Anonymous 2012/08/06 (Mon) 00:12 No. 160329 No, you shouldn’t change plans mid-sentence. You can try to manage her reaction, though.
“… A certain celestial.”
Iku starts winding up for an unhappy sigh. Maybe she thinks you lost your home in an earthquake? You quickly interrupt her.
“A-and before you get in any ideas, she isn’t in trouble for anything. I just want to talk to her.”
The sigh comes out as a simple loud breath. Iku’s eyes widen with curiousity, but she still seems disappointed.
“I suppose you are referring to Tenshi Hinanawi, Eldest Daughter of the Hinanawi clan?” she asks, in the same tone as before.
That sounds right. You nod cautiously.
“Very well. Please come with me.” Iku scans the skies for a moment. You can’t see anything noteworthy, but she picks a direction and flies off with apparent certainty, beckoning for you to follow.
Seems like the didn’t like hearing about Tenshi, but you can’t just give up on a potential contact. You fly closer and try to strike up a conversation.
“Are you a friend of hers?”
Iku thinks for a bit without changing her speed. “I suppose not. We both spend much of our time in Gensokyo, though, so we see a lot of each other. And it often falls to me to look after her.” An idea strikes her. She turns her head and examines you until you blush.
“I do not believe the Eldest Daughter has any friends. Finding one could greatly decrease her mischief.” The look in her eyes seems to say, “I would appreciate that.”
The two of you are heading towards Youkai Mountain. The peak is almost at your level, its rounded top rising majestically above the clouds. Waterfalls flow down its verdant sides, and a large building sits next to a lake near its peak. That would be the Moriya Shrine, home to the youkai’s new goddesses. You’ll need to be careful here; this place could soon become very dangerous for you.
Just outside the shrine’s gate, you see the constantly-shifting multicolored swirl of a spellcard duel. Iku leads you over, looking thoroughly uninterested in the fight.
“The Eldest Daughter is having her morning exercise. Please be patient.”
The current spellcard breaks, and the bullets disappear before you have a chance to analyze them. In the calm that follows, you get a brief glance at the participants. Unfortunately, they’re so far away that you can only tell that they’re both girls, one with green hair and one with a black hat.
The green-haired girl declares a new spellcard. There’s a familiar thundering sound, and its name flashes across the battlefield.
Divine Virtue 「Bumper Crop Rice Shower」
She holds something up and starts firing red bullets in five directions, creating a sort of star shape. None of them are aimed right at her opponent, but four of those streams bounce back off of the boundary and rain down in chaotic, colorful showers. The sight makes you sweat a little; this card would be a match for your prototypes at full power. As they are now, at least. And her barrier is superb, holding up well against a constant barrage of large grey projectiles.
You and Iku finally reach the duel’s boundary. Now you can make out the participants though the thick cloud of danmaku.
The current card belongs to a young woman dressed in a white-and-blue variation of the Hakurei maiden’s clothes. She must be Sanae Kochiya, the Moriya shrine maiden. You’ve seen her in the village a few times, going about her business with a serene smile and surrounded by divine grace. The earth rises to meet her, the wind is at her back, the sun shines warm on her face, and the rain falls softly at her feet. She exterminates troublesome youkai, but the youkai are her source of faith. An interesting paradox, but you doubt she’ll react well to your product.
On the other side, you have the Eldest Daughter herself. She looks about the same age as Sanae. Her hat, adorned with a few green and pink objects, stays securely on her head as she flies about and fires an endless stream of heavy-looking shimenawa-covered rocks at her opponent. She seem to be as light and graceful as an angel as she dances around the hail of bullets, her long blue hair whipping back and forth around her.
A well-placed stone smashes Sanae’s barrier to pieces, knocking the miko off her feet. As the remaining bullets fade away, Tenshi glances around for the first time and sees you and Iku standing nearby. A radiant smile lights up her beautiful face, making her red eyes almost sparkle.
“Oho, an audience! I’ll need to put a quick end to this.” Her voice isn’t terribly high-pitched, but it’s definitely girly.
Sanae picks herself up with a loud, tired sigh. When she finally opens her eyes, she’s shocked to see Tenshi running right at her with a shining card in one hand and a strange fiery sword in the other.
Non-Perception 「Sword of Rapture」
The card disappears, and Tenshi brings her empty hand to the hilt. The flame solidifies into a glowing red blade as she swings the sword forwards with all her might. Time seems to stop as a terrible slicing sound fills the air, followed a moment later by a terrible shriek. The duel ends with a thundering roar as the impact throws Sanae off the mountain and far out of sight.
That was a spellcard? She formed the bullets right on her sword. You didn’t think that was possible.
Tenshi spins around to face you as she follows through with the strike. Before the spin finishes, she sheathes her sword, crosses her arms, and plants her other foot on the ground with a triumphant smile. You decide to give her some measured applause, and she takes several theatrical bows in response. Afterwards, she crosses her arms and smiles again. The smile seems a bit more arrogant this time.
Now that the fight’s over, you can get a better look at her. She’s a bit shorter than you, with pale, flawless skin and lively red eyes. Her silky blue hair spills out messily from under her peach-adorned hat, with some of it clinging to the shoulders of her white-and-blue dress.
Iku steps forward and clears her throat, making Tenshi acknowledge her for the first time.
“Eldest Daughter, allow me to introduce Tadashi Yanai,” she says. You didn’t think it was possible for anyone to sound so polite.
“It’s a pleasure.” You bow a little deeper than you normally would. It goes over well.
“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you too! Come on, let’s go someplace nicer.” Tenshi snaps her fingers, and an enormous one of her stones falls from the sky. You can’t help but jump back as it crashes into the ground a foot away from you, but Tenshi and Iku don’t even flinch.
Tenshi climbs on to the stone’s flat top and eagerly pats the spot next to her. You clamber on and sit down at her side, a little closer to her than you’d like. Her dress feels soft and comfortable, and the bit of her arm that’s pressed against yours is nice and smooth as well.
The stone rumbles to life and flies off into the sky. It’s only big enough for two, and Iku doesn’t seem interested in coming along, so you’re alone with Tenshi. The excitement is plain on her face; this must be a rare occasion for her.
You should get to know Tenshi before you tell her your idea. Is there anything specific you should discuss?
[ ] Her looks.
[ ] Her spellcard.
[ ] Iku.
[ ] Her relation to Moriya.
[ ] Her views on humans and youkai.
[ ] Write-in.