[17] After it! Before it gets out of sight!
[15] Try and get someone else’s attention to help chase it down.
[0] It might just be a prankster. Just leave it be.
-[X] Yell "Heading out!" Can't say they weren't warned.

There wasn’t a moment to lose.

“Heading out! There’s someone strange on the grounds!” A few of the nearby animals looked in Youmu’s direction, and nodded. The message would get to Satori and the rest eventually.

She hopped up on the windowsill, and kicked off. A swooping dive to build up momentum, and she was gliding, after the shadowy figure.

As she was getting closer, she got more of a sense of her target’s movements. It wasn’t just that they were moving between shadows - they were… maybe tunneling? At an incredibly fast speed, at that, treating the earth more like water than… well, earth.

As the speed of her swoop started to slow, she brought herself to the ground, chasing after them on foot. Now that they were level, more features started to become clear - most notably, that they were treating the earth like water, leaving no gaps where they dived in. Youmu began to get… a feeling of deja vu, and not one she was at all expecting.

The figure was clearly leading her some ways away - not to a place that was all that far from Chireiden, but around a few bends and corners. Far enough that whatever was about to happen wouldn’t be spotted from the estate.

At that point, the figure stopped, surfacing from the earth up into a low squat. Youmu started to approach, putting her hands on her blades-

Two massive stone hands came at her, putting her in full retreat. Feet kicked at the ground, and snow white wings flapped in the air. Together, she easily cleared the stony clap, the two hands crumbling to rubble.

And yet…

Youmu paused. She started to approach, and the earth churned. As soon as she stopped, the earth settled. Right. So she wasn’t supposed to get too close.

The small figure gave a throaty chuckle.

“Keheheh… Not bad running for a crow, y’know.” The figure stood up, grinning. “Or maybe you’re an ostrich?”

“I’m a half- I’m a hell-raven, not a crow.” Youmu scowled. “Nor whatever an ostrich is. Now, my turn to ask a question.”

She raised her shortblade, pointing it squarely at the intruder.

“What’s a goddess doing snooping around at Chireiden?”

Moriya Suwako cooed appreciatively. “Ooooh, good eye, good eye. Yes, yes, I suppose I should introduce myself, shouldn’t I?” The goddess doffed her hat, going to bow deeply. “The name’s Moriya Suwako. Goddess of the mountains, the earth, and the mishaguji. And, hmmmm… you’re an interesting little birdie, aren’t you?”

Youmu steadied her stance, looking directly at the earth goddess. “That’s not an answer to my question. Why did you come here?”

“Whoop!” The goddess slipped into the earth again, leaving Youmu’s head to whirl around for a target. All of a sudden, there were small hands on her feathers. “Oooh, you keep these nice and clean. Can’t be easy if you don’t bend that way. Does your mistress help you, or can you shift into birdie-form to do it? For that matter... do you clean yourself in a human bath or a birdbath?”

“Get off me!” Youmu shoved an elbow in the vague direction of Suwako’s face, but only hit a mound of dirt. The goddess reemerged, in her original position. “You want me to stay back, the least you can do is the same.”

“Touchy, touchy…” Suwako chuckled. “And yet, you didn’t try to take my head? I could be veeeeeeeery dangerous, you know.”

Youmu sighed. “There’s no killing intent in you. Whatever you’re here for, killing me ain’t part of it.” She pulled herself back into a fighting stance. “So I will ask you again. What. Are. You. Doing. Here?”

“What am I doing here, what am I doing here…” The goddess leaned back, conjuring a seat of stone to allow her to sit and lean back in thought. “Hmmm. Well, this is called Chireiden, yes?”

“...Yes?”

“And that means Palace of the Earth Spirits…” The goddess gestured to herself. “Wouldn’t you call me an earth spirit?”

“...Technically?” Youmu blinked, then growled. “You intend to take over Chireiden?”

The goddess seemed to give it a lot of thought, before ultimately… shrugging. “Nahhhhhhh. Too many furballs, not enough ponds. And the view is not exactly selling it as prime real estate.” Another croaky chuckle.

Youmu started to approach again, but the goddess once again churned the earth. “Hmmmm… what am I here for, then… You know what an Immaterial Child is?”

Youmu scowled. “Should I?”

“Probably not yet, I suppose. Well, no point talking about that yet, then.” Suwako hummed dramatically. “Now, what was I here for…?”

The hell-raven gave out another sigh. “Don’t tell me that you’re going senile, are you? You should bring along a notepad if you can’t remember things.”

“Ohhhhhh, right! A notepad!” Suwako waved her hand, and a stone tablet as big as her formed beside her. “Yeah, let’s see, what was I supposed to …?”

The swordswoman took an experimental step. It appeared that Suwako was still making her keep her distance, but only distance - she could walk around the goddess if she didn’t get too close. She did so, to get a better look at the list of items on the list.

“Hmmmmm… not sure which one I was here for…” The frog-loving goddess turned to Youmu, giving an innocent look. “Any of these stand out to you?”

Youmu squinted at the tablet. It was a big hard to read, but… “...Rice, Soy sauce, miso stock… that’s a shopping list! And why do you have ‘eggs’ underlined?!”

Suwako looked at the ‘eggs’ line, then back at Youmu. After a moment, she held her hand out, expectantly. “Can you help?”

“Wh- NO! I - they’re not - I’m not a chicken!”

The goddess cackled, tossing the stone tablet aside. “Keheheheh! Well, guess I wasn’t here for groceries.”

Youmu hissed between her teeth, brandishing her blades again. “Is your goal to draw me out while your mishaguji attack Chireiden, then?”

Suwako hummed. “Nnnnnope, don’t think that’s even close. The mishaguji are all keeping things nice and clear at Moriya Shrine. And so far, I’m kinda thinking the only business partner of mine who came down here found the silver prize, and completely missed the gold. …Heck, maybe she’s going senile. Tragic to see it happening to someone so young. Shouldn’t start until you’re in your three-thousands, at least.”

Youmu focused… then launched herself forward. Suwako saw her coming, but the rising earth wasn’t fast enough to catch her, and the goddess had to sloppily dive back to dodge the strike. “Enough! Are you going to tell me what happened, or am I going to have to beat it out of you?”

When Suwako pulled her face up from the ground, it was with a sly grin. “Now there’s an idea.” The goddess sat up, grinning. “Perhaps a fight is just the thing to job my memory a little.”

She dived back into the earth, emerging a few metres away. This time, when she surfaced, it was with two iron rings in hand. “Would you oblige me a duel, birdie? Not to the death or anything. Let’s just say it’s to first strike.”

Youmu paused, standing up. “...What’s the trick?”

“No trick, no trick!” Suwako chuckled. “You’ve just caught my eye, and I want to get your measure, birdie. I promise I’ll tell you exactly why I’m here when we’re done, alright?”

Youmu gave it some thought. …It was worth a shot, at least. And if she turned out to be lying, she could just hit the goddess more than once. And it was the perfect time to get a good grasp of where her own swordplay was at. “...Fine, I accept your duel.”

Suwako grinned, doing a bow before her opponent. “Then let us be about it, shall we? Ready, set… KERO!”

[ ] Take to the skies. All of her surprise attacks came from the earth, staying airborne in the fight would keep her further away.
[ ] Stay on the ground. It was the way she’d first learned to fight, and it was easier to kick and turn off the ground than it was in the air.

{ } Fight aggressively. She’d fought Suwako before, but the frog goddess hadn’t fought her (kinda? Ugh, time travel). She should use the knowledge advantage while she could.
{ } Fight defensively. Suwako was always a tricksy opponent, and playing too aggressively could very easily backfire.

[10] Take to the skies. All of her surprise attacks came from the earth, staying airborne in the fight would keep her further away.
[19] Stay on the ground. It was the way she’d first learned to fight, and it was easier to kick and turn off the ground than it was in the air.

{18} Fight aggressively. She’d fought Suwako before, but the frog goddess hadn’t fought her (kinda? Ugh, time travel). She should use the knowledge advantage while she could.
{12} Fight defensively. Suwako was always a tricksy opponent, and playing too aggressively could very easily backfire.
Keeping on her feet was by far the better option. Youmu focused, steadying her stance, then took off with a dash-and-slash.
-[X] Just because we aren't flying, it doesn't mean our wings are useless. Use them for a speed boost!

Suwako immediately put her hands up, summoning stone equivalents from the earth. They surged at Youmu, aiming to catch her between them. The young swordswoman slammed down her foot, and flapped her wings, surging to the side of the clap. The hands slammed against each other, crumbling to dust.

Youmu had her feet out, ready to catch herself, and once again flapped her wings to control her momentum, landing lightly on the rocks. Her longblade slashed out, not managing to cut more of the frog goddess than a few hairs as she leant back. The hell-raven had the upper foot here already, and she wasn’t going to waste it.

Outcroppings of rock shot off in her direction, followed by two gleaming iron rings. But as cunning as the earth goddess could be, they were standard fare for her fighting style. Youmu easily surged between the projectiles, getting closer and closer to the frog goddess, and forcing her backwards into another repositioning, diving into the earth. Youmu followed, in hot pursuit.

It was Youmu who actually reached the emerging point first, landing with a single foot on the ground, the point where Suwako should have come up just in front of her. She kept her swords brandished, looking for the goddess to emerge. The distinctive hat came out of the soil… And fighting instinct kicked in, bringing Youmu’s still-hanging foot back to kick at the air behind her. She heard a surprised grunt from the Moriya Goddess, but felt no contact. Not wanting to hang around, she hopped back, taking briefly to the skies.

She saw Suwako emerge, starting to summon a storm of her iron rings. They began to orbit her, faster and faster. Youmu could already tell that getting out of whatever was coming unscathed would be near impossible.

But she didn’t have to dodge it at all. Not if she landed her hit first. She tucked her wings in, divebombing on the Moriya Goddess - not at the first moment where she’d be completely safe, just the first moment she’d hit before the Goddess would. Suwako’s eyes shot open as she realized what Youmu was doing, and again she tried to fall back, but Youmu was quicker.

For a moment, time seemed to slow. As it often seemed to, when Youmu was about to land her winning blow.

Her blade nicked the goddess’ cheek, leaving a bright red line. This line was then matched by a slash into the hell-raven’s side. She finished her stride, then grabbed at the wound, cursing. It wouldn’t kill her or even slow her down for two long - probably not even her half-human form, and her youkai body was more resilient than that - but it certainly stung like it could.

She heard the goddess clapping behind her. “Good show, good show! Well done. A bit reckless, but shows what staying on the defensive gets you on a one-strike-system, eh?” Suwako grinned, tracing a finger along her cheek and licking the blood off it. “You’re a hell of a fighter for a fledgling, you know that? Or…” The goddess grinned. “Are you just a fledgling?”

Youmu couldn’t help but grin back. What a rush! She’d been all about to keep her movements on the ground, but having two whole limbs just sitting on her back was a waste. Turned out that while the more unique parts of Konpaku style couldn’t be done easily without her phantom half, the wings made a lot of the general stances even more flexible. She’d had a leg up on her opponent that time just by default, but if she kept her whole body in mind, she’d probably be able to match her old speed with even better maneuverability, even if the lack of her second viewpoint meant she couldn’t keep as good an eye on her own defenses.

Instinct stays at 0.

“What do you mean by that?” Youmu sheathed her swords, wincing.

“We-ell, it’s got to do with a certain incident on the surface. A bunch of children going missing in the womb… but supposedly, they’ve started turning up. Apparently they reincarnated in other places.”

Youmu’s eyes blinked. “What?! Who?! Where?!”

Suwako sighed, looking at her. “Lemme finish, will ya? Apparently there’s official confirmation that the Yama’s office has tracked down the daughters of the Hieda and Hakurei, but their identities are being kept secret right now. Rumor is neither’s even been to their family home yet.” The goddess continued her appraisal. “...Maybe they’re all youkai, like you. Keheheh… Would be quite a scene if that came out about the new Hakurei Miko.”

Youmu blinked. “...Are you saying I should keep it a secret?”

The goddess nodded. “Well, at least don’t go blurting it out to every Tom, Dick, and Froggy, yeah? Personally, you give off a notably human-y air, and you fight like you’re twice your age. You’re gonna be attracting attention already just with that, so be wary of fully blowing your cover. At least until you know for sure why the others are keeping their heads down.”

Youmu straightened up. “Do you know where I could find them?”

Another shrug. “Don’t have the foggiest what they even look like, birdie. Can’t help ya there, sorry. Though… I haven’t heard anything about someone being ‘out of place’. No kappa hanging out at the mountaintops, or Oni in the rehab clinic - so I’d guess they’re still blending in.”

On its own, it wasn’t that great of a piece of advice, but… with Akyuu’s mental image from earlier, it was potentially quite helpful. She’d probably find Akyuu among the other rabbits - no need to get too sidetracked. She smiled at Suwako. “...I’ll keep all that in mind, then. Was that what you came here for?”

The goddess shook her head. “Actually… no. I came here for something entirely different. Just wanted to check my business partner’s work… and I seem to have found out she’s made a very sloppy oversight. There’s a candidate she’s nominated as an ideal for the position, when in my eyes… there’s potentially an even better one right next to her. Perhaps it's a case of a clear crystal and an unpolished gem. ...Though, we don’t have to be either/or about it, either.”

The goddess gave Youmu a sly grin. “So, Youmu. Have you heard… of the Yatagarasu?”

---

Part 2 Tomorrow, hopefully i unfuck my sleep schedule soon.

Youmu blinked. Wait, one of the Moriya gods wanted to talk to her… a hell raven… about the Yatagarasu?! Was this going where she thought it was?! She coughed, to clear her throat. “...Yes? Who hasn’t?”

The goddess chuckled. “Well, see, here at Moriya Shrine, we’re ambitious sorts, I will admit. Big on revolutionizing the tech level of Gensokyo. And to that, we need power - in the most literal sense. Heat and energy. The power of the sun itself. But bringing the sun to earth isn’t easy. Nor is harnessing that power. We need something like a go-shintai with a mind of its own, a living avatar of a sun god’s power. And the sun god who lended their aid most readily was the Yatagarasu.”

Moriya began to pace around Youmu. “So, we find ourselves in need of a hell raven. One with certain qualities that are hard to find in most of the species. Solitary things, most of you, sly and mischievous as well. But it seems the birds in the employ of the Satori do have those qualities we’re looking for, and in spades - They’re dutiful, cooperative, and possessing of other… desirable traits.”

“Like what?”

“Oh, a certain je ne sais quoi, shall we say. Now, I will say, in terms of raw suitability, it was your sister that was the nominee from my partner, and safe to say she is the obvious candidate. But you… You are a much more trained combatant.”

The goddess put the ends of her sleeves against each other, bringing it to her lips. “Where your sister may overpower you in pure power, I believe you may be not far behind, and maybe even her better in finesse. And I have been watching you tonight - while you don’t show all of the traits as readily as your sister does, I suspect that some of that proverbial secret ingredient merely lies dormant, hidden by your dedication to the sword. And while my partner’s not exactly got the time to really get to know all your ins and outs, I think you’re a worthy gamble to bet on.”

Youmu looked at Moriya, thinking it over. “...So, you think I have this…” What had she called it? “This Jenny-say-kwah?”

The goddess made a strangled noise, and jerked strangely. There was a weird strain to her smile as she lowered her sleeves. “...Yes, I believe you might have thehehhh… the Jenny-say-kwah.”

Due to the banquet preparations, Jenny-say-kwah is at 1. If it reaches high enough, Suwako will formally offer Youmu a chance to try becoming an avatar of Yatagarasu.

Youmu stepped back, thinking. It was… an utterly world-shaking prospect. Okuu in her past life had taken the power of the god within her in stride - and while she’d caused a fair bit of trouble, it had largely been due to misunderstandings and overeagerness on her part. If Youmu could access even just some of that power…

“Though… to be sure… I want to get your measure, first.” The goddess hopped up. “After all, this does require giving a part of a sun god permanent residency within your body - gotta make sure it’s the perfect match, or else bad, bad things can happen. And we don’t have the proverbial ‘shrine’ for the go-shintai ready anyways - not even slightly.”

Youmu straightened up. …She supposed that made sense. She didn’t know if Okuu would grow to the full height she remembered, but she had been older at the time of the Spirit Geyser Incident. …Hadn’t she? Youmu’s internal timeline of incidents had already been shaky in her past life when she wasn’t involved, and it seemed to be one of the patchiest parts of her carried-over memory. Maybe Akyuu could straighten her out. “...Then… is this just letting me know?”

“Consider it a formal expression of interest. Oh, and let me give you this…” The goddess kneeled for a second, then shoved her hand into the dirt she was trying to fetch some keys from a mousehole. After a moment, she pulled her hand up, revealing a small, clay… badge? Shaped vaguely like a frog’s head, though obviously somewhat crude and imperfect, like a child’s imitation. She pressed it into the hell raven’s palm. “A little token, a line to the goddess watching you. If you get yourself in a particularly sticky situation, give this a good squeeze, and I’ll do what I can to help.”

Youmu looked at the nobbly little thing, focusing. Suwako was a curse goddess, after all. But what energy she sensed from the artifact seemed largely benign - whatever it could do, it’d at least do it earnestly.

“And with that… I’ll be off for now, eh?” The goddess doffed her hat for a luxurious bow. “I’ll be watching you, Reiuji Youmu.” She flipped her hat into the air, and it came down, right side up. Rather than perching on the goddess’ head, though, it seemed to swallow her whole, until all that remained was the hat on the ground.

“Wait!” Youmu tried to stop her, but by the time she realized how the goddess was leaving, she was already gone. The hat blew away, picked up by the heated drafts that counted for a breeze in former hell. She tried to chase after it, but the wound in her side slowed her down.

“Myon! Are you alright?” The hell-raven turned, to see Orin running after her. She was pushing her usual cart, though what it had at this time was some first-aid equipment. “Ah-you’re bleeding! So it was a hostile intruder after all?” The kasha immediately started to reach for some bandages she’d brought.

“Not… exactly. Um. It’s complicated.” Youmu sighed, scratching her head. The Kasha put some rudimentary bandages on, then pushed the younger bird to sit in the cart. “Um, I don’t need you to-”

“That’s a big scary gash you got there, sis.” The kasha said, firmly. When she said sis, did she mean it in the way Okuu and Myon used it for each other, or the way she used it for people like Reimu in the other timeline? Youmu’d never questioned it before, but with more knowledge - Orin steadily pushed back as Youmu tried to stand up. “You’re not walking or flying back like that, okay? I’m sure it’ll heal up well even by the morning, but only if you don’t push it beforehand.” Whether she meant sis when she said it, she certainly gave off a big-sister aura in pushing Youmu into place.

Eventually, the hell raven sighed, and conceded to be driven back - drawing a smile from her fellow pet. As Rin began to push the cart, she looked down at Youmu, their faces upside-down in each other’s eyes. “So, what was the intruder like? And what did they want? Didja beat ‘em?”

Youmu took a moment to think. “She was… a little earth goddess named Moriya Suwako. And yeah, I guess I did - we dueled to first strike.”

The kasha looked at her, concerned. “But you’re the one with a slit through your side, aren’t you?”

Youmu grinned, closing her eyes and thinking back. “Doesn’t matter who takes the worst hit, just matters who takes the firs-” She felt a flick against her head. “Ow!”

Orin’s tone was harsh in her reprimand. “It matters to the rest of us. Especially Okuu, alright? You’re far too reckless sometimes, Myon.” The kasha sighed. “What did this earth goddess even want, anyways?”

…There was a lot to process, and there was no way to keep a secret from everyone in Chireiden. But… who knew how everyone would react, especially if she started talking about the Spirit Geyser incident.. And she didn’t even fully understand it all herself, yet.

[ ] “For now, I just wanna discuss it with Lady Satori and the young Mistress. At least get my own head straight.” Perhaps it was best not to talk too much to either Orin or Okuu, at least until she had a better understanding of the situation. Both had ended up being somewhat important to the incident last time.
[ ] “I’ll tell you, and Ladies Satori and Koishi when we get back, but… can we keep it secret from Okuu, just for now?” Okuu was the one who’d gone berserk last time, and she could be excitable. Maybe it’d be best to discuss things without her for now.
[ ] “We’ll talk about it when we’re back home. All of us.” She doubted she’d be able to keep it secret for long, may as well dive in. She’d just have to rely on the Satori to keep her fellow pets from doing anything too sudden in the heat of the moment.

[18] “For now, I just wanna discuss it with Lady Satori and the young Mistress. At least get my own head straight.” Perhaps it was best not to talk too much to either Orin or Okuu, at least until she had a better understanding of the situation. Both had ended up being somewhat important to the incident last time.
[1] “I’ll tell you and our mistresses when we get back, but… can we keep it secret from Okuu, just for now?” Okuu was the one who’d gone berserk last time, and she could be excitable. Maybe it’d be best to discuss things without her for now.
[6] “We’ll talk about it when we’re back home. All of us.” She doubted she’d be able to keep it secret forever. She’d just have to rely on the Satori to keep their pets from doing anything too sudden in the heat of the moment.

“For now… I just wanna discuss it with Lady Satori. And the young mistress, of course.”

Orin sighed. “So we’re out of the loop, are we?”

Youmu did her best to look apologetic, from her position as a passenger. “It’s… it’s tied up in with all the past memories. And I still haven’t sorted those out yet. But… I remember some stuff about the Moriya doing things in Former Hell, and I want to talk to the mistresses about it first. Who knows how everyone else will react.”

Orin nodded. “Well, we’ve all got secrets that only the sisters know. But if they say it’s okay for us to know at ten pm, I wanna know by ten-oh-five, got it?”

Youmu smiled. “It’s a promise.”

---

By the time they’d gotten back, and Orin had more properly done her first aid on Youmu, the party was winding down, with most of the animals filled up and going to do other things. Okuu had been set up on a couch to wait for her sister’s return (in theory, at least. In practice, it was to begin sleeping off her overindulgences), and Orin decided to be the one to get her more properly bedded, as well as get Youmu into a fresh set of clothes. That ultimately meant that Youmu was left with the two satori sisters, to give her report.

They’d taken the discussion to Satori’s office. Youmu had done her best to recount the night’s events, and the events of the Spirit Geyser incident, when it had come up. The two sisters had listened intently, both to the things she said and the things she hadn’t.

When she’d finished her explanation, she sat back, sighing. It hadn’t fully resolved her scattered thoughts, even about the incident she'd been focused on discussing, and it seemed like the Moriya timeline was one of her vaguest memories. But still, talking it out had helped significantly.

Satori sat back, deep in thought. “So these Moriya Goddesses… they made Okuu into a living go-shintai last time?”

Youmu nodded. “Yeah, I guess. And, she never seemed all that bothered by it, or anything. If anything, too happy with it.” Apparently Okuu had been flush in Jenny-say-kwah in the last timeline, too. Satori and Koishi seemed to have an idea about what exactly Suwako had meant, but they’d only shared a few very knowing glances - apparently they didn’t want to guess wrong, for some reason.

Satori kept thinking. “And… Do you trust the Moriya Shrine?”

There was a long, long pause. Youmu weighed up several responses.

“Generally speaking… I trust the Moriya Shrine’s intentions.” Youmu replied, eventually. “They want to be seen as beneficial to those around them, and to gather faith as a result. They’re gods that want a good reputation, but they’re not bad gods. But… I’m worried about them not approaching you two directly.”

Koishi sighed. “...Well, even if they mean no harm, a lot of people will avoid us anyways. Not much of an indicator of anything, really.” Satori reached out, giving Koishi a supporting touch on the arm.

“...I’m more concerned about throwing wide the gates to the surface.” Satori admitted. “Most things in Former Hell are here for a reason, and keeping at least a strong understanding of division between the parts helps keep things intact here. Especially the vengeful spirits - they ccan’t know what ”

“But it’s not like it’s completely locked off, is it?” Koishi said, straightening up. “Orin makes trips up to fetch corpses from time to time, doesn’t she?”

Satori nodded. “Yes… and that’s another matter. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the surface she describes is different to the one you seem to remember. Things are… rather strained there, and the Hakurei Shrine has lost control of the situation.”

Youmu sat up. “Still… that’s not a reason not to go. And it could be a sign that I need to step up and help too. Is there any way I can get up there? I know my friends are looking for me now. …And…” And the Konpaku Family. Were they looking for her, too?

Satori leaned forward, taking a few moments to gather her words. “...Youmu. I’m going to make a few requests of you, in the process. I want you to listen to them carefully.”

Youmu nodded, doing her best to sit at attention. Satori looked her up and down, then spoke.

“The next time that Orin heads to the surface, she can guide you up with her. But when she does, I want you to agree to meet her at the end of the day, so you can go home together.”

Youmu nodded.

“And I don’t want you approaching the Moriya Shrine without learning more about them. And ideally talking with us, if you can. Don’t go bringing up this… Spirit Geyser Incident to anyone else until we have a better grasp on the Shrine’s intentions.” The elder satori sighed. “Those are just requests, but this next one is an order; you are not to tell anyone about the path to the surface. Not people above, not people below. If anyone from the surface asks, you’re not from Chireiden.”

Koishi piped up. “Maybe you can even say you’re a raven from the netherworld? ‘S not technically wrong, if your memories are right.” Youmu nodded, affirmatively. With those sorts of conditions, it might be best to avoid Youkai Mountain entirely, at least for now. If anyone would unmask her, it’d be one the crow tengu.

Though, that brought up another concern. “I can do that but… if Akyuu’s there, she’ll know all that stuff already, won’t she?”

Satori shook her head. “It’s not about people not knowing a way down. It’s about them not knowing anyone’s making their way up. Officially, there is a treaty between Former Hell and the surface that keeps people on either side of it. But things could go bad if people discovered Chireiden was the first to break the treaty for… what most people will see as a literal flight of fancy. Orin is a very explicit exception, with a job that requires her coming to the surface.”

Youmu nodded, standing up and bowing. “...I’ll happily agree to all of these requests, Lady Satori.” The last thing she wanted to do was cause more trouble for Chireiden than she’d already caused. A good part of how messy tonight had been related to her, and she’d imposed on the Komeiji family more than enough over the years.

The two satori sisters shared a final glance, after the bow. Neither seemed to respond to Youmu for a while, leaving her feeling awkward again.

At length, she stood up. “If that will be all, I’ll go to bed, so I can be up bright and early, and make a nice breakfast for everyone. It’s the least I can do for-”

“Youmu.” Satori’s voice was sudden, and silenced the hell-raven. “There’s another important thing we should discuss. Though perhaps we should move somewhere else.”

The hell-raven hesitated. “Um… did I do something…?”

Koishi got up. “Yeah, and you’re still doing it. Sis’s gonna give you what you deserve if you keep this up.” She turned to Satori. “Well, Sis, I gotta have my shower and stuff before I sleep, too. You two get this sorted out before you go to bed, okay?” She waved, leaving the room.

Satori got up not long after. “And we’re headed for somewhere else entirely. Come on, Youmu - there’s much more to discuss.” The hell raven nodded, feeling glum.

Most of the pets of Chireiden were either Satori’s or Koishi’s, with the former tending to have the more mature and calm ones, and the latter the more rambunctious and fun was. Orin was unquestionably Satori’s, and the hell-raven twins were considered split between them - Okuu with Koishi, and Myon with Satori.

So, naturally, when Myon needed to be scolded, it fell to Satori to make sure she was brought back in line. And of course she was going to get chewed out for causing so much trouble. Or maybe Satori was going to make her clean up the mess that had been undoubtedly left by the makeshift party. She trudged behind Satori, worrying about dozens of potential things that had happened that night, and even the night before and what about last week when-

“We’re here.” Youmu looked up, and blinked. Satori had taken her to her own bedchambers. All of the usual things one would expect from a working Lady’s bedroom was here, with a massive bed, a writing desk and a small table with a comfy couch for late-night casual reading. Of course, the couch was also a place where Satori sometimes took her pets to -

Satori had already seated herself on the couch. And was gesturing gently for Youmu to join her.

Youmu looked at her. “...You said it was important?” The little couch wasn’t exactly a good place for discussing tactical matters, or anything of the like.

Satori nodded, firmly. “Absolutely, this is important. Perhaps the most important thing I’ll do tonight. But…” She gave a small smile. “I never said it was business-related. Come, Myon - I want to reminisce for a bit.”

Youmu approached, hesitantly. “...You’re not mad at me?”

The satori shook her head. “Heavens, no. …I’m worried that your past memories and your current ones are mixing in the worst way possible, and I want to make sure that even while some parts are murky, certain matters remain crystal clear. Okay? So.. come on. We’ve both had a long day, and a long night.” She beckoned Youmu over again.

[ ] Sit next to Satori. It’d be the most polite option.
[ ] Shift into bird form, and then perch in her lap. She hadn’t tried shifting since she’d reawoken, and she was nervous about how it’d feel… But, well, Satori was an expert at petting…
[ ] Try for a lap pillow? She’d done it when she was little, but she’d have legs hanging over the armrests, and that assumed Satori would let her…

Reminisce (Pick Two)
{ } Koishi: Two vs Two
{ } Okuu: Making Tassels
{ } Orin: First Day Phasmophobia

---

Both options are just fluff this time. No Spirit checks or anything - just pick whatever you like more.

[ ] Sit next to Satori. It’d be the most polite option.
[27] Shift into bird form, and then perch in her lap. She hadn’t tried shifting since she’d reawoken, and she was nervous about how it’d feel… But, well, Satori was an expert at petting…
[3] Try for a lap pillow? She’d done it when she was little, but she’d have legs hanging over the armrests, and that assumed Satori would let her…

Reminisce (Pick Two)
{23} Koishi: Two vs Two
{20} Okuu: Making Tassels
{19} Orin: First Day Phasmophobia

Youmu… took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and kicked off the ground.

When she opened her eyes, she was a raven, fully. She hadn’t ever really thought about how she shifted into the form of a raven, and now really wasn’t a good time to start. But she’d found jumping a bit as she did it helped. In the self-blinded weightlessness, whatever way her body’s instantaneous shifts occurred wouldn’t be something she’d consciously feel, nor would the sudden change in height throw her off. The only thing that would take her a moment to adjust to was the number of limbs - that part took a moment.

And yet, she did find herself thinking about at least part of it. The best way she could describe it was that her mental image of her arms sorta got… distributed between her legs and her wings. When she’d point, or gesture, or was on the ground, it’d be her wings that would respond. And when she’d want to really grip something, or she was flying, it’d be her legs. It was a disconcerting feeling, and thinking about it too long would only cause more unsettling feelings to bubble up.

…And besides, she didn’t need to do any of that tonight. Satori had grown a small grin, and gestured her pet over. Youmu landed in between her Mistress’ legs… and relaxed.

At once, Satori was gently caressing her, under her chin. Youmu sighed, finding herself leaning into it already. Her mistress chuckled.

“My, my… feeling needy tonight, are we? I thought you would be.”

Youmu tried to speak, before realizing the futility. Couldn’t talk without a human mouth, after all. …Thank goodness she didn’t need to. Satori gently petted her, chuckling.

“Youmu… do you remember when you first came here?”

The little bird nodded. Yeah… of course. When you picked us both up and carried us home. You spent most of the evening trying to introduce Orin to us.

Satori chuckled. “Took a bit of doing, but we got there eventually. You were both terrified of all the other animals. …Former Hell is no place for a child, let alone two without their parents.”

…I can’t thank you enough for taking care of us. Even if I was intr-

“Myon…” Satori’s voice was chiding. “Enough of that, already. You’re literally the only person who could see things that way.”

The hell-raven looked up at her, quizzically. …What do you mean?

“Well, you may remember a Chireiden where you weren’t a part of it… but that’s not the Chireiden anyone else remembers. All we’ve known is you being a part of Chireiden’s family. And that family’s never been one that couldn’t fit another pet or two.”

The bird settled down a bit. ...Sure, but…

Satori hand stroked Youmu’s head, gently. “Here’s a question. What’s the first thing that comes to mind… that only happened because of you?”

Youmu blinked, trying to recall where they had gone wrong. She looked at Satori, desperately.

Her mistress just shrugged. “I think this is our loss, Myon. Best to be graceful in defeat.”

She looked out, over at the other two. Okuu and Koishi were cheering at their victory. It had been a contest of danmaku, elder sisters vs. younger sisters, to see who would rein supreme. Youmu and Satori had been the more powerful team in conventional combat, and yet…

She looked over at the two of them, and stood up to approach them. “But… this whole system was my idea… I thought I’d at least win the first game!”

Koishi walked over, triumphant. “If this was a normal battle, you would have, Myon. But in this… super-fancy spray-bullets-everywhere style, you two are too predictable for your own good.”

Satori sighed. “Yes… I suppose we were. These two are better at improvisation than we are… and us being more trained just makes us easier to read.”

Youmu sighed. “Ah… “ She was suddenly grabbed, and pulled into a hug by Koishi.

“Don’t be sad! This is a great game!” The younger sister beamed at Youmu. “There’s not many people with the power to match us, and most of those that do really want to pound us. And there’s only so many games I can play with sis that we don’t know the outcome of before we start.”

She took Youmu’s hand. “But this means me and sis can play something more spontaneous! And the pets can join in too!” She gave the bird a big hug. “Thank you thank you thank youuuu!”

“Indeed.” Youmu felt Satori reach out to pet her head, although it was with a finger rather than a whole hand. “Your little ideas have been quite a lot of fun for all of us.”

…Well, it wasn’t really my idea. Youmu sighed. With the benefit of full memory, it was pretty clearly scattered memories of Spell Card duels that had inspired the game.

“That doesn’t change that you’re the reason we’ve had that game to play, isn’t it?” Satori smiled, petting Myon more. “And… you don’t seem to remember Koishi all that much, from your past memories. Perhaps she would have run away from home if she hadn’t had your games?”

…I don’t know…

“Alright, another one, then. What about the other pets? What have you done with them?”

Youmu found her eyes drawn to the swords, entirely lacking in anything making them stand out. “...They still need something, I think.”

Okuu looked at them, thinking. “Unyuu? What do you mean?”

“No sword worth anything is just a sword. These blades will be the blades that protect Chireiden! Protect the Komeiji sisters!” Youmu flapped her wings excitedly. “They need names! And they need something to stick on them, too.”

Okuu looked at the two swords. “Well, they have different color handles. The little one’s white, and the big one’s black. Maybe you could do something with that?”

“They’re hilts, Okuu.” Myon corrected. “And… yeah, maybe. But what should I do…”

There was a chuckle from behind the two of them. “Well, it’s not like they’re the only black and white things around here, are they?” Orin approached the two of them, smirking. “You’re the same colors as well, aren’t you?”

The twins looked at each other, thinking it through. Youmu started to grin. “Yeah… yeah! Maybe we can add our feathers to them!”

Okuu grinned back. “And that way, I’ll be helping protect Chireiden too!” Youmu nodded, her mind whirring. “Orin, you got any ideas on how we do that?”

The kasha chuckled. “Ah, I do. There’s some knots I can teach you two to make nice lil’ tassels for the blades. But if these blades are taking your feathers… do they have names yet?”

Youmu paused, thinking. “Mmmmm…”

“...Black-feather and White-feather.” The other two turned to look at Utsuho. “So… Kuroihane and Shiroihane. How about that?”

Youmu smiled. “Perfect.” She grabbed the longer blade, hoisting it high into the air.

“Enemies of Chireiden, beware! These blades are the will of the hell-raven sisters - Shiroihane of ghostly white, and Kuroihane of deepest black! And the things our feathers cannot cut are next to none!” She grinned, holding her hand high, but flinched as pulling her wing back brushed along the bandage. It had almost been easy to forget about - in bird form, it was tucked almost entirely under her wing, making it practically invisible.

Satori chuckled. “My, you got pretty eager there. Both in the dream and right now.”

If birds could blush, Youmu was sure she’d be doing it right now. ...Yeah… I was excited. It just lined up perfectly, you know?

Satori gently pet the small bird-girl, making sure to avoid the wounds. “Yes… you’ve always been one of the most loyal pets here. Never just willing to be a pet - wanting to always be at the forefront of defense, and still help around the house as well. …And that’s exactly my point.”

Her mistress gently turned her around, smiling down at Youmu. “With your new memories, you’re thinking of yourself as… an intrusion. Something that shouldn’t be here, something that’s a burden on the rest of us. But… it’s nothing more than your own dutiful nature assigning guilt where there’s none to be had. We don’t see you as being an addition to Chireiden - you’re a part of it as much as anyone.”

Youmu looked up at her. …Do you really think so? I’m not… causing problems here?

Satori shook her head. “Not even the slightest bit. If it comes to it that you have to leave for a long time, even live somewhere else… so be it. But… if you must leave, you have to make sure you come back, okay?”

She leaned back. “If you were to say you were leaving forever… Okuu would be distraught, no doubt about that. Koishi would miss being able to play our two-on-twos. Orin would panic at the thought her most reliable assistant wasn’t going to be around anymore… and I would miss these quiet little moments, with the rarest, bravest pet in Chireiden.”

She smiled down at Youmu. “...So, if you have to leave, you can. But you’re not an intruder being shooed out the door. You’re a beloved member of our family - and don’t think for a second otherwise.”

Youmu looked up at her. A pit of anxiety that had been in her all evening was slipping away at last. …Thank you, Lady Satori. I think I needed to hear that.

“I know you did.” Her mistress’ voice had that slight air of smugness to it. “Now, just… take a long rest. We can discuss plans in more detail tomorrow, alright?”

Youmu nodded, starting to drift off already with the tension leaving her. Falling asleep in Satori’s room wasn’t ideal, but… she was sure Satori would carry her back, if she needed to.

And right now, there was no place she’d rather be.

---

Pic by Kosuka, of course!

May or may not manage an update tomorrow. Got a wedding for a family friend for the bulk of the day. We'll just have to see what happens.

Kaenbyou Rin sighed, trudging over to the embalming chamber. Just one more thing, and then you can shower and go to bed, Orin. She stretched, yawning.

For now, all she had to do was get a ballpark number of the corpses available for the Hell of Blazing Fires. That number would allow her to calculate when she’d next need to make a corpse trip, and thus what day she’d be bringing Youmu with her - which she reasoned would give the raven a clear point and some work to power through before she was done. Myon never did well with idle hands, after all.

Satori had been brief in her description of Youmu’s encounter with Suwako Moriya (quietly discussed over the sleeping crow in Satori’s lap). There were two main points - the first was that Youmu would accompany her to the surface next time she went, and the second was that the Moriya Shrine was to be investigated before Youmu - or Okuu - were allowed to get close. Message was clear enough on that - Moriya wasn't necessarily an active threat, but they were a potential one.

She reached into her pocket, and pulled out the heavy key for the padlock. It took some fussing with the lock - they needed to oil this more often - but eventually, she got the heavy door open.

She took a look inside the room. It never had a pleasant air - no morgue truly did - but it at least had a purposeful one. This wasn’t a place where spirits lingered - it was a room where corpses were preserved, and stored to be used for the Hell of Blazing Fires. Morbidity was only a consequence of the room’s function - it wasn’t a room where ill intent or unresolved grudges dwelled, only a place of quiet repose for the dead.

…Or at least, it should have been. While the tools and pieces were still there, now the room was stark empty of the proverbial stars of it's show/. Orin’s hackles stood on end, and she scanned the room, looking for what might have caused the difference.

There was a note on the table. Orin raced over to the letter, scanning it.

To whom it may concern,

I consider Moriya Shrine, first and foremost, to be a shrine for humans, and I have considered no small amount of humans my own subjects, and my kin. In the interests of continuing to honour this legacy, I have elected to give the bodies here their proper rest.

Apologies for any inconvenience.

S. Moriya.

Orin cursed, under her breath. Whether it was an act of whimsy, honestly described in the letter, or some kind of scheme, it’d force Lady Satori’s hand, and quickly send Youmu and her to the surface. She took off on a run, heading back to her Mistress’ office.

Only a few seconds later, the ground in the embalming room started to ripple. Suwako Moriya emerged, with another figure in tow. She looked at the passenger of her earthen trickery, humming.

“...Well, who says you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs?” The frog-loving goddess grinned, slyly. “Told ya, there’s no need to go knocking out third parties, Miss Go.”

Her passenger, a blonde girl in a pale white robe, tched. “I had a whole plan, you know. Was gonna have a lot of fun with it, too. Getting in by following her, knocking her out while she’s distracted, traveling back in time to distract her…”

“The more moving parts a plan has, the more failure points it has. And we have enough of those already with this whole thing. And besides, rain or shine we are still going ahead with the underground sun plan. I’d rather not harm anyone actually in Chireiden, when what we’re asking them to do also carries a risk.” She tipped her hat at her sulking counterpart. “...Though… does that plan of yours even work? I was wondering…”

“It would have.” Go said, kicking a rock. “My method of traveling is very different from theirs. So my rules are different from theirs. More… limited. If I could do what they could, then none of this would even be a problem - all I’d have to do is worry about butterflying myself into disaster.”

“I see, I see. Stable time loops, then? Suppose that’s the best you can get with your resources, huh?” The robed figure nodded. “Well, the point still stands. Don’t go antagonizing the Immaterial Children. Especially not if you’re trying to help me, Go.”

“Ahhhh, fiiiiine.” The girl threw her hands up. “Well, I suppose the point is, they’re probably going to the surface tomorrow, right?”

Suwako grinned. “Yep! It's so close I can almost taste it. Now, can you handle getting yourself out?”

“Don’t worry about me. This isn't the only trick this puppet's got.” Go clicked her fingers, and her body faded, vanishing from sight. “She can be almost invisible with little more than a thought, ze.”

“Suit yourself.” Suwako grinned, diving into the earth. “Well, best we split up before someone comes over to investigate. Once again, Go, thanks for the tipoff. I can't thank you enough for this.”

She dived into the earth, a faint ripple being the only hint of where she moved. Go watched her travel, and hidden from sight, began to smirk, whispering under her breath.

“Oh, believe me, Lady Suwako. The pleasure is entirely mine.”

She stepped out into the night, and vanished entirely.

---

Next update should offer an actual choice... or the choice may take just a bit longer. Depends how long Youmu's mind continues walking down memory lane...

Youmu walked out, a tray of cups in her hands. It wasn’t too hard to track down her destination; the only sound on the shrine grounds was the argument being had at its entrance.

“Get your hands OFF me, Marisa!”

“Not until you calm down, you idiot! Think things through, for once in your life!”

The half-phantom rounded the corner, approaching the argument. Reimu had fistful of amulets in her hands, and was struggling to break free of Marisa, who had grappled her from behind. “What’s happened?” She set down the tray, starting to jog over. This wasn’t the first time she’d seen this scene, but before it had been the other way around.

Reimu turned to Youmu, a storm of emotions on her face. “We need to get out of here. Now.”

“No, we don’t! We gotta stay here until it’s safe to go, damnit!” The smaller Marisa desperately looked over at Youmu. “A little help, here?! She’s trying to shove us all out without checking first!”

“What?” Youmu got closer, yet to intervene on either side’s behalf. “Weren’t you the one reassuring us that Yukari had this all under control?”

Reimu couldn’t meet her gaze, even as she struggled to get free. “But- okay, I was, but Aunn…”

Marisa interjected as Reimu’s voice got weak, meeting Youmu's concerned face with a grim expression. “Aunn’s gone cold. Just stopped responding entirely.”

Youmu’s eyes went wide. “...Then it’s just the five of us?”

Reimu managed to free herself, pulling away before Marisa could react. “I’ve tried everything I could think of to wake her up. But... nothing’s working. We… I have to get to the surface. Now.”

The magician grabbed Reimu's arm again. “And I told you, that’s not gonna work! Whatever it’s like in here, it’ll be WORSE out there, Reimu!”

Youmu nodded. “Don’t panic, Reimu. Aunn will be fine, I promise you.”

The miko glared at her. “How can you possibly know that?!”

The gardener walked over to the pedestals in front of the gates. The two komainu statues sat there, motionlessly. She reached out, petting one of them.

“...Because she didn’t vanish. She’s still here, isn’t she?”

Marisa nodded, furiously. “She’s pretty comparable to a type of tsukumogami, right? It’s like how those Tsukumo sisters work, I bet. She’s turned back into a statue, but that doesn’t mean she’s gone - just that she doesn’t have enough juice to move right now.”

“Yes, definitely.” Youmu didn’t really get it, but Reimu seemed to - no point grilling Marisa’s logic and risk poking holes in it. “And that’s why we’re guarding Akyuu, isn’t it? So she can Remember all the youkai and gods back.” Youmu put a reassuring hand on Reimu’s shoulder. “She’ll be fine, Reimu. I’m sure of it.”

The shrine maiden sagged, murmuring weakly under her breath. Youmu gently turned Reimu around, walking back towards the tea.

“...I hate this.” The shrine maiden said, sagging. “I hate this waiting. I - we can’t do anything to help in here.”

“Yeah, ‘cos we don’t need to yet. Besides, we are doing something important. We’re keeping watch and making sure Akyuu and Kosuzu are safe. And whatever’s happening out there, when it’s time, we’ll deal with it. Together, ze!”

Youmu nodded. “Just join us all for a cup, and we’ll talk for a bit, alright? Nothing better for cold chills than warm tea.”

The ground beneath them lurched. The three girls stumbled, looking around.

They were moving, now, through the gap-space. Where they’d appeared to be sinking into it when they came in, now they were rising.

Marisa smiled, giving Reimu a pat on the back. “Well well well! Seems like we’ll be able to get Aunn up and running again sooner than we thought, eh?”

Youmu nodded. “The battle must be over. She’ll be up before you know it, Reimu.” She picked up a cup, looking up at the ethereal sky. “We’ll have her back before you know it.

They could see a slit in the sky, now, revealing the first clouds anyone had seen in a week. Marisa chuckled. “Well, it’s not the golden day you’d hope for, but hell, I’d take hailstones over more of those creepy eyes watching us.”

Reimu looked up, not moving. “...No… something’s wrong.” Reimu kept looking up. “Where’s Yukari?”

A figure appeared in the sky. Even from this distance, Youmu could make out her shape. She pointed. “She’s right there, see? Perfectly-”

The figure tumbled through the gap, falling to the ground. At once, all three girls were moving, rushing to her impact. She landed, hard, in between the Komainu’s pedestals.

The youkai tried to pull herself to her feet. There was a boring hole through her stomach, and Youmu could see shattered fragments of bone that once might have been a ribcage within them. Worse, there was some kind of… black flames all over her. “S-stay back. Go hide with the others.”

Marisa got there first. “Yukari, what happened? What’s with that stuff?” She reached out, trying to quell the fires. The tired youkai spotted her, and tried to lurch away, but Marisa grabbed her firmly.

And burst into black flames.

“MARISA!” Youmu yelled, all but throwing herself out of bed. It took a few moments for her to regather herself - to realize this was her bedroom at Chireiden, not the Hakurei Shrine. Satori must have brought her here last night. She took a deep breath, steadying herself.

Right… that had been how it ended, hadn’t it? Those black flames… Youmu shuddered. She stood up, trying to think. Nothing came to mind that caused fire like that, but maybe Reimu or the others would know more if she could talk to them. Especially Akyuu.

…All the more reason to find her, then. She couldn’t wait; she wanted to get to the surface now, and pass on the information to anyone who’d listen. She grabbed a fresh set of clothes, and began to move to the bathroom.

She just hoped that her lady wouldn’t be too hard to convince.

---

“Actually, we've already decided you're going to the surface today.” Satori said, inspecting the wheel of Orin’s cart.

Youmu blinked. “Hah?”

Orin sighed. “Your ‘friend’, Suwako, came and took our free bodies last night. We need to go fish up some more corpses before the Hell of Blazing Fires starts to die down.” She groaned, rubbing her head. “And we need information, too. Better if we have two sets of eyes working on the solution, no?”

Okuu hopped up. “U-um, I want to come… but Satori and Koishi asked me to watch over the fires, and make sure they’re alright.”

Satori stood up, nodding. “And I need to see if we can source bodies from elsewhere for a day. So I won’t be able to join you, sadly.”

The hell-raven blinked. “So… it’s just me and Orin, then?”

The kasha smiled. “Yep! You just rely on big sis, and she’ll get you to the surface lickety-split!”

Satori reached out to pet Youmu’s head. “So, Orin will go collect some new corpses, and you’ll have to be the one going around and investigating for us. Just remember what we discussed, and you’ll be fine, Youmu. We’ll all be waiting for your safe return.” Youmu blushed, but nodded.

“I promise, Lady Satori, I won’t let you down.” She turned to Orin, smiling. “So… which way to the surface?”

“Wanted to pick your brain on that, actually.” Orin said. She squatted down, starting to draw a crude map with her finger.

“There’s normally one route I take to get me to the surface and back quickly, but… it puts us super close to Youkai Mountain, where Moriya Shrine is. If this Suwako is actually hostile, then she’ll almost certainly be waiting along that route. Most of the other routes are long and windy, as well.”

The Kasha began to draw further. “But there’s two other routes that get us up to the surface nice and quick. They shortcut through the main city, but that’s not a problem in and of itself. The problem is when we need to leave the city is when we need to pick our poison. One takes us straight through Tsuchigumo territory - not a problem in and of itself, but it’s a nightmare if the wheels get caught in the webbing. And the only way to easily skirt around the territory…”

Youmu got a sinking feeling. “...Is to take the Hashihime’s bridge?”

“Bingo. So… what sort of problems will we be dealing with today? As the resident swordswoman of Chireiden, I think it’s only fitting you decide which way is going to be our shortcut of choice.”

[ ] Tsuchigumo territory. If any spiderwebs got in their way, she’d just cut them down.
[ ] Hashihime’s bridge. If any troublemakers got in their way, she’d just cut them down.

New thread over at >>208027

This time, my recommendation is the fan game Mystia's Izakaya! People familiar with the game may have noticed that the dishes referenced in the first post of this thread are all references to good dishes to use for Chireiden characters in Mystia's Izakaya! Clearly Youmu's built up her rapport with all of them.

You can find the game on both through steam (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1584090/Touhou_Mystias_Izakaya/), and on Switch!