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there she is

Though most Youkai, Ghosts and Fairies fly, Gensokyo has many dirt roads and paths. Where do they even come from? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The road was quiet, save for the sounds of Oscar’s footfalls or the smaller pads of Rumia and Daiyousei. It may have been the oppressive atmosphere, but it seemed as if no one wanted to talk. Well, almost no one, but even Cirno’s excited boasts seemed to be more subdued than when they drove away Kimiko. The only other voice was Daiyousei’s, low and quiet, as she whispered comfortingly to Rumia. With little else to do, he could only crook his ear in the hopes of overhearing them. A loud buzz pulled him back to reality. In the way that humans do when jerked from their thoughts to immediate danger, his hands flailed in the air. Praying it wasn’t a hornet or one of its vicious kin. The girl beside him rolled his eyes. “Calm down, Outsider, it’s just a Syrph…Syr-Syr—it’s just a hoverfly.” Wriggle’s wings buzzed with sudden ferocity, reflecting her exasperated glare, before the buzz stopped. The small, stripped insect drifted around her new companion. Taking a seat on an outstretched finger. The other hand rose, brushing along his back as though it were a valued pet. “I don’t know why you humans are so cruel to insects. It just wanted to know if your flower was real.” The exchange was simple, but was equally surreal. Oscar was used to hearing people coo over animals, especially the rabbit which was presently fast asleep in his top hat. But he had never heard someone speak of such sympathy for an insect. Something so small and delicate, it was likely to be dead within a week. But that didn’t seem to matter to Wriggle as she brushed its back. “S-sorry,” He eventually managed. Not sure how he would recover from the exchange. “I uh, I thought it was a wasp.” “So you couldn’t take five seconds to check, suuure.” The phrase didn’t seem angry, perhaps a little bitter. But more than anything else, exasperated and very tired. “Everyone’s always so mean to insects. Humans are the worst, but it’s not like anyone else cares. Other Youkai, Ghosts, Fairies. Even Cirno only leaves them alone because we’re friends.” “…You really care about insects, don’t you?” “Yeah. I AM a Firefly Youkai. I bet you think that makes me weak, don’t you?” “…Uhh, Wriggle, right? To be completely honest…I don’t know what a Youkai is. I’m not sure I even know strictly what a Fairy or Ghost is here, either.” The quiet resumed. Weighing around the two like a heavy cloud. The antennae on top of Wriggle’s head moved slowly from side to side. Before she let out a sigh. “You really are helpless aren’t you? Even for a human.” “Right, so are you going to tell me?” The return of the silence from before was welcome this time. Wriggle Nightbug turned to him, opening her mouth as though to speak. But nothing emerged. Her head turned in thought, before with a frustrated huff she instead called ahead. “Dai-chan?” The figure ahead of them had her arm around Rumia. While scarcely taller than the children Oscar used to entertain, when she turned her face towards them, it had all the motherly kindness of a saint. One hand caressing the back of Rumia’s head as she sobbed. “Yes Wriggle? I hope you aren’t being mean to our new friend?” “Can you tell Osu what a Youkai is?” "...But you are a Youkai." "No, like, what-what a Youkai is." “Did you forget again Wriggle?” “S-shut up Daiyousei!” “Hehe, you should be nicer Wriggle.” Daiyousei smiled, with all the charm of an angel. “Youkai are beings who exist because of humans. The first Youkai were born when humans believed there was danger and feared the world around them, but they can exist because of other emotions. Humans long ago looked at fireflies, and they felt wonder for them. Because of that, Wriggle was born.” The words were subtle. Enough that Oscar only grasped their intent when Wriggle looked away, crossing her arms. Daiyousei didn’t revel in her lesson, or even draw attention to it. Only smiled understandingly. Beside her, Rumia looked back at Oscar and her friends curiously. Her crying had stopped, though her face was caked with dried tears. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= What next? = “So that would make you a fairy, right? How are they different?” = “The others really respect you, Daiyousei. You must have been friends for a long time.” = “Your friends seem so normal. Why was Kimiko so strange?” = “Humans and Youkai are dependent on one another then?”

where's cirno?

W is for Wakasagihime

WHY IS HIGH NOTES ON A (Bb) CLARINET SO HARD TO PLAY WAAAAAAA

I live in a world where shion isn't the first option for best touhou of all time