Magical Fracas, Episode 1
 

It started as such a small thing.

There had once been a world of miracles and magic, but tragedy had struck and now it was mercifully forgotten. There had been great terrors before the final blow had fallen.

The cherry blossoms were in bloom and the days of spring were flowing by. A life of peaceful days and little joys in everyday events. A quiet, contented equilibrium.

But the forgotten past had already set its indelible imprint upon the shape of things to come.

* * *

Mitsuko yawned and put her book down. She lay back in bed, looking at the ceiling. It had been a busy day.

They'd had to get school supplies and new uniforms. It had been a rush, seeing they'd left it a little late. Last term had been the last time her old school, Chuuko High, would have students. Through some elaborate machination of governmental departments related to the vagaries of staff numbers and enrollment caps, the decision had been made to close the school and consolidate the students into a nearby school that had recently been expanded: Tohou State High School. Mitsuko wasn't sure if she liked the new uniform as much as her old one, but she had to admit the school seemed like a nice place.

There'd also been some shopping around for a present for her friend, Sakiko Yamagata. Her birthday was coming up soon. Mitsuko hadn't had much luck. Maybe she should go with Sosuke Tamachi's joking suggestion and get her a signed photo of Roji Riraku, the head of the drama club. Her love of drama wasn't the only thing keeping her in the Dramatics Club. She'd have a better look tomorrow, maybe try 9 of Roses to see if there were any clothes there that Sakiko would like.

Mitsuko sat up to switch the light off and paused, troubled by some vague inkling of prescience.

A sense of need exploded in her head, a silent distress call desperate for help. Without really thinking, she got up, spurred by its blind demand. She shrugged on a jacket over her pajamas and snuck down the corridor - the light shining under one of the doors showed her sister was still up. She paused at the door to grab her shoes and slip them on. Slipping ontoo the street, she closed the little gate after her.

Looking both ways up the street to try and feel what direction she needed to go, she started walking briskly down the block, trying to figure out what was setting her on edge. Something else felt wrong now.

She realised what it was and she shivered. There didn't seem to be anyone around. No cars were driving and all the lights were out, even the streetlights. But the place didn't seem to be as dark as it should be.

Fighting a rising sense of alarm, Mitsuko was tempted to turn back, but then she felt another pulse of that sense of danger, more urgent this time.

She ran down the road, headed for the small park nearby. She knew the way well - the little shrine she volunteered at adjoined it. Coming onto the little patch of green, out in the open was a strange sight: a spear.

It stood there, somehow balanced on its tip. Just below the spearhead was a built out section, seeming ornamental. A yellow jewel was set in its center, stripes of gold radiating out from it like stylised sun beams. In the darkness the shaft was almost invisible, making it appear like a floating, foreboding eye. It gave her the odd sensation it was watching her.

Mistuko circled it warily.

"Hello?" she asked. She frowned, walking past it. She could swear there was something here but it kept slipping away from her. Something close, just ahead, at the edge of her sight...

There came a chime behind her and a voice.

"It comes."

Mitsuko spun around. Something was approaching from the way she'd come.

She gasped. She didn't know what to call it. The thing was like an ill formed clay statue; a lumpen, vaguely man-like shape. Two round green dots passed for eyes in the low dome of its skull, the head otherwise featureless. Its dull, oozing flesh seemed less substantial in places, a faint light shining through as if it had glowing bones.

As if it had all the time in the world, it plodded forwards, a low moan coming from it.

"I'm dreaming, I'm dreaming!" Mitsuko shouted, rapping her knuckles on her skull. The scene refused to change.

"Take me." The voice came from the spear, the gem lighting up slightly as it spoke.

This was crazy but it was a weapon. Mitsuko dashed forward and grabbed it. The odd creature sped up in response.

"Now what?" she asked herself.

Shimizu Akari sat at her PC, happily corrosponding with her friends via an instant messenger client about their new school.

Across the room, sprawled on the bed lay her new Touhou State High School uniform. Like her sister, she didn't much like the change of uniform, but Akari wasn't one to like them much in the first place. While she was certain she looked nice in it, the girl couldn't help but wish her uniform was more colorful. Despite Akari's typical reservations about change, from what they'd talked of so far, Miyuki seemed excited about the whole ordeal, but she was always a lover of school.

At this, Reiko thought she had gone mad, in that playfully serious way that was always worth a good laugh. Akari chuckled at her clever use of bold colored font to convey more than mere words could do. The three continued to chat about their daily experiences, and Akari was glad to spend some time socializing, even distantly, after a long and boring day with her parents and sister.

"Can you hear me?"

The atmosphere suddenly changed as a voice echoed in memory through Akari's head once again, vanishing as quickly as it had came. She'd been having a recurring daydream for the last few days, almost always accompanied by an image of a young woman, face desperate, with flowing crystal-blue hair. Every time it happened, she wished she could ask her what was wrong, but it was always over before Akari could respond. She'd later passed it off as her mind wandering in fits of boredom, but the vision seemed too real to be a construct of her mind, even with Akari's proficiency at daydreaming.

She shook it off, until a new IM window popped up next to the conference she was having with her friends. The name read only "Solardefender15", and the message was a simple ["Shimizu Akari?"]. A chill went down her spine, as the color of the text had an uncanny resemblance to her dream.

"Yes?" She replied.

["I have been attempting to contact you. I require your help, but time is short, and you may already be in danger. Come to the park southwest of your residence with all due haste, for my powers are fading and they may already have located me."]

With that, the window indicated that the mysterious speaker had logged out. Akari stared wordlessly at her monitor in equal parts fright and suprise for several seconds before connecting the events. As impossible as it may have seemed, perhaps she must have had some sort of precognitive vision, or recieved a message from a wayward spirit? Akari'd never been very spiritual, but not without cause, all the fantastic myths simply never seemed to be more than stories.

Spurred by this, she said her farewells to Miyuki and Reiko, lying that she was going to catch some sleep. Shutting off her computer, the girl roughly threw her sweater over her clothes to keep her warm outside and peeked out her door. Everyone was asleep, save her sister, whom...

"Onee-san?" she whispered down the hall, quietly but loud enough to carry.

Mitsuko wasn't there. Was she gone this late?

Akari rushed downstairs, sneaking out of the house in a similar manner to her sister. As she went, she found signs that Mitsuko had left before her, but never quite managed to catch up to her. Fearing that perhaps what the mysterious woman had told her about being in danger applied to them both, Akari hurried down the lifeless street with redoubled efforts.

Shortly before reaching the park, her eye caught a glimmer from the buildings adjacent that drew her from her destination. She approached, and nestled in an alcove containing a common newspaper and soda machine, a bright burst of blue light drew Akari to her final destination. As she approached, she noticed a delicate silver string was caught to the rear of the newspaper dispenser, and reached for it, drawing forth a cleverly hidden... necklace?

The charm was blue, with a sheen almost like that of plastic, but the weight and feel of an ornamental heavy metal, such as brass. It was delta-shaped, winglike, as if it were the insignia of a popular airline rather than jewelry. In the center was a red gem set within a socket of a strange glittering orangish metal, rubylike, but cut nothing like a ruby one would expect to find in a ring. It had no facets, but was perfectly spherical, carrying a visual depth almost like the pupil of an eye.

"We meet at last." Akari was greeted by the familiar woman's voice in her head, and jumped backward in suprise at it's uncharacteristic clarity and volume. She shuffled backwards cautiously, despite holding the object in her hand.

"W-who are you?" She whispered sheepishly.

OOC: Anything in Yellow are things that are thought out mentally.

OOC means "Out of Character"
----------------------

"I woke up this morning and nothing much has changed. My bed smack-dab in the middle of my bed-room, the low hum of machine from my computer a serenade in my room. Breakfast of waffles, goat cheese and blueberries and lots of milk. Living by myself, in this small apartment where the privacy is bliss. My family live elsewhere, not too far from here, so I see them when it is desired. It happens from time to time, I'm not avoiding them per se. Just my perspective on life and philosophy clashed so often, that we both agreed to maintain a sort of peace in this manner. The fact that they thought I would learn how the world REALLY worked by living by myself surely contributed to it. Too bad... the world is a big place where many people are capable of living different life styles... so the idea of trying to teach me how the world REALLY works is an exercise in futility."

*Strolls along the doll-sized fence seperating the flower beds from the path of the park, and the trees which annoyingly drop cherry blossoms on my black, short hair. The clothes Menarker wore fairly simple and clean dark close which would have passed as a casual professional from any company of prestige.*

"During the weekdays, I go to school and in the weekends, I spend a few hours working in a grocery store. The pay is good, flexible hours and the co-workers are happy enough to have my strong arms, since most of them are hitting their 50s. This, along with a clean family reputation, made it all possible to get a job early when people my age are not normally permitted. It's a little annoying, since I would like to think I got hired for my merits, not because I'm related to a particular someone... but at least it shows their support, so I guess I'm content."

"I've found you! You are mine."
0__0 "EH?"

"I looked around, side to side, but I saw no one in my sight. Blaming it on some perverted daydream in my head, I continued onwards walking the nature themed pathway where the park's many pathways, a few in particular which would join in a hub, leading toward one of the school's entrance-way. I absently gaze side to side, just curious how people are behaving, and it is a relatively normal sight."

*Various bystanders talking and chatting, and the few people walking the opposite direction pointing at me and smiling and chuckling. Menarker checked his clothing, to make sure his fly wasn't open, that he didn't get some random bird-shit and that nothing else was out of place.*

"Hey errr, Darshiva, right?"
"Yes, it is." *Menarker straighten up into attention, curious about what would the topic be, a conversation being typically unusual unless one asked for a favor. Conversations from two unknown attractive girls being even rarer.*

"Your pet... is so CUTE!"
"Eh? My pet?"

"I looked down and behind me to see a cat which oddly to me looked like an Iriomote wild cat. It's a feral animal normally, but this one was on all four gazing at me as if love-strucked and swinging its tail whippingly from side to side. I was for an instant touched that a cat, unfamiliar with me at all, saw SOMETHING good in me to approach me like this."

"Puu-uurr-grrr-OOW!"
"Awww, CUTE!" *The girls held the hands in inwardly clenched fist, as if holding back the urge to touch what they thought was another's pet. Menarker gazed at it adoringly and felt a surge of love where before it was simple infatuation.*

^__^ "Awwww, I guess it is particularly cute!"

"I always loved kitties, and this one is NO EXCEPTION. If anything, it was like comparing a typical high school girl with a model. I didn't care that it may have belonged to someone or that it may have been wild. This one just following me... OMG, it's rubbing its body on my leg and purring!"

*Menarker lowered his hand in a scoop, trying to get this cat to sniff its hand, trying not to intimidate it by petting so early, but the cat promptly plopped its body into his palm and the lad blushed as the two girls started clawing their hands outwards as if wanting to pet it as Menarker lifted it up.*

"Whoa, Whoa... Hold on, I don't know if it likes strangers that much!"
"We'll be gentle!" *Their hands grasping as if saying "Gimme Gimme Gimme".*
^^; "Even as you're saying that, your hands are..."

"GGGRRRO-OOWWLL-PPPFFTTT!" *The cat's fur spiked, its knees bent and the howl within fang-bared jaws instilled in everyone within a short distance the fear of the "Portrait of Fury", as everyone jumped back, keeping their distance and the girls running straight for the gates.*

"I strayed off the path and headed behind a tree where the others, whom were gazing at me with piercing eyes, wouldn't see me. I felt demoralized and guilty for upsetting everyone around me. Putting the alluring cat down, I gently tried to shoo it off, although deep down I didn't really want to, but it didn't actually belong to me. But I was puzzled... for a briefest moment, I felt this competitive sense of hatred when those girls were harrassing this kitty. The feline gazed straight at me with an adamant and firm disposition and I would never forget what came out of its mouth with a feminine sense of omen."

"I have found you. You are mine. You can't send me away. I have chosen you and there is no turning back. Turn to me or face the unknown unarmed."

Wha? It spoke... "Unarmed? What the heck?"

---------------------------------------
OOC: I hope this format of mine is acceptable.

The light was shinning in in split patterns from a decorative side window with ceremonial symbols across it, sun glowing way way up high in the bright sunny sky. Delightful in almost all respects really, spare for those types of people who dislike the light for one reason or another, or those others who just like the thunderstorms and the high gusts. It was the start of another ordinary day for Demi, waking up this time in some house she snuck inot. It was fun finding random places to get into and stay with, kind of a hobby of hers. She was able to easily slip in just about anywhere really, she's done it so much. Sometimes she would get hungry, and grab a bite to eat from the place she was staying at's fridge. Sometimes, she would get thirsty, different times she'd spot something shiny or otherwise attractive, and borrow it. Right now, it was the hungry and thirsty bit though. Stretching her arms she yawned and shook herself a little as she slowly sat up and looked around the dark small room. Her doll laid across her chest, and she picked it up and held it close, with an endearing hug. "Lets go get some breakfast, eh?"

"Yeah! You've gotta get your body awake and moving soon by the looks of the clock over there. I my-" "~Listen, I've got some very important things to talk to you about.~" Demi froze on the spot, and promptly stared at her doll blankly, mouth somewhat agape as she fell back into a sitting position. It took a bit for the shock to set in and her mouth to catch up with her thoughts. "Mogura? Did..... did you... just... talk?" It had no eyes, but it was seemingly staring directly at her. She looked back, her own eyes boggling somewhat while trying to understand exactly what is going on with her little dolly. While she comprehended this development, she stood and promptly walked to the kitchen of the house, walking slowly and aimlessly. "~Yes, I just talked. Now, I've got some incredibly important things to tal-~" "Out loud." She poked the doll in the head several times, getting the cabinet open and taking out a bowl and a cereal box from another area. "~Yes... though for the record my name isn't Mogura.~"

Having set up most of the food and taking a sip of the glass of water she prepared for herself, Demi sat down and put it in her lap. In a snap her expression suddenly pulled a complete 180°, and she hugged the black being close to her body tightly, turning it and generally being overly delighted. "Yaaaaaaaaays! Now other people can finally hear you! Nobody ever listens, sometimes they even say I'm making you up. Now you can talk to them and show them how wrong they are! You can boss people around, and I won't even have to translate! Wheee!" She just held it out in her arms, taking a very good look and brimming ear to ear, while the doll looked totally confused, or would have if it had a face. "~Eh, wha?~" "Demi! This thing talking, whatever it is,it isn't me, or maybe its just a part of me thats grown out into reality. I don't know what it is to tell you the truth..."

Demi just stopped, staring blankly, thinking slowly and squinting one eye in suspicion. Apparently the doll heard it too, for it had just as weirded out a reaction to it. "~Oh... this is going to be interesting...~"

"Good job today, everyone." Takeyuki called out to his family. "Oh, Shimizu, before you forget, I found something that I think you might like."
"I'll be done in a moment, Dad. Just have a few dozen dishes remaining."
Sayuki walked up and nudged Shimizu away from her work. "Don't worry, sweetie. I'll take care of the rest. Why don't you go and see what darling wants."

Shimizu shrugged and left the kitchen for the restaurant area. Takeyuki, Shimizu's stepfather for a few years, had run a chinese restaurant out of the first floor of their house. Both he and his son Takuya were standing at one of the tables. Shimizu picked up the box sitting in the center of the table, wrapped up like a present.
"Go ahead," Takeyuki offered. "Open it."
Shimizu nodded and carefully opened the package so as not to damage the wrappings and took the object out of the box. It looked like some kind of security drone one would find in an anime. "Dad, what is this?"
"Well, I'm not exactly sure," Takeyuki admitted. "There's a manual that came with it when I bought it at that store my honey and me have seen a few times when we went out together."
Shimizu cocked an eyebrow. "Do you think you should be buying strange things from strange stores?"
"Your mother likes it when I buy strange things for her," he said defensively.
"That's because mom likes strange antiques," Shimizu said, pulling the manual out. "I'm pretty busy, dad. School starts and the dinner rush will start soon."
"I can take care of it if you don't have time," Takuya offered.
"Yeah, this would be great for oniichan," Shimizu said, holding it out for Takuya. "He likes electronics and he has time to figure out just what this thing is."

Sayuki stuck her head out from the kitchen. "Shimizu, that's not very nice. It's his gift to you, not Takuya."
Shimizu was about to retort, but decided that she was pretty tired. "Hmm...could you give me the rest of the night off so I can figure it out? I'm sure I can see how cool it is if I had the spare time to take a look at the book and everything."
Takeyuki smiled. "Sure, of course. Please take the rest of the day off and have fun with that. The shopkeeper said it was the perfect gift for special girls."
"Special girls?" Shimizu asked, amused. "What, like retarded or something? Do I wear this as a helmet so I don't hurt myself when I decide to run right into a wall?"
Sayuki laughed. "Oh, I'm sure that's not what that is for, sweetie. Please, take the rest of the day off and try it out inside your room."
"Yeah, I got it."

In Shimizu's room, she had cleared her bed of the large blanket and stuffed animals for a place to sit herself and the strange object down. "Yep, definitely something out of some anime," she said, cracking open the manual. "Hmmm...so, it says here your name is Ponpon. Apparently you're some kind of...a magical focus? Whatever, where're the operating instructions?"
Shimizu scoured the manual for instructions, finding other sections on operating parameters, translations, general setup...
"General setup," Shimizu read. "Okay. Activation...huh? Oh, this is simply absurd."

Shimizu rose from her bed and moved the small table out of the center of the room, then turned to the device on her bed. "Here goes, oh this is so stupid."
After clearly her throat, "Ponpon, I am Miyasaki Shimizu and I accept the destiny as the one blessed of the stars. Awaken to my call and share in my fate!"
Ponpon didn't move. But the sound of electronic equipment energizing could be heard. Shimizu yelped, suddenly feeling stupid. "Oniichan must be playing his games. Man, how dumb do I-?"
Shimizu froze, unable to move or speak as the light on Ponpon slowly brightened in sky blue, then rose from the bed, hovering some two feet from the mattress. "Wha-wha-what the hell?!"
Ponpon drew closer to Shimizu, its single eye flashing. "That looks like," Shimizu breathed, then began rapidly flipping pages in the manual, finding the translation section. "Umm, uhhh...Gr-greetings, Miyasaki Shimizu, I am Ponpon. I am the shaper-aw, hell. Stop talking so fast!"

A rapid knocking on the door caused Shimizu to cry out again. "Oneesan, is everything all right in there?"
It was just Takuya. Shimizu quickly grabbed her bag and yanked a notebook out of it. "Everything's fine, oniichan! Go back to your games, I'm fine."
Ponpon was quick to clue in, and Shimizu got to work on writing down Ponpon's flashes and pulses, then began translating them. Learning about Ponpon was going to take a good long time.

Rei Shoda looked up at the stars in the sky, absorbing the silence of a sleeping world, the peaceful night having a calming sensation on the young boy, nervous about going to a new school. Part of him held hope for the days to come. A new school. A new start. Perhaps he could shrug off the social exile that had plagued him up to now. A larger, and more rational, part of him, however, was afraid. Afraid of new bullies. New enemies. New tortures.

None of that mattered to him now, though. The peace of the night without became the peace within, and Rei breathed deep of the cool night air. It was times like this he was glad his mother was a workaholic and his father's hours were so odd. He was certain they'd not allow him out so late into the night alone if they knew about it. They did not, however, and so he was free to slip away into the darkness and the solitude.

The low rumble of a distant car broke his silent reverie and he continued his aimless walk feeling, for all intents and purposes, to be the only person left in the suburb he called home. He smiled a small honest smile, and let his feet carry him where they would.

His wanderings were guided, however, toward a particular park, and as he came close the silence which he was in tune with vanished. It was not replaced with loud noises, or the sounds of voices, but with a new silence. The occasional rumbling of distant cars had disappeared. The hum of the street lights had vanished. There were no sources of light, and yet there was no dark.

Everything was undeniably wrong.

Rei Shoda, shrunk into his coat, his hands jammed deep into his pockets. His mind tried to tell him that it was nothing, that this was just a brown out. His senses, disagreed, however, and the hair on the nape of his neck rose uncomfortably as fear pricked at his senses.

He wanted to turn and run back the way he came but something stopped him. A small glow from a park bench. A small warm glow, that even from this distance seemed to quiet his fear.

"Come"

Rei couldn't tell if the thought was his own or someone else's, but he obeyed without question, stepping forward in awe. A small silk bundle lay on the bench, and from within the glow radiated dimly, until he unwrapped it. The light vanished quickly as he revealed an ornate european cross guard. Even with the light gone, however, Rei could not resist the urge to pick up the trinket.

"I have been waiting for you, Rei Shoda, but the guardians come and I fear introductions must wait."

This time Rei knew the voice in his head was not his own, but it also spoke the truth, as a shadow formed in the darkness before him.

He didn't know what was happening, or if it was real. The only thing Rei Shoda could be sure of was his fear. He was scared.

Alexander Silvandris was sitting in front of the TV, watching one late-night show or another, and trying to wind down so he could actually get some sleep that night.

Normally sleep wasn’t a problem for him, even if he was a night person. But for some reason, he’d felt unsettled all day and his sister going all esoteric at breakfast that morning hadn't helped. But the day’s almost over and nothing’s changed. The blonde thought, playing his hand through his hair absently.

He shrugged, trying to ignore that nagging voice in the corner of his mind, the one that kept reminding him that Leanne’s cards normally didn’t spill out of her pocket, and her voice normally didn’t sound empty when she talked.

"Maybe you shouldn’t ignore those voices kid." Came a female voice from behind him.

"What?" Alex was on his feet, spinning toward the voice in an instant. His eyes darted around the dark room, as he inwardly cursed himself for not turning the lights on.

"Behind you Alex." The voice came again, this time a lot closer.

He spun again, and his eyes widened as he came face to face with a woman he’d never seen before. Her arms were crossed, and her long black hair fell freely past her shoulders. She was dressed in a strange white robe, one that looked expensive, and her eyes shone golden in the low light. It was enough that he found himself speechless for once.

"I’m Miranda. Nice to meet you Alex." The woman, Miranda, said a smile coming to her face. "I’m here to help you out; you’re gonna need it kid." She turned her gaze away from him, towards the front door of the house.

"Now, if you’ll follow me, there’s something you need to deal with."

“HEAVEN BLESSING SEAL! PURIFY!” Roji Riraku, White Knight of the Blessed Isle swings his seal card in a gleaming arc. With the brilliance of his love, pure and untarnished by sin, he strikes a blow to the Blue Demon. “You will trouble this land no more fiend!”
“booourrrrggg boouuuurggggghhh you have defeated meeeeeeeeee.”
There was no time, though the Yellow and the Blue lay vanquished, the Red had taken to the woods and was in hiding, waiting to strike with it’s insidious attack.
“Come forth demon!” The White Knight points an accusing finger into the trees, “Face me in fair combat!”
“HELL POISON!” The demon leaps from behind and Roji is caught unawares. He spins, but too slowly and the wicked little knife of the Red Demon slices into his side.
“Fiend, you have struck me a blow.” Roji buckles and falls to his knees, that vile toxin coursing through his veins. ”Kyeeekyeeekyeee One blow will be enough foolish Knight. That is the spittle of a lindworm, no mortal may survive!!” The Red Demon cackles as Roji slumps forewards on his chest, groaning as the poison reaches his heart. Confident in her victory the Red Demon turns, dreaming of all the succulent peasant flesh she will enjoy as the only remaining sister “Hold!”
Whaaaaaat?! The Demon spins, her ugly face wide with panic, ”How can you still speak!?! That poison is greater than any other!!! The White Knight is more than speaking, he has drawn himself to his feet, one hand clutched to his dying heart. “…My Love sustains me…”
With a snarl the Red Demon draws her knife and charges at the injured, dying Knight. As she draws closer his mouth quirks into a pained smile. In her haste she had not seen the fan of cards in his hand.
“HOLY FLURRY! ONE THOUSAND ANGEL SWORDS!” A rush of blessed cards stream from his hand, dicing the fiend with the holy light of a true knight.
Roji stumbles, the three demon sisters vanquished his blood cools and the poison overwhelms him. This is how the White Knight dies, having defeated the worst terror of the Tōhoku region and making the land safe for travellers again.

***
“Roji!” The scene Oba Marigold enters into is this; Roji, face down in the middle of the living room. His sisters are spread about, draped artfully over the couch, the lamp stand and the side table. Kari was still making gurgling sounds, despite having played the Yellow Demon and having been the first to die, as she always was – being the youngest. The thirty three talisman cards were sprayed about the room, the victims of the dramatic, ongoing adventures of Roji Riraku, White Knight of the Blessed Isle.

“My cards!” Marigold seizes Roji by the ear and hauls him to his feet. The girls come to life suddenly, rushing about to avoid Oba’s wrath. “Girls, quiet down. It’s Roji I gave the cards and it’s Roji who will look after them. You run along and play, next time he’ll play Poki Poki Princess Pet Keepers with you.” As the girls rushed off with whoops of delight Roji groaned, truth told there couldn’t be a much worse punishment than playing Poki Poki Princess Pet Keepers. His sisters ofcourse were the princesses which left Roji to play the pet. His family had never allowed them to have pets for a reason.
When Roji had picked up all the cards and counted and sorted them to make sure none were missing or damaged Marigold made him practice.
“So…” she said, “We’ll teach you respect for my cards yet.” She grins, ruffling his hair, “Start with a three card spread.”
Roji nods, “Goal, Obstacle, Aid right?”
“Right”
With great concentration Roji shuffles the deck, moving the cards backwards and forwards looking for the one that feels right. He finds it hard to focus, a low hum has starts in the back of his mind. He plays the first card.
“The End… inverted.”
He glances at his grandmother, “To prevent the end?” His grandmother looks faintly worried, but she shakes her head, “The End card can mean a lot of things, a new beginning? Or… completion…” she doesn’t look entirely convinced though.
“Okay…”the sound increases and with irritation he lays down the second card.
“…Mud Man…?” he raises an eyebrow at his grandma, “That’s not one of yours is it?”
Thunk Thunk Thunk Something slapped wetly at the outside wall.
“What’s the third card Roji?”
The window crashes open in a hail of glass, and something flops through, smacking shapelessly into the ground before reforming. The noise became the tinkle of alarm bells in his brain.
“Play the third card Roji!”
Roji pulls a third card from the deck, “The Lucky Sixty-Six?” The card pulses and a beam of light shines from its centre, playing about the room before settling on the chest that supported their small television. The blob was still quivering in the broken glass, slowly drawing itself up into a shape that resembled, however faintly a man. In a panic Roji pushes the television off of the table and hauls open the chest. Sitting on top of the pile of old blankets and trinkets is a dusty shuffle-box and he wouldn’t have given it a second glance, if in a tinny voice it hadn’t exclaimed;

“WELCOME! ROJI RIRAKU! WELCOME!” The word scrolling across its smooth surface.

"Well, aren't you going to go look into it?"

Sid looked up at Nora as she sat in the sill of the open window, both having been enjoying respective moments of peace from the rather hectic routine of unpacking. Her host family seemed fairly nice and ultimately sensible enough to stay out of her way, which Nora appreciated more than anything at the moment. Having yet another new school to look forward to wasn't exactly thrilling the girl.

"'ello 'ello?" the mouse askedm trying to get her attention only to find her pretty deeply involved in the music playing over her headphones. Feeling that simply biting her was a bit rude on his part, he decided instead to just tug on the cord a bit to get her attention.

"God, what?" Nora growled in annoyance, pulling the headphones away from her ear.

"Magical disturbance, that's what," he sighed, "Hop to it!"

"Pfft."

"I said now, young lady!"

"Oh, what are you, my mother now?" Nora rolled her eyes as she shut off the music and got to her feet, "Can we just drive there or something? I really don't feel like playing princess dress-up right now. Or ever."

Sid adjusted his tiny monocle, casting a nervous glance out the window before turning his attention to his charge, "Of course not! Now do your transformation incantation and let's get moving."

"I'm not calling out the name." Nora growled.

"You are, too!"

"Like hell I am!" she retorted, raising a middle finger, "I know full well that all this nonsense works without me having to announce the silly name of everything I'm doing, and don't try to tell me that it doesn't! I tried it out a couple weeks ago!"

"You have no respect for tradition, you know that?" the mouse shook his head in disapproval, "Well, just hurry up and get to it, already."

Letting out an audible and clearly forced sigh, Nora Nolan closed her eyes and concentrated, summoning "girly and dumb as hell" magic energies, as she so often described them, around her in a soft pink glow. She always hated what came next....

Normally, Anzu would be excited about starting at her new school. New faces, new friends, and best of all, her old friends were transferring in as well. But right now, something far more important was on her mind: The betrayal of Lord Takeo to the throne, and his plot to destroy the true love between Prince Kiyoshi and Flower Maiden Kimiko.

Anzu sat in front of the TV, chin propped on her knees, eyes glued to the screen. Anzu and her friends loved this show, and tonight's episode was particularly good.

A chunky, cream colored cat leaped up next to her and rammed its head against her calf, begging attention. Anzu pushed him away.

"Not now, Lychee!" The cat tried several other times to get Anzu's attention, failing repeatedly. He sulked away into the room where her mother was painting.

Several minutes later, her mother grew annoyed of the cat's behavior as well.

"Anzu!" came a voice from the dining room. "Would you please put this cat outside before he destroys something?"

Lychee left the room and trotted down the front hallway.

"Ahh, but I have to see how this episode ends!" Anzu whined, shoving both hands pleadingly towards the TV screen. "I'll do it at the next commercial break! I promise!"

The sound of an overweight cat throwing itself against a door kept interrupting Prince Kiyoshi's wooing of Flower Maiden Kimiko.

"Anzu!"

"Fine, fine!" Anzu walked backwards out of the room, her eyes never leaving Prince Kiyoshi as the spy from the evil Lord Takeo crept ever closer to the star-crossed lovers.

"Goofy cat. You never have this much energy when I actually have time to play with you." Lychee ignored this and continued throwing his bulk against the door. Anzu opened the door, and Lychee took of running, faster than Anzu thought possible for anything that morbidly obese.

"Hey! What's the matter, Lychee? Lychee!!" The streak of white made a b-line for the street. It ran straight out into traffic, forcing a car to screech to a halt.

"LYCHEE!!" Anzu ran outside. "LYCHEE!" Not caring that she wasn't wearing shoes, the girl ran across the street after the crazed cat. Lychee dodged down an alley. Anzu followed, but screeched to a halt when she saw he had disappeared. The alley was a dead end.

"Lychee?" she called. "Where are you?" She started searching around the cardboard boxes and dumpsters that lined the alley, worried that he had gotten hit by a car and was hurt. "Here kitty!"

Something rustled in the dark back corner of the alley. "Lychee?" A dark mass oozed out from behind a trash can. At first she thought it was another cat. She crouched down and beckoned it closer.

"Hey there little guy. Are you a stray? Did Lychee scare you? Don't worry, he's just a big--" Her voice trailed off as the dark spot grew larger, oozing into a taller shape, solidifying and reshaping itself with a sound like wet clay being squeezed.

"Wh-What?" Anzu fell backwards as the shape took a clumsy step towards her. "Wh-- Who are you!? Get away! S-Somebody help!"

Here. A voice came from behind her. It was soft and melodic. Anzu's head swiveled, only to see a dejected looking Lychee dragging along a strange metal object. He dropped the thing with an almost audible "pleh" before slowly lumbering back towards the house.

"Lychee? You can talk?" Anzu gasped.

Don't be stupid: Cats can't talk. Now pick me up before you die. Unless dying is your plan, then by all means, continue sitting there. The metal object glittered slightly as the words came. Anzu felt compelled to obey, and rose to her feet. She grabbed the object, which looked like a metal harp of some kind, although it was difficult to discern how many strings it had.

"What are--"

Jump backwards!

Anzu let out a shriek as a muddy arm swiped through the air where she had been standing.

The harp let out a single note, and the mud creature was knocked backwards.

"What--"

Explaining comes later. Getting us out of here comes now. Listen to me and do exactly what I tell you, or you will die.

"O-okay."

All she wanted to do was watch her TV shows and now she was gonna die!! This was not cool!