Flandre's Quest (Touhou) World - (Madness Quest)

[X] Go for a walk.
- [X] Avoid going outside if it's raining, explore the base


Growling quietly to yourself, you walk out onto the balcony and look up at the pre-dawn sky. Soon - soon, the sun will come out properly, but for now, it's still comfortable. The ground, plants, and furniture show the signs of rain, but nothing is coming down right now and the sky is fairly clear. You hop down to the ground and start walking. After a few minutes, you peel away from the road and start walking cross-country. It's not like you can get lost, thanks to the landmarks and your speed and flight. You keep your mind firmly empty, not letting yourself focus on anything and just moving forward, ignoring the squelch of not-quite-mud sucking at your bare feet.

Once you reach the forest and slip into the trees you let your mind wander to the recent event. As long as you keep it at arm's reach …. Of course, you're the one who'll absorb all the blame, but will that be justified? You were there first, so from a reasonable point of view you're the 'defender' of the kitchen area, and Wendi is the 'aggressor.' If she was bothered by your presence, she is the one who should have left, rather than assuming that you would. And, of course, you even offered to leave if she was uncomfortable, and she said you were fine staying there. Again, Wendi's later actions become unreasonable in the context of her previous ones - or the reverse. And then she said … that. Without apologizing, without thinking, she said that …!

You turn, and after finding a sturdy-looking tree, drive your claws into the bark and lift. It's hard work - the root system must be quite extensive - but after putting in real effort, you haul the tree - trunk, roots, and dirt - high into the air … and then let it drop, ducking back to avoid its branches. It doesn't tumble, the dirt clinging to its roots enough of a balancing factor to keep it upright, but when it slams into the ground the violence of the impact shakes the dirt loose and the tree topples, splintering the branches of neighboring trees. You dive onto the fallen tree and drive your fist into it, the wood snapping along the grain for meters, and then you take out your precious gift and assault some of the still-standing trees, snapping limbs and blasting huge chunks from trunks. You stop yourself quickly, though - trees aren't people, and flying bark and wood and dirt don't give you the same thrill as blood and bone, and trees don't scream in pain and fear. You'll just have to wait until you feel better.

---

Several hours later, with the sun rising in the sky, you start walking back to Long Arch, taking your time as you stroll along the road. The sound of a car's engine catches your attention and you turn around to see Ginga's car traveling down the road. It slows as it draws closer and the window slides down as she comes to a halt next to you. "Flandre? Are you okay?" You nod.

"I'm just taking a walk." No need to tell her about your forestry work … but did they not tell her about your encounter with Wendi?

"You told the others where you'd be, right?" You blink once at her question and shake your head. She sighs. "Please, make sure people know where you are - at least until you get your Device back. Anyway, hop in. I'll give you a ride back." You bow slightly and step back.

"I'm fine walking, Ginga." She frowns.

"It'll be faster getting back to Long -"

"I would prefer to walk. Time isn't important." Her expression hardens and she matches your gaze. After a few seconds, though, she sighs again and admits defeat.

"Alright. I'll see you back at Long Arch, then." You nod in farewell and the window slides back up as she starts driving. You wait for a moment - she must be suspicious, given your unwelcoming attitude - but it's not actually important for you to do something about the prisoners telling her. The worst she could do probably wouldn't get you into any trouble once people actually started thinking about it, considering the differences in station and the fact that you didn't actually do anything. And it's not like the Bureau is going to be surprised that you occasionally react … explosively … to provocation. You go back to walking.

Ginga meets you when you get back; you smile and half-bow. "See, I'm fine." She frowns.

"… Look, I can tell that something happened. Will you tell me what it was?" You blank your expression and blink owlishly, and after a few moments she sighs. "Well, you'd better get cleaned up - the representative from the music supply place should be here soon." You watch her for a second, then a grin splits your face and you dash to your room, trying to keep your speed down so you don't tear apart the walls and floor. You're pretty sure you're successful; at least, nothing shrieks or crashes as you hurtle through the hall. You dig into your coffin and pull out a set of your clothes, then tear off the ragged dress and dart into the bathroom for the extra space. You toss your clothes onto a counter, flare your aura to burn away the dirt and grime, and then hurriedly get dressed. You check yourself in the mirror - perfect, from hat to shoes - and dash back to the entry. Ginga spins and stares at you from the hallway. You shoot forward and lean toward her eagerly.

"When's he getting here?" She stares at you, then makes a point of looking at your clothes before gathering herself.

"Um, he should be here in twenty minutes, maybe a bit sooner. Ah … um, do you want me to be there, to make sure everything goes smoothly?" Your head tilts and you focus on nothing in particular as you consider her offer.

"Hmm … no, I should be good. If something that I need you for does come up, I'll send a clone, okay?" She nods.

"Alright. … Good luck, Flandre." You grin and bound past her toward the room with the piano. You have to make sure everything is ready, after all!

Almost twenty minutes later, you open the door for a young man in a casual suit. He looks around curiously before shaking himself and focusing on you. "Ah, good morning. I'm here to see a client of the Four Sisters' Music Hall …?" You grin toothily and nod excitedly.

"That's me! Flandre Scarlet. Come on, the piano's this way." You dart ahead of the representative, making sure to keep your speed down to human levels, and lead him to the piano. He whistles, surprised at the state it's in.

"Well. Let's see what we have here …." His manner transforms as he gets to his job, and several screens appear beside him as he scrolls through a list - your list of things the piano needs replaced. He doesn't seem to know much himself, but with so much information at his fingertips, he's able to ask you questions and make good suggestions for certain replacements - a synthetic felt for the hammers, for example. "And the soundboard …." You nod.

"I'd like for it to be made from spruce, if that's possible. If you can't get it … um, I don't really know what woods you have here that would make for good materials." He nods.

"Ah, an off-worlder. That's fine, that's fine … hm, spruce? Which world is this from?"

"Earth." He nods and taps at the screens.

"Earth … Non-Administered World #97?" That doesn't mean anything to you, but the image that appears on one of the screens is a familiar mass of blue and green and you grin. "Alright. Normally, for a private customer we wouldn't be able to do something like this - since it's Non-Administered, we're not supposed to go there just for a one-time material-acquiring trip - but since this is technically for the Music Hall …." He trails off and grins mischievously, and you giggle.

"Hehe. Oh! Can I make a specific request for where the wood comes from?" He shrugs.

"Sure. I won't be able to guarantee it, but we can try." You nod again.

"Yep. Anyway, the Fiemme, in Austria." You point on the image of the planet at the rough location; he zooms it in and you circle the alpine region. "At least, in the past, they had great woods for instrument-making."

"Alright, so spruce wood for a piano soundboard, measurements … ah, in that region … Picea abies?" You nod again, smiling happily. "Alright, we'll see what we can do. It'll probably be a day or two before we can get back to you about the soundboard, but if we can't get one of spruce, do you want something else from Earth?" Your mouth twists, but after a few seconds you shrug and shake your head.

"If you can't get spruce, I'll take whatever your company recommendation is." He nods and the screens vanish.

"Alright. I hope we're able to satisfy you." He starts to hold his hand out, then hesitates, and you take the opportunity to hug him.

"Ah, thank you, thank you!" He wheezes as you squeeze tightly, and smiles awkwardly when you release him. You guide him back to the entrance and wave excitedly as he drives off … then squeal happily and spin around the entry a few times.


What do you do?

[ ] Take a nap until it's time to start making the food.

[ ] Other?