Two ogres and a troll
But the humans refused to change
-by Bocaj
Hitori no Onigashima
-by Fawriel
Scarlet Weather Rhapsody
-by Horselesshorseman
As Drunk as I Like
-by Metaflare
Suika ~ Diffusion, Collection, Self
-by yarrunmace
A pair of strong hands
-by Fawriel
Bowl and Gourd
-by Horselesshorseman
Second Best
-by Metaflare
The Oni with the Star on Her Horn
-by Otherarrow
Oni Legend
-by Pulse
The Strong
-by Tacitus
Yuugi~Carefree Captain
-by yarrunmace
Yuugi~Careless Celebrator
-by yarrunmace
Green Eyes
-by Fawriel
The Exit
-by Horselesshorseman
Parsee Mizuhashi - The youkai of festering emerald emotion
-by TARDISES
Parsee~Compulsion
-by yarrunmace
edited 4th Oct '11 1:43:16 PM by Fawriel
Okay, but as far as I understand it, Renko doesn't actually know the connection between Koizumi Yakumo and Yukari Yakumo. So it seems strange for her to act so surprised about it, like, "wow, your master sure has a really unusual name!"
She knows the "Hearn to Yakumo" thing about the author, and she knows that the cat has come for Mary (a Hearn), claiming to serve a Yakumo. Renko's response to the name "Yukari Yakumo" was more like "Yakumo, as in the author?" She realized the "Hearn to Yakumo" thing shortly after.
Was that part really such a leap in logic? I don't mean this as an insult, honestly, but did the scene ruin the suspension of disbelief?
Or am I missing your point? Sorry.
edited 4th Oct '11 1:56:18 PM by Otherarrow
Don't PM me. We don't like being PMed.
Leave Flowers in Fantasy
Well, as Asterism answered, they are poisonous plants. Medicine mentions she has them in her ending. I shortened all of their names because it felt wrong for her to be saying out all of their names. So either they really are talking to her, or she's crazy.
On the metaphor, it also comes from a line in her ending. I interpreted "What was most important was for her to be able to feel the pain within the hearts of her enemies", as saying that she needs to understand what "poisons" others, hence her trying and not really succeeding. But trying nonetheless.
Hmmm, I guess that makes sense, yeah... Well, it did hurt my suspension of disbelief, but I'll chalk that up to my own lack of ability to keep track of stuff.
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Aah, that makes sense, yeah. I was also a little confused because I think Su-san was mentioned in the same breath as them, right? But Su-san is the little doll, if I'm not mistaken. So she (he?) doesn't really fit in there.
edited 4th Oct '11 2:04:19 PM by Fawriel
Is Su-san the doll? I thought it was her pet name for the lily of the valley* .
Heart of Stone
Did I mention my lack of ability to keep track of things.
Funny but not helpful
I guess I'll ask you. Youkai aren't natural?*
Forever liveblogging the Avengers
Actually, Bocaj, I'd say the reverse. Youkai started having trouble eating humans when we started putting MSG and High Fructose Corn Syrup in every damn thing.
Funny but not helpful
Poor man-eaters. There's no organic food section for them in the supermarket.
Forever liveblogging the Avengers
This. Cannot. Continue.
Maribel-Renko picdump a go-go! Images will be safe, the banner ads on the pages may not be.
- Watercolor with ahoge
- Sketch with intent stare
- Frzzled sketch with bunny
- Simple, but the style has a certain appeal
- Likewise
- Intimidating in her capelet
- Watercolor
- Softer
- Trench coat, pocky
- Smiling but looks on the verge of tears
- Yep, nothing weird going on this evening
- There's a train in the sky
- Feel free to speculate on a Sakuya connection
- Sharing a book
- GEE-tarist
- World's warping like an eggroll
- World's revolving around them
- I have no idea what's going on in this picture
- We can only speculate what their danmaku would look like
- Unconcerned about being in freefall
- Unconcerned about getting hit with a train while in freefall
- Good Nap for 53 Minutes
- So stylish
- Popping in at work to say hi
- Incoming hug
- Hug
- Hug from behind
- Pics of them having tea/coffee are pretty common
- And then you see them...
- Gaps, gaps everywhere
- Makes you wonder what's in that brew
- Pretty swanky barstools
- Ready to scoot
- SFX: Scare Chord (Shrubbery)
- The Kochiya Konnection
- This one's a little less explicable
- Suddenly, Chen
- Amazing who you bump into on the train
- Oh God she's loose in the outside world
- Just popping in to check out their dimension
- Solar flares always happen when your back is turned, amirite?
- Like the "Maribel & Renko Crossing" sign
- Almost got the summoning right
- Saved as a wallpaper
- Ditto
- Moonlit waters
- Observing
- There's lots of stuff like this
- One or both of them in front of landscapes and such
- There's even a pool dedicated to it
- Seen this all over YouTube
- And this one
- This one too
- Do Japanese graveyards usually have this many sharpened stakes? Is it a Godzilla deterrent?
- Another album cover
- And another
- There's a whole pool of nothing but album covers
- Pretty damn gorgeous
- Symbolic of how Gensokyo causes a gap between them
- Check the water
- Same situation, different angle
- Mirror
- Through the looking glass
- Looking pretty childish
- Looking a lot like each other
- Eyes in the gap, gap for an eye
- Has a very weird-looking thumbnail, let me tell ya
- A big moment for her
- Control, control, she must learn control
- An instinctive and non-Euclidian defense against upskirts
- Confrontation
- Bad end
- Good end
edited 4th Oct '11 10:01:38 PM by Tacitus
Current earworm: "Awe of the Unknown"
So many pictuuuures. ._.
, and again in my write-up on Yukari.
Picture the scene: A chamber deep within a small, dilapidated shrine. The hall is dimly lit by candles, as it should be, though there are certainly fewer than might normally be called for. A miko, clad in red and white, sits before the altar, placing the last of the offerings upon it: A cup of rice wine, a small bowl of rice and a plate with a handful of chopped vegetables. Far less than the ritual demanded, but it would have to do.
“May the harvest be bountiful, and the winds merciful to the fields,” she continues, picking up where she had stopped a few moments ago. “The fields rich with rice, so that we may give offerings in your honour.” At this, Reimu pauses for a moment, with a somewhat confused expression. She looks up at the altar, muttering to herself. “I think that's how it went, anyway.”
She walks over to a flowerpot filled with wet earth, planting a single sprouted rice grain inside it. “May the rain nourish the earth, but never drown it-” She cuts off suddenly, shaking her head. “Why am I doing this anyway? Wind, rain, the harvest... This is what Kanako does. I can leave this to her.”
With a glance towards the altar, she whispers “no, Reimu, you bloody well can't leave it to Kanako,” as she picks a flute off the floor. With flute in hand and mouth, she holds a baton in her free hand, walking over to the drum at the other side of the chamber. She had never been particularly skilled where music was concerned, let alone two instruments at once, and spends a good deal of her time struggling to avoid dropping anything, while remaining relatively quiet, so as not to wake Suika.
There were meant to be others, of course, who would play the tune while she continued her prayers and proceeded with the ritual. As matters stood, however, Reimu was alone, and forced to make the best of it. With the wordless song painstakingly completed, she kneels before the altar again, pouring a small glass of water into the flowerpot. Soon, it covered the earth inside, crowning the grain with the smallest of ponds.
“May the winter be kind, and spring quick to arrive. May the farmers be kept safe, by the spirits' mercy, from youkai and viper alike.” She had seen just how many snakes lurked in the rice paddies of the village – while this part might be her own addition, it seemed rather necessary. “And... I suppose that's it,” she whispers to the altar, wreathed in smoke as the stick of cheap, Kourindou-bought incense burns out. She makes a brief cutting motion above the pot with a small sickle, as if to harvest the plant that had not yet grown, before pushing the pot aside.
“I'm sorry, but I can't even fake the rest, by myself. Still, I hope you'll look after them; they could use the help.” The ritual could not continue without any incense burning – it simply wouldn't be right – but that was no great concern for Reimu. What remained called for no such thing, and the shrine maiden was reasonably certain she was not supposed to do anything of the sort to begin with. It was, simply put, prayer without ritual, words without ceremony.
“We'll be having a festival here next week,” she begins. “It's nothing too special, I suppose, but I thought it might make you happy. I... don't think anyone is coming, though. Well, no one human, except for Marisa. All youkai and faeries, so far. Just... just say the word if you have a problem with that.” In a way, she almost hoped for some sort of thunderous divine objection to this turn of events, but none came. Her goddess – or god, perhaps – was known for precious little, save for silence.
“Thank you,” she answers with a weak smile, after a full minute of silence. “You've always been a tolerant one, at least. Speaking of Marisa,” a concerned look appears in her eyes as she recalls her friend's appearance earlier in the day, “I think she's come down with something recently. Keine's been working herself halfway to death in the last few weeks, too, with Rumia showing up near the village more often. I know it's...” She pauses, searching for the right word, “lowly work for a deity, but if you could find the time to lend them a hand, I'd appreciate it.
“Do you remember Suika? I've told you about her a few times, but I suppose a god has a lot to remember. She's the oni that's been staying with me, anyway. I know having an oni in a shrine isn't quite right, but she's nice enough. I have her to thank for the rice wine today, anyway; couldn't quite get my hands on any by myself. I think you'll like it.”
She surveys the meager offerings, frowning slightly. She hated the idea of doing this, of course, but all the same, it was worth a try. “I know I shouldn't ask you for anything – not for myself – but I don't have much of a choice. Harvest aside, if you could see your way to bringing a little food to the shrine,” Reimu falls silent for a moment, before finishing with “well, you've seen the state of the donations lately. I'm having more than a little trouble getting by, and a little food would go a long way. And one more thing..."
The miko sighs slightly, knowing that the request she is about to make is a pointless one, however desperate. “If you can hear me, please, say something. A sign will do, even a little flash of light. Just show me you're there. Please.”
Silence.
Whether her plea reaches above or not, there is no answer, not even the slightest whisper in the wind. The shrine maiden shakes her head slowly, a little misty-eyed, perhaps, but unsurprised. It does not take long before anger begins to slowly stake its claim over her mind.
“How did it come to this, anyway? A shrine shouldn't even have any youkai or faeries in it, let alone rely on them.” She stands up, and her voice rises with her as she glares at the altar. “I've saved Gensokyo time and again, and this is where it leaves me; ignored by all the humans in our world, with only a few friends to my name except the ones I've saved them from. And here I am, left staring winter in the face and wondering, of all things, if I'll even be able to survive it.”
The shrine maiden's anger may be all that many see of her, but not a soul in Gensokyo has seen her direct it at her own deity. The mere thought would have never crossed her mind, until tonight.
“And then there's Sanae, the only human besides Marisa who ever bothers to visit this shrine. And she has the nerve to lecture me, after all this! I neglect the shrine, abandon my duties and let youkai roam across the grounds. A disgrace to the shrine, to you and to Gensokyo, she calls me. Easy for her to say, with two goddesses coddling her through everything she does. What have you ever done to help? You...”
Reimu falls to her knees, face buried in her hands, but allows herself only a deep sigh. There will be no tears: Gensokyo requires a strong guardian, a wise, unbreakable protector.
A pity, then, that instead they are left with Reimu Hakurei, the shrine maiden of paradise.
“Sometimes,” she whispers, “I feel like I'm coming here to visit a grave. Maybe that's exactly what I'm doing, but I'll never know.” She stares straight ahead at the altar, any trace of anger now gone, having given way to simple exhaustion. “I didn't want this, you know. I didn't ask to protect this land, to watch over the barrier, to live and worship at this shrine, to be forced into another fight so often. I didn't ask to be abandoned by the world in this shrine, to be remembered only as an angry, lazy, good-for-nothing miko. I never had a single choice; blood decided everything for me. I never wanted to be a Hakurei.”
In the wake of resentment, she shakes her head in an attempt to clear her thoughts. “Maybe I deserve better, and maybe I don't. Maybe you do, and Sanae was right after all.” She glances outside the window, staring at the world she watches over every day, lit by the moon and a handful of stars. “Maybe they deserve better, and that's why the Moriyas are here. Whichever it is, I'm sorry. I-I shouldn't have done that.”
She rises from her seat, shoulders shaking as she turned her back on the altar and closed the window; tonight's air was particularly cold and, had anyone asked, Reimu would have done her best to pin the blame on that. “I suppose it's fitting, in a way, for this to happen to the miko of a forgotten god, the protector of Gensokyo, home for everything the outside world doesn't remember.” The shrine maiden's voice turns to a pleading tone, as she all but begs the ever-quiet altar before her. “But please, don't... don't make me follow you. I don't want to be forgotten. I don't want to fade away.”
Almost an hour passes as she sits there, unmoving. Eventually, she summons up the will to walk away, turning back inches from the door. “Good night. I'll talk to you tomorrow.” It takes less for her to come face to face – more or less, given the oni's height – with Suika, under the autumn stars.
“Still awake, Reimu?” The miko falters slightly; Suika had been fast asleep before. How much had she heard? “Y-yes,” comes the answer, “I've just been a little busy.” The tiny deva tuts disapprovingly, pointing to the inside of the shrine.
“There's a little tea I made for you inside, in one of the brown mugs. Bit cold by now, but it'll do. Just drink up, and go get yourself some sleep.” At this, Reimu shakes her head slightly, even as she rubs her eyes with one hand. “Thank you, but no. Not just ye-” “Just sleep, you'll feel better in the morning. True for anyone but an oni, trust me.”
Too tired to argue, she nods slightly, before stumbling into the shrine.
—-
“Reimu! You awake? Been calling you for almost- woah! How'd this happen?”
As usual, she was woken up by her morning alarm, or Marisa, as she preferred to be called. “I am now,” she mutters irritably, peering through bleary eyes at the room around her. There were those in the world who were 'morning people', she was told, and those who were more at home with the evening hours. Marisa was both; Reimu, given the choice, was neither.
After a few minutes, she walks out of the bedroom, coming face to face with the witch. “Feeling better, I take it?” Marisa nods enthusiastically at this, grinning from ear to ear. “Right as rain! Was real sick last night, and now it's like none of that ever happened. Funny thing, really, but I'm not complaining.” Reimu, meanwhile, stares directly past her, blinking in sheer shock. Jars of pickles, sacks of rice and heaps of vegetables, along with poles lined with dried fish sat in a pile in one corner of the room, spilling across and practically dominating the remainder of the floor. More than enough to last until spring.
“And... that?” She asks, still stunned as she points at the confusing bounty opposite her. “Haven't a clue! I was hoping you'd know.” Reimu shakes her head, answering “I'll get Suika to tidy it up later. Breakfast in twenty minutes, Marisa, since you're here anyway. Mind getting a little water from the well by then?” The miko stands in place as her oldest friend hurries away, looking upwards with an amazed look in her eyes. “Thank you. I... I suppose I was wrong about you.”
As she sets about making use of her new-found supplies, somewhere, on the other end of Gensokyo, Yukari smiles. What Reimu didn't know, after all, wouldn't hurt her.
edited 5th Oct '11 5:18:05 AM by Cynicmuffin
I really enjoyed that! The interpretation of Reimu makes a good deal of sense, I think. Though she has summoned gods before, or at least one... I suppose if her shrine was abandoned, she'd know it? But oh well. I still really like it!
And the story was great! As usual, it read wonderfully. The atmosphere was... interesting, I guess you could say. In the beginning, I was grinning because the whole thing was just so awkward, and then Reimu got so frustrated and sad and... well, I was still grinning! But I also felt sorry for her. It was a weird combination of emotions.
But the paragraph where Marisa wakes her up was simply fun. The first line of that in particular made me laugh.
I suppose it also seems very fitting for the ending to be a good ending except not really that good if you think about it. Heh.
stark raving lunatic
i liked it but am waaaaay too sleep deprived to say why, ill avoid embarrasing my self and offending you by saving my compliments for when i wake up
Just another passerby
One Winged Egret
Are you implying that Yukari is the god of the shrine or simply that she was listening in on it and decided to screw with her? Or that there is no difference?
Also, this is sort of a tangent, but I've always disliked the "Suika lives at the shrine" paradigm. I've always figured she's more like the proverbial 500 pound gorilla: she sleeps wherever she wants to. Maybe that's sometimes the shrine, but it could also be anywhere else she happens to be when she gets sleepy. Her latest conquest is Heaven, of course, but I don't see her staying there very long either. She's not the type to settle down and get her mail delivered to the shrine or whatever.
Probably dead or insignificant, or just too annoyed with Reimu to do anything. She's pretty terrible at her job - the question is whether or not you blame her for this.
As for the summoning, I figure that's like Patchouli summoning demons (see: Koakuma). She summoned a god, yes, but not the one from her shrine. If I remember what little I've heard of SSIB correctly, the Watatsukis did much the same, and I don't suppose they live in a shrine. Also, no, she doesn't know if her shrine is abandoned. She can make a good guess, yes, but as I was attempting to show (clearly I could've done a better job of that), she's not sure at all. Anyway, thanks!
Well, Yukari heard, and did her a favour to help out. Also to restore her faith in whoever may or may not be living at the shrine, as an added bonus. I suppose in a way, Yukari might as well be the god of the shrine - in that she listens to Reimu, helps out, essentially rules Gensokyo and so forth - but that certainly wasn't my intent.
As for the Suika thing, sorry to hear that bothered you. The way I see it, she just goes back and forth between heaven and the Hakurei shrine, staying for a little while at each. This time, she happened to be at the shrine. She might be there for a bit longer than she otherwise would, though, on the basis that Reimu needs someone to look after her and generally keep her sane.
I think it might make a bit more sense if you remember that when all's said and done, Reimu is still a kid, and one in a remarkably stressful situation at that. That, and however powerful she may be, she's still only human.
Anyway, my other stories will be happier. Yes. At least, the two ideas I currently have in my head will be. I need to get over this whole "writing walls of sadness" thing.
The Fool
Suika's more or less a permanent house guest. She sleeps where she wants, but she's been by the Hakurei Shrine often enough to know that the shed in the back has a spare futon, just for her. She pays for a night (or twelve, or more, or less) by helping with the chores.
The Shrine is probably the most likely place you'll find her, but it's no guarantee.
edited 5th Oct '11 5:24:28 AM by Pulse
I sure said that!
Thanks, that's exactly what I was aiming for with the ending, at least. Midway between "awwww" and "wait, that doesn't fix anything."
Technically, I didn't find it "tearfully happy"... my reaction to the stuff at the beginning was more like "hahaha, aww gee".
Like Reimu is the jerk protagonist of some dark British comedy, but also sympathetic and likable and I wanna hug her.
edited 5th Oct '11 5:33:41 AM by Fawriel
One Winged Egret
Well, I just don't think that's true. I'm sure it has a basis in some ending or other from IAMP, but she's basically never seen at the shrine in canon material like the Three Fairies manga or WAHH. And not just in the "we didn't feel showing her was relevant" sense, but in the "Reimu lives alone but Marisa visits a lot" sense. Suika visits sometimes, but no more than any other youkai that Reimu has accidentally befriended. There's a scene in SABND in which Reimu is shown carrying a sake gourd that Suika has given her back to her shrine. If Suika was part of the household, why in the world would she give Reimu a somewhat heavy gift somewhere else and expect her to carry it back?
edited 5th Oct '11 5:34:24 AM by Clarste
Well, in that case, it's not the first time I'm being stupid in the course of writing these things.
Also not the first time I fail to stick to canon.
One Winged Egret
Not blaming you, just talking about Suika in a general sense. Your whole interpretation is of course non-canon in general since Reimu doesn't seem to care about her god very much. She was thinking of getting a new one to attract more visitors.
edited 5th Oct '11 5:47:11 AM by Clarste
I really liked that minific, but I don't have anything to say that hasn't been already said. Sorry.
The idea of Reimu being doubting of her god and getting upset over it is a very interesting one and I like it, even if it is noncanon because in canon Reimu doesn't care either way (and the god seems to dislike, or at least is displeased with, her anyway)
As for Suika, I know she doesn't really "live" anywhere, and canon never really "shows" her living at the shrine, but eh. I blame fandom for this piece of fanon being so stuck in my head. Sorry.
Don't PM me. We don't like being PMed.
Actually, I thought I made it clear that Chen didn't get it, because she didn't know who he was. As for Renko, I tried to imply she was already at least somewhat familiar with Koizumi Yakumo, and he was the first thing that came to her mind when Chen mentioned "Yakumo".
As for what it means, it just as the popular theory said. The same way Lafcadio Hearn became Koizumi Yakumo, Maribel Hearn will become Yukari Yakumo. Chen didn't understand until the end of the minific (and may not fully understand still), and thought that Mary was somehow "negating" Yukari, and if she died Yukari would magically come back.
Sorry if I missed your point. Thanks for catching that typo btw.
edited 4th Oct '11 6:27:31 AM by Otherarrow
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