Pocketwatch

Foreword from continue:

I will warn you in advance that this story is not suitable for audiences with little knowledge of the Touhou universe, and for that, I apologize. Please suspend your disbelief as these girls act warmly.

—

Pocketwatch

—

A library, too large to be more than dimly lit, a bit dusty and moldy.

“Here’s the tea, Patchouli.”

“Ah, thank you, Sakuya.”

A pair of magicians sit huddled together under the lamplight; one, majestic purple hair and eyes, with a magenta tinted robe, one of my mistresses; the other, unruly yellow locks with a spark in her golden eyes, clad in formal black and frilly white, a guest.

“Ah, Patchouli, I’ve been meaning to ask; my pocketwatch has stopped, and I don’t know how to fix it.”

“Hmm? Let me see.”

The library is silent save for the tinkering of the pocketwatch and an occasional whisper.

“Well, it doesn’t seem to be a magical problem. I’ve purified the metal anyways, though.”

“But it doesn’t look like a simple mechanical problem either. We might have to ask Nitori to fix it.”

The golden black-white is referring to the kappa living on Youkai Mountain. Youkai Mountain, however, is not somewhere even the head maid of the Scarlet Devil is given leave to go very often.

“I could ask Remilia if I could borrow you for a day, and we could fly over pretty quickly. Let’s go!”

“H-hold on just a minute!”

“Go, Sakuya. Marisa won’t wait for you to catch up to her.”

In fact, she’s already brushed a starry path down the hallway with her broom. That witch wouldn’t wait for me any more than time would wait for her. Fortunately, time will wait for me.

“Time Sign: Private Square.”

—

A pale pink vampire, hair tinged blue, sits loftily in her court.

“Mistress, Marisa Kirisame requests an audience.”

“I see; send her in, Sakuya.”

At that moment, the doors burst inwards, small sparks showering from the hinges.

“Hey~ Remi- Wait, I thought I beat you here!”

“Yes, Marisa?”

“Eh, er. Well, I was wondering if I could borrow Sakuya for a day.”

“Oh, are you two going out on a date?”

“Wha- Mistre-”

“Yep, that’s it.”

“Marisa-”

“Very well then. I shall allow Sakuya to attend to you for a day.”

“Thanks!”

The charismatic vampire, my mistress, and the golden witch, our guest; the two dance through an intricate web of unspoken conversation that even my time can’t keep up with.

—

“It’s fairly overcast today. Remilia would like it.”

“The mistress wouldn’t particularly like it if it rained, though.”

“Too much running water?”

“No; we would have to recall the gatekeeper.”

The gatekeeper; smooth crimson hair on a bronze-green traditional Chinese silk. A fitting doorbell for the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

“Ah, Miss Head Maid. Heading out?”

“Yes, please continue to watch the gate.”

“Sakuya, c’mon!”

“Yes, yes.”

Wind blows down from Youkai Mountain, sifting through the trees and sweeping over the lake.

“Windy, ain’t it? Get on, it’s faster this way. I’ve been meaning to ask, by the way. How’d you beat me to Remi? I thought you couldn’t stop time without that watch.”

“You can still use magic without the mini-hakkero right? It’s the same way.”

“Oh, so it’s like a catalyst too, then? Hmm… Well, let’s get goin’! Hold onto my hat by the way.”

The hat, pinned tightly between my arms curled around witch’s waist, is somewhat shielded from the wind. The witch herself has it the worst, flying head-on with such baggy dress. The stinging wind whips around, stirring up the waves.

“You feel that stinging too?”

“It’s not just the wind?”

“Nah, that’s Hina. ‘Pain Flow.’”

Atop the waves, a red and green more reminiscent of a red tide than of Christmas swirls in place, her ribbons effecting a ripple around the lake as she slows to speak.

“Miss Kirisame, Miss Izayoi. The mountain is a dangerous place for humans presently.”

“How’s that any different from usual?”

“Then, allow me to gather your misfortune today as well.”

The poisonous tide whirls, bleeding a red-green into the waves, whipping the lake into a maelstrom of curses. The colorless magician sighs unluckily.

“Does this spellcard have any blind spots?”

“I dunno, maybe right above her? I’ve never tried ’cause there’re too many bullets in the way.”

“I’ll take care of that part. Get ready.”

The surf kicks up a shower of deep red, spraying outwards in a wave as the black-white shoots up and away like a ray of light.

“Illusion Sign: Killing Doll.”

A set of knives slip into being, a circle of silver, another ring spinning into place as the first, future manifested, follow the witch to shield her from curses. The second set, guided by my hand, stop with time for redirection, a frozen silver. They follow the first as another aegis until the magician reaches her position, scattering a series of bottles, some shattering in contact with the bloody green storm, sending down a shower of stars. The center of the lake, briefly illuminated, detonates, sending up a wall of water.

The wall, not subsiding, spirals outwards, tinged an unlucky color. Time slows, but doesn’t stop. The wave is too fast to avoid.

“Got ya.”

—

The sound of running water, a bubbling cascade, birds sharply interjecting in the wind sifting through the trees; a small room, light and conversation streaming in through a single door.

“Eh-, that’s all that was wrong with it?”

“Yup! You can give it back now, if she’s awake, that is.”

“Sakuya~”

“Don’t go and wake her up!”

The golden black-white strolls in, shortly followed by the blue-green kappa.

“Ah, good morning.”

“See, she was awake.”

“Marisa took your watch while you were sleeping.”

“That was to get it fixed!”

“It’s evening now, by the way.”

“Ah. We’d better return soon.”

“Aren’t you forgettin’ something? Here’s your watch, all nice n’ fixed. Nitori said it just needed winding.”

“No, it was a problem with the gears involved with winding.”

“Thank you, Nitori.”

“Hey, what about me?”

“Whose fault do you think it was that the lake exploded!? She could’ve drowned!”

“Thanks, both of you.”

An unexpectedly appreciative tone to both the kappa and the witch, both pause and smile. The pocketwatch shines a polished silver, ticking away softly in my hand.

—

The sky, streaked with lines of scarlet, fading to a darker hue; the wind, subsided; our broomride, calm.

“Hey, Sakuya.”

“Hmm?”

“Are you still thinking about what happened?”

“Not really.”

“Well… Sorry about blowing up the lake.”

“It’s not your fault.”

An unexpectedly curt tone to the witch, who pauses.

“You know, I think there are three things in the world that affect performance: tools, talent, and training.”

“An interesting thought from the self-made magician.”

“Yeah, no matter how hard I work, I probably won’t ever beat you or Reimu without my broom and the mini-hakkero.”

“And yet you probably wouldn’t be able to use it without your hard work up until now, would you?”

“I dunno. Maybe it’s even the other way around. I might not have worked so hard with it if I never had it.”

“So it’s a motivational problem?”

“Out of the three, training is probably the only one that doesn’t provide its own motivation.”

“But it’s also the first we turn to as a necessity.”

“Even so, I imagine that for you and Reimu it comes naturally, just as part of your routine.”

“Then what’s your motivation?”

“Hmm. If I had to put a pin on it, it would probably be curiosity.”

“… That sounds about right.”

“Haha, does it?”

“Ask that bad habit you have of trying mushrooms.”

“Ha, that’s true, isn’t it.”

“Heheh.”

—

Afterword from continue:

Hello, everybody. I wanted to write a Touhou short story, hopefully concise but not contrite, about how certain things are out of our control and how proper equipment and innate ability are simply facts that hard work has to deal with. I’ve actually written the entire thing on my tablet netbook, which I have gotten frustrated with on more than one occasion as a handicap in terms of tools. I’ve wondered before whether I would be more encouraged if I either had more talent or better equipment, but my conclusion is this: it’s best to remain ignorant of the fact that hard work is not the entire equation, since knowing that may prevent you from putting out the hard work to begin with. Hard work is the variable we can most readily change to increase our performance, but it can also be the hardest to find motivation for. Thank you for reading, and to whatever ends you aspire, may good luck follow good work.