have an art class. Besides, our talents seem to apply to anything creative, so drama would probably cover that.

Some alternatives include:
- Psychic/Paranormal Club. Experimenting with our newfound abilities. Possible touhous include: Just about anyone, especially Nitori (ghost catchan' gaems) and Koishi (but not Satori, because she lives underground, and we'd be treading dangerously close to being an IPF ripoff).
- Anime and Manga Club. Revel in your weeabooness alongside actual Japanese people, and possibly put your creative talents to work in the form of cartooning. Possible touhous include: Kaguya, Cirno (a likely shounen fan), Patchouli (lawl fanon), and Sikieiki (see: Touhou Tag Dream).
- Any athletic club. You really ought to start getting into shape with all these girls around, and they say the mind is best trained in tandem with the body (Patchouli notwithstanding). Possible touhous include: Youmu, Suika, Sanae (I can see her running track or something, being the good girl that she is)
- Nine Squad (I can't type circle-nine on this crappy laptop). Self explanatory. Possible touhous include: Cirno, Wriggle, Mystia, Rumia (could be a problem), Daiyousei, Chen.
- Food/Cooking Club. Watch Mystia get chased by a hungry ghost for fun Learn to cook. Possible touhous include: Mystia, Mokou (though she's been absent), Yuyuko (she'd show even if she weren't a member), Youmu ("Yuyu-sama, please stop eating all the ingredients before I cook them...")
- None. Take it easy! Possible touhous include: Marisa, Reimu, Komachi, Sanae, anyone else likely to be a delinquent or have a day job.

Oh, and one more thing for your consideration:

>[x] After school, go look for this "Mokou". You don't like seeing Keine upset when she's absent.

>>91092
Very nice suggestions, anon.
About the art club - I remember that in my high school, there was an art class and an art club. The art class focused more on history, styles and techniques, while the club was more about big projects or individual projects for the talented.

After school we should talk to Reisen. Why was she so nervous? Maybe we could make some new friends for Flandre.

>>91089
>>I wasn't aware that hyperbole was a legitimate form of arguing.

That means you've never watched Fox (thank god).
But seriously.

The fact that you're chiding me for using exaggerated sarcasm tells me you need to relax. Were you butthurt by the number of Anons that don't share your oh-so-fragile suspension of disbelief? Of course, you also conspicuously failed to consider any of the underlying points in my post, so maybe you're just a hypocrite.

Anonymous picked the creative skillset for a reason --he always opts for a charismatic character, and that was the closest thing offered. If the writer has even the tiniest amount of empathy with his readers, then, teen or not, the protagonist should have some degree of ability with words. And besides this, I can't really think of any other situation where he was "overly mature"... though, whether comforting one's elder when she is obviously looking for it by returning -- not initiating -- physical contact qualifies as too mature is another debate.

I will say that the protagonists laid-back reaction to all the weird shit around him was somewhat far-fetched, but I also understand that it was probably for the sake of moving things along. I'm not about to complain, since it's really, really not a big deal, and certainly not worth a retcon.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

[X] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too

[X] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.

[X] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.
[x] Help Flan and Remi join a club, too

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

>Believe in me, who believes in her!

Writefag I love you, no homo.

>>91095
The fact that you're chiding me for using sarcasm against your exaggerated sarcasm tells me you need to relax. Hurr. Durr.

Claims of butthurtedness aside, Protagonist-kun's charisma is irrelevant. The problem is that he's so busy white knighting in front of Keine in order to impress her (granted, it's actually Anon's fault) that he's out of character and ridiculously cheesy. The worst part is that he's actually successful in this situation which would be incredibly awkward anywhere else. I don't think we should be rewarded for being so damn melodramatic.

[O] Go wander about a bit, see what clubs are being formed and advertised. Maybe you'll find something you're actually interested in.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.

Her play productions will be overflowing with charisma!

[X] Make/join music club. Girls love musicians, especially since this anon has creative talent.
[X] After school we should talk to Reisen. Why was she so nervous? Maybe we could make some new friends for Flandre.

[X]Make an art club.

>>91103

Was I chiding you? Sorry, bro. I meant something more along the lines of: stop whining because Anon went for an option that you didn't like, then shot you down when you went to bitch about it.
Because that is exactly what you're doing.

>>The problem is that he's so busy white knighting in front of Keine in order to impress her (granted, it's actually Anon's fault) that he's out of character and ridiculously cheesy.

I disagree (which I all I can do, as you are only stating opinion now). It's overt, to be sure, but I wouldn't consider it cliché. I see nothing wrong with being outgoing.

"But that's out of character"? Who says? You?

>>I don't think we should be rewarded for being so damn melodramatic.

And, again, I disagree. And so did the majority.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

[x] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[x] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

>>91110 >>91103
Save it for the drama club.

>>91103

Well, I'd say the writer made it into something rather believable. Awkward, a bit of stammering, and an "Oh, aren't you cute" kind of reaction from Keine. Pretty well handled, if you ask me.

>>91110
I see you're a big fan of argumentum ad populum. I'm sorry if you all you can do is go LOL OPINIONS.

Since when has criticism of choices been banned? Anons do this all the time in other stories and you've gone and overreacted. Also, I made my point after most of the voting was already over. You can't retroactively interpret those votes to be antagonistic towards me. Newfags can't logic.

Anon is a sucker for fancy write-ins without thinking of implications. This happens in most stories and I admit that it's unfair of me to target this one particularly. I apologize to the writefag for this.

>>91134
He handled it extremely well, considering the situation, and I applaud him for that.

I'm going to stop arguing before I get banned for causing this two-person shitstorm.

tl;dr LOL I TROLL U

>>91136
>>I GET THE LAST WORD END OF STORY
Pfft.

>>Also, I made my point after most of the voting was already over. You can't retroactively interpret those votes to be antagonistic towards me. Newfags can't logic.
Sequence of events.
You voted -> they voted -> you whined like a bitch made said "point" -> you were rebuked in multiple posts.

>>Anon is a sucker for fancy write-ins without thinking of implications.
Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

>>tl;dr
>> 6 lines of actual text
...

Shhhh We're trying to enjoy the story.

>>91140
Fine, we'll totally drag this tedious shit out. Let's dance the dance of internet rage.

>>I GET THE LAST WORD END OF STORY
>Pfft.
The argument became hopelessly futile once you mentioned LOL OPINIONS. Typing rebuttals is a pain in the ass and we've devolved into trolling each other if your last post is representative of anything.

>You voted -> they voted -> you whined like a bitch made said "point" -> you were rebuked in multiple posts.

Nope, I never bothered voting because:
1. I didn't like the popular write-in.
2. I couldn't think of an alternative.
3. You're a faggot.

>Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

Cool story, bro. I probably shouldn't have started the meme-reply bullshit.

> 6 lines of actual text
It was easier than typing "In summary" and it looked wordier in the reply prompt. Let's stop with the red herring arguments.

>>91143
>>The argument became hopelessly futile once you mentioned LOL OPINIONS. Typing rebuttals is a pain in the ass and we've devolved into trolling each other if your last post is representative of anything.
I typed LOL OPINIONs because that's what they were. No facts involved. After the first reply, you never supplied a cohesive answer to anything I said, so I guess it's wasn't an argument to begin with. At least on your end.

>>I never bothered voting
I stand corrected. So, how does this change the fact that you whined when it didn't go your way? Because that was pretty gay.

>>It was easier than typing "In summary" and it looked wordier in the reply prompt. Let's stop with the red herring arguments.
Wasn't an argument, just pointing out that you apparently thought 6 lines was long enough to require summary.

Incidentally, when is writing going to start? You can't troll or argue, and it's starting to bore me. I'm just killing time now.

[X] Propose to Remilia that she should join or create a drama club - you can sense she's got a talent for such a thing.
-{x} Offer to join with her if she doesn't seem motivated.
[X] Help Flandre join a club, too (and not just the one that you and Remilia make.)
-{x} Join whatever she joins.
--{x} ...Unless it's the Math League, in which case you should just promise to go with her to each meet.

>Incidentally, when is writing going to start? You can't troll or argue, and it's starting to bore me. I'm just killing time now.
If you mean writing of the next part, he's working on it right now.

>>91146

Hooray~

>>91144
>I typed LOL OPINIONs because that's what they were. No facts involved. After the first reply, you never supplied a cohesive answer to anything I said, so I guess it's wasn't an
argument to begin with. At least on your end.

What the hell are you talking about? I've been noting all of your fallacies and offering rebuttals for them. You've been making ad fucking hominems ever since this began. Goddamn, you'd better be trolling.

Read the damn story. Protagonist-kun is not the type of character to be as excessive as that. He's perverted and silly at times, but explicitly tries to restrain himself in those situations. Literature does not give free reign to dismiss everything as opinions. The matter of Protagonist-kun's personality is a scientific question to a fairly solid degree and not hopelessly ambiguous. I do not want to swallow the laissez-faire crap you're spouting. If something's observable (ie personality, Anon's voting habits, etc), it's possible to evaluate it.


>I stand corrected. So, how does this change the fact that you whined when it didn't go your way? Because that was pretty gay.

Did you bother reading my posts? Criticism is not whining. It happens all the time on these boards.

>Incidentally, when is writing going to start? You can't troll or argue, and it's starting to bore me. I'm just killing time now.

Wow, you're so awesome. I sure wish I could suck my own cock like that.

Your turn.

>>91149
>>I've been noting all of your fallacies and offering rebuttals for them

OK, abridged recap time. It's getting late, so I'll be kind and skip the added trolls.

In response to the reply to Keine, you said that the protagonist was rapidly becoming less believable.
I said that you were overreacting because the protagonist was intended to be good with words; his reply to Keine was reasonable.
You then said the problem was that it was out of character, so I pointed out that that wasn't your call to make.
The actual debate stopped there. So, picking up where we left off...

>>Read the damn story. Protagonist-kun is not the type of character to be as excessive as that. He's perverted and silly at times, but explicitly tries to restrain himself in those situations.
I wouldn't consider reassuring Keine and returning mutual physical contact (which was a mere hand-on-the-shoulder, I might add) as "excessive". But, I guess that means we've reached an impasse. Our notions of the protagonist's personality are different... which bring us to:

>>The matter of Protagonist-kun's personality is a scientific question to a fairly solid degree and not hopelessly ambiguous. I do not want to swallow the laissez-faire crap you're spouting. If something's observable (ie personality, Anon's voting habits, etc), it's possible to evaluate it.

Well, "scientific" is pushing it a bit, but yes, it is representable. I'm not entirely sure what you mean by laissez-faire in this context, but what I got from the story is that the protagonist is generally outgoing and easygoing (as reflected in being able to handle meeting and befriending Gensokyo's residents without a major incident), albeit with your basic suite of "first day at a new school" feelings (nervousness, mild pensiveness, etc.) As for "Anon's voting habits"... well, that option did win by a rather considerable margin.

Oh, and, I apologize; I said I was going to skip the "lolitrollu" parts, but:
>>Criticism is not whining
You, yourself, said that you wrote that post after most of the voting was done. "Criticism" most often refers to situations in which it aids in change or improvement, though it's base definition is "an evaluation". You gave your criticism at a point where you knew it would be ineffectual. In that situation, I'd call it whining in the form of a critique.

>>91150

--That is, unless it was a pure troll, in which case, uh... well done.

Hm... clubs, huh. Well, it couldn't hurt to have something productive to spend time on after school. Joining one would probably also help you get to know the rest of the girls in the class better - up until now, you've only spoken to, what, four of them? Granted, it's only your third day; you've got the whole year in front of you. Assuming another crazy girl like Rumia doesn't try to strangle you to death.

Oh. Speaking of friends. You glance at Flandre, sitting next to you while carefully packing her things, including the dusty old atlas everyone received and was told to keep. You give her a hand fitting the fat book into her bag, receiving a bright smile as thanks.

"Say, Flan. Do you have any hobbies? Things you like to do." Yes. This is probably a good idea - getting Flandre to join a club would surely get her to make new friends over time, as well as show everyone that she's not some batshit crazy delinquent.

"My... hobbies?" She looks at you for a moment, perplexed, before glancing over at her sister, who seems to be busy preparing for the next lesson as well. Flandre swallows, then turns her gaze back to you, smiling nervously.

Then she stands up.

And curtsies. "M-my hobbies are embroidery and reading."

"...what was that just now?" She doesn't respond, nor does she look at you, seeming somehow embarassed. "Was that something you've been told to say whenever someone asks?" She nods softly. Oh boy.

"Flan, you can talk to me normally. Okay? You don't have to use practiced lines on me, or try to be all proper and stuff. You can just be yourself, you know?" A bit of a long silence, before she turns back to you, smiling softly.

"Okay."

"Good. Then, do you have anything you really like doing?" She tilts her head a little in thought, hair swishing to the side. She really does look cute, even without the sidetail.

"...I really do like reading. I have lots of books in my room at home! Not as much as Patchouli does, but... It's like my own little collection, you know? So I read a lot." She grins, looking proud. It pleases you to notice that she's becoming more open, even in school - at least around you, for starters.

"Really? Then maybe there's a... book club or something you could join. Although, I honestly thought you'd be interested in math - you're really great with numbers, you know. Are you sure you don't want to start a club based on something like that, if there isn't one?"

She chuckles lightly at you, in a somewhat unusual tone, slowly standing up. "I don't think many people would be interested in something like that."
She might just have a point. Taking a good look around the room, the amount of true intellectuals seems somewhat disappointing. Cirno is picking her nose, Rumia is chattering with another girl about food, Keine is busy arguing with a long-blue-haired girl about why she's not allowed to wear her hat in school, promptly confiscating it to cries of protest and accusations of hypocrisy. Honestly, who has peaches on their hat...

"So, how about a book club? Surely there are other students who would be interested in such a thing. You could share books among one another, make friends..."
She seems uncertain. While not showing any obvious signs of rejection, she's holding her hands behind her back and doing that thing again - where she draws little circles on the floor with her toe. She needs more encouragement.
"Heck, I'll even join you. How about that? You'll have one extra member right off the bat."

She hesitates for a while longer, fidgeting. Furrowing her eyebrows, staring at a fixed point on the ground, deep in thought. Then, she lifts her eyes, locking them with yours - those bright red eyes, it's almost strange how they don't creep you out. Rather, you find them pleasant to look at. No... It's not the color. It's just her gaze, that gives her eyes such a warm aura at times like this. She smiles at you once again.
"I'd like that, a lot."

"Hmmm? I didn't think you two to be the likes to be joining or making your own club... It's simply adorable, somehow." Remilia finally joins in the conversation, grinning at you mockingly. "You make it sound like such a serious matter. Flan, darling you can read books back home too, can't you? You can even borrow anything you want from Patchy's library, you've surely grown bored of those old ones you've had in your room all these years."

Flandre stares back at her sister defiantly - that's a look you've never seen in her eyes before. "B-but... I want to read with..." She grabs you under your arm. "...with him. I want to share the books I love, with my friend." Remilia shakes her head in response, sighing.

"Still clinging to the idea that reading together can be fun, huh... Well, you two knock yourselves out, then!" She gives both of you yet another sarcastic grin, seeming overly amused. Flandre is still holding onto you - since she doesn't seem to have any intention of letting go anytime soon, you decide not to force her. This feels somehow good too, and it doesn't look like anyone else is staring...

"What about you, Remi?"

"Hmm?" She turns a pair of disinterested eyes to you once more, leaning on the back of her chair, legs hanging in the air over the left and right side.

"Why don't you join a club? Or start one; yeah, I can see you in a leading position. Remilia Scarlet, president of the drama club." You stand up and strike a theatric pose for emphasis, triggering a sort of gigglesnort from Flandre.

"Psh... I already told you, social cliques like that do not interest me. And besides..." She stands up with you, placing one hand on her hip, and pulling the other up near the side of her face. "...I'm already the head of an exquisite, marvelous mansion, and employer of a staff of several hundred maids. I've got all the authority I could ask for, already. Ahaha~!"

"Oh come on, it'll be fun. I'll help out, too."

"What, and join with me? Hmph..." For a brief moment, she almost seems to consider your words... but then she simply pouts. You can feel her gaze between you and her sister - Flandre is still clinging to you. "You've already made a promise to help my sister with her little book club, right? You can't just go handing out promises like that to every pretty girl you see~"

"But..." You're defeated.

"I stick to my choice. But... I'll be the moral support for you two, alright?" Her silly facial expressions are finally replaced with a warm, friendly smile, much more pleasant to look at than her pouting face or wicked grins. "Don't let her down, alright?" You just nod in response, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. Flandre squeezes your arm a little, prompting you to look down at her. She's looking right back at you.

"...should we make a poster?" Good, she's taking initiative! You pat her on the head lightly and tell her you'll take care of that part. After all, you've been neglecting your artsy side lately, and designing an attractive poster is just the thing that would get you back into your groove.
You get right to work, while the break still lasts, Flandre sitting by your side and looking on as you work, eyes wide with amazement, mouth open and drawing deep breaths whenever you finish a section, cheeks turning a light shade of pink. Looking at her face, you'd think you're doing ice sculpture or something.

There we go. Nothing too tacky, a design that attracts attention, yet is easy to read and informative. Well, as informative as you can get for a club that was just created a minute ago. The two of you, together, take the poster to Keine's desk for approval, and she adds the detail of what room you'll be using.

"There's a bulletin board outside, where the others have already hanged their posters. You should hurry up while there's still space!" With a gentle smile, she sends you off, and oh boy - she wasn't kidding! The bulletin board is covered in posters for various clubs already.

Light Music Club looking for guitarist, current members - the three Prismriver sisters. You recall them being in your class, but sitting up front.

Kendo club accepting all applicants. Must be willing to take training seriously. A formal, simple poster design. Current members - Youmu Konpaku.

Gensokyo High's very own newspaper looking for reporters! A semi-official offshoot of the Bunbunmaru Newspaper. The word 'Newspaper' has been crossed out by someone else and replaced with the word 'Tabloid' in crooked handwriting. Current members: Aya Shameimaru. You recall her being one of the third-year girls, constantly taking awkward snapshots of people with her cellphone, only to have Keine threaten to confiscate it.

It goes on and on. Clubs for most things you could think of, and some you couldn't - somehow, you don't think Cirno's Association of Frog Freezing Aficionados will last long. Did she actually get this approved? And who did she get to help her spell 'Aficionado'?

In any case, there's space for one more poster, so you find four unused thumbtacks, then look at Flandre. Offering two to her, you smile. "Together?" She nods, grinning at you. You pin the poster to the board, and admire your handiwork. It certainly does catch one's eye amidst the others - you just hope there'll be applicants for membership.
Flandre already looks delighted, bobbing back and forth and giggling to herself, smiling brighter than ever before. You probably did good, today. She looks at you, eyes seeming almost a little watery. "...I'm already having fun. Are you?"

"Yeah." No lie, it was pretty fun doodling and designing that poster, especially when you have a cute girl showing unbridled appreciation for it when you finish. You'll have to draw her something, sometime, when you're in a more proper atmosphere with free time...

You head back to class, and your eye catches Remilia, staring out of the window with a melancholy look on her face. She sighs to herself softly, before noticing you and waving with a big grin, as is normal for her. Sometimes you get the feeling she just likes showing off her perfect sparkly white teeth. Still, just now she looked... sad, somehow.

"You two quite done yet? Art's about to start. Hmm... Do you like to paint, or draw?" She looks at you, smirking.

"Drawing is one of the few things I've ever been good at."

"Ohh? Aren't we confident in ourselves? Perhaps someday I'll grant you the honor of painting a portrait of my beautiful self! Ahahaha~" You laugh with her, though wondering if this personality of hers is just a charade to mask her feelings.

The bell rings, and the lesson begins. It's somewhat low-grade for you, as you've been to a handful of art courses to hone your talents in your day. Keine gives a brief interjection on art history - no specific period, just a general talk on how art has evolved over the ages, something you've heard a million times by now. When she's done, you're set to drawing a picture of a bowl of fruit. Looking to your side, you smirk just a little upon seeing Flandre draw in a somewhat cartoony manner, like you'd expect from a child. It's cute, though still life isn't really meant to look like that. You offer some tips and help her with coloring as the lesson goes on - and just as suddenly as it began, it's over.

Wait. You know what this means, don't you?

Lunch break! To celebrate the launching of your new club, you decide to eat with Flandre and her sister - their location of choice is a small flat grassy area right outside the school territory, overlooking the village and its surroundings. Quite a view... Now if only it weren't so damn HOT.

"Hmm? Hey, where'd you get that from?" Remilia cocks an eyebrow suspiciously, staring at the lunchbox you proceed to unwrap from the red handkerchief.

"Er... Sakuya packed it for me..." Somehow, it's awkward to let the rich girl know that her maid's made you lunch like this. For a while, you had assumed Remilia was the one who asked Sakuya to do so.

"Hum... I guess she must like you, then," Remilia chuckles. "Typically, she doesn't make such gestures to people - much less strangers such as yourself, ah, no offense meant."

"Well, I'm friends with you and Flan; maybe Sakuya could consider me a friend too, eventually?" You'd certainly like that, though with some guilt you wonder if it's just because of her cooking.

"Perhaps. She's a difficult woman to get close to, though." Really? She seemed rather easy-going to you. In any case, you open the box and peek inside to see what she's made for you.

Ah, how simple and yet how delicious-looking. Several small sandwiches, cut into those funky triangle shapes, with what appears to be cheese, lettuce, tomato, what appears to be some sort of sausage... Oh hey, this one seems to have chicken. And this one... Ah. There's a little note fit between the sandwiches.
"I didn't know what you'd like, so I made a little bit of everything."
Also in the box is a shiny fresh apple, a small device which turns out to be a tiny thermos full of tea that also serves as a mug by itself, and... a cupcake? The box isn't really particularly large, yet she's managed to fit everything inside neatly and efficiently, without crushing a single thing. Almost brought to tears by her kindness, you dig in with more than a healthy appetite. The three of you are sitting on a small square white cloth with some flower motifs here and there; it feels sort of like a picnic.

Out of curiosity, you examine what the sisters are eating. To your utter shock, Remilia is eating store-bought onigiri, though she doesn't seem bothered by it at all. Well, whatever she likes, right? She's casually dripping the red stuff on it, as usual.

Flandre's food vaguely resembles dark red meatballs at a first glance. You can't quite figure out what -exactly- it is meant to be, yet somehow the smell keeps you from wanting to try it for yourself. Perhaps this is that specially prepared food Sakuya mentioned to you? In any case, her appetite seems much better than what you've seen from her when eating normal food, to the point where she's got some on your face. You wipe it off her face with a paper towel, provoking a slight yelp from her and an amused cackle from her sister.

After you've all finished, you can hardly stand up. Considering how efficiently packed into a small box your lunch was, it was very filling. Spotting a trashcan next to the school building, you toss it with a graceful arc, only to have it hit a passing-by Cirno in the head, exploding into a million pieces. After the three of you hide in some bushes for a good minute or two, the outraged little girl heads back inside with a loud grumble. Remilia sounds like she's about to collapse and die from giggle fits.

Back to the auditorium, then. The girls excuse themselves to go to the bathroom, first, so you go inside to wait for them. Looks like you're the first one back from lunch - nobody in here besides you... and Patchouli Knowledge.

"Oh. It's you." Her voice sounds dry and emotionless, purple eyes slowly rising to look up at you. You stare at one another for quite a while; it doesn't take long for you to start feeling awkward, though she isn't saying anything.

"Er, well, I..."

"So, how are you managing? In Gensokyo, I mean. This school." She continues staring.

"Ah, well... I'm doing pretty good. I've been getting support from some friends, after all."

"I see. Yes, you've become... close, with my mistress and her sister, haven't you." Another long and awkward pause. Your ear drums feel as if they're about to rupture from the silence.

"Well-..."

"Still. I am somewhat amazed that you have lasted this long." She stands up - the motion looks forced, strained. It's strange, this woman radiates such physical weakness from her appearance, yet her eyes are those of a strong, resilient person. It's those eyes that intimidate you, even though the person you're talking to is wearing what looks like some sort of pajama-robe. Her step is light, silent, almost as if she's gliding along the floor, before coming to a stop mere feet away from you. And still staring.

"Tell me. Have you noticed anything... strange or unusual, during your stay here?"



[] No, not really.
[] Yes, actually...
-{} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.
-{} Tell her about the ice on the lake.
-{} Tell her you think you can blow things up with mind bullets.
-{} Tell her you think the extreme heat these days is making you hallucinate at times - seeing people fly or seemingly vanish into thin air.
-{} Tell her you think you're about -this- close to going absolutely bonkers from it all.

[X] Yes, actually...
-{X} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.
-{X} Tell her about the ice on the lake.
-{X} Tell her you think you can blow things up with mind bullets.
-{X} Tell her you think the extreme heat these days is making you hallucinate at times - seeing people fly or seemingly vanish into thin air.

>[ ] It's strange for her to approach you like this. Maybe you ought to take this opportunity to...
>-[ ] ...play with her a little. "Hmmm~? I wonder~..."
>-[ ] ...ask her about it. "Why are you asking me this all of a sudden?"

For your consideration.
As for my vote:

[x] Yes, actually...
-{x} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.

We really ought to get this out of the way, already. We can finally get a straight answer from Patchouli.

[x] Yes, actually...
-{x} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.

[+] Yes, actually...
-[+] Tell her you think the extreme heat these days is making you hallucinate at times - seeing people fly or seemingly vanish into thin air.
-[+] Tell her about the ice on the lake.

I'd go with the first sub-option too, but Patchouli has "[odd] eye and hair color." That would be--awkward.

>In response to the reply to Keine, you said that the protagonist was rapidly becoming less believable.
I said that you were overreacting because the protagonist was intended to be good with words; his reply to Keine was reasonable.
You then said the problem was that it was out of character, so I pointed out that that wasn't your call to make.
The actual debate stopped there. So, picking up where we left off...

Being good with words and charisma don't nessecarily translate into "bravado", for lack of a better term. A charismatic teenager is very unlikely to keep up the charisma alone in front of an attractive authority figure of the opposite sex and do what Protagonist-kun did. That is unbelievable and expecting it to work is condescending. I, personally, would not want somebody with much less life experience than I have to comfort me in that manner. I would imagine this applies to most people, even ones as nice as Keine. Protagonist-kun's actions (again, before the update) were not reasonable as he is emotionally intelligent and should have been aware of that. In retrospect, I should have used a different term than "maturity" like "perceived social standing" or something.

I brought up Protagonist-kun's personality due to your statement about charisma. I don't believe I went on a tangent as a consistant characterization is vital to believability. Protagonist-kun has been shown to be awkward when faced with female intimacy (excluding his big brother role to Flan) on more than one occasion and his sudden burst of courage (at least before the update) precipitated my suspension of belief. Hand holding takes up enough balls to do with a familiar female peer, let alone what I described Keine as earlier.


>I wouldn't consider reassuring Keine and returning mutual physical contact (which was a mere hand-on-the-shoulder, I might add) as "excessive". But, I guess that means we've reached an impasse. Our notions of the protagonist's personality are different... which bring us to:

It wasn't hand-on-the-shoulder it was:
>Place your hand over hers for reassurance.
>You carefully place your hand on hers before she can remove it.

See above for why I didn't like it. Our interpretations of Protagonist-kun 's personality may be different, but it is reasonable to assume that it's out of character for the reasons above.

>Well, "scientific" is pushing it a bit, but yes, it is representable. I'm not entirely sure what you mean by laissez-faire in this context, but what I got from the story is that the protagonist is generally outgoing and easygoing (as reflected in being able to handle meeting and befriending Gensokyo's residents without a major incident), albeit with your basic suite of "first day at a new school" feelings (nervousness, mild pensiveness, etc.) As for "Anon's voting habits"... well, that option did win by a rather considerable margin.

Well, "empirical" at least. We get to read Protagonist-kun's mind and see his actions. That's a solid basis to evaluate several aspects of his personality. By laissez-faire, I was criticizing your invocation of "LOL OPINIONS" to rebute me, where everyone is completely free to think whatever they want.

I agree with your interpretation, but I also see Protagonist-kun as a silly (running through the halls, "How about this bed?",etc) and fake-sauve (good with women, but loses composure whenever faced with a real situation involving them. See: scene with Sakuya about ogling her and seeing Flan in a sexual manner) character. I wouldn't expect him to do what he did with Keine based on those attributes.

The fact that "that option" won is evidence in favor of my statement about Anon's voting habits. It was a fancy write-in and the voting results would be predicted by my statement of "Anon is a sucker for fancy write-ins without thinking of implications."

>You, yourself, said that you wrote that post after most of the voting was done. "Criticism" most often refers to situations in which it aids in change or improvement, though it's base definition is "an evaluation". You gave your criticism at a point where you knew it would be ineffectual. In that situation, I'd call it whining in the form of a critique.

That's only assuming that my original statement would be heeded for that vote only. I was hoping that Anon would at least try to take my advice for other votes later in the story. That would define it as "criticism" according to your definition. As for whining, I did want to impress Keine somehow, but would've prefer a more conservative manner of doing so. I'd call it prudence, but I'm biased as hell.

That's all I can say for now. I'm going on a trip won't have computer access until Friday afternoon. It's up to you if you want to continue this then. It was fun at first, but now I'm honestly sick of this.

[x] Yes, actually...
-{x} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.

>>91154
[X] Yes, actually...
-[x] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[x] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

I don't feel like getting into any specifics. I am enjoying being a stranger in a strange land that is blissfully ignorant of the abilities/capacity of the people he's rubbing elbows with. Things are certainly weird here (and definitely dangerous at times), but I'm not willing to forfeit the naivete/ignorance of Touhou canon that makes this character so absolutely awesome to play (right now, at least).

I'd add something about brown-nosing to Patchu for some rare and/or interesting books for the newly formed book club, but I think that can wait for the moment

[O] Yes, actually...
-[O] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[O] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

[x] Yes, actually...
-[x] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[x] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

A little wordy, but I like the idea.

[x] Yes, actually...
-[x] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[x] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

[X] Yes, actually...
[X] See, something happened to me last Thursday when I was walking home. I had a couple of miles to go - I looked up and saw a glowing orange object in the sky, to the east! It was moving very irregularly... suddenly there was intense light all around me - and when I came to, I was home. What do you think happened to me?

[X] Yes, actually...
[X] See, something happened to me last Thursday when I was walking home. I had a couple of miles to go - I looked up and saw a glowing orange object in the sky, to the east! It was moving very irregularly... suddenly there was intense light all around me - and when I came to, I was home. What do you think happened to me?

>>91175

Oh ho ho ho ho.

I saw that.

>>91167

>It's up to you if you want to continue this then.

Please don't. I should have said something earlier around >>91149, but this comedy duo skit of yours is getting stale. Please keep the shitstorming to a minimum, it just needlessly fills up threads with garbage posts. Airing grievances you might have with someone can be a good thing, but there's a point that you have to stop at.

[x] Yes, actually...
-[x] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[x] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

[X] Yes, actually...
-{X} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.
-{X} Tell her about the ice on the lake.
-{X} Tell her you think you can blow things up with mind bullets.
-{X} Tell her you think the extreme heat these days is making you hallucinate at times - seeing people fly or seemingly vanish into thin air.

>And curtsies. "M-my hobbies are embroidery and reading."

Nice one.

>>One third of the replies in this thread

Holy shit, what have I done...

Anyway, gonna need a tiebreaker between telling Patchy about the oddities or going the willing obliviousness route (that latter one popping up was a fun surprise). Unless you want me to flip a coin or something.

>>91167

Nah, that's fine, since the only room left for discussion is "Yes it is"-"No it's not".
In other news, grats to Taisa on the resolution of his story's first shitstorm.

>>91192
[X] Yes, actually...
-{X} Tell her about the strange accessories you see being worn by a lot of students - the Scarlet sisters' wings, for example. Eye and hair colors, too.
-{X} Tell her about the ice on the lake.
-{X} Tell her you think you can blow things up with mind bullets.

>>91186

I love that goddamn picture.

>>91192
[X] Yes, actually...
-[x] ...after only a couple days, the number of things that have struck me as odd and definitely not normal are well beyond description at this point. However...
-[x] ...if you don't mind me adding, it hasn't really bothered me. Too much, at least. More than anything, seeing and experiencing all of these... hmm... oddities I guess you'd call them, has left me feeling refreshed. Like I'm experiencing something entirely new... if you know what I mean.

Strange or unusual? It's almost as if she can read your mind. Still, the way she asked made it apparent that, if nothing else, she at least already had a hunch about things. Might as well come clean, then...

"Well... I'd be lying if I said no. In fact, after only a few days, the amount of things I've experienced and found decidedly abnormal has been... staggering, to say the least." You sigh a little. It really has been. You've mostly tried to shrug them off and pay them no heed, deciding them to be either cultural differences - though you're certain no area in Japan has ever been this obsessed with cosplay - or the heat playing tricks on your eyes. "In a way, I suppose it's refreshing. Meeting new people, experiencing new things. I've managed to force myself to cope with it, for the moment. Still..."

Patchouli does not interrupt, merely eyeing you up and down as you speak, as if scanning you for something. Her arms are crossed, and eyebrows furrowed - you find yourself wondering why exactly she's asking you these things in the first place. Have you been acting strangely enough to make the teachers worry?
"...some things have been bothering me from the very beginning. Well, not bothering - more like I don't understand them, you see. The way a lot of students seem to wear accessories that would be considered more than eccentric where I come from - even to school. Hair and eye colors, too..." Looking at your purple-haired and -eyed teacher, you realize what you just said, and hurriedly apologize, waving your hands about defensively. "N-no offense meant! It's not that I mind, it's just unusual for someone like me!"

She merely nods in response, but does not say anything. She's expecting you to continue? "Well, then... I've also seen strange happenings. Sometimes, I swear it looks like people simply fly off, or vanish without a trace." Chuckling to yourself, you shake your head lightly. "Pretty ridiculous, no? I'm sure it's just the heat, making me see mirages or something. Still, the frequency is rather alarming..." Still no reply. You shuffle about a little, wondering if you should keep going. Silence. You take a deep breath.
"Just this morning, I saw ice on the lake around the mansion. It was thick enough to cross. How it got there with this weather, in early fall, I have no idea. Remilia and Flandre treated it as if it were nothing out of the ordinary..." Your voice cracks a little; hearing yourself retell the events of the last few days has even yourself incredulous. Maybe you really should go get checked out by the school nurse? What if you've picked up some sort of native disease that causes you to hallucinate, get torturous migraines and bleed out of your face?

...

Oh, speaking of which. No. She's going to think you're a lunatic if you tell her about that. But then, that was the one weird thing you've experienced these days that actually felt... real. Despite your vehement attempts to deny what you saw with your very own eyes, it happened. You blew up a lightbulb by focusing your will upon it. The glass might have been a coincidence, but there's a limit to that sort of thing. Patchouli is still staring right at you, reading you like an open book.
"You're hiding something. Tell me everything." You can't tell from her voice whether she thinks you're crazy or not. Well, to be honest, you can't tell -anything- from her voice - it's nearly monotonous. Her face does not betray a single emotion, save for her eyes, which are moving rapidly; you wouldn't notice it unless you focused on her gaze. Tiny, rapid movements.

No use hiding it then. Now, how to put this into words without sounding like a mental case?
"I think I can crush things with my mind." She doesn't even blink. "Telekinetic powers. I even... experimented a little, back at the mansion. I might have knocked over a glass, and destroyed a lightbulb, simply by focusing on them hard enough. Trying too hard and too fast seems to give me headaches and nosebleeds. I sound like a crazy person, don't I?" Yet another long pause, not a muscle moving on her face. Finally, she closes her eyes and shakes her head.

"I guess it can't be helped." Yeah, she thinks you're insane. "Come see me after school. My office is the room right next to this one." Finally, a slight hint of emotion in her voice. But what is it? Sympathy? Pity? Disgust? You find yourself momentarily terrified - have you gotten yourself in trouble?

"C-can I ask you a question, miss Patchouli?"

She hangs her head back and stares into the ceiling lazily, her long hair swaying about; any longer, and she'd be sweeping the floor as she walked. "How is it you children say these days... Shoot."

"Are you also... the school psychiatrist?" And it is -this- line that gets her blinking at you in a perplexed manner, though her face regains its usual emotionless composure in nearly an instant.

"If that is how you wish to think of it, then do so. Consider it an appointment - I expect you not to miss it." Uncrossing her arms, she glides back to her desk, sitting down with an exhausted exhale - even standing seems like a major chore for her. "For your own good, that is." Gulp... sounds foreboding. And, honestly, Patchouli gives you the creeps somehow. To be fair, you haven't seen a single unattractive female in Gensokyo so far, and Patchouli is definitely not an exception, despite being a little skinny and pale; she has that 'sick girl' charm to her, in a way. The way she speaks and looks at you, though...

"Oh, and... Do try not to act so inappropriately around your other teacher."

*ding-dong*

That last line felt like someone squeezed your intestines together with a vice. So, she knows what went on during that break? But you don't even think of Keine that way. Or do you?
Before you can react in any particular way, the class floods full of students once more - it's time for the Japanese lesson. It seems Patchouli handles all of the language classes - well, it does make sense for the manager of a library of such colossal proportions to also be something of a polyglot. Judging by her name and facial features, she's definitely not Japanese herself, either, yet she speaks the language without a trace of an accent. If she was the sisters' tutor before coming to work at the school, then that explains Remilia's and Flandre's fluency in Japanese as well.

Compared to the English lesson, your roles are now reversed; once again, as it was during math class, the childish little blonde girl next to you ends up being the one to help you. Sure, you've got the whole calligraphy thing covered, it's sort of like painting in some ways, but you still have some minor difficulties with this and that. The way you get visibly frustrated whenever you make a slight mistake makes Flandre giggle softly; then you feel something soft and warm on your head. It's her hand, gently petting you. That's right, you've ruffled her hair of patted her head once or twice before yourself - somewhat bold of you, but being around her really does you feel strangely at ease, unlike most of the other girls here.

"By the way... Thanks for helping me with things like this, Flan. You're the best, you know that?" You add a smile to that; for a brief moment the two of you simply look at each other, and the rest of the world ceases to matter.

"Ahh..." Blushing profusely, she slowly removes her hand and grips the edge of her skirt, staring into her notebook without actually reading it. You can sense Remilia glancing over her shoulder at the two of you, though she turns away when you look.

Another lesson over. One more to go - world literature - until your appointment with Patchouli, huh... Somehow, you're not looking forward to it at all. You've got some free time now, in any case.



[] Go get checked out by the nurse like Sakuya suggested, tell her about your headaches and nosebleeds.
-{} While you're there, ask about Flandre's condition.
[] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.
[] Go interact with someone to kill time. (Specify)
[] Flee in terror, the woman in pajamas scares you.

[X] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.

Chill~

>You add a smile to that; for a brief moment the two of you simply look at each other, and the rest of the world ceases to matter.

...I believe I'm going into cardiac arrest.

[] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.

[x] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.

[X] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.

[x] Laze about in class, maybe take a nap to relieve some stress.

>>91152
>sample_fa63a755191666eb9b47051044e9d9343bab5550.jpg
Stop that.

>And curtsies. "M-my hobbies are embroidery and reading."
...okay, I like you again.

>>91153
>Flandre's food vaguely resembles dark red meatballs at a first glance. You can't quite figure out what -exactly- it is meant to be, yet somehow the smell keeps you from wanting to try it for yourself.
I read this and immediately envisioned it as Saya no Uta-esque piles of censored entrails and such.

>>91200
I think we all do.

>>91202
>But you don't even think of Keine that way. Or do you?
I think this is shaping up in a Haruhi-esque way: The protagonist is attracted to the obvious sex-appeal target (Keine ...Not Reisen. In before useless bunny comments despite that.), but still finds himself thinking about the cute loli (Flandre).

>>91240
Haruhi's a cute loli now?

...you know, maybe if she had been a cute loli instead of an amoral bitch, I would have enjoyed the books more.

>>91240
I would rather see Flan as a sister than a love interest, anyway.

>>91252

We've already done Remilia though so Flan is the next step.

Of course being "friends with benefits" is also alright.

>>91252

Rejected.


>Of course being "friends with benefits" is also alright.

Hahaha... no.

You open your eyes. Were you asleep? Wait, that's right, you decided to take it easy during the break and took a short nap. Feeling mighty refreshed, you stretch yourself, glancing about the auditorium, hoping you didn't manage to sleep into the next lesson.

Also, what's that smell?

It's something putrid and vile; not long after noticing the stench, it actually makes your eyes water, provoking you into grasping your nose, blocking your nostrils. Dear lord, that has got to be the most rancing stink you've ever experienced. Drying off your eyes with your sleeve, keeping your nose shut with your other hand, you glance about, trying to find the source.

It's everywhere. The auditorium is a twisted, unsightly perversion of its former self; it looks like you're inside some dead monster's carcass. The walls are slanted, crooked, covered in a fleshy substance and oozing slime, random bone-like spikes poking out here and there. The floor is covered in more of the mushy flesh-like crap, pools of slime and pus gathered in various holes in the surface. Even the desk you sit at looks like a corruption of some indescribable creature's exoskeleton, pulsating beneath your arms.

Jumping to your feet with a cry of utter terror, you attract the attention of... something else. You're not alone. Those disorganized lumps of flesh you saw scattered about this nightmarish room... they're alive. Sloshing and wobbling disgustingly, they rotate themselves - presumably to face you, though you cannot identify any features vaguely even resembling a face on any of them. Oh god, oh god, they're getting closer! These... things... are easily the most disgusting things you've ever seen. You swear something near the bottom of that one's, er body just blinked at you!

It speaks. Or you assume it is meant to be speaking; some sort of wet, slimy hole near the top of the creature spouts incomprehensible noises and vocalizations at you, slobbering horrendously and spraying more putrid-smelling sticky slime at you.
"HGREEEGGGHHH RRRRRR ARROOOO ARRRGHHHHAAARGHRRRKHH" Some completely alien language; at first sounding like random roars, growls and howls of some strange beast, but still too articulate - no, articulate enough to be disturbing to no end, each 'word' sending chills down your spine. As the creature finishes, closing its 'mouth', it manages to spit a larger chunk of slime right in your face, which then proceeds to slowly ooze its way downwards...

You lose it. Your lunch, that is; you vomit uncontrollably, nearly collapsing, sheer strength of will keeping you from falling into one of those slime-filled pits. Your sanity cracks - you can feel it happen. Screaming madly, you grab what was once a chair, and slam it into the seemingly sentient pile of guts and meat in front of you as hard as you can. You seem to succeed in incapacitating it, and the others pull a distance away from you, spitting slime everywhere and making more horrible noises - this is your chance! You dash for what looks like an exit - no good, more womb-like tunnels. There's light in that direction! You run as fast as your legs take you, escaping whatever the hell you were inside of just now - and break down in despair.

The world has gone mad. The sky is red, toxic-looking vapors where there once were clouds, a puke-green caricature of the sun barely glowing through. The trees are twisted and gnarled, branches resembling the tendrils and claws of horrible mutant monsters. The ground sloshes under your feet, slime permeating all of the 'soil' you stand on, grassblades replaced with what looks like millions of tiny maggots, crushed under your feet to release more of that gut-wrenching stink.

You run. You run like you've never run before. The geography... This is some sort of nightmarish reflection of the world you once knew. Of Gensokyo, where you lived. Down this path was the village - now a cesspool of dripping guts, bone and meat. Fleshy strands of the ground itself are coiled around the remnants of the tall lamppost that used to light up the village from its center at nights. Your house. Where is your house? It used to be here.

There. You run towards it. Why is everything so RED!" Nausea still plaguing you, despite having puked out all you could already, you stumble and fall to the ground, covering your clothes in rancid-smelling slime. No matter - you get up again. You have to get home. Home will be safe. Home will...

You enter the horribly corrupted remnant of what was once the house of your host family. The stench... weakens? Reaching for the nearest sharp bone-like protrusion, you snap it off whatever it was originally attached to. It will have to make do as a makeshift weapon. You must defend yourself. You must survive. You must...
Green. A relaxing green tone washes over your eyes. Not that bile-like color you saw from the sun outside, no, this is natural, earthy green. It has a calming effect on you immediately, after escaping from that world of guts. This is home...

"Back from school already?" That voice. So melodic. So pure, in this hopelessly lost world. In this nightmare of yours, the voice is like a bright light shining through the darkness enclosing you, allowing you to reach for the most wonderful dreams you could imagine. You must see who it belongs to - and yet, it is so familiar. You turn around.

A young, blonde girl stands before you, wearing a red skirt and vest, with a light pink, nearly white shirt underneath, and a hat matching the shirt, with a red ribbon wrapped around it. It's Flandre. Oh, sweet, beautiful, wonderful, pure and uncorrupted Flandre! Losing control of yourself, you leap to her, wrapping your arms around her tightly, never wanting to let go. She is like a beacon of light to you in this world, the one thing your eyes may rest on without being disgusted; the one thing you may touch that does not feel cold and slimy under your fingers, but soft and warm; even her voice and her scent are divine.

"Oh, Flandre..." You start to sob quietly. "Flan... Please, never leave me..."
She puts her arms around you, gently and comfortingly, pulling you closer into a mutual embrace. She leans closer, whispering into your ear.

"Don't be silly. I'd never leave you... I want to comfort you, to let you feel good... You can do whatever you want to me, if it only makes you feel good. Because that makes me feel good, too."

"Oh... Flandre..." Your previous fears and terrors give way to a sense of wanting... a sense of lust. You grip her tighter; leaning your head down, you kiss her neck. She gasps softly, pressing her warm body closer against yours. Your hands begin to wander the surface of her young body, taking in every subtle curve, the soft, petite little bumps inside her shirt, her lovely young buttocks... No part of her remains untouched. She gives herself to you freely - her eyes openly invite you, as she lays down on her back before you. Begging to be taken, right there, right now. Your clothes. They are in the way. You begin unbuttoning your own shirt, nearly ready to rip it right off. This will make all the horror go away, will make it all better...

Then she opens her mouth, softly speaking once more.
"...what are you doing?"

Flandre is looking at you in a confused manner. You're in school, sitting at your desk, covered in sweat, heart beating rapidly. Fingers on the buttons of your shirt, halfway down the front. Really, what are you doing?

"Are you... feeling hot?" she asks, looking at your halfway-unbuttoned shirt, which you hurriedly button up again before anyone else notices. You nod, technically not lying. After all, you were just feeling hot for her in that fucked up dream of yours... Bah! Just as you're about to excuse yourself to go wash your face and clear your mind, the bell rings - the lesson begins. Patchouli calmly gets the other students to shut the hell up one way or another, before beginning a monotonous lecture on... what was it? Famous British authors? You can hardly pay attention at all, distracted by the conflicting senses of a lingering nausea and a raging erection you're struggling to conceal under your desk; the fact that the girl from your bizarre dream sequence is sitting right next to you, constantly looking at you worriedly, doesn't help things much. Leaning closer all of a sudden, she softly whispers into your ear - goddamnit, don't do that at a time like this!

"...are you alright? You look sick... You're making me worry."

She's interrupted - and startled - by a loud, hacking cough. For a moment, you wonder if Patchouli saw her whispering to you and got mad, but then you notice her reaching for what looks like an inhaler. After using it, she wheezes a little bit, before calmly continuing the lecture as if nothing had happened at all.

You need to get the hell out of here.

The lesson finally ends - release from your little private hell is just footsteps away! Putting on an awkward smile, you apologize profusely to the girls, explaining that you have an appointment to keep after school, and won't be able to spend time with them today.

"Hmm..." Remilia eyes you skeptically; you carefully hold your schoolbag in front of your pants, desperate to just leave the room. Please don't start an extensive conversation...
"...I guess it can't be helped then. What a pity! I was about to treat my lovely sister and our mutual friend to a round of ice cream to ward off this dreadful heat. Ah well~" Cackling to herself, she grasps Flandre by the wrist, leading her off despite her attempts to stay by your side. "Come come, it looks like it's just the two of us for today, then! He seems to be too busy for ice cream, by the looks of it." Before disappearing around the corner, Flandre sends a sad glance in your direction, filled with equal parts worry and disappointment.
Sorry, Flan... You've got an appointment to keep, and being around her any longer today could have dire consequences for your pants.

Speaking of which.

You rush out of the auditorium, in the direction of the boys' bathroom. You've got to cool down somehow. You've got to... not bump into Patchouli in the middle of the hallway. Like you just did. Goshdangit to heck!

"...hmm. Leaving so soon? We haven't had our discussion yet, in case you've forgotten already..." Her eyes are half-closed as she speaks to you, that sleepy voice of hers barely showing any emotion at all.

"I-I was just going to the bathroom real quick! I'll be back, I promise!" Without even waiting for an answer, you sprint past her, cursing this school for being exclusively female aside from yourself. Distractions everywhere! Only one way out now. You get to the bathroom - you give praise to this school for being exclusively female aside from yourself. You have the place all to yourself. You need those thoughts, those emotions, those feelings - you need them out, right now.

Now, what's an effective way to kill an unwanted boner?



[] Fap.
[] Think of decidedly un-sexy things for a while.
[] Hurt yourself somehow, the pain will distract your senses.
[] WILL your penis to descend to its dormant form.

[X] WILL your penis to descend to its dormant form.

Second option probably won't work because it's GENSOKYO

[x] WILL your penis to descend to its dormant form.

>>WILL your penis to descend to its dormant form

And risk accidentally making it explode? No thank you.

[X] Fap.

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

[X] Pour cold water on it, somehow.

Bad Flandre, bad! No pulling a Song of Saya on us!

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

[X] Pour cold water on it, somehow.

Guys, thinking of unsexy things is just gonna remind us of our dream.

[x] Pour cold water on it, somehow. Splash your face with water while you're at it. Snap out of it, man!

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.
[x] If necessary, vomit.

Also, we can never fall asleep in public ever.

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.
Think about the FIRST part of the dream. Imagine you are trapped in he guts of the beast.

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

>[x] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

Yeah lets think about the stuff in dream that gave us the erection in the first place!

Haven't any of you watched Ichi the Killer?

I don't want to risk the positive association of gore or self-inflicted injury with sexual arousal. Nor do I wish to see him make his penis explode.

Face it: An adolescent boy going to an all girls' school, with hot teachers, he's going to occasionally masturbate in the boy's room. They all think it. Remilia knows it. Patch probably will assume it too, regardless of what you do.

But of course no one is going to vote for that.

So:

[x] You know exactly how to fix this. Focus on something in the room, anything you couldn't break by force. Crack the sink basin for example. Your body essentially shut down every time you did this earlier.

You'll probably pass out, have a massive headache, and be bleeding, but we're not hanging around the sisters today, and this will give Patchouli immediate evidence of your condition.

>Yeah lets think about the stuff in dream that gave us the erection in the first place!
Flandre's not a mutilated corpse with a smashed in face.

[~] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.

[Q] Fap.

I'm amazed by how few votes this got.

[x] You know exactly how to fix this. Focus on something in the room, anything you couldn't break by force. Crack the sink basin for example. Your body essentially shut down every time you did this earlier.

[x] You know exactly how to fix this. Focus on something in the room, anything you couldn't break by force. Crack the sink basin for example. Your body essentially shut down every time you did this earlier.

[X] Think about dead bodies, mutilated corpses, smashed in faces. Anything to get this boner to go away.