Story: Mundane Musings of the New Generation: Introductions (all chapters)

Houraisan Mokou, formerly Fujiwara no Mokou, should have known that her daughter would ask the question someday. Kids were curious and, sooner or later, her daughter would come up to her and ask the question. But that didn't mean she was prepared for it!

"How did you and Mommy meet?"

Mokou and her wife, Houraisan Kaguya, both froze where they were sitting. Their daughter, Houraisan Kayahime, was looking up at them with her bright red eyes, eyes that were shining in excitement. "Well? How did you two meet?" she asked once again.

"Kaya...why do you want to know?" Mokou asked, feeling a bead of sweat on her brow.           

"We were talking about it in school today!" Kayahime replied. "Yagokoro-sensei said that the two of you met in a very interesting way, like a fairytale!"           

‘Damn it Eirin...' Mokou thought. She looked over at Kaguya; her wife had managed to regain her composure but she could tell that the princess was thinking the same thing.          

"So how did the two of you meet?"          

"Well, it was quite a fiery affair at first," Kaguya said, the words slipping easily out of her mouth. Mokou supposed it came with being a princess; Kaguya was always slightly better at keeping her emotions under control in situations like this. "Your daddy came out of nowhere one day and her passion was like a fire out of control! She hit me with her flames of love!"           

"Really?" Kayahime asked, her eyes almost literally sparkling. "What happened next?"           

Kaguya threw Mokou a look; ‘Help me out here,' the look screamed out and Mokou couldn't help but give a bit of a chuckle.

"Well, your mother's a princess and a very beautiful one at that. She had many suitors but her personality was like a dagger to the heart."           

"So how did Daddy win Mommy's heart?"           

"It was a pretty harsh ordeal," Mokou continued, a grin coming to her face. "The obstacles were great, but I lived through it. No matter what put me down, I kept coming back. Eventually, I managed to thaw her heart and we got married!"           

"Why was Mommy so cold-hearted?" Kayahime asked, looking a bit confused.           

"I wasn't cold-hearted!" Kaguya spluttered indignantly. "I just didn't meet anyone I thought worthy of my hand until I met your Daddy! Well, considering she kept overwhelming me with her heated emotions..."           

"Wow..." Mokou and Kaguya could almost swear that there were sparkles in Kayahime's eyes. "Daddy is so cool! Thanks for telling me!" With that, the little girl went skipping off humming to herself. Her parents watched her go with some amusement.           

"Flames of love?" Mokou teased as soon as the child was out of earshot.           

"How about that dagger to the heart?" Kaguya fired back as she playfully poked Mokou on the chest with her index finger.           

"What are we going to tell her when she gets older?" Mokou asked, sounding a bit worried. "You know she's not going to buy that story when she's a teenager..."           

"We did give her the truth, somewhat," Kaguya giggled as she snuggled closer to Mokou. "I'm sure she'll understand when we tell her...eventually."

Kazami Hibachi had no idea why people feared her mother so much.

Hibachi had always admired her mother who carried herself with serene grace as she tended to the field of sunflowers surrounding their home. Her mother always had a peaceful smile and her voice was pleasant to listen to. So why was everyone so afraid of her? Hibachi even had the feeling that her dad was afraid of her mother, though given that her dad was a firefly youkai who was much weaker might've had something to do with it.

"Daddy? How come you're so scared of Mommy?"

Wriggle Nightbug paled as soon as she heard the question. "It...it's not that I'm afraid of her," she stammered. "It's just that...she's a bit of a bully sometimes."

"No she's not!" Hibachi couldn't believe what her dad was saying. "She's really nice!"

"That's because you're her beloved daughter," Wriggle smiled as she ruffled Hibachi's hair. "But before we got married, she used to tease me all the time." She gave a somewhat dry laugh. "I guess I still remember when she used to be a bully..."

"But what about the other people?" Hibachi pressed. "Did Mommy bully them too?"

"No, they're just afraid because she's so powerful," Wriggle said. "Well, her being a bully may have something to do with it as well..."

"Who's a bully?"

Hibachi swore her dad must've jumped about three feet into the air at the sound of her mother's voice. Kazami Yuuka was carrying two flower pots with large red flowers in each one. "Wriggle, what are you telling our daughter?"

"Um, well, I was just answering a question she had..."

"Mommy, how come people are so scared of you?"

Hibachi could see Wriggle flinch a bit; Yuuka, however, merely looked perplexed. "What do you mean by that?" she asked as she set the plants and the cage down.

"Well, Hakurei-san and Kirisame-san always seem uncomfortable when they talk about you. Why is that, Mom?"

"Hakurei-san and Kirisame-san once broke into my home," Yuuka said as she filled up a small watering can at the kitchen sink. "It didn't end well for all involved."

"What happened?" Wriggle asked; she had never heard this story before.

"It involved a lot of explosions and Master Sparks," Yuuka replied and giggled a little at the expression on her wife and daughter's face. "But why are you worried about why people are afraid of me? As long as my family still love me, I'm fine." With that, Yuuka pulled Hibachi in for a hug, one that caused the young youkai to relax.

She decided not to ask about her mother being a bully in the past; it wasn't that important.

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When Hibachi asked Hakurei Reimu and Kirisame Marisa if they ever did anything to anger her mother, both women seemed to pale extremely quickly. Reimu fell silent and only stood there shuddering while Marisa quietly muttered "I'm sorry" over and over again. Perhaps there was something about her mother that was very frightening.

Hibachi was glad she was a well-behaved girl.

"Where are we going?" Dinah Kirisame asked her parents.

The five family members, Shanghai and Hourai included, were walking towards a large cave behind the Hakurei shrine. Her mother Alice Kirisame, formerly Alice Margatroid, gave her daughter a smile. "We're going to visit my mother, Dinah," she said.

"Is that why Daddy doesn't look too well?" the young girl asked, pointing to Kirisame Marisa; the black-and-white witch did have a rather uneasy look on her face that she did her best to hide from her daughter.

"She's right; you do look a bit tense," Alice noted. "I thought you would've been used to visits to Makai by now."

"It's not that I don't like going to Makai," Marisa said. "It's just that your mother is really intimidating. She's always giving me this look that says ‘If you make my daughter mad, I'm going to torture you for all eternity' or something like that..."

"What's grandma like?" Dinah asked curiously.

"You've seen her before, though you probably don't remember." Marisa had a thoughtful expression on her face, as if trying to pick the right words. "She...she has this majestic air to her. She has six wings with red markings and she has all of Makai under her control. She..."

"She's not as scary as your dad is making her out to be," Alice interrupted, giggling a little. "She's really nice, so you don't need to worry. She loved playing with you when you were just a baby, so she's just as excited to see you."

"Speaking of your mother, I heard she's been seeing someone for a while," Marisa said. "Do you have any idea who it is?"

"That's another reason we're going to visit," Alice replied. "We're going to see who my mother is dating and see if she's worthy of my mother."

"Are you going to be the evil stepdaughter in this?" Marisa teased, earning her a light tap on the head from Alice.

As the five of them reached Pandemonium, they were greeted by Shinki's maid Yumeko. "It's been a while, Alice-sama!" she said happily. "Shinki-sama! Alice-sama and the others are here!" she called while hurrying off.

"Wow..." Dinah said as she glanced around the fortress. "It's huge...and still cleaner than Daddy's study..."

"Hey, that's not fair!" Marisa protested while Alice laughed. "You two as well?" Marisa scowled at Shanghai and Hourai, both of whom were nodding in agreement.

"Alice!" The voice of Shinki floated down the hallway followed closely by the creator of Makai herself. She was dragging someone with her, someone who seemed a bit less energetic about greeting visitors. "It's good to see you again!" she said as she gave Alice a hug. "Dinah! You've grown quite a bit since I last saw you!" Dinah had hidden behind her mother when Shinki had arrived but, seeing that kind smile, Dinah gave a small wave and returned the smile.

Marisa would've greeted Shinki as well, had her attention not been caught by the person Shinki had dragged along to meet them. Her eyes widened and her voice seemed to stutter a bit before she could finally speak coherently.

"M-Mima-sama?!"

Remilia Scarlet gave the young girl she was sitting on her lap a smile. "Say...what do you want to be when you grow up, Miyo?"

Izayoi Miyo, child of Izayoi Sakuya and Hong Meiling, looked up at the vampire and gave a wide smile. "I want to be a servant!"

"A...a servant?" It was definitely not the answer the mistress of the Scarlet Devil Mansion expected. "Why would you want to be a servant?"

"Because mom and dad are servants, and they're awesome!" Miyo gushed with an enthusiasm that only a child with parent worship could muster. "Mommy is so graceful and Daddy is so strong!"

Remilia chuckled at the child's logic. "Okay, but maybe it is because they're my servants; I pick out the most competent servants, after all."

"But what about Youmu-san?  She's awesome and she used to be a servant, right? And also Ran-san..."

"Good point there," Remilia conceded. "So who are you going to be the servant of?"

"You of course, Remilia-sama!" Miyo said with a smile that almost hurt Remilia like sunlight, though in a good way. "I'll grow up to be a great servant like Mommy and Daddy and make the Scarlet Devil Mansion proud!"

"I'm sure you will," Remilia said; the cheerfulness of the child was so infectious that the vampire felt that she wasn't going to be able to get the smile off her face for a long, long time. "So what position are you going to be? Sakuya's already my head maid and Meiling is the gate guard. Maybe I should have you guard the library in case the black-and-white witch decides to come back and harass Patchouli."

"Or you could be my servant!" Something swooped over and grabbed Miyo out of Remilia's grasp, another vampire with blonde hair and wings that looked like Christmas lights. "You could be my head maid, Miyo!" Flandre gushed.

"Hey! Don't go stealing my prospective servants, Flandre!" Remilia snapped.

"No fair, Big Sis! You already have so many servants! Let me have a personal servant too!" Flandre protested, clutching the confused Miyo protectively. "You already have Sakuya and Meiling as your personal servants! You're greedy, Big Sis!"

"I'm not greedy! I'm entitled to have the child of my best servants as a servant as well!"

"C-can't I just be servants to both of you?" Miyo asked, trying to find a compromise. However, the two Scarlet sisters were too busy bickering to hear her. "Mommy, Daddy, come home and save me..."

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"We're home!" Sakuya called out as she and Meiling stepped back inside the Scarlet Devil Mansion. "Miyo, where are you?" The head maid frowned as she heard the Scarlet sisters arguing and looked at Meiling worriedly. "What do you think is going on?"

Meiling listened for a while before laughing. "Looks like our daughter has inherited her mother's popularity!" she grinned at Sakuya. "The young mistresses are fighting over who will get her as a servant when she gets older."

"Is that so?" Sakuya seemed to relax a little and smiled at Meiling's compliment. "Are you sure it isn't because she's a charmer like her daddy?"

"Maybe," Meiling giggled. "But more importantly, shouldn't we go and save her?"

"Yes, you're right."

Yakumo Sou knew that the pout on her father's face meant that she had lost the recent danmaku match with her mother. However, what bugged her was why her father was pouting in the first place. "Chen, why is daddy like that?"

The now teenage-looking shikigami looked over at Hakurei Reimu and shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine," she said. "Maybe you should go ask her." The two of them were lounging near the tails of the kitsune Yakumo Ran, who was currently taking a nap. Even though Chen had grown up quite a bit, Ran couldn't bring herself to say no whenever Chen wanted to snuggle in the tails; it was probably because Chen was still so charming.

Sou headed over to her father and noticed that her mother had a rather knowing smile on her face even as Reimu was scowling at her. That usually wasn't a good sign. "Daddy? Are you angry about something?" Sou asked.

Reimu immediately turned towards Sou with a beseeching expression on her face. "Sou, listen to me! Your mother is a no-good cheater when it comes to danmaku matches! Don't be like her when you grow up, got it?"

"That's a little harsh, Reimu," Yakumo Yukari said with mock hurt. "As I recall, you were the one that started cheating. Sou, did you know what your mother did when she was starting to lose? She used her floating powers to try and float out of reality so that my danmaku bullets couldn't hit her! She was the one that started it!"

"Yeah, and did you know what your mother did in response?" Reimu shot back. "She pulled away the boundaries between realities and sent the bullets to where I was! Your mother has the most broken powers in all of Gensokyo! She's cheating just by even considering using her powers! That is cheating!"

There was a brief silence as Sou looked at her parents, piecing together what they just told her. "Mom? Dad?"

"What is it?" Reimu asked, her expression softening.

"How come you two get the cool powers?"

The two looked at each other somewhat uncomfortably. "Well, your powers haven't manifested yet because you're still quite young!" Yukari said in a reassuring tone. "I'm sure that when you grow up, you will have awesome powers as well!"

"Really?"

"Yes, really!" Reimu seconded.

"I hope so..." Sou said as she headed back to where Ran's warm tail awaited. Her parents watched her go with amusement before turning to each other again.

"Seriously though, what kind of powers do you think she'll have?" Reimu asked.

"Who knows?" Yukari shrugged. "But I'm sure it will be quite interesting, given her father's tendency to get involved in so many ‘incidents.'"

"I'm pretty sure that has nothing to do with what sort of powers she'll get," Reimu replied, though she couldn't help but laugh a little. "I think her mother would have much more of an influence on what powers she gains." Reimu moved a little closer to Yukari, sidling up to the youkai and resting her head on her shoulders. "By the way, you were still cheating and you still have the most broken powers."

"You started it," Yukari retorted as she pulled the miko closer. "Though I take it that the last part is a compliment, coming from one of the Incident Solvers of Gensokyo?"

"Yeah, I guess..." Reimu said, smiling as she dozed off in the warmth of the spring sun and her wife's loving embrace.

Kumuko winced as she saw her dad Cirno get pelted by danmaku; the ice fairy had once again challenged the red-and-white miko to a danmaku match and wasn't doing that well. Next to Kumuko was her mother Utsuho as well as family friend Daiyousei, both of whom were cheering Cirno on as Cirno shrugged off the attack and went on the offensive once again.

She pulled on Daiyousei's skirt, causing the green-haired fairy to look down. "What is it, Kumu-chan?" she asked.

"Is Dad really the strongest like she's always saying?" Kumuko asked.

Daiyousei gave a start. "Of course she is! Why would you doubt her?"

"But...but I've never seen her beat the red-and-white miko! If she's the strongest, shouldn't she always win?"

Daiyousei gave Kumuko a reassuring smile. "Kumu-chan, let me tell you something your dad once told me and the rest of our friends..."

It had seemed hopeless for Team 9, for the miko was too strong. Rumia was kneeling on the ground with exhaustion, Mystia was cowering after a hail of bullets just barely missed her, while Wriggle and Daiyousei were quite demoralized from the beating the miko had dished out.

"Cirno-chan, please stop!" Daiyousei begged as Cirno was knocked back by another wave of danmaku. "She's too strong, even for you! Let's just give up!"

Cirno was silent for a while, but picked herself up. She began speaking, not just to Daiyousei, but to all of her friends. "I know that my danmaku skills aren't as good as Reimu's and I know that I'm not that smart either. But do you know why I...why we are the strongest?"

She turned towards the rest of Team 9, her eyes burning as bright as Mokou's flames. "The strongest are not those who win every battle! The strongest are not those with the most broken powers! No, the strongest are those who never give up! If we are knocked down, we will get back up and push back ten times as hard! If we have only a 0.01% chance of winning, we will seize it no matter how far away it is! If we have no chance of winning, we will take the enemy down with us! We will never give up even if the enemy is too strong! That is true strength! We are Team 9! We are the strongest!"

To Daiyousei's amazement, Rumia picked herself up, newfound determination in her eyes. Mystia had gotten up shakily as well but there was no more fear in her body language. Wriggle hesitated for a while before nodding and facing the miko, ready for round two. As for Daiyousei, for a moment all she could do was stare in wonder. She smiled as she too picked herself up, ready to once again fight Hakurei Reimu.

"And? And? What happened afterwards?" Utsuho asked, her eyes wide with anticipation and childish glee. Kumuko too was as entranced with the tale, causing Daiyousei to giggle. ‘Like mother, like daughter,' she thought.

"We actually managed to win," she laughed. "It involved Rumia using her darkness on Reimu and an epic Wriggle Kick right into Cirno's Icicle Falls. I heard that the gap youkai laughed for several days after hearing that."

"Hooray!" Utusho cheered. "I knew it! I knew she wouldn't lose so easily!"

Daiyousei looked over at Kumuko and was heartened to see the young girl looking up at her father with newfound respect.

After all, there was a reason why the boisterous little ice fairy was the leader of Team 9.

Kochiya Midori wiped the sweat off her forehead; sweeping was more tiring than she thought and she found herself wondering for the nth time how her mother made it look so easy.

"You can stop now," Sanae said as she offered to take the broom back. "I'll handle the rest from here. Thank you for offering to help."

Midori shook her head. "I...I can handle it!" she said in what she hoped was a reassuring tone. Sanae couldn't help but giggle at her daughter's determination.

"Alright, alright. But do me a favor and drink this okay? You look like you need it." Sanae offered Midori a water bottle, one that the little girl gladly took.

Midori let out a satisfied gasp after drinking nearly a third of the water in the bottle. As she wiped her mouth, a thought struck her as she handed the bottle back. "Mom...you weren't born in Gensokyo, right?"

Sanae gave her daughter a funny look. "Yes...why do you ask?"

"What was it like where you were born?"

Sanae had a thoughtful expression on her face. "Well, it's not that different from Gensokyo, to be honest. I guess the main difference is that people don't throw around danmaku and Master Sparks as often."

"Were you a miko there as well?" Midori had begun sweeping again though she kept her attention focused on her mother.

"Yes, I was," Sanae answered, a fond expression on her face. "I was still the miko of the Moriya shrine and I still gathered faith for Kanako-sama and Suwako-sama. Like I said, life in Gensokyo is only different in that I have to dodge danmaku every now and then...as well as the occasional Master Spark."

"So why did you come to Gensokyo?"

Sanae had a rather sad smile on her face. "It's a little complicated. The people where I come from don't have as much faith for the gods as they used to; Kanako-sama and Suwako-sama came here to avoid disappearing and I came along with them. They're family to me and I would do anything to help them out."

"Did Daddy come from the other side as well?"

"No, Daddy came from Gensokyo," Sanae laughed, before frowning. "Speaking of Daddy, I haven't seen her since breakfast today. Where could she have -"

"Surprise!" Kogasa burst out of the shrine carrying her trademark umbrella. She seemed to be wearing different clothing today, a dark blue uniform consisting of a blouse and a skirt. Midori recalled the name of such a uniform being called a seifuku but had never actually seen anyone wearing one until now. In all honesty, Midori thought it looked a little strange; then again, strange was practically her father's middle name.

"Kogasa! You...wait, is that mine?! Where did you find it?"

"Suwako-sama gave it to me!" Kogasa laughed as she twirled around. "Well? How does it look on me?"

"She did?! Why would she do that?! Hey, Kogasa! Give it back!" As she watched her red-faced mother chase her father back into the shrine, Midori laughed a little as she went back to her sweeping.

‘Wait...Mommy used to wear that?'

"Neesan, where are you?" Saigyouji Mikage gave a sigh of frustration. She knew that when her older twin sister hid from her, it usually meant that she was about to do something mischievous. Mikage had been jumping at small noises for a while, fully expecting her sister to pop out at any moment. ‘Geez, you think I'd be used to it by now -!'

Mikage nearly let out a shriek when she saw her sister Rei right in front of her, a cheerful smile on her face. "Hello, Mikage ~!" she said in a singsong voice. "You alright? You look like you've just seen a -"

"Don't finish that sentence, please," Mikage gasped out. "Why do you keep doing that, Oneesan?! You know I don't like it when you do that!"

Rei gave her a curious look. "But Mommy does it to Daddy all the time."

"Daddy doesn't like it either!"

"Boo, you're no fun, Mikage," Rei pouted.

"P-please stop doing that..." Mikage said, desperately trying not to meet her older sister's eyes; Rei seemed to have inherited that guilt-inducing technique from her mother and had no qualms about abusing it.

"So? Why were you looking for me?" Rei asked, smiling innocently at her fuming sister.

"I was looking for you so you wouldn't sneak up on me," Mikage muttered. "Also, I need someone to practice sword fighting with and I can't find Dad anywhere..."

"Dad?" Rei had a thoughtful expression on her face. "I haven't seen Dad today either. Was she in the garden?"

"No, she wasn't." Mikage knew this for certain; she had spent quite a long time looking behind every bush and tree for her sister. "Where could she be?"

"Hm? Looking for me?" The two girls turned to see Saigyouji Youmu heading their way.

"Daddy! Practice sword fighting with me!" Mikage ran over to grab her father in a hug.

"Alright, alright," Youmu laughed. "By the way, did any of you see your mother today?"

"No," Mikage and Rei answered in unison.

"Honestly, where could she be? Whenever your mother disappears like this, it usually means she's about to cause a tro - Mmf?!" Youmu was suddenly grabbed from behind and lifted bodily into the air. "Y-Y-Y-Yuyuko-sama! Put me down!"

"Youmu ~! I need some love right now!" the queen of Hakugyokurou cried out as she nuzzled Youmu's cheeks.

"Yuyuko-sama, not in front of the girls! This is inappropriate! Please put me down!" Youmu's ghost half was flailing around in the air while her human half was putting up a futile struggle to escape her wife's embrace.

"Inappropriate? But you are no longer my servant, you are my wife! This is perfectly normal for a loving couple!"

"Not in front of the kids, it isn't! Wait, where are you taking me? Yuyuko-sama, put me down this instant! Please...hey! Where are you touching? Yuyuko-sama!"

The two girls watched as their mother spirited away their struggling father. After a while, Rei turned toward Mikage with a nervous smile on her face. "Um, if you still want to practice, I can be your partner..."

"Th-thanks," Mikage said as she and her sister hurried away, their father's indignant cries still ringing all over Hakugyokurou.

Hoshiguma Parsee knew that something was up when her daughter Kihana came stumbling into the room, but she did not expect the little girl's breath to smell of sake.

"Kihana! What's wrong?! What have you been drinking?!" she cried out, running over to steady her tipsy daughter.

"Ah...Daddy left her sakazuki on the table and I was thirsty..." Kihana groaned. "Mommy, why are there three of you...?"

"YUUGI!" Parsee yelled out, causing the taller oni to come running in.

"W-What is it, Parsee?" Yuugi asked, looking a tad nervous as her eyes flicked back and forth from her fuming wife and her daughter. "What's wrong with Kihana?"

"She drank from your sakazuki, that's what! You shouldn't be so careless!"

"Ah, I was wondering why most of the sake was gone..." Yuugi bent down so that her eyes were level with Kihana's. "How are you feeling, kid?"

"Daddy's got two horns now...when did Daddy have two horns?"

"Geez..." Parsee pulled Kihana over and, after sitting down, laid her daughter's head on her lap. "Nothing much to do but rest it off." She gave Yuugi a curious look. "But what in the world did she drink? She should be able to handle what you normally drink even at this age..."

"It's a new type of sake from the gap youkai," Yuugi said sheepishly. "I really didn't expect it to be that strong, to be honest." She smiled fondly at her daughter. "Still, I kind of wished that I was there when she drank it. An oni's first sip of sake is a special day, you know? It's like a rite of passage!"

"Well, I still think she's too young for this ‘rite of passage,'" Parsee replied disapprovingly, though her tone had softened considerably as she stroked her now snoozing daughter's hair. "By the way, why did you leave your sakazuki behind anyways? It's rare of you to not carry it when you're drinking sake."

"I was finishing up a gift," Yuugi said, her expression brightening. "Look at what I've been making for her!" She pulled something out from behind her back: a strange shape wrapped up in paper. As Yuugi pulled the paper way, Parsee saw it was a miniature red gourd with Kihana's name written on it in green symbols.

"...You want to give her a gourd already?" Parsee asked incredulously.

"Hey! It's important for an oni to have her own personal drink container, you know! Besides, don't you think it looks good? It has our colors on it!" She pointed at her own horn as well as Parsee's eyes. "This way we'll always be with her!"

Parsee couldn't help but smile at that. "Geez..." She motioned for Yuugi to sit down next to her, something that the oni gladly complied to. Parsee leaned to the side to rest her head on her wife's shoulder. "You have such nice shoulders...I'm jealous."

Yuugi laughed. "But it's of no use unless you have someone lovely resting on it right?"

"Mm...flatterer."

Kagiyama Hina was startled out of her sleep by a loud shriek and a booming sound. She hurriedly picked herself up from the couch and ran as fast as she could to the source of the sound, briefly marveling how the sound didn't wake up her sleeping infant of a daughter. ‘I have a bad feeling about this...' she thought when she realized the sound was coming from her wife's workshop. Her fears grew when she saw the older of her two daughters, Matsuri, running towards her with a frightened expression.

"D-Daddy...Daddy blew up!" Matsuri cried, frantically pulling on her mother's dress. "She was in that little house and it went boom!"

"What?" Hina desperately looked around the workshop and found Nitori lying on the ground facing upwards with a shocked expression on her face. "Nitori! Nitori, get up! Are you alright? What happened here?"

"Ah...Hina? Why are you spinning?" Nitori gasped out groggily as she struggled to pull herself up. "Oof...didn't expect that to happen." She smiled sheepishly at Hina and Matsuri. "Sorry for scaring the two of you. I was just working on a new toy."

She pointed towards her workshop bench which had something that looked like a seven-foot tall robot doll laying on it. The doll vaguely resembled the Shanghai doll of Alice Margatroid with blue-green hair carrying what looked like an incomplete scepter. "It was supposed to be a toy for Matsuri and Kawako."

Hina had to marvel at the robot's appearance but she had more pressing concerns. "Why did it explode?" she asked as she pulled out a handkerchief and began wiping her wife's face.

"Well, I was hoping to have the robot simulate danmaku so the girls can practice their grazing," Nitori explained. "However, I made a slight miscalculation and the robot ended up swatting me to the ground."

"And the explosion?"

"That was the robot shorting out."

Hina gave a sigh. "Look, please be more careful, alright? I know that you're good at building things, but you shouldn't be that careless either." She gave her wife a hug when she noticed the kappa's slightly disheartened expression. "Cheer up; I'm sure you'll get it right next time. You always manage in the end."

Nitori gave Hina a grateful smile. "Thanks." She readjusted her cap and rolled up her sleeves once again. "Alright! Round two!"

"Come on, Matsuri. Let's let Daddy work on the robot now," Hina said as she led her daughter out of the workshop.

"Daddy won't go boom again?" Matsuri asked worriedly.

Pheles Knowledge loved the library.

Pheles loved the many books that the Scarlet Devil Mansion had. There were tomes filled with ancient rituals, codices cataloguing the many species that dwelt in Gensokyo, and history books that offered many explanations as to how Gensokyo came to be. It was also the place where her parents spent most of their time when they weren't out visiting friends or spending a bit of time with Remilia and the rest of the household.

However, Pheles noticed a bit of a trend. She was used to the black-and-white witch crashing into the library in order to look at the books. However, she also noticed how distressed her mother tended to get whenever Kirisame Marisa visited the library alone. It didn't happen often; Marisa was often accompanied by Alice during such visits. Still, there were occasional lone visits and Pheles could swear that her mother was often a hair trigger away from grabbing a chair and throwing it at the witch to drive her off.

Pheles had just finished up reading a book on demon summoning when she heard the doors to the library being thrown open. "Patchouli! Are you in?" the unmistakable cheerful voice of Marisa called out. "Hm? Oh, hey there, Pheles! What are you reading?"

"Hi, Ms, Kirisame," Pheles replied, smiling shyly. "It's a book about summoning."

"Summoning, huh?" Marisa smiled. "Sounds cool. Are you going to summon a totally badass familiar someday?" Pheles nodded vigorously, causing Marisa's grin to widen. "Good luck with that, kid," Marisa laughed as she ruffled Pheles's light purple hair. "Say, where's your mother, anyways? I need to ask her for some books."

"She's sleeping right now." The voice belonged to Pheles's father, a devil simply known as Koakuma. "What books do you need?"

Just as Marisa left the Scarlet Devil, Patchouli came running armed with a letter opener. "I heard Marisa in here a moment ago," she gasped out. "Was she alone? Did she do anything to the library? Did she steal anything?"

"Calm down, Patchouli!" Koakuma cried as she ran over to steady her still somewhat unsteady wife. "She just borrowed three books and I made sure to note which ones she took. Don't worry about it, alright?"

"But...but what if she..."

"She would get a tongue-lashing from her wife, that's what," Koakuma assured her. "Now just sit down, put the letter opener away..."

"Daddy, why does Mommy not like Ms. Kirisame that much?" Pheles asked, unable to contain her curiosity any longer. Koakuma looked a little alarmed at her child's directness but Patchouli was more than willing to answer.

"It's not that I don't like her, it's that her past visits almost always ended in disaster! She would steal books and never return them and often caused danmaku battles to happen in the library! It's a miracle Sakuya didn't get tired of cleaning the place up after her rampages here!" She took a deep breath. "I...I know she's gotten better and doesn't do it anymore, but I still get a little nervous." She motioned for her daughter to come closer and pulled her into a hug. "So don't think Mommy hates her, alright? I just have a few bad memories."

"Alright, Mommy." Suddenly, Pheles frowned. "Is that why you woke up that one time screaming her name and yelling at her to give back your books?"

"...I need to count the books here." Patchouli made to get up before Koakuma grabbed her. "Let me go, Koa! She might've taken some without you noticing!"

"No she didn't! Pheles, help me get your mother back to bed!"

Shameimaru Aya woke from her nap and stretched her arms. "Ah..." she sighed. "Well, time to get back to work..." Pulling herself off the sofa, she noticed her daughter Hayate sitting at her table staring at the photographs strewn all over the surface. "Hey kid, what're you looking at?" she asked as she looked over her Hayate's shoulders.

"Did you take all of these, Daddy?" Hayate asked as she held up some of the photos.

"Yep!" Aya said with no small amount of pride. "Every single one of them!"

"Are you going to use these in the newspaper?"

"Of course...as soon as I finish sorting out which ones are fit for publication." She took some of the photos and put them to the side. "See these? These aren't as good as the others because of the blur lines here. I take a lot of photos at high speed and sometimes the spirit camera can't keep up. The ones with blurry lines can't be used, unfortunately."

"Oh..." Suddenly, Hayate frowned and picked up a photo. "Why do you have a picture of Miss Youmu in a sarashi? Is this one going to be published?"

"Ah, well..."

"Honestly, Aya..." The new voice belonged to Aya's wife Hatate. "It's because of photos like this that people think you're some sort of voyeur." She looked at the photo of Youmu before turning towards her sheepish wife. "What sort of article were you planning to write with this picture anyways?"

"Hey, hey, who said it was going to go into the newspaper?"

"What about this one, Daddy?" Hayate asked, holding up a picture of Suika picking a fight with a watermelon.

"Oh, that one? That watermelon was supposedly grown by Yuuka, so that one's probably going to be in the newspaper."

"You're skating on thin ice there, Aya," Hatate said. "What if Yuuka doesn't like the publicity? I don't want to be caught in a Master Spark..." She looked over at another photo and picked it up. "Isn't this that doctor and that were-hakutaku woman? They look like they're on a date or something...how did you get this one without them seeing you?"

"It's me, remember? The fastest tengu?"

A sudden shriek caused both tengus to whirl around; Hayate had dropped the photo back on the table and was starting at it with wide eyes. "D-Daddy! What...what is that?"

The photo seemed to be completely black with several eyes peering out unblinkingly; there also seemed to be many hands reaching toward the camera, ghostly hands of many shapes and sizes. Aya quickly flipped the photo over with a nervous laugh. "Ah...that one? Let's...let's forget about that one, alright?"

"I take it that one photo shoot didn't go to well?" Hatate asked, though Aya could hear the concern in the voice.

"Did...did that thing hurt Daddy?" Hayate asked tearfully.

Naraka Yamaxanadu peered over the edge of the boat, her eyes scanning the Sanzu River. "Mommy, why can't I see any fish?" she asked.

"That's because this is the river in which the dead are ferried to Higan to be judged," Komachi answered without missing a beat in her rowing. "It's not like the other rivers in Gensokyo, so that's why you don't see any fish."

"But if it's the river of the dead, why aren't there the spirits of dead fish?"

Komachi paused for a bit. "You know, I wonder...maybe you should ask Daddy later." The shinigami gave a small laugh. "Though it's because they all sank to the bottom; after all, the Sanzu River only allows the shinigami and their boats to float."

"Does that mean if you and Daddy went swimming in the river, Daddy would sink?"

Komachi had to stop rowing as she had doubled up howling in laughter, causing several of the ghosts and spirits in the area to shrink away with fright. "Oh...oh my...Shikieiki sinking into the Sanzu River...oh gods, that's hilarious..." Wiping away tears of mirth, Komachi made an attempt to compose herself and promptly succumbed to laughter once again. "Though why she would go swimming in the Sanzu River in the first place..."

"Would I sink in the Sanzu River?" Naraka asked, tentatively touching the water's surface with her finger.

"Hm...I don't know...you're half-shinigami, so the Sanzu River should recognize that. On the other hand, you're half-yama as well...I wouldn't be too bothered by it." Her voice suddenly took on a stern tone, something that didn't happen too often with the shinigami. "However, don't go trying to find out on your own, alright? Those who sink to the bottom of the Sanzu River rarely come out alive, and those that do don't come out right..."

"What do you mean by that?" Naraka was shivering a little and she gave the surface of the silent river an apprehensive glance.

"It means that Mommy and Daddy would be really sad if something bad happened to you," Komachi said as she pulled her daughter into a hug. "Come on, let's head back home now." She quickened her rowing speed and the boat soon reached Higan where Shikieiki was waiting for the two of them.

"How was your day with Mommy?" she asked as Naraka ran to her.

"It was fun!" Naraka beamed.

"Good to hear," Shikieiki chuckled. "Komachi, what are you laughing at?"

"Hey Naraka, go on, ask her," Komachi grinned as she continued to snigger.

"Daddy, would you sink in the Sanzu River?"

Shikieiki could only stare at her daughter's curious face with disbelief before slowly turning her gaze up to Komachi, who lost any composure she had and began laughing hysterically once again. "Komachi..." Naraka, sensing her Daddy's lecturing mode surfacing, decided to make a quick getaway.

The Hinanawi Sisters Otohime and Orihime peered into one of the vault rooms of the palace. "Wonder what we'll find here?" the younger Orihime asked eagerly. She hurried into the room and began rummaging around.

"Be careful," Otohime warned, looking around the room nervously. "Who knows what some of these things can do? Remember what happened with that sake gourd?"

"Hey, that wasn't my fault!" Orihime argued. "You were the one that made it start up!"

"But you were the one that found it," Otohime shot back. "Just be careful, alright?"

"Don't be such a worrywart!" Orihime rummaged around a small pile and pulled out what looked like a small hexagon. "What's this?"

"Doesn't that look like the thing the black and white witch uses?" Otohime suggested, peering at the symbols on the hexagon.

"Hey, you're right! Let's try it out! MASTER SPA---MMF?!"

"Don't!" Otohime pleaded as she clamped her hands over her younger sister's mouth. "I don't want to explain to Mommy and Daddy why there's a hole in the palace walls!"

"Alright, alright!" Orihime struggled free and put the object away. "Hey, look at this! What do you think this is?" She pulled out something that looked like a donation box. "Do you think this came from the Hakurei Shrine? Or maybe the Moriya Shrine?"

"Doesn't look like it..." Otohime pointed at the writing on the box. "See? It says ‘Yakumo' on it and...did something just blink inside?" The two girls looked at each other and hastily put the box aside. "What's that thing over there?"

Orihime pulled out something that looked like a bound tome. She made to undo the straps binding the book shut until it began thrashing around and a muffled shriek came from within. The two girls hastily threw the book back into the room, staring at it apprehensively until the book fell silent once again.

"What are you two doing?" The two girls leaped and looked back to see their father Tenshi peering curiously into the room. "Oh, this place! I remember this place!" She eagerly grabbed something from the room, a red rubber frog with blue feet. "Look! This was the toy frog I once put in your mother's clothes when I was younger!"

"You put that in Mom's clothes?" Otohime asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah, you should've heard her shriek back then. It was so---"

"So what?" The dangerous-sounding voice belonged to Hinanawi Iku, a voice that caused Tenshi to flinch guiltily. "Well?" the oarfish youkai asked, her arms crossed across her chest. "What were you going to say?"

"...That it was really cute when you shrieked back then?" Tenshi ventured.

Iku sighed and shook her head. "Really...sometimes I worry that you're the most immature of us all..."

"Hey, that's not fair!" Tenshi pouted. She turned away from Iku with a sulky expression. "Girls, be sure not to grow up into an unfair bully like your mother, alright?"

"I am not an unfair bully," Iku said firmly. "I have never punished anyone unfairly. And before you bring it up again, the smashing of the Hakurei Shrine was clearly uncalled for and you deserved that little lecture."

"Ugh..."

The Hinanawi Sisters looked at each other and gave a small giggle, the sight of their father with a sulky expression combined with their mother's exasperated look much too funny for the young girls.

"Sakuya, I have a question," Lucy Scarlet said.

The head maid turned toward the little vampire with a smile. "Of course, Young Mistress. What would you like to ask?"

"How are babies made?"

Sakuya froze. "W...why don't you ask your parents this?"

"Daddy won't tell me and Mommy's nowhere to be found. Ms. Patchy has locked the library too and won't let anyone in. Also, Auntie said that Sakuya was the one to go to if anyone here has a problem!"

Sakuya gave a sigh; she had always dreaded the inevitable day that Miyo would ask her this question, but she had not expected Lucy to ask. She had no doubt that Lucy's mother Koishi was using her power to manipulate the subconscious to keep off of Lucy's radar and it wouldn't have surprised her if Patchouli had put the library in lockdown to avoid Lucy questioning her. She briefly wondered how Flandre managed to make her daughter give up questioning her on the subject but shrugged the question away; whatever the reason, it was clear that the head maid was stuck answering the question. "Why would you want to know how babies are made?" she asked, hoping to stall for time.

"Because Daddy looks much smaller than everyone else's Daddy and I was wondering..." Here, Lucy looked a little sheepish, almost as if she was ashamed of what she was going to say. "...wondering if someone forgot to add her height when Daddy was made."

This was something that Sakuya had not expected and it took quite a bit of her self-control to keep from bursting into giggles. It had been such a long time since she was a child and she had all but forgotten that a child's train of thought tended to go to strange stations. "No, there was no mistake made when your Daddy was made," she explained. "Mistress Flandre, like Milady, was turned into a vampire when she was young, hence why she still looks so small now."

"But what about me?" Lucy asked. "I'm a vampire too, right? But I still grow up!" A look of horror suddenly came to her face. "...I'm not going to be short like Daddy and Auntie forever, am I?"

Sakuya and the rest of the residents of the Scarlet Devil Mansion have often wondered how Lucy managed to grow despite being a vampire. Patchouli had speculated that Koishi's youkai blood might've had something to do with it, but it was nothing more than just speculation. "No, I'm sure you'll grow up into a tall and beautiful maiden," she said, reaching down to pat the little vampire's head. "You will grow up into a fine lady like Milady...but much taller."

Lucy giggled. "Will I be as pretty as you, Sakuya?"

"Oh, I'm sure that you'll be much more beautiful than me when you grow up," Sakuya replied, a small blush of embarrassment present on her face. "You are, after all, the daughter of one of the Scarlet Sisters and one of the Komeiji Sisters."

Lucy seemed pleased until a frown came to her face. "Wait, you still didn't tell me how babies were made."

Sakuya flinched guiltily; she had hoped the praise would have pacified Lucy enough to make her forget her original purpose but was put on the spot once again. "Um...I really think you should wait a few years before asking this type of question..."

"What?! But that's  way too long! I want to know now! What's wrong with wanting to know now?! Is it some sort of horrible secret! Sakuya, please tell me!"

‘Meiling, Patchy, Milady, anyone...help me out here...'

"Tsukiha, have you seen your father anywhere?" Reisen Udongein Inaba asked her daughter, frowning as she looked up at the setting sun.

Tsukiha searched her memory, trying to recall when she last saw her tiny father. "I think she left Eientei to get something," the little moon rabbit said. "She seemed to be in a rush and said that she needed to get something quickly."

"Is that so?" Reisen gave a sigh. "Goodness, I hope this ‘urgent business' of hers isn't just another prank. Tsukiha, don't learn that bad habit from your father, alright?

"Eh~? Why not?" Tsukiha asked, looking somewhat disappointed. "It's funny sometimes when people realize they're being pranked..."

"It might be funny, but then you pull a prank on the wrong person and it's not funny anymore," Reisen countered. "Daddy never told you about what happened that one time when she tried to pull a prank on Kazami Yuuka, did she?"

Tsukiha's eyes widened. "What happened to her? What did she do?"

"She used some sort of magic to paint her sunflowers white. As for what happened to her, it wasn't pretty. Your father spent a day under the covers muttering about how flowers were coming to kill her." Reisen sighed. "That's why I'm telling you not to take after her too much. I don't want you to learn the hard way that some people in Gensokyo just don't share the same sense of humor as you or your father."

"Alright..." Tsukiha mumbled, her imagination still picturing grinning sunflowers sprouting up all over the place as a vengeful Yuuka slowly made her way towards Eientei with a hollow smile and murderous eyes engraved into her face. She was going to have to ask her father how she managed to escape with her life later.

"Honestly though, where is she?" Reisen asked. "Dinner's almost ready and she's nowhere to be seen." There was a strange tone to her mother's voice that Tsukiha couldn't quite place. It sounded exasperated but at the same time there seemed to be something more to it. Was it...resignation? No, it sounded more like sorrow. Why did her mother sound sad? Instinctively, Tsukiha ran over to wrap her arms around her mother's waist, a gesture that seemed to surprise Reisen but also brought a smile to her face at the same time.

"I'm sure Daddy's fine," Tsukiha said. "She wouldn't run away from home."

"No, she wouldn't," Reisen agreed. "It's just that...I wonder if she remembers..."

"Remember what?" Tsukiha asked curiously.

"...It's nothing," Reisen said. "Go help set up the table, alright? Also, see if the princesses and Mokou are ready to eat yet, alright?"

Tsukiha nodded and was about to go off when she was startled by a bang. Someone had thrown the door open with great force and she barely had time to throw herself to the side as her father, Tewi Inaba, hurtled through. "Safe! Made it just in time!" she gasped out.

"Tewi! Where have you been?" Reisen demanded as she hurried ran over to her wife. "Tewi, calm down! Your face is all red!"

"Well, I had to run all the way to Reimu's place to make this..." Tewi panted as she reached into the small bag she was carrying. She pulled out something and handed it to Reisen; Reisen's eyes widened as she examined the hand-carved wooden omamori charm, the sort of charm that was meant to ensure love and marriage.

"You made this, Daddy?" Tsukiha asked as she too admired the omamori.

"Oh Tewi..." Reisen almost looked like she was going to cry. "You didn't..."

Kurodani Madara shivered a little as she hurried after her parents. The three of them had decided to go on a walk on a fine winter day and it was starting to get dark. A drizzle of snow had started and there was a faint breeze in the air. She gripped onto her mother's hand tighter. "Mommy, Daddy, how long until we get home?"

Yamame looked down at her daughter with a smile. "Don't worry, we're almost there. Just hang on a little longer, alright?"

"I...I'm fine!" Madara insisted. "I...I just really miss the warmth..."

"I do too," Madara's father, Kisume, said as she too gripped onto Yamame's hand. The three of them made quite a sight; Kisume's somewhat small size and relatively childish has caused some individuals to mistake her for being a lot younger than she really was. The Kurodani family had already heard from several people that they looked more like a mother with two children as opposed to a couple with one child. Kisume did not usually take these misunderstandings that well, often sulking whenever a person made such an assumption. "Ah, it will be such a relief once we get back."

"It's just a little longer," Yamame laughed. She suddenly gave her daughter a look of concern. "Are you alright, Madara?"

"I'm fine! I'm...I'm..." Madara let out a yawn. "Actually...I'm a little sleepy..."

Yamame stopped walking and knelt down. "If you're sleepy, I'll give you a piggyback ride for the rest of the way," she said.

"But...won't I be too heavy...?"

"It's alright," Yamame insisted. "Go on, get on."

The little spider youkai gave a sleepy nod and crawled up onto Yamame's back and, as soon as the tsuchigumo had straightened up with her on her back, promptly fell asleep. Yamame smiled as she felt Madara's small head slowly slump forward and touch her shoulder. "Don't worry, honey," she assured her slumbering daughter. "We'll be home before you know it."

It was then that Yamame felt something warm next to her and, turning around, she saw Kisume holding a hand full of demon fire. "Just in case the two of you are cold," she said, giving her wife's hand a squeeze. "I'm sorry I can't make it bigger, but it'll have to do for now."

Yamame let go of Kisume's hand to pull the tsurube-otoshi closer. "It's fine...no, it's actually more than enough," she said as she gave Kisume a grin of gratitude. "Being with you always makes me feel warm."

Kisume laughed a little sheepishly as she held the small ball of demon fire closer to her sleeping daughter, looking satisfied when the tiny shivers ceased. "Come on; the sooner we get back, the sooner we can all snuggle together."

"You're not going to just grab a big blanket and hide in your bucket?" Yamame teased.

"And miss a chance to snuggle with you?" Kisume replied. "I'll choose that over my bucket any day."

Hijiri Madoka caught a whiff of several scents coming from the kitchen of the Myouren Temple and, upon investigating, saw her mother cooking something as well as several food items at the kitchen counter. "Where did you get those, mom?" she asked curiously, hurrying over to get a closer look and picking up a jar.

"Several people were kind enough to give those to us, so I thought I'd try several new recipes," Byakuren said. "That jar you're holding came from the Kazamis. I heard that they recently set up some beehives and they were kind enough to give us some honeycombs. I used some of those to bake some cookies."

"Ooh..." Madoka could already feel some drool to form at the corner of her mouth. She could smell a hint of flour coming from her mother and the sink was already full of utensils coated with scraps of dough. "What about those?" She pointed at a basket of peaches close to where Byakuren was cooking.

"Those are from the Hinanawis. I was thinking of maybe candying a few for the party at the Hakurei Shrine next week. I haven't candied fruits before, so it should be quite an experience!" She plucked out one of the peaches and handed it to Madoka. "Try it; it's really juicy." The young tiger youkai accepted it and sank her teeth in, relishing the sweet juices pouring into her mouth.

"What else do you have?" Madoka asked after pulling out the peach pit with her teeth.

"Let's see...we got some potatoes from the Moriya Shrine which I'm using for the stew, some cucumbers from the Kawashiros, tea leaves from the Scarlet Devil Mansion, and some manjuu from the Hakurei Shrine...by the way, don't eat those yet, you'll spoil your appetite."

"Aw..." Madoka pouted.

"Besides, we still have some cookies for after dessert," Byakuren said as she turned off the stove and washed her hands at the sink. Pulling on some mitts, she opened up the oven and released a cloud of sweet aromas that nearly caused the young tiger youkai to nearly swoon with pleasure. "It looks like the cookies are done!"

She pulled out the cookie tray from inside, revealing several golden brown cookies. She had barely placed the tray down on the table when Madoka heard several thundering footsteps getting closer and closer. She leaped to the side as the kitchen doors were flung open, revealing the other members of the Myouren Temple, including her father Shou.

"Something smells sweet in here!" Nazrin cried out as her eyes darted around the kitchen.

"Ooh! Cookies!" Minamitsu said with child-like glee when she caught sight of the tray.

"They smell really good!" Ichirin sighed with bliss. "What did you put inside of them?"

"Can we have a bite?" Nue asked eagerly, her eyes sparkling with delight.

"Not right now," Byakuren said gently but firmly. "It's time to eat dinner right now and these are meant for dessert."

"You won't even give your wife a sneak bite?" Shou asked, the look on her face very similar to that of a wounded kitten.

"No," Byakuren repeated. "All of you will get a chance to eat it after dinner. All of you, please get ready for dinner, alright?"

The inhabitants of the Myouren Temple gave disappointed groans, but perked up when the smell of the stew finally penetrated the smell of the cookies. They hurried to wash their hands and set up the tables as Byakuren removed the pot of stew from the stove and set it on the kitchen table.

It was moments like these that Madoka loved the most, when everyone she knew and loved where together and happy.

"You ready?" Murasa Minamitsu asked her daughter.

"R-ready!" Mizuka said, gulping a little and readying herself.

"Alright then...GO!" With that Minamitsu's wife, Nue, let loose several Seeds of Non-Identification. To Mizuka, the Seeds had the appearance of little targets of differing colors; she immediately began shooting danmaku at the Seeds. Her challenge was to knock down as many Seeds as she could in ten seconds

"Alright, stop!" Minamitsu said as she scanned the ground. "Hm...sixty Seeds this time, huh? You're getting better, Mizuka!" She ruffled her daughter's hair affectionately. "There's still plenty of room for improvement though. If you wanted to take out as many Seeds as you can in a short amount of time, you have to up your ante!"

"How did you do it, Mommy?" Mizuka asked.

"She swung her anchor around in a huge arc," Nue replied with a dry smile. "Hardly something I would call good practice for danmaku."

"Hey, going for overkill is the proper way in danmaku battles!" Minamitsu argued. "That's what danmaku battles was always about! Filling the area with so much danmaku ups your chance of hitting your opponents!"

"It didn't really help with the witch and the miko though, did it?" Nue laughed.

"Th...that's only because they're really good at dodging!"

"I won't argue with you there," Nue said before turning towards her daughter. "You mother has a point though; in cases like these where you have multiple targets, you need to cover a lot of area to wipe out as many targets as possible. Your danmaku patterns are nice, but they have quite a few blind spots as well."

"Oh..." Mizuka looked a little sad. "But I liked those patterns...they were pretty..."

Nue put a hand on Mizuka's shoulders. "I think they're pretty too, but those aren't the kinds of patterns you would want in a danmaku duel. A good spell card should cover as much area as possible without being impossible to beat."

"It can't be impossible to beat? Aw..."

"It's tough, but that's the way it goes," Minamitsu laughed. "Disappointed?"

"I wanted a spell card that would have Byakuren-sama appear and yell ‘Namusan!' while blasting everything in front of her..." Mizuka muttered dejectedly.

This had her parents completely in stitches. "Oh, I would love to see that!" Nue said as she continually failed to compose herself. "We...we could call the spell card ‘Namusan Spark!'"

"I don't know if Byakuren-sama would be amused by such a card or horrified at the idea of her image being used as a force of destruction!" Minamitsu giggled.

"What? It would have been cool..." Mizuka's eyes suddenly brightened. "Oh! I know!"

"What is it?" Her parents looked at the newly energized girl with pleasant curiosity.

"I'll make a spell card that shoots out UFO danmaku! And those UFOs will shoot out anchors all over the place!" With that, Mizuka ran off to plan out how her new spell card would look, to the amusement of both parents.

"You know, I would really have loved to see a Namusan Spark," Minamitsu admitted.

"I would have loved to see Byakuren-sama's reaction to a Namusan Spark," Nue replied with an impish grin. "Maybe we should help Mizuka create such a spell?"