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

[X] Find somewhere to nap until it's time to go back to Mid-Childa.
- [X] Timeskip:
- - [X] See if you can visit Lutecia.


"I'll consider it," you tell her, and she nods knowingly. "There won't be any problem if I have it sent to you, right?"

"No, that should be fine. Your boss shouldn't have any trouble tracking me down; just remember my name is Asta." You nod and start to get up, and she suddenly twitches. "Um! I, uh, I know I'm just a prisoner, and I really shouldn't be making demands - but, if there isn't anyone right outside the door, would you mind waiting with me until someone gets here? I - I really don't want to be left alone." You blink and stare at her for a moment as fear and helplessness express themselves on her face … but it's irrelevant, because a couple guards are waiting just outside, so you just wave them in, take in the sheer relief on Asta's face, and go looking for a comfortable place to nap. After a few minutes you curl up in a large chair in a sort of lounge area. No one else is around, but you aren't hiding or anything, and this is the perfect sort of area to wait for someone for a few hours. You curl around your knees and fall asleep.

---

You scowl at Nove as she snickers at you. "Hey, you're the one in the fancy get-up. Never gonna catch me in something like that!" You glance at your reflection and scowl even more fiercely. On the one hand, you get to visit Lulu's place today! On the other, Fate said the best way to go there would be to hold an inspection, and that means you have to dress up in a uniform. Cinque frowns worriedly.

"Nove, that's enough," she says quietly. Her sister sighs and resigns herself to a victorious grin; apparently the oldest girl is still worried about your interactions, but as long as they don't try anything personal, you really don't care. You check again to make sure you have everything you'd planned on bringing - parasol, Loki, and that. Your secret weapon against Lulu …. You grin and giggle, then relax. Almost a shame that Satsuki won't be able to come, but if Fate thinks you'll be back before nightfall, it's hard to argue for her presence. Besides, this is time for you and Lutecia, and Satsuki would probably get nervous. You glance a clock, but before you can complain, Fate sweeps into the room, ignoring the fussing-over given to her by Alph. The Enforcer looks more comfortable than she has over the past couple days, so maybe Alph took your advice and gave her something to help her sleep. Or maybe it's just that now she's doing something that's her job, instead of burying herself in work taken from others.

"Are you ready to go, Flandre?" Still as polite as ever, of course. You incline your head and she nods, as much to herself as to you. "I'm sorry we'll be leaving you for a while, Ginga." She shakes her head and holds up a hand at Fate's apology.

"It's fine, Fate, really. No need to rush or worry - nothing's going to come up before you come back." Alph winces at that, ears going flat, but Fate just nods.

"Yes, that's right … sorry." Ginga smiles and shakes her head again, and Fate sighs. "Then … we'll be going now, Flandre. Alph, we should be back before dark." She gives her familiar a hug before turning to the prisoners. "Cinque, Nove, Wendi - take care of yourselves, okay?" Nove tries to scowl at being mothered and waves desultorily; Wendi grins and waves extravagantly; and Cinque bows politely.

"Thank you, Fate. Please take care of yourself, as well." The one-eyed girl is scrupulously polite, as she always is, but when she straightens up and looks at you, you stick your tongue out before she can say anything, then wave to everyone.

"'Bye! I'll say hi to Lutecia for you guys!" You dart out and toward Fate's car before anyone can respond, hopping into the passenger seat and buckling yourself in. Fate follows more sedately and frowns briefly at you before getting in and starting the car. You keep your eyes open as she drives, making sure you know how to get to your destination, both on the ground and mentally plotting a flight path. Fate is quiet and reserved, as she usually is when the two of you are alone, and apart from briefly summarizing your duties - just making sure that everything is running smoothly and that there aren't any situations that could develop into a problem - she doesn't say anything.

She finally pulls into a small parking lot near a modest complex of buildings. "Remember, Flandre, behave yourself." You scowl at her when she's looking at the young man coming out to meet you. It's not like you're a child, needing to be constantly reminded of something, and you're quite capable of behaving yourself … as long as everyone else does, anyway.

"Enforcer Harlaown, Officer Scarlet, welcome. Please, the major is waiting for you." You glare up at the sun and walk quickly to catch up with him and Fate.

"Is everything going well, Lieutenant? There haven't been any accidents?" He shakes his head.

"No, Ma'am, everything is going fine. We had a big meeting when we got the news, and the major really put his feet down." You lean forward and look up curiously at Fate.

"Another medical training camp had an incident where a couple trainees seriously hurt themselves trying to make a practice run more believable." You ponder that for a few steps, and wait until you get inside to respond.

"… Was it good practice for everyone else?" The lieutenant gives you a shocked look, but Fate just sighs and shakes her head. Major Tedrel's office is conveniently close to the entrance you used, so there's no further conversation, and the lieutenant stays in the anteroom after announcing you to the major.

"Enforcer Harlaown, Officer Scarlet, please come in, sit down." You watch the skinny, almost nervously-twitching Major Tedrel as you take one of the three chairs in front of his desk. The fingers on his right hand curl and uncurl almost rhythmically, and he smiles as you tilt your head slightly to keep them in view. "It's just a physical tic, nothing to worry about; they've checked me many times for likely disorders and never found anything."

"Major Tedrel, it's good to see you again. I hope you don't mind my coming here on inspection." He shakes his head.

"You know I'll never willingly say no to the pleasure of your company. I only wish I'd been able to go to your party the other day. I understand you all were singing long into the night." You look back and forth between them, and Major Tedrel's smile fades a bit. "I first met Fate some years ago, when I was one of the physicians helping Nanoha recover - ah, but that's probably nothing you're interested in. If you'll -" A tone from his desk interrupts him.

"Sir, Private Alpine is here," the lieutenant says.

"Good, send her in." The major disconnects and smiles. "Right on time." There are two stiff, formal knocks on the door, and he calls out, "Enter." You turn to face the door as it opens, and Lutecia takes three steps in, barely paying attention to what she's doing, and salutes.

"Sir, Private Alpine reporting as or-" You wait until after she notices you to grin and wave, and her eyes bug out slightly as her lips fail to form words.

"Ah, Lutecia, thank you. Work on that, though - and not so stiff. This is Officer Flandre Scarlet. Why don't you show her around the compound, explain what goes on around here? I'll stay here with Enforcer Harlaown for a bit, then show her around." She stares at him, mouth still working, until you bounce out of the chair and wrap your arms around her. Then she blushes and smiles happily at the major.

"Yes, Sir! Thank you, Sir!" You pull her after you, heedless of propriety and protocol, and when you turn at the door to wave, you see Major Tedrel smiling and Fate scowling. Oh, well. Once you get out of the anteroom and into the hallway and give Lutecia a proper hug, one that she reciprocates, she mock-glowers at the office. "That … ooh! He didn't tell me you were coming! He just said that some very important people were coming to inspect us, and he wanted me to show one of them around!" You giggle.

"What, are you saying we aren't very important people? I happen to think I'm very important people, myself." She laughs at that and finally relaxes. "… Feel better now?"

"I do. Thank you, Flan." You grin and she takes a deep breath. "So, what do you want to do?" You look around and shrug.

"Well, it's your place … but for now, maybe just do what the major said and show me around? If anything interesting happens, we can look into it, or else we can just find somewhere to sit and have fun." She nods.

"Right. It shouldn't take that long, anyway - two of the buildings are just living quarters, anyway, so unless you want to look in peoples' rooms, I can just show you the open areas on the first floors." She pauses for a moment, thinking, then nods and leads you down the hall. The tour is fairly brief, but she still hits the major areas - the male and female living quarters, with common areas on the first floor; the cafeteria; the classrooms, of which the only one currently in use is being run by a very strict woman who doesn't care for interruptions; the courtyard, which has a small physical training area; the gym, with an indoor swimming pool; and the records and office building, where she'd been working when you called her, and where you thank the supervisor, Lieutenant Hoff, in person, and also say hello to Angela, the still-terrified young woman who was in charge of the makeshift hospital from your first mission. "And … I think that's all the important places." You stick your tongue out at Lutecia.

"What would you have done differently if I had been someone else, someone on an actual inspection?" She sticks her tongue out back at you.

"We would have stayed and thoroughly investigated each area, and I also wouldn't be doing this alone. Really, I don't know why I was so surprised to see you …." You nuzzle her cheek.

"Because I'm a surprising person?" She giggles, then frowns and looks down from the window to the extra parking lot. A car is pulling in, and someone is heading out to meet it.

"That's … Isabel? What's she doing?" Your mood shatters and a scowl appears on your face when you see who gets out of the car, however - Korosh Manta. What, exactly, is he doing here … and why is a cadet greeting him? "Flan?" You sigh and shake your head.


What do you do?

[ ] Ignore him; this is Lulu time!
- [ ] Hang out in one of the common areas.
- [ ] Visit the classroom!
- [ ] Go to the cafeteria and have a snack.
- - [ ] Deploy the secret weapon!
- [ ] Have your clones keep an eye on Korosh.
- - [ ] If he starts getting close, make him have an 'accident'.
- - [ ] If he starts getting close, move away.
- - [ ] Have them lead him into Fate.

[ ] Drive him away; this is Lulu time!
- [ ] Hang out in one of the common areas.
- [ ] Visit the classroom!
- [ ] Go to the cafeteria and have a snack.
- - [ ] Deploy the secret weapon!

[ ] … He's here for you, isn't he? Give him an interview.
- [ ] Grudgingly.
- [ ] You can at least be polite.
- [ ] Get Fate and Major Tedrel involved.

[ ] Other?

[X] Ignore him; this is Lulu time!
- [X] Go to the cafeteria and have a snack.
- - [X] Deploy the secret weapon!
- [X] Have your clones keep an eye on Korosh.
- - [X] Have them lead him into Fate.
- - [X] Warn her beforehand via clone.


"It's nothing we're going to have to deal with, so let's go somewhere else … like the cafeteria?" You fix a pleasant expression on your face, but that doesn't seem to fool Lutecia much.

"Unless he goes there." You shake your head gently push Lutecia along as you head toward the stairs.

"He won't, at least at first. He'll have other things to distract him, so we can enjoy ourselves and be two friends who enjoy each other's company." Lutecia watches you from the corner of her eye for a moment, then nods and starts keeping up with you on her own.

"Yeah. Let's do that." She smiles and leans against you; you push back a little, to keep you both mostly upright, and she sticks her tongue out. You giggle - and your clones slip out invisibly while Lutecia is distracted. One makes its way to Major Tedrel's office, and the other two move toward Korosh. "… So what have you been up to? We didn't get much chance to talk about things last time, after all." You tap your lips as your clones move closer to their targets.

"Well, apart from the missions I've done - I'm teaching Satsuki things she needs to know, and we're playing some of the board games with Ginga, Fate, and the others. And practicing on the piano." She stops abruptly and stares at you, mouth gaping.

"Did - did you bring it with you?" You shake your head, a little confused.

"I found a beat-up one at a used-goods store, bought it, and had it repaired." Lutecia pouts adorably.

"Ah, you can't go in there, they're having a meeting - wait, weren't you -! Hey!" Your clone, turning visible since it has to open the doors and warn Fate anyway, ignores Tedrel's adjutant as it marches through the anteroom.

"Fate, I can tell something's wrong -" Tedrel looks up and scowls at your clone; Fate looks actually angry, and if she looks surprised at your clone's entrance, it turns back to anger soon enough.

"Flandre, what are you doing here?" Your clone takes out a sheet of paper and a pen and scribbles down an explanation about Korosh's appearance and meeting with Isabel, and how he's now chasing down one of the other clones. Fortunately, he doesn't seem to have paid attention to the girl's noticing that your clone isn't wearing the uniform you came in, nor that moving as quickly as he is, he should have caught an apparently-walking little girl.

"I couldn't find one, neither could Mama … ooh …. Um, could I come try it sometime? I mean, I'm not very good, I've only had a projection to practice with …." You lightly bonk your head against hers and grin.

"I don't mind. You'll have to get permission from Major Tedrel, though, won't you?" She looks down unhappily until you poke her forehead. "Or bring Megane, if you come on a weekend." She nods glumly and you scowl. "Fine, fine -" She starts to protest, but you interrupt her by the expedient of picking her up and swinging her into a comfortable carrying position. "We're going to the cafeteria, then we'll talk serious." You fly through the building, across the complex to the cafeteria.

Fate rubs her temples and takes ragged breaths. "And you're leading him here? Why?" Your clone rolls its eyes at Major Tedrel. Because you're with Lutecia, of course. He frowns at the explanation. "… Do I want to know what a 'breaking wheel' is?" Fate stands up abruptly.

"It doesn't matter. He isn't supposed to be here, right?" Tedrel frowns but nods. "Then you deal with this 'Isabel' cadet, and I'll handle Mr. Manta." She gives your clone a look, but shakes her head sharply instead of saying anything. And that's good, because it's just about time. The clone that Korosh is following looks back at him and winks, then ducks into the anteroom, turning invisible just before the lieutenant can take his hands from his eyes. Isabel realizes what's going on, much too late, and tries to disappear, but your third clone trips her - and as Korosh turns into the office, he slams right into a glowing yellow magic circle that pops into existence just in front of Fate. Major Tedrel walks right past him as golden bindings haul him upright and Fate begins reading off a series of charges, starting with harassment of Bureau officials and military espionage. She probably won't be able to get them to stick, not if he's run around on his own with someone in the Bureau specifically tasked with talking to him, but all you need is for him to not be your problem for the moment. You recall your clones after checking on Tedrel and Isabel one last time; he looks quite upset, and she looks absolutely terrified, so that should end well, too.

"So what did you get me?" You grin at Lutecia as she sets the tray down and sits across from you at the small table. She smiles back and shakes her head.

"Nothing too amazing, unfortunately. They don't start making desserts this early, so it's mostly just food or snacks up there." Your grin widens - it's the perfect time to deploy your secret weapon! - and Lutecia frowns suspiciously.

"Well, since I knew what was going to happen today, that let me plan ahead a bit. So I brought something especially for you." Your grin softens into a genuine smile as you take out a plate, and when Lutecia looks down at the chocolate cake her eyes widen as she smells the honey. You slide the plate across the table and she stares up at you. "Go on. Eat up." You hold out the fork and watch as delight spreads across her face, and your clones invisibly dart into the room to make sure no one else gets any funny ideas about interfering.

"Oooh … Flan, you're horrible. They don't have honey here." You giggle and lean across the table to pat her head.

"Hehe. Praise me more!" She giggles too, and you try some of the curious grapes. They look - and taste - like they have noble rot, and they're not bad at all. "Anyway, have you been doing anything fun? Or is it all just work-work-work, and study-study?" She shrugs.

"I … get along with some of the people here. So I stay in the common areas sometimes. But … here, I mostly do just keep up with work. I'm behind most of the people here when it comes to Bureau-related information and regulations, so I'm catching myself up when I don't have something else. And … Mama helps, too, when I come home on the weekends. Just a little bit, and then we … sometimes, if she's feeling up to it, we take a walk. Other times she talks about her job before …." She trails off and you scowl.

"Lulu!" You clap your hands in front of her. "No bad thoughts! If you don't stop, I'll have to tickle you." She smiles and laughs half-heartedly.

"I'm sorry, Flan. It's just … before, I had something I really wanted. Now … now I sort of have it, but everything else keeps getting in the way. And I can't do anything about it, because it's so much bigger than just a few people, so all I can do is … help where I can, and hope." She stares down at her plate. "… How do you do it, Flan? Work toward something you … you don't know if you believe in?" She looks up, begging - hoping - that you have an answer for her.

"Well, part of it is that I know I won't be here forever, so even if I don't like what I'm being told to do, I know it's only temporary. And part of it is that my skillset is pretty focused, so in order to use me with any sort of efficiency, they have to find something I like, or at least don't mind. But I don't think those are applicable to your case." She shakes her head. "No, you're young enough that they can teach you things that are useful in other situations, willing enough to be constrained, and you do seem to want to help. Megane does, too?" She nods.

"Yes …. And I want to help Mama and make things easier for her! But -" You nod and slip the second piece of cake onto her plate. You gesture for her to dig in.

"There's only so much you can do, and when you work within the constraints of a system you have to subordinate yourself to its requirements. Just don't let it overwhelm you; people care about you, and we want you to be happy. If that means I get to bring you a couple slices of honey-chocolate cake every week, I'll be glad to do that." She looks a little uncomfortable, but she does keep eating the cake.


What do you do?

[ ] Find somewhere quiet and stay with Lutecia until Fate comes to get you.

[ ] Other?