Paradise Sukima 5

Two weeks have passed since the battle between Tenshi and Rika. The trees are now full of leaves and flowers are starting to bloom. All that it’s needed to officially declare spring is the coming of Lily White. It is morning, and at the back of the Hakurei Shrine, to the left side of the storage house, Tenshi finishes the greenhouse she promised to build for Rika if she lost their match. Rika approaches her with a wide and innocent smile on her face and offers her some tea, saying “it looks wonderful miss Tenshi. Thank you very much!” Tenshi turns to Rika, quickly grabs the teacup on the plate and drinks it in one gulp, then says “yeah, yeah, whatever. Just... enjoy.” Tenshi is about to leave, then Rika holds her shoulder and asks “won’t you stay a little longer?” Tenshi trembles for a moment, but then blushes and while keeping her face hidden from Rika she says “n-no. I got somewhere to be now. I’ll.... whatever.” Then quickly flies away. Reimu approaches Rika and with a smile on her face she says “seems you made a friend out of that celestial.” Rika shakes her head, then says “not until she says so herself. For now she’s just a good acquaintance.” Reimu chuckles and says “oh, I don’t think you’ll need to wait long for that.” As Reimu says this, high up in the sky, Tenshi smiles tenderly as she reaches the path to heaven. Back at the shrine, Reimu places a hand on Rika’s shoulder and says “come on. Let’s go look for some nice flowers for your new greenhouse.” Meanwhile, at Marisa’s house, Marisa paces around her basement, anxiously awaiting any sign signaling the gate is ready to be opened. She walks to one of her books and passes one finger around the open page, then there is a sudden loud click and divine wind blows from the white stones. Marisa smiles, then says “finally.” At the same time, above Ail’s house, Lily White unleashes her danmaku and shouts “it’s SRPING~!” while approaching the door. She reaches for the doorknob, but it turns on its own, and out comes Ran, who looks curiously at Lily, then asks “oh, a little fairy. Have you come to play a prank here?” Lily stares confused at first, but then she smiles and raises her hands in the air, saying “it’s SPRING!” Ran opens her eyes wide and exclaims “oh my, it’s the fairy of spring.” She continues to look at Lily, then asks “but what would you be doing here, I wonder?” Lily raises her hands again, and with a smile on her face she exclaim “AIL~!” Ran quickly lowers her ears and frowns, then says “I... I’m sorry, but Ail is not...” Lily pushes her way through with her innocent smile in her face as she exclaims “Ail! Ail~! It’s spring!” Lily looks around and spots Chen sleeping on the couch next to a math book and some pencils, then notices some loud snoring coming from Ail’s room. Lily’s smile vanishes, then she softly says “not Ail?” The looks back to Ran, who sadly sighs and says “I’m serious, little fairy. He’s not here.” Lily’s smile completely vanishes, however she still doesn’t believe Ran, then moves further inside, finding Budou sitting on a corner of the storage room with Phredia flying around her. The elf fairy looks tired and her usual glow seems very dim. Lily approaches Budou and softly asks “Ail?” Budou opens her wings, revealing herself in an unkempt state, then whispers “miss... Lily White?” Lily stares into Budou’s tear-filled eyes, then again asks “It’s spring.... where is Ail?” Budou sobs, so Phredia rushes to her, then Budou says “I don’t want to sleep!” She looks at Lily and cries as she says “papa is gone. He’s not coming back...” Her tears worsen as her heart feels heavier every time she says that. Lily approaches Budou and looks straight into her puffy, reddish eyes and realizes the little youkai isn’t lying. The fairy trembles a she backs away from Budou, whispering “no... Ail? No?” Budou starts to cry, then Lily drops to her knees as she stares at the floor, her eyes trembling along with herself. Without realizing it, Lily cries along with Budou, only realizing this after letting out a sob. Ran stands by the doorway and looks toward Ail’s room, then thinks “stupid human... Look what you have caused. Come back and see your mistake, you fool! Ease their hearts.”

Morning in the outside world. Inside a dark abandoned warehouse, a dark figure lies sitting on a high metal rail with his back against some railings, covering himself with dirty newspapers and glaring back to the shadows. A little bit of light that shines through one of the few windows reveals Ail’s face, covered only by a few newspapers, and another figure right in front of Ail, glaring back though purple glasses with a smile on his face. Some blood courses through Ail’s arm as he continues to glare, then thinks “my name is... My name... I can’t remember my name, but... I do know people call me Ail. I don’t understand why these damned humans are after me. I do remember a solar eclipse... but after that... They are accusing me of harming some humans and their children with my magic, which these fools call ‘special effects’. All I want is for them to leave me ALONE, but they chase me everywhere I go! I can’t rest!” The man in shadows asks “aren’t you running away again?” Ail continues to glare and thinks “I am tired... so tired. All I want to be left alone, but these stupid humans just hunt me down all the time... this one in particular. What’s worse, they got these loud weapons that sting an hurt so badly. The worst part is the black stingers they shoot at me are very small and stay inside my skin... they hurt. I can’t take this anymore! I don’t even understand what I did wrong!” Ail pushes away the dirty paper he was using as a cover, revealing his bloodied, dirty and tattered clothes then says to the other figure “I can’t take this anymore. Just kill me already.” The man grins as Ail thinks “this world is horrible. They treat nature as if it were a nuisance, and to them magic and faith are just words. Fools. I wonder how are they even alive without faith. That reminds me... of a place... No, maybe I imagined it? Strangely, I feel as though I know place full of nature and beauty, and the some gods live there too... You won’t find gods out here. People don’t have faith in them... Bah! The place I’m thinking of is probably the afterlife. I’ll be glad to go there, I’m sure.” The shady man sighs, then says “no. I don’t want to kill you just yet. I want to make you suffer, hear you scream in pain before I finally let you die... and now... Ail... The fun starts.” Outside the warehouse, the police surround the building, and one of the officials, using a megaphone, says “Ail we know you are in there. Come on out with your hands up!” Ayalina walks out of one of the police cars and takes the megaphone, saying “give me that!” then places it near her face and says “Ail, sweetheart, this is your mother. Please come on out! These men have agreed not to harm you, but you have to come out!” There is a loud bang and a purple flash from inside the warehouse that startles the police, all shouting in unison as they rush toward the abandoned building, however Ayalina quietly smiles.

In Gensokyo, Lily slowly flies away from Ail’s house, slumping while in the air and weakly saying “spring” and sniffling. Inside the house, after a long bath, Ran is helps Budou dress up, and after putting on her brown dress Ran asks “Budou, sweetie, is something wrong?” Budou’s eyes hide under her hair as she looks toward the bathroom wall, then whispers something. Ran gets closer and asks “what was that, sweetie?” Budou lifts her head, showing great determination in her eyes, then says “Lily! I need to catch Lily and get to mama! We are getting papa home!” Ran looks surprised at the little youkai as she’s suddenly filled with so much strength and will, and since Ran doesn’t do anything quickly enough, Budou grabs her socks and quickly puts them on, then her whistle which she quickly places around her neck then hides it under her dress and says “this can’t wait! Come on!” Chen is already by the exit and saying “you two slowpokes need to keep up!” Budou, Chen and Ran lift to the sky and fly straight toward the Hakurei Shrine. Meanwhile, at the shrine, Reimu and Rika carry a box each, both filled with many flowers and plants. Reimu says “so nice of Yuka and Elly to just give us all these flowers.” Rika laughs nervously and says “my lady, you threatened to seal their... huh?” Sitting on the ground by the new greenhouse, while wile rubbing her crying eyes, Lily sobs and sniffles as she looks up to the sky. Reimu says “oh... that’s the fairy of spring, Lily White. What’s wrong with her?” Before Reimu finishes her question, Rika is already headed toward the fairy, kneeling down next to her and softly asking “miss Lily, what’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Lily looks to Rika with a very sad expression and says “Ail?” Reimu catches up and kneels next to both girls, then sighs and pats Lily’s back and asks “you remember him?” Lily slowly nods, then Reimu looks surprised and says to Rika “it’s amazing that she remembers him at all. Fairies usually don’t remember things as easily as us, yet she remembers Ail just like that.” Reimu stares at the fairy for a moment, then Rika stands up, grabs Lily in her arms like a child, then rubs her back and says “come on. I’ll make us some tea and snacks. What do you say to that?” Lily rests her head on Rika’s shoulder and nods, then Rika lightly bows to Reimu and says “if I may?” Reimu stands up and nods, then says “go ahead” while thinking “she didn’t attack or bite... just like when Ail first met her... though it was a bit messier.” Reimu follows after Rika and Lily and watches how Rika gently places Lily White next to the table, and how the fairy seems to react like a child would to her parent, then thinks “amazing... It’s just like the first time she met Ail. What do these two have that she sees in them?” Reimu’s thoughts are immediately disturbed when from the sky Budou calls “Reimu~! Lily~! Call mama~!” Without waiting for Budou to land, Reimu runs to the Moriya shrine extension that’s close by to the gate at the right side of the shrine. Immediately she calls “Suwako! Kanako! Can you hear me?” An image of Kanako quickly inflates like a balloon until Kanako is fully present in front of Reimu, and sounding a little bored she asks “what is it?” Reimu quickly says “Budou’s calling for Sanae!” Kanako gasps and immediately enters the small expansion, her voice echoing as she says “she’ll be there soon!”

Meanwhile, at the farthest end of the Forest of Magic, in the center of a small clearing where Winter seems to still have a bit of a hold, as the trees and flowers there are still recovering, Marisa stands by, holding the golden whistle in her hand and smiling confidently. She wraps one of Reimu’s ribbons around her right wrist and says to herself “and to make sure this thing isn’t protected against thieves, I’ll use Reimu’s ribbon while holding it.” She stares at the whistle for a little while, then shrugs and says “here goes nothing!”, quickly taking a deep breath and blowing through the whistle, making a “tweet” sound that echoes around the area. Nothing seems to happen, but before Marisa tires to blow through it again, purple bolts of electricity start appearing out of a rift that forms in the very middle of the clearing. Marisa stands back, then stares at her whistle and says “oh crap! This is the REAL one!” She looks to the rift as it violently opens up, and suddenly Ail drops from inside and falls on his back. Marisa watches from a distance and is in shock after seeing Ail full of cuts and bruises, his clothes torn, dirty and covered in blood, and the frightened look on his eyes as he struggles to stand up. Still not noticing her, Ail looks around, slowly relaxing himself as he says “I... I know this place.” Marisa approaches from behind him and places her hand on his shoulder, quickly noticing as he flinches, then smiling widely she says “whoa, calm down! It’s just me, Marisa, ze!” Ail narrows his eyes, focusing on Marisa’s face, then says “Ma... Marisa? I... think I know you.” Marisa stares back to Ail in total disbelief, and sounding almost disappointed she says “wow, 4 months gone and you already forget you friends? I thought we were important to you?” Ail curiously stares back as a small drop of blood courses right between his eyes, then asks “friends? I have... friends?” Marisa pulls a white cloth from under her hat and wipes Ail’s face, looking a little mad and saying “oy, are you making fun of me? Look, I called you because Reimu needs your help.” Ail feels as though his head spins for a moment, then looks at Marisa with surprise and asks “Reimu? Hakurei?” Marisa smirks and says “I knew you were just messing with me. Come on, let’s go home! Once you open a small gap for me, I’ll treat you to some dinner, and then you can go home and clean yourself up. You look like a mess, da-ze.” Ail jumps away from Marisa, pain surging through his knee the moment he touches the ground again, but ignoring his pain he glares at Marisa and asks “how do you know about the gaps!?” Marisa blinks twice, and sounding annoyed she says “wow, you really want to mess with my head, don’t you? Well I’m not falling for it. Come on!” Before Ail can back away again, Marisa grasps his hand and drags him toward her home, smiling wide and laughing, while Ail looks at her and their surroundings confused and lost.

At the Hakurei Shrine, Reimu and Budou impatiently wait for Sanae, while Ran and Aya try to calm them down. Rika serves tea and snacks for everyone, then walks to Lily and Phredia, who are sitting by the small living room table, then offers them the tea. Phredia picks hers up almost immediately, but Lily stares at hers with a saddened look in her eyes, watching her reflection ripple when she touches the cup. Rika sits beside her and brushes her back with her hand, making Lily raise her wings, then gently says “don’t feel sad. Ail wouldn’t like that.” Lily looks at Rika’s motherly smile and stares, then Rika continues “he would want you to smile and be happy.” Lily continues to stare at Rika, who continues to smile as she says “even if he’s not here, miss Lily, he would never forget you. Miss Reimu told me all about how you first met, and how you always find him, and how he treats you to tea and cookies... Memories like those live inside the heart forever... wouldn’t you agree?” Lily stares at Rika for a little while longer, then suddenly smiles back and nods, then quickly take a drink from her teacup, and as she takes a cookie, she smiles at Rika and says “when he comes back... he will see me smile...” Rika giggles and lightly flaps her wings as her smile widens while looking at Lily. From the entrance Budou excitedly says “mama~! Finally! Mama, come! It’s papa!!” Everyone in the shrine, except for Reimu and Ran, stare confused at Budou, and Sanae increases her speed the moment Budou mentions Ail, and quickly after landing she grabs Budou and hugs her, and while hugging her she asks “what happened? Why wouldn’t you talk to me?” Budou pushes herself away from Sanae and immediately grabs her whistle and blows on it... but nothing happens. Sanae stares back in shock and asks “wh-wha? What does that mean?” Budou takes a deep breath and says “Rikako and Kyo’s shadow sent me news from the outside world, saying that papa had hurt other and was being searched for. It also said that there were rumors he was dead.” Sanae gasps then Budou quickly continues “when I went home to call papa back, my whistle didn’t work... I...” Budou’s eyes fill with tears as she says with a cracked voice “I thought papa was dead... gone forever...” Sanae and Reimu’s faces turn blue, while everyone else inside look on with surprise, except for Lily, who immediately buries her face on Rika’s apron. Budou gulps, dries her tears, then continues “but I felt him! After miss Lily left home, I felt him! He’s alive, mama! He needs us! We have to call him! Give Reimu permission to call papa back!” Sanae stares at Budou for a moment, slowly absorbing everything the little youkai had just said as she turns her stare to Reimu. When their eyes meet, Reimu gasps and rushes to her cabinet and looks around for her whistle.

Meanwhile, at Marisa’s house, Marisa places Ail on the exact center of the magical star on the ground. Ail asks “and are you sure if I open this I’ll help?” Marisa confidently says “of course! Just make sure you concentrate on the white stones while opening that gap!” Ail sweats and asks “are you sure I have friends?” Marisa laughs hard and says “Ail, enough with the jokes. Just open the gate up so we can give Reimu the life she deserves! Heck, join us and bring Sanae and Budou.” Ail twitches and thinks “Sanae... and... Budou. Budou... She’s a little girl... I used to take care of... I care a lot about her...” Ail looks determined toward the white stones and whispers “for Budou!” He raises his right hand and points his fingers toward the white stones. A cool wind blows from the stone themselves and Marisa watches with amazement as the stones start to glow, each sounding like a different music tone. The star in which Ail stands starts to spin, and in the middle of the singing stones a small white tear forms, quickly extending to the roof and to the floor, then slowly expands. Marisa excitedly shouts “alright, it’s working!” As the light expand, a loud whoosh enters the basement along with powerful gusts. Marisa gets nervous and asks “wh-what’s going on?” Ail’s eyes glow white and his body is turning blue. Marisa panics and shouts “AIL! Wait, what’s going on!? Ail, wake up!” She tries to reach him, but the magical circle he is in creates a barrier that prevents her from reaching. She clenches her teeth and loudly says “no way I’m letting you die, you fool!” She grabs one of the books she took form the Palanquin and holds it open while chanting as loud as possible so as to be heard over the loud whooshing and the thunder from the open gate. Marisa wills herself to push her magic to the limit, then shouts “OPEN!” The magical circle vanishes, and Marisa rushes toward Ail. His skin is blue, his eyes are closing, and when she touches him, she feels he’s as cold as ice. She pulls out her Stardust Revere spell card, but before she declares it, there is a loud click, then the entire room glows white, and Marisa and Ail vanish, along with the thunder and the heavy gust, now only a swirling purple and black vortex remains, ever spinning and causing some light winds inside the room. Outside the house, a magical shock wave slowly courses it’s way all through Gensokyo, reaching Alice’s house. Inside, Alice, Shanghai and Hourai are having a quiet morning, but when the shock wave reaches them, though slow, it pushes them all hard against the walls and ceiling. At the Village, the shockwave causes Keine to faint, and while on the ground her body slowly transforms to her beast form, however, she quickly reverts back. At the basement of the SDM, Flandre is about to exit her room, but when the shock wave touches her, her heart beats hard, her eyes glow scarlet, then suddenly she is coughing violently as she drops to the floor.

Meanwhile, back at the Hakurei Shrine, Satori arrives with Orin by her side, and with a very light smile she calls “hello~” Orin cheerfully shouts “do you have any copses~!?” Satori elbows Orin and whispers “you promised you’d behave.” Orin rubs the back of her head and nervously chuckles while saying “right... Sorry about that, nyan.” From the back, they hear Reimu shouting “found it!” Curious, Satori and Orin head to the back, and promptly after reaching they find Reimu holding a whistle in her hand while facing toward the lake of the shrine. Satori says “oh, seems they are summoning Ail back... But that’s odd...” Orin asks “what is it, Satori-sama?” Rika now stands beside Satori and Orin with Lily White clinging on to her neck, and resting her head on Rika’s right shoulder. Rika exclaims “miss Satori, miss Orin! Welcome!” Satori smiles and looks at Rika, but before she says anything, she notices Rika’s eyes, staring back at her with a most saddened expression. Rika sighs and says “miss Satori, may I have a word with you?” Before Satori responds, the magical wave from Marisa’s house reaches the shrine, and immediately, everyone, including Suika on the roof, shriek and shiver, and Reimu is even pushed to the ground by the magical force as it continues its course. Rika quickly rushes to her mistress to help her up, concernedly calling for her. Helping Reimu up, Rika asks “what was THAT!?” Rika looks to the shrine in concern for the others and she notices Budou trembling on Sanae’s arms, then realizes Lily is also trembling violently while still holding on to Rika’s neck. After Helping Reimu up, Rika whispers to Lily “it’s alright. I’m here.”, and Reimu exclaims “what in blazes is going on here!?” Phredia excitedly flies around Reimu and points at the whistle, then Sanae says “it’s gone now. Please, Reimu. Call Ail.” Reimu smiles sheepishly and rubs the back of her head, saying “ah, that’s right, heh heh.” She turns around to face toward the lake again, then quickly blows on the whistle. The moment she does, the little trinket shatters, and turns to dust before it touches the ground. Immediately, Reimu exclaims “that was a fake!?” Budou starts to cry, and Phredia immediately rushes to her while Sanae tries to comfort her; Aya looks at Reimu with a very serious expression and says “something odd is going on around here, Reimu.” Rika approaches Reimu while holding the trembling Lily in her hands, then asks “but my lady, didn’t Ail give you that himself? How can it be a fake?” Reimu scratches the side of her head, and while she does, Ran, who is holding the shivering Chen says “someone else has the real whistle!” Reimu nods and says “and whoever that is, he or she is going to be in a WORLD of pain... But when could this have happened? I’ve had the whistle with me at all times...?” Before Anyone else can speak, the voice if Shikieiki echoes all over the shrine “Hakurei maiden, guardian of paradise. You are needed.” Just like that, a beam of light slowly comes down from the sky and surrounds Reimu, and before she disappears she says “I’ll be back later. Take care of the shrine, Ri...” Even after Reimu is gone, Rika bows her head and says “will do, my lady.”

Marisa wakes up inside a dark room where everything looks like waves of purple energy bands, and as she looks around, the only difference she can see is a small white light. She kneels and immediately calls “Ail~! Where are you!!?” Nobody answers, and after she stands up on her feet, the room turns into a tunnel with black floors and walls, and the roof is made out of the purple energy bands that surrounded her before, and at the end of this tunnel is the bright light. Marisa sees nowhere else to go, so as she walks toward the light she thinks “maybe he’s over here. I mean, there’s nowhere else to go.” As she gets closer to the light she realizes it looks just like the gate she had made back home, and after getting close enough, she cups her hands in front of her mouth and shouts “Ail, are you there!?! Ail, answer me!” When nobody answers back, Marisa feels a cold chill wrap itself around her heart, then her feet start moving involuntarily faster and faster until she’s running toward the white gate, remembering Ail’s state just before the light took them. Images of Ail lying dead somewhere fill her head, making her feel more tense, her heart beating faster, breathing becoming a chore, and finally, she can’t take it and screams out loud “Ail, dammit, ANSWER ME! Are you alive!?” She is finally crosses the gate of light in a rush, ignoring the bright flash and high-pitched whirring sound as she crosses through, and when she stops, she finds herself in a vast land where nature grows much like Gensokyo, but to her surprise, the trees there are a hundred, maybe even a thousand times larger than the trees in Gensokyo. One flower looks big enough to house at least 5 human families, rocks look like mountain, roads seem like oceans, and to the distance Marisa notices even larger rock formations. Mountains of many kinds of minerals and crystals, all emanating a magical aura. Marisa gasps and whispers “we... we made it... Ail, we made it! We’ve reached...” She looks around herself and remembers Ail is missing. She lowers her hat and says to herself “Marisa, you idiot... He’s not here. Dammit, Sanae’s going to kill me... and Budou...” Marisa’s thoughts are cut short by a thunderous roar and a giant shadow. She gasps and runs behind the mountainous rock close by, and when she looks up, there is a second roar, and a third, and very suddenly, the sky is full of dragons, all headed toward the magical mountains, one yellow, one black with a red abdomen, two blue ones, five green, and one black and white dragon with the symbol of the yin-yang orb plain on its abdomen. Each dragon takes a large bite off the tip of the mountains, and shortly after they do, the mountains restore themselves, ready to feed the large number of dragons headed their way. Marisa’s eyes tremble as she watches in secret, and while shivering she whispers to herself “dragons... This is a paradise... for dragons.” Before she can think any further, she finds herself floating just above the ground as a white beam surrounds her, and in a flash, she is gone.

Marisa now finds herself sitting behind a brown desk inside a large dark dome. She looks around and asks “now where am I?” In front of her, a deep roaring voice shouts “SILENCE!!!” Marisa winces as she turns to look forward, then gasps when she sees a tall podium in front of her, and sitting on that podium is Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, the yama of paradise. Marisa shivers as she asks “um, hey, miss yama. How are ya?” From Shikieiki’s left, hidden in shadow, is a thin and tall figure that speaks in an elegant and calm tone of voice says “well how rude. This girl addresses you as if you were just another commoner, Yamaxanadu.” Another figure in shadow, this one large and bulky, speaks in a deep and wise voice “she is human. You can expect no less of these creatures.” From Shiki’s immediate right, another figure hides in shadow; this one looks curvy and has 3 pair of hands, and in a seductive tone of voice, she says “maybe we should just devour her soul right now, or just torture her for an eternity or two.” Marisa chuckles nervously and asks “wh-what’s going on here?” From Shikieiki’s far right, a large and bulky figure growls and breaths some fire, momentarily revealing a red, scaly lizard face, and in a rage, with his deafening thunderous voice, he bangs on the table in front of himself and tries to get closer to Marisa, revealing himself as a red bulky dragon in a suit, shouting “you stupid human! Do you realize what you have DONE!!!?” The surge of power this yama emanates seems to crush Marisa’s very spirit. As the yama backs away, Marisa feels relief, she is able to breathe again, and foolishly asks “what’s all this about?” The calm yama says “you dare ask questions to us?” The seductive yama adds “we should begin torturing your existence this very moment!” The wise yama calmly says “Yamaxanadu, what are we waiting around here for?” Finally, Shikieiki bangs her podium hard with her sword, and in a strict tone of voice she says “this... is my courtroom. You are here a guests of this living trial. You agreed to abide to my decisions, regardless of what you may think.” The dragon immediately says “and don’t you forget, this human has threatened ALL our worlds!” Shikieiki calmly nods and says “I haven’t forgotten. However, this problem also belongs to the one in charge of guarding this paradise, and until she arrives we all stand by.” After saying this, Shikieiki glances at Marisa, revealing a small glint of worry in her eyes. Marisa still doesn’t understand what exactly is going on, getting nervous with every passing second, then suddenly, to her far left, away from the podium, another beam of light falls from the roof, this one carrying Reimu inside of it, and once Reimu fully materializes, she opens her eyes and stares at Marisa. Reimu looks around for a moment and is about to ask the reason of her sudden summoning, but when she looks to the podium, she immediately drops on her knees and bows to the ground, her forehead almost touching the floor as she says “your graces...” When Marisa sees this happen, her face turns white as her eyes widen and her pupils shrink as she thinks “no... Reimu!”

Shikieiki lightly bangs on her podium with her sword and says “the trial may begin. Marisa Kirisame, you are being tried today for two atrocities committed today in the course of two hours. The first being the intrusion in the ascension of the soul known as Anilan Inmodo Leuch, by summoning him to this world by force, through means... of this.” Shikieiki pulls out a small golden whistle from her pocket and says “Reimu Hakurei, rise and please tell us if you know of this item.” On the ground, after hearing the first accusation, Reimu’s eyes tremble as she opens them wide, her pupils almost disappearing from her eyeballs as she thinks “did she just mention Ail? What just happened, Marisa!?” Reimu slowly rises to her feet with a casual look in her eyes and looks at the whistle. She sighs softly and says “yes. That item was given to me by Ail himself, to call him back to Gensokyo in case of an emergency.” Shikieiki looks at Marisa, then says “I am displeased to inform you that Marisa Kirisame made a copy of this whistle and summoned Ail on her own, and although unknowingly, she destroyed everything for which Ail had suffered so much.” Marisa suddenly shouts “hey! First of all, I MEANT to return the real whistle, and SECONDLY, I swear, I tried to save him... he...” Marisa realizes the aura around all 5 yamas turns red, making their presence unbearable, making her feel as though her body could suddenly explode, then in a calm, yet strict tone, the wise yama says “it would be wise to speak ONLY when spoken to, little human. We will not suffer another interruption, so please keep this in mind.” The Dragon yama suddenly shouts “YOU FOOL! You used that soul for you OWN selfish purposes!!” Shikieiki immediately adds “your friend Ail was undergoing a trial of life in order to ascend to a new level of enlightment, miss Kirisame. When you summoned him like you did, all those trials, all that suffering he went through, everything he had done and gone through became null. He couldn’t reach his goal, and is now wandering in darkness. All thanks to you.” Marisa feels shame. She wants to hide her face under her hat, but when she reaches for it, Shiki says “please remove it”, which she does, revealing despair and shame inside her eyes. She looks to Reimu, hoping to get some support, but Reimu continues to stare at the yamas while keeping her face as expressionless as possible. Inside her mind, Reimu thinks “Marisa, you idiot! What have you done!? Why!? W-what should I do?” Shikieiki continues “the second reason, is perhaps the most grievous of the two offenses. Marisa Kirisame...” The dragon yama beats Shikieiki to it and as he shouts his entire aura becomes a ball of flames “this HUMAN opened a portal into the dragon’s paradise!” Shikieiki bangs her hammer hard on the podium and shouts “I WILL HAVE ODER!” Reimu can’t hide the surprise in her face. Marisa looks at Reimu and notices the great surprise, while Reimu looks back to Marisa, feeling terror, rage and betrayal. She can feel a tear escaping her left eye, but using her will she prevents it from falling, then she quickly turns her face away from Marisa, who continues to look on with hopes of finding comfort in Reimu. Once the yamas settle down, Shikieiki continues “as I was saying... yes, Marisa has linked these two paradises by means of a most complex set of spells and ancient magic. She used Ail’s ability to open gaps in order to open the gate to this paradise. Now Ail’s consciousness is trapped between the two worlds while his body lies somewhere either in Gensokyo, or the dragon’s world.” Reimu’s entire body trembles, her rage taking over all her other senses as she thinks “Marisa!!! You stupid witch!!! What the HELL am I supposed to tell BUDOU, Sanae, and Lily... and EVERYONE!??” Shikieiki then adds “that is not all. If this link between these two worlds isn’t severed, there could be dire consequences that not only affect Gensokyo, but every world, every planet, every REALITY, and even existence itself. If left open for too long, that void will consume us all.” The seductive yama points at Marisa and says “I say we trap her soul in the void between realities for a few eternities!” The calm yama says “I say we throw her in hell and have her body dipped into the fiery pits for a millennia.” The dragon yama shouts “I say you leave her judging to ME!” The wise yama asks “Yamaxanadu... what is your verdict?” Shikieiki closes her eyes and hides her mouth behind her sword, then looks straight at Marisa and says “this girl values magic, almost as much as she values friendship. For her crimes, I find her guilty! And as for her punishment...” Shikieiki raises her right hand and summons a large white orb with a padlock that has a large keyhole on it and looks as though is made of clouds inside the orb, and flying around the large orb are 5 smaller colored orbs; red, blue, green, yellow and white, all flying around the larger orb, making it look like an atom. Shikieiki continues “...her magic will be sealed. She will be, from this day forth, just another regular human.” Marisa gasps and shouts “wait a minute! That’s not fair... that’s... urk!” Marisa feels as though she is being strangled, then Shikieiki shouts “release her!” The dragon yama scoffs, then shouts “her punishment is NOT satisfying!” He looks at Marisa, then at Reimu, then smiles and says “let HER do the sealing.” The other three yamas immediately agree, sounding almost too happy about it, while Shikieiki continues to hide her mouth behind her sword. She sighs and says “very well. Hakurei Maiden, please raise your right hand.” Reimu unwillingly raises her hand, and the orb Shikieiki was holding materializes there, then Shikieiki says “I will entrust you with the task of sealing Marisa’s magic, and finding a way to close off this void. Use any means necessary to accomplish this, Reimu. There is too much at stake.” Reimu lightly bows her head, and seemingly calm she says “I will do as requested of me.” Marisa stares back at Reimu, feeling a mixture of unsettling emotions while thinking “no! This is a JOKE! Reimu wasn’t supposed to go through this! This wasn’t supposed to happen! Marisa, if this is a nightmare, you need to WAKE UP!” Shikieiki bangs her sword on the podium and says “this trial is now over. You are dismissed.”, and with that, two beams of light fall on Reimu and Marisa, and quickly the both vanish from sight. Immediately after they leave, the yamas start to argue, starting with the dragon yama, who gruffly says “you were too lenient on that human! Yamaxanadu, you remember your you place!” Shikieiki turns around and angrily says “you will respect MY decision when in MY courtroom!” The other three yamas bow their heads and vanish from sight, however the dragon yama stays behind and offers his hand to Shikieiki. Komachi rushes from the shadows and threateningly stands between the two yamas, glaring at the bulky dragon. Shikieiki says “stand aside!” Concernedly, Komachi turns to face Shiki and says “but he’s...” Shikieiki nods while looking back with a very serious and determined look, then Komachi hesitantly backs away. The dragon yama smiles as Shikieiki extends her tiny hand to his bulky thick hand, then they shake. Once the dragon releases Shikieiki her hand is burned to a crisp, and with a smile on his face he says “don’t... forget... your place... yama of paradise.”, then vanishes. The instant the dragon leaves the courtroom, Shikieiki looks to the concerned Komachi and says “let’s move! We have much to do!” Komachi concernedly asks “what about that hand?” Shikieiki, though under a lot of pain, turns to Komachi with a smile and says “it’ll heal. Come, we have a lot to do. I just hope we’re not late.”

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika approaches Satori, who sits by the shrine porch, then says “m-miss Satori, could I have a word with you, i-if it’s alright?” Satori looks neutrally at the smiling maid, then nods. They stand next to Rika’s still empty greenhouse, then Rika suddenly drops on her knees and bows to Satori, repeatedly apologizing, while Satori panics and says “wah-wait, what are you doing there? Stop that!” Rika raises her head and gives Satori a hug while slowly flapping her wings, then says “I’m so sorry for the pain I caused you and Petal. I am so very sorry, miss Satori. Please, forgive me!” Satori wonder what’s happening, asking “wait, what are you talking...?”, but after reading Rika’s heart she sighs and says “I see. So you remember.” Rika lets go of Satori, and while still kneeling she turns her face away and nods, then says “and I know I wasn’t really myself, but... what I did, the way I acted. It’s inexcusable.” Satori sighs again and pats Rika’s head, making her turn her face again and slowly flap her wings, then the youkai looks back into Rika’s eyes and says “Rika Onkamikami... that’s a very nice name. Understand that what happened, happened. It’s in the past now. You really weren’t yourself, and I know this all too well. I can read hearts, and this you know, right?” Rika slowly nods, then Satori continues “you’re a very nice person, Rika, and I didn’t want to burden your mind with this. The real you would have never done that. THIS... is why I chose to cover for you. NOT because I pitied you, NOT because you have a pretty face. It’s because of your beautiful heart.” Rika stares back to Satori, wanting to ask something, however Satori beats her to it and says “so you truly wonder if I really forgive you?” Rika looks a little surprised, but then nods. Satori smiles and says “well here I am... accepting your apology with a smile. Isn’t that enough?” Rika looks back at Satori, then smiles and reaches into the pocket of her apron, pulling out a necklace with a triangular green stone on the center, then says “could you please give this to little Petal... as an apology for the trouble I caused her?” Satori accepts the necklace and admires it with wonderment and amazement, then says “this is beautiful. Thank you Rika. I am sure Petal will love this... Green is one of her favorite colors.” Rika giggles and says “the color of nature.” Satori smiles, then says “right. Now, miss Rika, I would like you to come visit us sometime. I am sure Petal will want to thank you for this gift.” Rika smiles as she nods and happily flaps her wings. Meanwhile, inside the Shrine, both Budou and Lily sits beside each other, sighing sadly while Sanae blows on Budou’s whistle over and over. Ran approaches the girls, then says to Sanae “miss Sanae please, that’s enough.” Sanae sighs, then says “alright... Heh, now that he needs help, there is nothing I can do for him.” She hands the whistle to Phredia, who flies by Sanae’s side just as she’s about to drop the whistle, then takes it back to Budou, immediately hiding behind the little youkai’s hair. Ran kneels down and places a hand on Sanae’s shoulder, then says “miss Sanae, don’t say such things.” Before Ran can continue, Budou suddenly gasps and yelps, quickly followed by Lily White, both looking at each other with an excited expression, then Budou shouts “papa~!!”, at the same time, Lily shouts “Ail~!!” Both Sanae and Ran look with surprise at the girls, then Sanae asks “what is it?” Budou hurriedly shouts “it’s papa!”, then she and Lily run outside the shrine and immediately fly away. By the time Rika approaches Sanae and asks “what’s going on?”, Chen is following after Budou and Lily, saying “come on you slowpokes!” Ran and Sanae look at each other, then Ran flies after the girls, and just before Sanae flies away, she says “I think Budou knows something about Ail!” Rika watches as they all fly away and shouts “good luck~!” After that, Satori sighs and says “I guess I better get going too. Miss Rika, please think about what I said. Don’t beat yourself up like this.” Rika silently bows, then softly says “thank you, miss Satori.” Satori lets out half a smile, then turns around and heads toward the shrine’s gates, where she calls “Orin, time to go home.” Orin is curled asleep on the shrine’s donation box, and immediately after hearing her master’s call, she stretches and opens her eyes, then flies after her master, saying “that was a very good nap.” The shrine is now quiet, as the only ones left are Rika, who heads toward her greenhouse after everyone leaves, Mima, and Aya, who are drinking sake while sitting on the floor next to the doors to Reimu’s room, and Suika, who’s fallen asleep while soaking in the hot spring.

At Marisa’s house, two beams of light fall from the sky, dropping off Reimu and Marisa in front of the house. Marisa sighs with relief and says "boy... th-that was scary, huh Reimu..?" From behind, a thick and ominous aura reaches Marisa's senses, making her heart beat faster than ever, an inexplicable amount of fear taking over her entire body. With the look of terror in her eyes, she turns around to see Reimu, having pulled her Ribbon off and glaring with tear-filled raging eyes, shouting "MARISA~~~!" Marisa's breathes uncontrollably fast, her movements feel clumsy at best, and her heart is beating so fast it makes her entire body hurt. She crawls as fast as she can away from Reimu, in a pathetic attempt to run away, then hides just behind a tree, escaping many amulets headed her way; so many in fact, they cover the entire tree. Reimu screams loud and the tree turns into dust with a flash of light. Marisa's breathing turns faster, now having to breathe through her mouth, unable to do so through her nose, her voice escaping in a whimper as she crawls as fast as she can behind another tree. Summoning all her will she manages to shout to Reimu, sounding almost as though she's crying "REIMU!!! CALM DOWN!!! REIMU LISTEN!!!" Reimu shouts back with all her rage "MARISA!!!" She takes a deep breath and seemingly more calm she says "I told you from the FIRST TIME YOU TOLD ME!!! Don't open that gate! NOW LOOK WHAT YOU DID! You got the YAMAS involved! You destroyed Ail!" Reimu unleashes giant bouncing blue yin-yang orbs without first declaring her spell card, all bouncing straight at the witch, however disappearing after impacting the tree, making it bend down and almost crushing Marisa underneath. To this Marisa screams "REIMU!!! I SWEAR I DIDN'T MEAN THIS!!! REIMU!!!" Now sounding like she’s holding back tears, Reimu shouts "Do you have ANY IDEA the position I'm in now!? I HAVE... TO SEAL YOU! Why did you do this to me, Marisa!?!? You disappear for almost a year for THIS!? I MISSED YOU! I really missed you, you idiot! But..." Reimu's tone of voice suddenly changes to a calm, yet ominous tone as she says "now I have to seal away all your powers... my friend... my dear Marisa..." Suddenly everything turns quiet, except for Marisa's heavy breathing. Slowly, the witch calms down and manages to regain some control over her body. She peeks around the left side of the broken tree and notices Reimu is gone. She takes a deep breath and crawls out from underneath the tree, then sits next to it, then starts to think "this is wrong... this is all so wrong." Tears escape her eyes as she thinks "I wanted to help you, Reimu... not hurt you...!" From her left, with her leg surrounded in and orange energy, Reimu kicks Marisa straight on the side of the head, sending her flying against another tree, where she bangs her head hard and drops to the ground semi-conscious. Trying, but failing to hold back her tears, Reimu slowly approaches Marisa, holding the magical seal entrusted to her by the yamas. She hesitates as she looks into the narrowly open eyes of her friend and notices the bit of blood from a cut on her head her own kick caused. Reimu closes her eyes, and in a forced move she places the seal on Marisa's chest, where it sinks straight inside her, sealing away all her magical powers with an ominous dark-blue glow that surrounds Marisa’s body. Reimu turns around and opens her eyes again, trying to avoid looking into Marisa’s slightly open eyes. Marisa softly says "Re-Reimu... so.... rry~!" Reimu's heart can only take so much and start to cry inconsolably, many thoughts coursing through her mind. She drags Marisa's semi-conscious body back inside the house and looks toward the basement. With a furious look she rushes to the basement and grabs all the books she finds in there while doing her best to ignore the swirling vortex that seems to be blowing some cool air. After coming back up she crosses over Marisa's body, which she left on the floor in the middle of the living room, and just before closing the exit door she whispers "you idiot... Listen to me for once.", slams the door shut and flies away.

Meanwhile, at the Myouren Temple’s large bath, Minamitsu is enjoying a relaxing soak at the artificial spring. Her soak is disturbed by a loud buzzing sound. A rift violently opens up right above the other side of the spring, then Ail drops from inside. Minamitsu screams loud, then summons a large anchor, getting up from under the water, holding the anchor above her head while somehow wearing a tower around herself, then shouts “you nasty little pervert, what the hell do you think you are...” Very suddenly, Minamitsu’s mood changes from aggravated to concerned as she asks “wait a minute. Ail? Is that you!?” Blood and dirt from Ail’s body starts staining the clean waters, so Minamitsu grabs him and pulls him out, then stares at him. He’s not moving at all. Minamitsu gasps and says “holy crap, man overboard!” Outside, Budou and Lily are speaking to Byakuren, Budou desperately saying “papa is here, miss Byakuren! Please, let us look for him!” Lily quietly nods after Budou says this. Byakuren sweats and says “but... I’ve been here all day and I haven’t see him.” They hear Minamitsu’s bloody scream, then Byakuren gasps and says “that’s Mini-chan!”, at the same time as Budou and Lily exclaim “papa Ail!” The three girls run toward the bathroom, and after bursting through the door they find Minamitsu wearing her towel, sitting on Ail’s abdomen while pushing against his chest and suddenly placing her mouth on Ail’s, then shouting “BREATHE DAMMIT!!!” Byakuren blushes beet red and covers Budou and Lily’s eyes, then nervously says “Mi-Mini-chan, what are you doing there!?” Minamitsu turns around, revealing a very concerned and agitated look on her face, then shouts “this is NOT time for misunderstandings, Hijiri!” Byakuren looks at Ail’s body, then let go of Budou and Lily’s eyes and rushes to his body, saying “stand aside!” After Minamitsu rushes back to the water, Byakuren inspects Ail’s body, then quickly punches his chest hard, making him cough and gasp for air. Minamitsu exclaims “whoa! Effective!” Sanae, Ran and Chen enter the room just as Ail dizzily sits back up, then Sanae gasps and exclaims “AIL!?” Budou and Lily stand beside him, then suddenly Budou jumps on him and gives him a hug, shouting “PAPA~!”, followed by Lily, who does the same while shouting “AIL~!” Minamitsu exhales, then says “so much for a relaxing bath.”, and just like that, a silver washtub falls on her head, sinking her face in to water.

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenario belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-
Ail, Budou, Phredia and Petal were created by Willie G.R.
Rika Onkamikami was created by Snapshot 2010

MAR 12 2010
Written by
Willie G.R.

A/N
Honestly, I want to say, this chapter took a while to write. Had to take breaks while doing so, especially in the high tension parts... Wait, this entire chapter is high tension, but that’s why I thought about it hard and decided to have the washtub fall down on someone to lighten to mood.
Again, thank you for reading and showing your support, and for leaving your comments/reviews. I makes me glad to see people are actually enjoying these stories, and I’m also glad to know they even help inspire others to write as well.