XX


The Apollo 11 departs, and it won’t be coming again. In the end, it’s me, and seven other rabbits who survived. Did we even hurt those humans? Doesn’t matter. I got my helmet back at some point during all that... I take it off myself this time, shake out my ears, and fall down.

“That fighting reminded me of what I saw when we last went down to Earth,” says Keiun. “Humans... aren’t they just barbaric?”

I sigh and answer, “Never been, but yeah...” while picking myself up. It’s no time to rest, we’ve got comrades to bring back home and send off. I put my helmet on again, and with the others walk toward the dead I’d gathered while still fighting.

The next several hours are a blur, at the end of which I find myself seated behind a table before Lady Toyohime and Lady Yorihime inside the manor. They both look serious, for once.

“Those are the losses for certain, Ringo?” Lady Toyohime asks me.

“Yeah,” I say, looking at nothing in particular, “forty-one rabbits dead.”

“And eight who returned,” says Lady Yorihime, seemingly crossing her arms, “but that brings the count to forty-nine; we sent fifty of you.”

I look up, not at them, and gaze off to the side, sighing through my nose.

“We haven’t taken a survey of the names yet but,” whispers Lady Toyohime, before she addresses me in a normal tone, “Ringo? Did someone run away?”

“Reisen,” I say.

“R-Reisen did!?”

“Reisen!?”

The sisters look at one another, or I can guess that’s what they’re doing out the corner of my eye.

“Why!?” asks Lady Toyohime. I’m surprised she’s reacting stronger than Lady Yorihime. I slide down in my chair, fold my arms, and finally look at them.

“She was a scared rabbit,” I explain, “not a scared soldier.” And I think to myself, Is any rabbit a soldier?

“We can’t let this be acknowledged, Elder Sister,” says Lady Yorihime, turning to her elder, “At least not the whole truth of it.”

“You’re right...” the older Lunarian agrees. �€

>>2212
>>2213
musical accompaniments, if you'd like:
>I tune everyone out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pIOOhj0wQE
"This Guy's In Love With You (orchestral)" by Burt Bacharach
"Ticket To Ride (instrumental)" by The Beatles.

>“Listen up!” shouts Lady Yorihime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkJZVNC21Cw
SeeD, from Final Fantasy VIII

>This is Reisen, the vanguard is nearing the opposite shore of Tranquility.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DruLLOO6Vq0
Emil - Despair, from NieR: Automata

>A sobbing runaway enters the Bamboo Forest of the Lost
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Egn_VNVKzI4
The Weight of the World/English Version, NieR: Automata

DDLs: https://mega.nz/#F!1BdBzIKZ!bhLzijfM3iyphpueDOKf0g

>>2213
that pic...
only now do I see its error

The boy awoke with a jolt and a yelp of surprise as something slapped him in the face. After a moment of confused fumbling, he found it to be his own clothes - clean, mended and toasty warm.

The fairy smiled at her sleepyheaded guest from the doorway, then floated serenely away.

The boy quickly changed. The warmth of the clothes helped keep the chill of the underground air at bay, at least for the time being. Carefully inspecting his bad leg, he found it to be almost entirely lacking in feeling still. It would be a while before he walked again, it seemed.

As he swung his legs, both good and bad, over the side of the bed, and pondered how he was going to proceed, he spied something leaning on the wall beside the bed. It was a cane of sorts, roughly fashioned of the same pale, bonelike substance he'd encountered twice already. It seemed tall for him at first, but as he rose and braced himself against it, he found the oddly-shaped top nestled perfectly under his shoulder.

Memory and a luminescent blush returned as he recalled that his hostess had a very good idea of his proportions - and he of hers.

With surprising ease once he got used to the odd arrangement, he made his way to the dining room, or at least the one he supposed to be it - the one with the table. He found it without difficulty, but it proved to be devoid of fairy. As if sensing his thoughts, however, she promptly appeared at one of the other doors, carrying another bowl of food.

"Good morning," they boy said automatically as he maneuvered awkardly into his chair.

"Good morning."

The boy started. The fairy's voice was as unearthly as her appearance, an unholy union of a whisper and a moan, like the wind howling through an old, decrepit house. It was at once appropriately childlike and much too deep for her.

"You can talk," he blurted out.

The fairy gave him a Look.

"...you never talked before," he added lamely.

"I could say the same about you," she replied.

"...sorry," he mumbled.

The fairy said

The boy quickly lost count of the days he spent in the fairy's care. It wasn't that they were many - he still woke confused by his strange surroundings - but here in the silent, gloomy underground world, 'day' held very little meaning. Whatever clock by which the residents of this strange little community rose and slept, if indeed there was one, was hidden from him.

Boredom, too, played a part. His hostess was clearly no idle hand and left him often to his own devices. During those times he had naught but books for company, for she would not hear of him leaving the house until his leg was mended and he could walk unaided. Of the times when she remained, she would occasionally entertain him with the board game she had purchased (so she said) especially for his sake; but just as often she would take it upon herself to further his understanding of the written word, or fill other gaps in his learning.

She was, the boy thought to himself, altogether too motherly. He resented none of it, though; for while she would occasionally mock his ignorance, when he all-too-frequently failed to keep it in check, she never belittled the boy himself. He was a guest in her house, no more and no less; though she clearly had the wisdom and responsibility, if not the appearance, of an adult, she never once treated him as a child.

It was a new and sobering experience. It was also very effective; he desired so much to earn the respect given him that he studied harder under her than he ever had in his life.

Though it had to be said that respect was perhaps not the only thing he desired: their continued shared bathing was driving him to levels of arousal he had no idea how to deal with. He certainly enjoyed these times, and eventually even overcame his embarassment about them, but her indifference left him floundering. He understood enough to know that she could not possibly have failed to notice, and yet she showed no sign of either reciprocation or rejection.

In this matter he was most certainly a child, and he knew it.

But then one morning - if indeed it was a morning - something finally happened to take his mind off things.

I actually finished these ages ago but forgot to fucking post them. I hate my life.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Hellooo~? This still works right?




　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Hearing you loud and clear.

　　　　　　　　You hear what they’re saying?
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　How couldn’t you? Nobody will shut up about it.

　　　　　All rabbits of the Partridge Unit, please respond.　　　　　　　　　Going to the sea tomorrow, should be fun.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　We still hidden?　　　　　　　We are.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Quit it with that. Yeah, you.　　　Present.
　　　　　　　　　Present.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　I’m honestly...
　　　Yeah, I’m here. 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　Present.　　　　　　　　　　I’m honestly kinda scared.
　　　　　　　　　　　　Lady Yorihime is asking for you.　　　　　　　　　Crap! Ahh, shit! 　 　Lady Yorihime!?
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Hey, we all are.
　　　　　　　　Seiran sneaks mochi from the pounders when no one’s around.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　You alright?　　　　　 　 　 　 　 　　　　　Hey! I don’t!
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Yeah.　　　　　　　　　　They aren’t interfering with these channels? What a relief...
　　　　　Ke~gare kegare~!　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　They already landed. What’re we gonna do?
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Hey, cut that out, that’s not funny.
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　It’s kinda funny.　　　　　　　　Stop using the coms to talk about eating mochi.
　　　They’re humans.　　　　All of them?　　　　　　All of them. 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　YUM YUM MOCHI’S GREAT S

XX


The Apollo 11 departs, and it won’t be coming again. In the end, it’s me, and seven other rabbits who survived. Did we even hurt those humans? Doesn’t matter. I got my helmet back at some point during all that... I take it off myself this time, shake out my ears, and fall down.

“That fighting reminded me of what I saw when we last went down to Earth,” says Keiun. “Humans... aren’t they just barbaric?”

I sigh and answer, “Never been, but yeah...” while picking myself up. It’s no time to rest, we’ve got comrades to bring back home and send off. I put my helmet on again, and with the others walk toward the dead I’d gathered while still fighting.

The next several hours are a blur, at the end of which I find myself seated behind a table before Lady Toyohime and Lady Yorihime inside the manor. They both look serious, for once.

“Those are the losses for certain, Ringo?” Lady Toyohime asks me.

“Yeah,” I say, looking at nothing in particular, “forty-one rabbits dead.”

“And eight who returned,” says Lady Yorihime, seemingly crossing her arms, “but that brings the count to forty-nine; we sent fifty of you.”

I look up, not at them, and gaze off to the side, sighing through my nose.

“We haven’t taken a survey of the names yet but,” whispers Lady Toyohime, before she addresses me in a normal tone, “Ringo? Did someone run away?”

“Reisen,” I say.

“R-Reisen did!?”

“Reisen!?”

The sisters look at one another, or I can guess that’s what they’re doing out the corner of my eye.

“Why!?” asks Lady Toyohime. I’m surprised she’s reacting stronger than Lady Yorihime. I slide down in my chair, fold my arms, and finally look at them.

“She was a scared rabbit,” I explain, “not a scared soldier.” And I think to myself, Is any rabbit a soldier?

“We can’t let this be acknowledged, Elder Sister,” says Lady Yorihime, turning to her elder, “At least not the whole truth of it.”

“You’re right...” the older Lunarian agrees. â€

>>664
>He's just a fag that doesn't write anymore because his mental instability and life issues got the better of him and came crashing down.
Who is 90% of THP's writers?

good thread

>>2192
sage, nooblet - do you speaketh it!?

lol

>>2177

>>2178
okay

>>2159
I wasn't aware that eggnog was something you could make at home to be honest. Always thought that was something you could only buy in the states. Gotta love Asian Christmas.

>>2160

I didn't even know they sold ready-made stuff. I must be getting old.

>>2159
>Nemuno's THP debut
Actually, someone on /at/ beat OP to that.

The crunching of paper.

So wet. So moist.

Your tiny boat didn't stand a chance.

The water kept seeping in… You could feel it penetrating the borders.

Shriveling the skin. Turning the paleness into a sickly, wrinkled yellow.

The hat, ribbon torn by the current. Your skirt, shrinking and ripping as you claw for air.

Your arms burn, nearly ripping at the seams as you struggle to breathe. Struggle for the surface. Water invades your chest. So close. The sun is so close. Freedom.

“KOISHI!”

You awake with a start, through your gasp doesn't come; your chest is too waterlogged to be useful for anything but coughing. "KOISHIIIII!!" You look around in greater alarm. That was your sister's voice! You attempt to rise, but find yourself flapping uselessly, a pair of clothespins keeping you in place. You shake your hair, trying to force some of the water off of your floppy form, but it's no use. You have a hard enough time seeing, though; your body is all wavy and wrinkly. You can barely see past your chin!

One thing's certain: you'll have to get down from here. You flop back and forth, trying to free yourself, but you feel so heavy. You try to bend up and grab at the pins, but can't reach. You're just too soggy; you certainly don’t have the strength.

And then you land on the floor with a splat when your arteries manage what you failed. It seems that they took your boot dagger and cut the line.

You lie on a floor you've never stood on, staring up at the ceiling you've never seen as you try to at least flatten out. It... doesn’t work. You’ll need the warm press of your comforters at home to do the job. However, you do manage to peel your head off the floor to look for your sister… wherever she may be.

You stand on legs that feel like they will break apart at any moment, taking in your surroundings. There's a floor, walls and a ceiling, sure, but this also seems to be a cell. The flat metal bars holding you within are proof enough of that. They’re not even nice enough to give you a window!

“Woah Daiyousei, the view from your house is so awesome!”

At the end of a long day, along the shore of the Misty Lake, in the uppermost branches of a certain tree were two young fairies. At first glance, this would not seem to be such an unusual thing to find in the land of Gensokyo. Gensokyo was home to many trees, with many young fairies frolicking among the many branches, usually making mischief for any unsuspecting humans or youkai below. What made this particular tree so unique was the fact that these two particular fairies were not frolicking at all, but were in fact sitting. For this particular tree was planted in just the right spot, that the waterfalls and rivers of the Youkai Mountain could be seen reflected in the calm waters of the misty lake, set aglow in the beautiful oranges and yellows of the setting sun.

“Thanks Cirno. This view is the whole reason I picked this tree to live in.”

The two fairies sat close together, contentedly watching the sunset in silence. However, although the view was breathtaking, one of the fairies found it difficult to focus on it. For this fairy had something weighing heavily upon her mind.

This is it Daiyousei, the fairy thought to herself. You’re all alone with Cirno watching a beautiful sunset together. Now is the perfect chance to tell her how you really feel about her.

“Um… Cirno. There’s something really important that I have to tell you.”

“What’s up Dai?” Asked the ice fairy, quickly taking her eyes off the view to focus on her friend.

“Well… you see,” Daiyousei nervously began. “We’ve been friends for a long time right?”

“Sure have. For as long as I can remember.”

“Yeah,” Daiyousei continued. “And whenever I’m with you, we always have lots of fun together.”

“Sure do,” Cirno agreed.

“And whenever a strong youkai or someone scary like Reimu comes along, you’re always there to protect me. So even though I always get really scared when stuff like that happens, I know that everything will end up ok.”

“Awe, that’s really no big dea

"Graaaagh! I've had it!"

Luna Child punched the nearest available tree trunk in frustration, stirring up a cloud of startled insects.

"We've been wading, through a swamp, in the rain, for four hours. I'm covered from head to toe in mud, mosquito bites and bug guts, because some genius had the bright idea of swatting them with a giant exploding hammer!"

She slumped against the tree and slid into a half-sitting position.

"I wanna go home."

"We all do, Luna," Marisa replied, leaning tiredly on her sword.

"At least you're not up to your neck in river water," Luna shot back.

Marisa winced; as the shortest of the party, Luna was the worst off by far.

"These conditions do leave something to be desired," Kaguya agreed. Even covered in muck and sopping wet, she somehow managed to look dignified.

"We haven't even seen a single Ludroth yet," Luna groused. "How hard can it be to find a ten-foot lizard?"

"Not this hard, surely," Marisa agreed. She turned to look over her shoulder. "Something up your nose?"

"I smell disaster," Hina replied, still sniffing at the air.

"Please tell me it's not coming this way," Luna groaned.

"It's coming from over there," Hina said, pointing.

Marisa squelched to Hina's side and squinted through the downpour. The silhouette of a ruined ziggurat was barely visible against the clouds.

"Should we investigate?" Kaguya asked, shielding her face from the rain to look as well.

"If it gets us out of this bloody rain, I'm all for it." Luna punctuated her sentence by doffing her Great Jaggi cap and wringing the water out of her hair.

"Screw it, can't be any worse than this," Marisa said. "Let's go!"

"We'd better hurry," Hina warned.

Hina lead the way as the four hunters strug

>>2144

"...Why?" I ask.

The pale girl shrugs, cocking her head. "She was on fire and looked exceptionally angry with me, so she was probably a bad person."

"That... is actually not bad thinking at all," I admit. "Still, Mokou's weird and also immortal so basically it's okay to kill her in a fight, but-”

“what the shit was that” says Mokou, sitting up as those holes in her head regenerate remarkably quickly.

“Should I shoot her again?” Altina asks.

“No,” I say immediately, eyes flicking between the smoldering phoenix and the not-quite-right girl training fingers on the former. “No, don't-”

Altina shoots her again, a flurry of blue lasers bursting from her fingers, blasting Mokou's face clean off. I cringe as the woman flops down again.

"I just asked you not to do that!" I hiss at Altina, who simply shrugs.

“what the shit was that” Mokou reiterates a moment later, good as new, looking from Altina to me to her to me again. "I mean, I'll give her credit for being quick and spiteful, but what the shit was that?

“She can't understand you,” I say, switching back to Japanese just for the moment-

"I don't give a damn, she shot me in the head-"

Altina giggles, waggling her shooting fingers. "She sounds really extra angry this time. I should shoot her again, right?"

"Do not shoot her again-"

Altina shoots her again.

"I JUST ASKED YOU NOT TO DO THAT. AGAIN. WHY."

"Sorry, not sorry."

"You are making it really difficult to keep you alive right now," I say, and that's about when Mokou&

>>2144
>>2145

Sunshine beats down on my head as I glower at the ashen remains of my stand. There's quite a bit of roasted forest all around me, but the Rabbit Fire Brigade stopped the worst of it. Small comfort for me when I'm gonna have to rebuy, oh... pretty much everything I owned, but, y'know, hooray for trees.

All this because I didn't turn off the stove.

Nice going, me.

I cover my face in my hands. "Ffffffffffffffffffff-"

There's a whumpfh of someone landing nearby.

"This one's not my fault," Mokou says, strolling up to study my wrecked business.

I glower sidelong at her. "Go directly to hell, Mokou."

"Hey, fire safety's important," she drawls, scuffing a boot through the ashes. "Look at me, f'rinstance." She spreads her hands, wiggling her fingers. "I'm magic, ooh~ I only set stuff on fire that I want to set on fire, aah~ I'm smart enough to turn my stove off when I'm done with it~"

"Shaddup, Mokou."

Mokou snickers at me - and then she stops as a very familiar sound pierces the air, right before she falls on her face, more holes in her head.

I turn around just in time for Altina, good as new, to grab my hand. "So I can't help but notice everything was set on fire! And she seemed like a likely culprit! Also she was being obnoxious, probably."

"Wha-" I manage. "You should still be in the hospital!"

"I heal really quickly~"

Mokou starts pushing herself up. "IS IT TIME FOR ROUND TWO ALREADY-"

Altina blasts her skull again.

"Can you not do this?" I wheeze, horrified.

"Quickly, quickly, leeeeet's gooooooo~!" Altie s

Old, wrinkled eyes stared back at seemingly younger, brighter ones; both of the two knew that this simply wasn't the case, but appearances are hard to ignore. Even to a youkai such as her. Or, perhaps it could be said that it should be the case. He was old — very old for a turtle. And, likewise, she was young for her species.

The young turtle of graying hair, and the old kappa of vibrant youth. An odd pair to consider as anything but elder and youth, though one would have to assess who to call which.

The great turtle that had long played the part of caretaker of the Hakurei wasn't sure what to think of the one that looked as young as his charge. Not when she was making eyes at him, or so he thought. In truth, being a turtle, he wasn't attracted to the features of any resemblance to a human. Flushed cheeks, a cute face, perky breasts and a sweet ass were all things she had in spades, and not one of these things truly appealed to him. Much like humans react to a dog, the old turtle could recognize these assets of hers from an outsider's perspective, but wasn't attracted one bit.

"No."

The aqua eyes turned downcast, and the kappa let out a held breath, as if that breath contained all of the hopes that she held. She did what she could to refrain from trembling or crying, but he saw that lip tremble once or twice. He knew.

As she turned to leave, Genjii sighed. "Wait." Before those eyes could once more fill with hope, he said, snuffing it like a candle, "I don't return your feelings. ...Well, that's not quite right. Thing is, you're a pretty young thing, but I'm just a turtle. And, well... none of what you have is any more attractive to me than a dog is to you." Quickly changing gears before she could think too deeply on that, he added, "Besides, even ignoring that: I'm old. I've lived a long life. All the way to the point of doubling the age any turtle should be reaching."

He didn't think it would work, but he had to at least try talking some sense into the girl. Sure, he'd take a thick, lustrous