/jp/ - Otaku Culture

I patiently tapped my fingers on my throne's chair, listening to my nails gently impact the soft gold. I looked to Sakuya, she stood sentinel by the grand door to my throne room, at my gaze she shook her head, my visitors still weren't here.

Yukari had sent word that some of her agents would come to finalize some logistics of the Winter Solstice festival, share notes about strategy and... talk. But it wouldn't be Ran, no, the fox certainly wasn't much one for conversation, nor would it be Yachie, a fellow dignified woman, or even that stoic and sinister virgin Oni woman, who at the very least had a certain mystique about her, no, it was the Felon Amanojaku and a village borderer I'd never heard of. If I was an impatient woman, I'd be upset, thankfully for Yukari, I was one of the few ladies in Gensokyo with some tact.

I looked to Sakuya again, and once more, she shakes her head.

One should not judge a chance meeting before it happens. Seija, despite her weakness, had faced off against the strongest in Gensokyo and I'd heard this broker that accompanied her wasn't the combative type, yet, he fought with her regardless. So many little questions, was the broker Seija's bullied dog or had Seija signed a contract and become his? Maybe they worked as equal partners? Or perhaps Yukari brought the two together? Power does not always need rest were it is obvious after all and to have one's finger on the pulse of the the smaller Youkai as well as the Human Village certainly counted for something in Gensokyo.

Ah, these are the kinds of sophisticated things that would bore my little sister, Flandre. What an ignorant, poor little girl she was! Never to know what vast chasms of excitement lived in the tiniest of cracks.

I looked to Sakuya again, she nodded her head and made to open the door.

I crossed my legs and made a charismatic pose, either to receive a wretched insult or be pleasantly surprised!

"Hey sis! We all match!" Flandre said excitedly.

In came the three, Flandre sat atop of Seija who was carried in the arms of a man, presumably the broker, who gracefully shouldered the burden of carrying both small girls into the throne room. With some annoyance, the Amanojaku pushed Flandre off, who simply floated in the air until her feet touched the ground, then the man gingerly set Seija down who pretended to be indifferent to the gesture, but looked wistfully when the man's glance had turned. I didn't quite know what to say, so I shot a glance at Sakuya to break the ice.

"Quite the stud to carry two maidens at once." Sakuya commented, beaming at me for a compliment which she wouldn't be receiving!

"Well it would've have just been me, but Seija insisted that she be carried as well!" Flandre said, faking a pout.

"Bah, brats like you will spoil if you get everything you please." Seija said, waving her hand.

"It's no trouble really" The man began, "Both of you are quite light after all, but where are my manners, Miss Remilla Scarlet, Mistress of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, my name is Goro and this Is Seija, we come on behalf of the Yakumo and It's an honor to meet you." Goro finished with a polite bow.

I gazed at the two visitors and wondered, deeply, how... how had Yukari made a duo this cool?!

Seija wasn't dressed in her usual rags, but an outfit much closer to Ran's in terms of style, while still retaining her tomboyish functionality with a short, slightly poofed out skirt. It produced a sort of 'evolved' aura that leveraged her previous homely appearance to magnify the effect of the change to any that knew of her. Just as well, she had an edge of danger to her, while still embodying her rebellious spirit with her proud stance and hands on her hip.

Goro, on the other hand, was pleasantly reserved, wearing a black kimono pleated with red stitches that formed patterns of carnation flowers, and, while the Yakumo runes seemed natural on Seija's outfit, upon Goro's they looked like a white brand, totally out of place on the garment, but unlike a certain fashion pariah of Gensokyo, the punk styling looked subtle and tasteful. He was handsome, but worn in like a kitchen knife that had been sharpened a few times and something else, a subtle aura of malice, like a powerful spice, lingered around him.

When I put both together though, their appeal magnified ten-fold! A brash, proud, girlish, and fearsome Amanojaku and a polite, gentle, yet perhaps cunning Human who may hold a darker essence just beneath the surface, this was exactly the kind of duo I had wanted to put together for so long! The perfect compliment!

How long had I searched?! How many failed pairings had I put Sakuya through? And you're telling me these two just waltz onto Yukari's front door! Hell to that woman! It's so unfair!

"Mistress, would you like to greet our guests?" Sakuya asked, noticing my pause.

"Of course." I started I see you know some manners, but let's see if you're a true gentleman." I stated, putting out a hand toward Goro.