[x] Right hand, red

I turned my head away from the spinner and prepared myself to move. From the clues presented during the previous rounds, there was only one possible outcome. Even before the fairy maid spoke, I had already lunged for the circle that was closest to Flandre.

"Right hand, red!" cried the referee.

Exactly as planned. In a split-second, I would block off the vampire's escape route. She would have no escape this time. It was a checkmate. Or so I had thought.

"Oh shi -"

Time slowed as I realized that Meiling was reaching for the exact same circle. She had already began shifting her weight to that side. If I touched it first, then there was a good chance that she would lose her balance. I immediately halted my movement, ignoring the pain as I twisted my shoulder the wrong way.

"W-w-wait!"

Thinking the same thing, Meiling had performed some gymnastics of her own and managed to grab a different circle. And at that moment, I realized our mistake.

"How predictable."

Faster than my eye could follow, the little sister slammed her palm on the red circle. The impact and surprise of her move shook me off balance. And as I started to fall to the side, Flandre grinned widely at me.

"Foolish human. This is the end..."

"Damn it!"

She was right. My shoulder still hurt, and I was unable to recover from this kind of position. In one or two seconds, my left elbow would hit the ground. And it would be my loss. Damn it! I closed my eyes and cringed.

"..."

Five seconds passed. Then ten seconds. I had still not hit the ground. Then, I heard her voice call out to me.

"Don't give up!" said Meiling.

Slowly, I opened my eyes. The gate guard smiled gently at me. Meiling had somehow stopped me from falling by leaning her left knee against my leg. Realizing this chance, I quickly regained my balanced and grabbed a nearby red circle with my right hand. Then, I looked up at the referee. The fairy maid gave us a thumbs-up. Flandre clicked her tongue, disappointed.

"Tch. Almost got you that time..."

"It isn't over yet," I said. "And it won't be over until you finally lose!"

"That's right!" said Meiling. "Even if it's Miss Flandre, there is always a chance that we can beat her!"

The little sister chuckled to herself as she watched us defy her.

"You two sure are persistent. Perhaps its time for me to start playing seriously..."

Something gleamed in her eye. I braced myself for the worst.

"Referee!" cried Flandre. "Spin it again! Again and again until I have these two fools groveling before me!"

"Ah! Y-yes, Miss Flandre!"

The fairy maid then prepared to

[x] Play a physical game.

"Ahahaha! What fun! I never thought that both of you would get this far, ehehe~"

"Hey Meiling! You still alive back there?"

"Barely. That last round almost ended it for me."

Sweat dripped down my face, but I couldn't wipe it off. I had to hold my position just like everyone else, or it would be my loss. And I could only imagine what horrible punishment Flandre had planned for the loser of this exercise.

"Still working together? Now, isn't that cute?"

The cunning vampire still held the best position among us three. She had expected our attack, and she countered it easily with her own brilliant moves.

"But you know," she said. "There is an easier way to end this game. After all, the only thing you need to do is make sure that someone else loses first."

I knew what she was going to say next. But that didn't make it sound any less cruel.

"And that person doesn't necessarily have to be me, ehehe~"

Meiling glanced at me fearfully. I was in the best place to sabotage the gate guard's position this turn. If I did, then this game would be over and I would be free from Flandre's grasp. But only if I surrendered my best friend into her hands.

"A choice between saving myself or my friend? You really are a crafty one, Flandre."

"I thought that it would make for a more interesting game~"

The little sister laughed cheerfully at our predicament. I bit my lip angrily. This was no game. I understood that from the start. This was complete torture, where each player tormented the others. But I had accepted her challenge for a reason.

"You underestimate me," I said. "Did you really think I would compromise? Like hell I would! I already declared my stand at the start of this game!"

I raised my voice and glared at the vampire girl with righteous fury.

"Flandre Scarlet shall be the one who loses this game!"

The little sister smirked with great amusement.

"Do you still believe that possible, human? You are more foolish than I thought! But no matter. I'll crush that resolve of yours into pieces. Again and again, if I have to."

Flandre then turned to the fairy maid, who she had recruited as our referee.

"You there! Spin it again!"

The fairy maid nodded obediently as she knelt down and spun the device. All of our eyes were on it as it slowed down. I watched carefully, but I knew that I had to start moving before the referee spoke.

[ ] Right foot, blue
[ ] Right hand, red
[ ] Left foot, green
[ ] Left hand, yellow

[x] Hug

Flandre wore the brightest of smiles as she stood before me. The little sister was positively radiating with cheer this morning. I quickly turned away and shielded my eyes. The initial strike of this attack had already pulled at my heartstrings, rendering me unable to speak. The vampire noticed my reaction immediately, and she lowered her voice.

"Eh? Why are you looking away? Do you hate me?"

I knew that she was toying with me, but there was a subtle charm behind her words. For some reason, I found myself picturing the little sister all covered in sweet honey as she spoke. 'Covered in nothing else but honey,' whispered my darker side. Wait, what? That definitely wasn't right! I shook my head and stepped back as I removed the indecent image from my mind. I felt my chest tighten painfully as I resisted her second strike.

"Ugh," I managed. "Don't come any closer, Flan!"

"Huh? What are you talking about, I wonder~"

Even without looking, I could tell that she was enjoying this. Behind that facade was a calm and calculating mind. And sure enough, she began to step closer as she prepared her final strike. I raised an arm to stop her. But it was already too late.

"W-wait a sec -"

Suddenly, something unbelievably soft leaned against my chest. I could feel her arms around my waist as she gave me a gentle embrace. Even through my clothes, I could feel the silky touch of each finger. I looked down to see Flandre snuggle up closer, as if she enjoyed my warmth. My head started to grow light.

"..."

I absent-mindedly began stroking the little vampire's head. She purred contentedly as I ruffled her hair. And before I knew it, I gave her a great big hug. But that wasn't enough. I held her as tight as I could, greedily savoring the sensation of her sweet soft skin against my body. She did not resist, and she even giggled a bit in amusement. Then, everything started to turn white. Her innocent laughter was the last thing I heard.

".. don't... brea.. uman"

"Inter.. pure.. ive.."

".. careful... right?"

"Weak... train.. resistance."

"..kless... dange... thod."

Words and colors spun about in my head, but none of it made sense. My mind had completely overheated from the conflicting threads of thought. And when I finally regained consciousness, I found myself seated beside one of the tea tables by the gardens.

"Are you awake? Here, drink some of this."

A red and green blur handed me something that was vaguely shaped like a glass. I took it and drank the contents slowly. A moment later, I realized that I was drinking tomato juice. My head quickly started clearing up.

"Feeling any better?"

"Yeah, thanks."

I smiled in the general direction of Meiling as my eyes regained focus. She sighed in relief. Then, from the other side of the table, I heard a familiar voice.

"I told you that he wouldn't break that easily. You worry too much~"

"What.. what happened?" I said slowly.

"You passed out while expressing your... affection for Miss Flandre."

I glanced at the little sister. She almost choked on her juice as our eyes met.

"Ah, is that so? Sorry about that.."

Flandre turned away, not meeting my eyes.

"W-well, it's not like you did it on purpose..."

The little sister seemed a bit jumpier than usual. I raised an eyebrow at Meiling. The gate guard lowered her voice a bit, though she had a small smile on her face.

"When Miss Flandre realized that you weren't letting her go, she froze in shock. Seemed like you did something that wasn't in her calculations."

"Hey! I can hear that, you know!"

"Ahahaha..."

I laughed uneasily as Flan argued and pouted with Meiling. It was unusual for her plans to take an unexpected turn. I couldn't help but smile as I watched her. That embarrassed expression of hers was so fresh and innocent. She really did look like a little sister at this rare moment.

"And you," she said, suddenly turning to me. "You'll take responsibility for this, won't you?"

"Responsibility?" I repeated. I swallowed nervously.

Flandre suddenly smiled darkly at the gate guard and I.

"You'll play a game with me, won't you?"

I paused for a moment to think. It didn't seem wise to let her choose, so I went ahead and suggested that we...
[ ] Play a card game.
[ ] Play a puzzle game.
[ ] Play a physical game.
[ ] Refuse to play with her.

[x] "Nothing unusual. Gensokyo is always dangerous."

"Thanks for the meal. I'll be going now."

"Come again anytime," said Keine. "You are always welcome here."

Mokou waved at us as she started walking down the path. I watched as she disappeared into the crowd of humans and youkai. Most of the shops have opened, and many of the villagers have began on the day's work. The place was much busier, now that it was late in the morning. Keine then turned to me.

"Before you go, can I ask something?"

"Sure."

"In private, I mean."

I apologized silently as Keine and I stepped away. Meiling looked worried, but she didn't say anything. After making sure that no one was in earshot, Keine spoke again.

"How are you feeling?" she whispered. "Do you still have headaches or trouble sleeping?"

"That stopped a while back. I feel fine now."

"Are you sure? I can get more medicine if you need it."

"Don't worry about me."

The teacher frowned for a moment. Then she sighed, not pushing the subject any further.

"Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?" I asked.

"Ah! There was one other thing..."

Keine fiddled with her fingers as she smiled at me.

"You are a nice guy. I have no doubt about that. But if you ever make Mokou cry, I'll make certain that you regret the fact that you were ever born in this world. Got that~"

"Ahaha..."

After bidding her goodbye, Meiling and I flew back toward the mansion. There wasn't anything of interest to mention on the way back. We just chatted about a few unimportant things, like the new flowering plants that Remilia had bought from the village, Sakuya's instructions for heightening mansion security, and Mystia's plan to expand her grilled lamprey business. Time passed quickly, and before we knew it, we had arrived home.

"Welcome back, Master."

Standing in front of the mansion gate was a fairy maid with short blonde hair. I waved at her as we approached. She watched silently as I landed on solid ground.

"Good morning, Elena. How are things at home?"

"..."

An odd pause. There was something different about the expression on her face this morning, but I couldn't place it.

"Err... Elena?"

She gave me a formal bow before speaking.

"May I request that I be informed of the Master's preferred schedule?"

"Schedule?"

"Please let me know when you plan another 'extended leave'. I shall personally ensure that there will be someone to open the gate. Now if you will excuse me..."

Elena bowed once more before stepping inside. I scratched my head, wondering what she meant. Why was she standing outside, anyway? But something in the back of my mind told me that it was better not to ask. I probably should try to see if -

"You're back!"

Without warning, the front doors of the mansion burst open. Something flew right by my side and crashed heavily into Meiling. The gate guard barely managed to stay standing.

"G-good to see you too, Miss Flandre.."

It took a few seconds for the sight to register in my head. The little sister's affection for Meiling was nothing new, but there was something that wasn't right here. I glanced at my watch.

9:30 AM

Then, I realized it. Why was she still awake? It was far beyond her usual sleeping time. I raised an eyebrow at her. Flandre just smiled with mischief as she pulled away from the gate guard and started approaching me next.

"Ehehe~"

Flandre has appeared. What do?
[ ] Ignore
[ ] Cower
[ ] Punish
[ ] Ruffle
[ ] Hug

[x] "If you have room for three more, why not?"

"..."

Mokou stared at me in silence. I stared back without saying a word. I didn't understand why she watched me like that. Nor did I understand why I felt that looking back was the appropriate response. But for some reason, this girl felt more and more familiar to me. Have I met her before? And if I did, when?

"Ahem..."

Keine cleared her throat loudly. We glanced at her at the same time. She gave me a little nod before turning to the (more) oddly dressed girl.

"Would you mind helping me in the kitchen?"

"... alright."

Mokou stood up and followed after Keine, but not without turning back and staring at me one last time. It was an expression of mild interest, surprise, and perhaps puzzlement? Well, that was my guess, since I felt like I was making the exact same face back.

Hmm. Now that I thought about it, I was pretty sure that I've seen her before. Last night wasn't the first time I've met this strangely dressed girl. And even she seemed to think so. But why was it that she couldn't remember. And why couldn't I?

"Umm, may I ask you a question?"

That voice quickly brought me back to the present. I turned to Meiling.

"Is there something between you and Mokou?"

"Nothing much. Why?"

"Well, it's just that you two have been getting along really well this morning. I could tell that you were both on a similar wavelength. Even if you just met last night, It isn't really unheard of... you know?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

She lowered her voice as she spoke, not looking me in the eye.

"You know... l-l-love at first sight."

I blinked several times before I realized what she was implying. I immediately shook my head.

"That isn't it at all! I just thought that she looked familiar. Maybe we bumped into each other at the village before, or something."

"I see."

"I'm not lying. You believe me, don't you?"

To my surprise, Meiling gave me a bright smile.

"Of course, I do."

I sighed in relief.

"That's great. I wouldn't know what to do if my partner-in-crime didn't trust me..."

"P-p-partner-in-crime? Are you planning to do something reckless again?"

"Nah. It's just my way of saying that you're my best friend."

Meiling turned bright red at those words. She quickly looked away as if she was embarrassed. But before I could ask her why, Mokou returned to the dining room with the tea.

"Geez, that Keine..."

Mokou poured a cup for Meiling. Then, she poured me a cup. Our eyes met for a split-second. And she looked away and quietly returned to her seat.

"..."

Keine entered next with a Japanese style breakfast. After she had served the food, she took a seat right beside Mokou. For some reason, the girl in pants tried avoiding the teacher's gaze. But Keine turned to her anyway.

"Oh don't be like that," she said. "It was my mistake. And I already said that I believed you, didn't I?"

"..."

"So tell me the news. How are your patrols doing?"

Mokou paused uneasily, but Keine just smiled.

"You can speak freely here," she said. "This guy might be stupid, but he's a good person. And Miss Gate Guard visits the village often on her days off. There are no strangers here."

"Days off?" I muttered in surprise.

I turned to Meiling, but she just shook her head and begged silently that I didn't ask. The teacher raised an eyebrow at me.

"Did you say something?" asked Keine.

"Ah, nevermind," I said. "It wasn't important."

"I see," said Keine. "So Mokou, anything new around the area?"

Mokou sighed heavily.

"Nothing that you didn't already suspect. The activity of wild youkai has grown much more violent in the past weeks. I've witnessed several attacks around the Bamboo Forest, the Forest of Magic, and the lower part of Youkai Mountain."

"Any idea what's causing the change in behavior?"

"No clue so far, but that Nightbug girl gave me a lead the other day. I'll let you know if I learn something new."

"Alright. Thanks a lot, Mokou."

Suddenly, the teacher turned to me.

"And how about you? Have you seen anything odd or strange around the mansion?"

"Eh?"

"Since you always get into trouble, I thought that you'd be the best person to ask."

She said that without any hesitation at all. Not that it made me feel much better. I paused to think. Besides last night, nothing really came to mind.
[ ] "Nothing unusual. Gensokyo is always dangerous."
[ ] "Nothing unusual. Things are relatively quiet."
[ ] "Nothing unusual. Why do you ask?"
[ ] "Nothing unusual..." (Specify?)

[x] Human Village

"You have some business in the village?"

"Not really, no. But I just felt like passing by since it's on the way back."

"Hmm," said Meiling. "Are you sure that it's alright for you to miss breakfast? Mistress might get upset..."

"Don't worry about it. In the worst case, we'll just say that I had you accompany me on one of my little adventures."

Meiling stopped in mid-air and turned to me.

"B-but that's too reckless!"

"Not as reckless as an 'ordinary' human wandering around the Bamboo Forest alone."

Mokou hovered only a few feet away, with her hands in her pockets and her eyes to the sky. Despite that, she did seem to be interested in our conversation. Meiling tightened her grip on my hand and gave me a worried look. We were still synchronized, so that wasn't because I might fall. Clearly, she was more concerned about last night. I just shook my head and smiled at the gate guard.

"Just a slight lapse in good judgment."

"That's what you said about the time you faced off alone against that ice fairy by the lake!"

"Huh? You still remember that?"

"Of course! Everyone was so worried when you returned to the mansion with your arm completely frozen! If you had been a few hours late, Patchouli wouldn't have been able to restore it!"

"That was a long time ago..."

"Then how about your little 'hunting trip' in the Forest of Magic? I heard that you were chased by a horde of fairies all the way back to the mansion."

"An unfortunate misunderstanding."

"If Rumia hadn't helped you escape, the wild fairies would have killed you!"

"Not without a fight."

"That's not the point!"

The rest of the flight to the village went on like that. Mokou stayed mostly silent, with an occasional comment here and there, while Meiling and I argued. None of it was really new to me, of course. Every time I had a close call, Meiling would start acting like this. She would keep checking me for wounds or injuries, even if she clearly wasn't familiar with human physiology. The, she would lecture me about how dangerous Gensokyo was, or how this or that creature in this or that place could easily kill me. Not that she was wrong about any of it, of course.

But I always managed to return in one piece, didn't I? Well, almost. More or less. But weren't they overreacting? Just a few weeks ago, I was no longer allowed to wander outside without someone with me. And for some reason, that 'someone' was almost always Meiling. Did Remilia really think that I needed a body guard? Well, whatever.

It was 7:20 AM when we had finally reached the village. It felt good to be walking on solid ground again. A familiar face was waving at us. I quickly waved back.

"Nice to see you, Keine."

"Nice to see you, Keine."

I blinked a couple of times and turned to Mokou. Did we just say that at the same time? We both raised an eyebrow. A short, but awkward silence followed. Sensing the mood, Keine quickly interrupted us.

"It's been a while, you two."

Meiling landed right beside me and gave the village guardian a polite bow.

"Good morning, Miss Kamishirasawa."

"Eh? Ah! No need for formalities here, Miss Gate Guard."

Meiling's eye started twitching. Her smile began to waver, but I couldn't help but be amused.

"In any case, why don't you join me for breakfast?"

"Breakfast? Ah well -"

"- I kinda have something..."

Deja vu. Mokou and I glanced at each other once more. Another moment of silence.

"Oh, don't be shy, you two..."

[ ] "Sorry, but we better get going."
[ ] "Meiling and I would love to join you."
[ ] "If you have room for three more, why not?"

[x] Hold the vial near the fire.
[x] Forget about it and sleep.

"This fire," I muttered.

There was something unusual about it. At the time, I didn't really know what I was doing. But before I realized it, I had taken the crystal vial from my pocket and held it out near the fire.

"Fwoom!"

The flame rose up violently for a moment. The cap popped out of the vial, and a small portion of the flame was sucked inside. Then, the fire returned to normal as if nothing strange had happened. I blinked in surprise. The crystal vial glowed ominously in my hand, yet it didn't even feel warm. After a moment of thought, I replaced the cap and pocketed the vial that now held a bit of the fire that Mokou built.

'Fire in a bottle?' I thought. Hmm. I guess I could figure it out some other time. My eyelids felt really heavy. I was at my limit now. It was a long night, and I had better get some rest. I leaned my back against the cave wall and dozed off.

"...zzz.."

Now if I was the protagonist of some great epic adventure, this would have probably been the best time for a dream sequence. I would suddenly find myself standing in some place or time that was of importance to the future challenges and trials that I would face. There, I would meet someone I knew well or someone who I had never seen before. Either way, that person would give cryptic clues and hints that would only make sense later on in the story. Perhaps I would even see events that happened in the past or in distant places. Only to find out that these would be somehow related to my own fate.

"..zzz..."

Needless to say, I wasn't in that kind of story. I didn't have any strange dreams. None that I could remember, anyway. Instead, the first thing that brought me back to reality was someone's voice. Then, I became aware that someone was shaking me awake.

"Please wake up. It's morning. Won't you wake up?"

"..."

The voice was familiar, but I felt a bit too tired to open my eyes. I heard a second voice nearby.

"That idiot still isn't awake?"

"He won't respond at all. D-do you think that he's alright? I'm not too familiar with human illnesses... huu.."

"..."

Footsteps. Someone was walking closer. Not that I really cared.

"See? He won't wake even if I shake him. Should we take him to Eientei?"

"Step aside. Let me try an age-old technique of mine."

"Eh? W-wait! I don't think that -"

"CRACK!"

Pain. Right in my guts. So much pain. I curled up on the ground and cursed loudly.

"Goddamit, Mokou!" I cried.

"There we go," she said with a smile. "Our little 'hero' is wide awake now, isn't he?"

"Oh no! Are you feeling alright?"

Meiling helped me up slowly. I rubbed my stomach a bit. It probably wasn't going to make a large bruise, but goddamn it hurt a lot! I glared angrily at Mokou.

"What the hell, man? Who the hell wakes someone up with a kick to the gut?"

The girl just smiled at me, clearly amused.

"Though for a 'hero', you really can't take much damage. Hard to believe that this is the same guy who faced off against a dozen beast crows on his own last night."

My head was still in a daze from the pain and anger, but before I knew it, I already held the rifle in my hand. Then, I aimed it right at Mokou.

"You asshole.."

To my surprise (and annoyance), the gesture just made her smile wider.

"Straight to the point, and real gutsy too. Didn't even hesitate. Heh, I'm think I'm starting to like you..."

"S-stop it!" cried Meiling. "Put that thing down! It's dangerous!"

"..."

I glanced at the gate guard. Her eyes pleaded with me to calm down. I sighed. If she looked at me that way, then even the burning anger in my heart would cool off. Maybe I was just weak against girls who worried about me? In any case, I lowered my rifle. The gateguard then turned to Mokou.

"And you!" cried Meiling. "Please don't toy with him so roughly! He's just an ordinary human, you know?"

"An ordinary human? You sure about that?"

Mokou gave me an accusing stare.

"Do I look like I have youkai strength or magic abilities? I can't even fly, for crying out loud!"

"..."

She continued watching me, as if unconvinced. But I didn't look away. Seeing that I was telling the truth, she finally shrugged.

"Well, if that's true, then I guess I should apologize..."

Mokou turned away and glanced outside. It was early morning, and it wasn't raining anymore.

"I'll escort you guys out of the Bamboo Forest," she said. "And depending on where you are headed, I might tag along for a little bit."

"T-thank you very much!" said Meiling.

Personally, I wasn't feeling very thankful. But I guess that there was no real reason to bear a grudge against Mokou. In fact, I was pretty sure that she wasn't kidding when she said that she liked me. But was that a good thing? Well, whatever.

I paused to think. There was more than one route back to the mansion.
[ ] Misty Lake
[ ] Human Village
[ ] Forest of Magic