Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
"If it's worth winning, it's worth cheating like a mother-fucker."
~ Remilia Scarlet
Which one?
Votes are locked.
[X] Stay and keep talking.
- [X] What do THEY do anyway? Who did they fight for and why?
3
Flandre's Quest (Touhou) World - (Madness Quest)
- Thread starter Entropy Judge
- Start date
~ Remilia Scarlet
Votes are locked.
[X] Stay and keep talking.
- [X] What do THEY do anyway? Who did they fight for and why?
3
Talking with Numbers
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Stay and keep talking.
- [X] What do THEY do anyway? Who did they fight for and why?
You sit back and glance at Wendi, looking worriedly at her sister, before focusing on Cinque. "What about you three? I'm a monster, and that explains my actions, but what or who were you fighting for, and why?" Ginga shakes her head, but before she can actually interrupt, Cinque raises a hand gently.
"A monster … and that explains your actions? Not the other way around?" You shake your head.
"I'm not human, never was. Even the appearance is only skin-deep. I do things that are monstrous because that's how I am - I'm not like a human, able to make decisions, to choose my nature. What is right for me to do - what is natural - is monstrous. To act un-monstrously is basically abnormal." You shrug, keeping a calm expression to mask your thoughts. If you are basically monstrous, what does that make Remilia? You only caused problems for her after she started trying to control territory, to interact with other factions … and after she tried to get you to do so as well. Was she trying to change you …? You bury the thought for now and return your attention to the girl across the table. "I can act humanly, humanely - I can show mercy to my enemies, and of course I am kind to my friends and family - but I am not a 'good person,' and I make no pretense of being one, because I can't, not for more than a short time." Cinque stares at you for a while, thinking, and you catch Nove lifting her head to frown at you - but her anger is … different somehow. Softer? And Wendi simply isn't looking at you, but you can tell she definitely looks unhappy about something.
"… What do you know about Doctor Jail Scaglietti?" You blink a few times, then shrug and lean forward.
"Let's see. He used Lutecia, used her desire to help her mother to make her run errands for him. He's also the one behind the Gadget Drone things - and you all, I guess?" Cinque nods, and after a moment you shrug again and return to eating.
"The Doctor is our creator - our father," she begins, and you keep your eyes on her. "He … he was not born, as we were not born. He was created by the High Council of the Bureau." You glance at Ginga, and she nods glumly.
"When that came out - it was known that the Bureau would pardon, or reduce the sentence for certain criminals in exchange for service, particularly if they were powerful mages. That was one area that people weren't happy about. Nor were they happy about the power disparity between the Navy and the Ground Forces. But when General Gaiz dropped the information that the Bureau itself was responsible for such a wanted criminal - that the High Council kept in contact with him even after he had 'vanished' … that destroyed all the trust that had been built up. It's why everything has been so … bad." She shakes her head, unable to adequately explain the reaction, but you can make a pretty good guess, and Cinque nods.
"More than creating 'just' a brilliant scientist and engineer, however, the High Council … gave him a desire. He was supposed to become a great scientist - and eventually uncover and unlock the greatest secrets of the Lost Logia, to hand over the secrets of ancient technology to the High Council. He … couldn't help but go along with part of it, that need to pursue his talents to the utmost, regardless of others' calls of immorality." Now it's your turn to nod. Like a youkai - like a magician that can't help but practice magic because that's what they are - Jail had an internal purpose that drove him from birth. But unlike a youkai, that purpose wasn't necessarily his natural nature, nor was it something he wanted. "Of course, he didn't want to be controlled, and so he broke away from the Bureau almost entirely, refused to be their puppet, and …." She smiles, softly and sadly, in memory. "His plan was to destroy the Bureau and control Mid-Childa himself. He was an engineer, both of science and genetics. He had the Cradle, the Gadget Drones, his children. We … we should have been able to do it. To behead the Bureau and, almost bloodlessly, control this world. We would be free to pursue our desires …."
"Almost free." Nove scowls and glares at Ginga, but Cinque's smile fades and she simply lowers her head.
"Yes, the Doctor would still have 'controlled' us - he is our father, after all, and we love him. And his path …." She shakes her head. "His methods were wrong, but his goal … would it have been so wrong?" She seems to be asking herself more than expecting a response, and Ginga looks down as well. You shrug.
"That depends. You said it, after all - he pursued his path to the utmost, regardless of the morality of his actions. A monster, just like me. And if his goal was, in some way, noble - can you say that he wouldn't have decided that some sacrifice might not have been necessary? Morality wouldn't have entered into it, after all - only the results." Nove jerks up, sending her chair tumbling across the floor.
"That's not true! He - he loved life! He didn't want to kill people - it would have been easier if he'd let us kill people! But - but -!" Wendi leaps up to support her sister as she stiffens and twitches, and Cinque slides out of her chair to join them as Ginga starts working at a screen, fingers flying. After a moment, Nove slumps down until Cinque supports her, then the two carefully drop to their knees, and you hear muffled sobs. Wendi looks down at them uncomfortably, then starts to walk back to the table, but you shake your head and point back to her sisters. They are family, after all - aren't they? And she does smile briefly before settling down with them. Ginga catches your eye and motions back; you nod and glance at Satsuki, but she's already standing up, and the three of you quietly withdraw from the cafeteria.
"… That … that could have gone worse, I think," Ginga says. "It would have been better if you hadn't brought it up, of course. Nove doesn't really like you, and she doesn't like anyone criticizing Doctor Scaglietti." You roll your shoulders.
"That's fine. It's good that she cares about him, because they're family. I would trust her less if she didn't." You glance at Ginga. "So what was that about it being easier if he'd let them kill people?" Ginga sighs.
"There was … an attack made on Bureau headquarters. A little after you - left. They made a deliberate attempt to limit collateral damage, to avoid killing anyone at all. Maybe they thought that with Vita and Verossa gone, we wouldn't be able to put up as much of a fight, but if so, they were hurt more by your taking Captain Grangeitz, Lutecia, and Agito and by your killing Tre, Sette, and Due. And -" She shakes her head, cutting herself short from whatever she was going to say. You cock your head to the side.
"Is it important, what you were going to say?" She works her mouth for a moment before shrugging helplessly.
"Do you remember Vivio?" You frown and shake your head. "She was a little girl, rescued by the RF6 Forwards on their day off. I didn't know if you'd ever actually met her. She was moved to the Church fairly quickly after being found - you remember the night you killed Tre and Sette? The aerial Gadget Drones?" You nod after a moment, remembering how you wished they'd just stopped bothering you - and the two combat cyborgs who'd tried to kill you … and that Lutecia had been attacking the Church, too. "Doctor Scaglietti kidnapped her back from the Church that night, because she's actually a clone of the last Sankt Kaiser, and the only person who can control the Cradle. The Church is taking care of her, now, but … well, one of the Numbers, Quattro, was in charge of making sure she obeyed Doctor Scaglietti and went along with his plan. But she … seems to have taken Due's death … quite poorly. Badly enough that she had Vivio deviate the Cradle from its 'assigned' duties and try to track you down." Her mouth twists unhappily, and you suspect that there's more she isn't saying … but it's enough for now.
"And between Jail's lack of ruthlessness and their trump card going against orders, the attack fell apart?" Ginga nods.
"General Gaiz had a team ready to capture Jail and his lab the moment the attack began, and between the problems with their coordination and force size, and us still having most of our team, we were able to reverse the situation. It was … still bad, of course, but not as bad as it could have been." She rubs her arm and looks back into the cafeteria. "It looks like Wendi and Nove left. Do …?" She hesitates, frowning. You don't blame her too much, but if it's just Cinque … how much more damage can you do?
What do you do?
[ ] Keep talking with Cinque.
- About?
[ ] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [ ] Have your clones scout around for Nove so you don't accidentally run into her.
- [ ] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [ ] Politics.
- - [ ] Etiquette.
[ ] Take Satsuki outside and work on her combat skills a bit.
[ ] Other?
- [X] What do THEY do anyway? Who did they fight for and why?
You sit back and glance at Wendi, looking worriedly at her sister, before focusing on Cinque. "What about you three? I'm a monster, and that explains my actions, but what or who were you fighting for, and why?" Ginga shakes her head, but before she can actually interrupt, Cinque raises a hand gently.
"A monster … and that explains your actions? Not the other way around?" You shake your head.
"I'm not human, never was. Even the appearance is only skin-deep. I do things that are monstrous because that's how I am - I'm not like a human, able to make decisions, to choose my nature. What is right for me to do - what is natural - is monstrous. To act un-monstrously is basically abnormal." You shrug, keeping a calm expression to mask your thoughts. If you are basically monstrous, what does that make Remilia? You only caused problems for her after she started trying to control territory, to interact with other factions … and after she tried to get you to do so as well. Was she trying to change you …? You bury the thought for now and return your attention to the girl across the table. "I can act humanly, humanely - I can show mercy to my enemies, and of course I am kind to my friends and family - but I am not a 'good person,' and I make no pretense of being one, because I can't, not for more than a short time." Cinque stares at you for a while, thinking, and you catch Nove lifting her head to frown at you - but her anger is … different somehow. Softer? And Wendi simply isn't looking at you, but you can tell she definitely looks unhappy about something.
"… What do you know about Doctor Jail Scaglietti?" You blink a few times, then shrug and lean forward.
"Let's see. He used Lutecia, used her desire to help her mother to make her run errands for him. He's also the one behind the Gadget Drone things - and you all, I guess?" Cinque nods, and after a moment you shrug again and return to eating.
"The Doctor is our creator - our father," she begins, and you keep your eyes on her. "He … he was not born, as we were not born. He was created by the High Council of the Bureau." You glance at Ginga, and she nods glumly.
"When that came out - it was known that the Bureau would pardon, or reduce the sentence for certain criminals in exchange for service, particularly if they were powerful mages. That was one area that people weren't happy about. Nor were they happy about the power disparity between the Navy and the Ground Forces. But when General Gaiz dropped the information that the Bureau itself was responsible for such a wanted criminal - that the High Council kept in contact with him even after he had 'vanished' … that destroyed all the trust that had been built up. It's why everything has been so … bad." She shakes her head, unable to adequately explain the reaction, but you can make a pretty good guess, and Cinque nods.
"More than creating 'just' a brilliant scientist and engineer, however, the High Council … gave him a desire. He was supposed to become a great scientist - and eventually uncover and unlock the greatest secrets of the Lost Logia, to hand over the secrets of ancient technology to the High Council. He … couldn't help but go along with part of it, that need to pursue his talents to the utmost, regardless of others' calls of immorality." Now it's your turn to nod. Like a youkai - like a magician that can't help but practice magic because that's what they are - Jail had an internal purpose that drove him from birth. But unlike a youkai, that purpose wasn't necessarily his natural nature, nor was it something he wanted. "Of course, he didn't want to be controlled, and so he broke away from the Bureau almost entirely, refused to be their puppet, and …." She smiles, softly and sadly, in memory. "His plan was to destroy the Bureau and control Mid-Childa himself. He was an engineer, both of science and genetics. He had the Cradle, the Gadget Drones, his children. We … we should have been able to do it. To behead the Bureau and, almost bloodlessly, control this world. We would be free to pursue our desires …."
"Almost free." Nove scowls and glares at Ginga, but Cinque's smile fades and she simply lowers her head.
"Yes, the Doctor would still have 'controlled' us - he is our father, after all, and we love him. And his path …." She shakes her head. "His methods were wrong, but his goal … would it have been so wrong?" She seems to be asking herself more than expecting a response, and Ginga looks down as well. You shrug.
"That depends. You said it, after all - he pursued his path to the utmost, regardless of the morality of his actions. A monster, just like me. And if his goal was, in some way, noble - can you say that he wouldn't have decided that some sacrifice might not have been necessary? Morality wouldn't have entered into it, after all - only the results." Nove jerks up, sending her chair tumbling across the floor.
"That's not true! He - he loved life! He didn't want to kill people - it would have been easier if he'd let us kill people! But - but -!" Wendi leaps up to support her sister as she stiffens and twitches, and Cinque slides out of her chair to join them as Ginga starts working at a screen, fingers flying. After a moment, Nove slumps down until Cinque supports her, then the two carefully drop to their knees, and you hear muffled sobs. Wendi looks down at them uncomfortably, then starts to walk back to the table, but you shake your head and point back to her sisters. They are family, after all - aren't they? And she does smile briefly before settling down with them. Ginga catches your eye and motions back; you nod and glance at Satsuki, but she's already standing up, and the three of you quietly withdraw from the cafeteria.
"… That … that could have gone worse, I think," Ginga says. "It would have been better if you hadn't brought it up, of course. Nove doesn't really like you, and she doesn't like anyone criticizing Doctor Scaglietti." You roll your shoulders.
"That's fine. It's good that she cares about him, because they're family. I would trust her less if she didn't." You glance at Ginga. "So what was that about it being easier if he'd let them kill people?" Ginga sighs.
"There was … an attack made on Bureau headquarters. A little after you - left. They made a deliberate attempt to limit collateral damage, to avoid killing anyone at all. Maybe they thought that with Vita and Verossa gone, we wouldn't be able to put up as much of a fight, but if so, they were hurt more by your taking Captain Grangeitz, Lutecia, and Agito and by your killing Tre, Sette, and Due. And -" She shakes her head, cutting herself short from whatever she was going to say. You cock your head to the side.
"Is it important, what you were going to say?" She works her mouth for a moment before shrugging helplessly.
"Do you remember Vivio?" You frown and shake your head. "She was a little girl, rescued by the RF6 Forwards on their day off. I didn't know if you'd ever actually met her. She was moved to the Church fairly quickly after being found - you remember the night you killed Tre and Sette? The aerial Gadget Drones?" You nod after a moment, remembering how you wished they'd just stopped bothering you - and the two combat cyborgs who'd tried to kill you … and that Lutecia had been attacking the Church, too. "Doctor Scaglietti kidnapped her back from the Church that night, because she's actually a clone of the last Sankt Kaiser, and the only person who can control the Cradle. The Church is taking care of her, now, but … well, one of the Numbers, Quattro, was in charge of making sure she obeyed Doctor Scaglietti and went along with his plan. But she … seems to have taken Due's death … quite poorly. Badly enough that she had Vivio deviate the Cradle from its 'assigned' duties and try to track you down." Her mouth twists unhappily, and you suspect that there's more she isn't saying … but it's enough for now.
"And between Jail's lack of ruthlessness and their trump card going against orders, the attack fell apart?" Ginga nods.
"General Gaiz had a team ready to capture Jail and his lab the moment the attack began, and between the problems with their coordination and force size, and us still having most of our team, we were able to reverse the situation. It was … still bad, of course, but not as bad as it could have been." She rubs her arm and looks back into the cafeteria. "It looks like Wendi and Nove left. Do …?" She hesitates, frowning. You don't blame her too much, but if it's just Cinque … how much more damage can you do?
What do you do?
[ ] Keep talking with Cinque.
- About?
[ ] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [ ] Have your clones scout around for Nove so you don't accidentally run into her.
- [ ] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [ ] Politics.
- - [ ] Etiquette.
[ ] Take Satsuki outside and work on her combat skills a bit.
[ ] Other?
I wonder if we should point out that Flandre did not kill Due. That she's just on another verse like everyone else was.
...We never ended up learning where the heck she ended up, huh?
Edit: Well, rereading, we certainly did damage... But we still never could confirm she died.
...We never ended up learning where the heck she ended up, huh?
Edit: Well, rereading, we certainly did damage... But we still never could confirm she died.
Last edited:
SolipsistSerpent
Endlessly Devouring
Youkai nature is more fixed than human, but I do wonder if Flandre doesn't overestimate how static they are, because she hasn't ever had to change much, partially due to her incredible power and partially due to her sister's support.
I feel like Gensyouko as a whole and the spellcard/incident system seems to be evidence that the creatures can change subtly and slowly. For that matter, we've seen Flandre's attitudes change a bit over the quest.
I feel like Gensyouko as a whole and the spellcard/incident system seems to be evidence that the creatures can change subtly and slowly. For that matter, we've seen Flandre's attitudes change a bit over the quest.
Depends on the youkai.
Flandre is totally living up to the themes of Vampire mythos, the charming, powerful and yet exceedingly clingy bloodsucker. The Vampire is the law abiding, noble monster, the iconic vampires are distinctly elegant and restrained with their desires boiling beneath that threaten to leak out under pressure. They are smug and they love to flirt with their dooms.
Nothing Flandre had done goes against the vampire mythos, though for SV regulations purpose she's not so much collecting a harem of cute girls as collecting people she's friends with.
So she's right. She's a monster, but Vampires are a very humanlike monster. The problem comes when you apply human heuristics to vampire motivations and THAT is jarring.
If anything else, Flandre is actually better at being a vampire now than she was back when she was staying in the basement.
A Wise Hermit
Well, Sometimes.
Interesting. If I didn't misread, Vivio is under the church and not Nanoha this time.
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
A bit of Columns A, B, and C, sprinkled with some perspective shifts. Some information relating to Flan's position can be seen in Symposium of Post-Mysticism:
Marisa's quote is the more important one, Byakuren is included more for context. Youkai in Gensokyo can change themselves - to some degree, anyway, more on that in a bit - but under normal circumstances, they're relatively 'fixed.' A youkai has particular attributes, works in particular ways, and so on, because that's what 'human imagination' has determined for that youkai. A youkai that doesn't follow that path must, obviously, be a different kind of youkai - and any youkai that is believed to be of a certain type starts to become that type.Byakuren and Marisa said:
There seems to be two big differences between a 'god' and a 'youkai,' and I'm ... really not sure on one of them. The first, as Kanako states here and isn't problematic, is that gods can change themselves while youkai are basically stuck unless an outside force changes them. The second, more objectionable difference, would be that gods derive their existence from 'faith' and youkai derive it from 'fear,' but that's a much more slippery position - faith and fear are both forms of belief, after all, so the difference between youkai and gods is pretty narrow, particularly when you take into account some 'gods' that are more feared than prayed to. It's basically a semantics difference unless you also take the first point, and the difference between gods and youkai is brought up for a bit in the Symposium:Kanako said:
You could, I suppose, make the argument that Remilia and Flandre have/had become gods in Quest Canon due to their position in Hesse. It would explain some other things Flan has said regarding vampires and their superiority to other youkai ....Byakuren and Kanako said:
Anyway, the main takeaway is that, yes, youkai can change, even on their own, but they do it slowly, and they generally stay pretty close to the way they were. Humans, on the other hand - devout religious conversions happening (relatively speaking) overnight, being able to choose to make changes in your way of doing things, working toward a cause and then working against it just as fiercely only a few months later ... they change so quickly and easily. Particularly when you also consider something that was mentioned earlier in the symposium:
Significant behavioral and character changes are equivalent to death for youkai. What is just a relatively mundane phrase for humans - 'He was like a completely different person' - means something vastly more important to youkai. Granted, with spirit possession it's a slightly different situation, because the 'core' of the new youkai is the possessor, but it's still something that should be kept in mind.Kanako and Byakuren said:
Anyway. Woofling. Votes are not locked.
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
4
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Politics.
1
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
4
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Politics.
1
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are locked.
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
5
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Politics.
1
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
5
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Politics.
1
Etiqutte Lesson
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Take Satsuki on a tour of the facility.
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
You shake your head. "No, although I thank you for the offer. I did mean it when I said I would try to keep out of their way, so if they want to return to finish their meal it's probably for the better that I not be there. Besides, I have something to do!" She frowns at your cheerful grin, then bows her head.
"Alright. I … hope you and Nove get along better in the future, but you're right, it's probably not a good idea to push you two together. And - Satsuki, was it? I hope your stay is enjoyable." She bows politely.
"Th-thank you!" You glance at Satsuki and shake your head minutely at her deep bow. As Ginga leaves you wonder whether you should have said anything about Due. She was probably the one who kidnapped Vita and Verossa and used Lutecia to try and … do something to you. As far as you know, she isn't necessarily dead, and you didn't do anything immediately lethal - but if she can't fly, she'd basically be falling through the grey void between worlds until she got lucky and hit a portal. Which might not have happened yet. And even if you didn't kill her … you brought about the events that led to her vanishment, from a certain point of view. Besides, what would you gain by saying something? And should you just tell Ginga, or tell Cinque too, and leave it up to them as to whether it's a good idea to tell her sisters? You shrug; it's not like you can't tell someone later, after all. You turn to Satsuki once Ginga is back in the cafeteria.
"Well, Satsuki, come along. I'm going to show you around." She nods brightly and smiles.
"Yes, Flandre-sama!" You start by showing her around the first floor, the meeting rooms and lecture halls and offices, the medical area, the computer workroom, and so on. She looks interested, and her eyes light up when you explain that, apparently, you're supposed to be getting a computer account. Instead of showing her upstairs, however, you take her outside after finishing up the first floor. Picking her up, you ignore her frightened whimpering and fly her up high enough to show her the Combat Simulator and that you hope to be allowed to have her use it to practice, and point out the more mundane training areas. She nods appreciatively, but it's undercut somewhat by her obvious fear and the way she clutches at you. Whatever Remilia did to her while you were gone, it obviously didn't work; if you can't get her over it, you're going to have to complain to your sister. You'll probably do that anyway ….
As you descend to the top floor of Long Arch, a splash of color attracts your eye - a blotch of red hair over a glaring face. Ah. Well, as long as she doesn't cause problems for you or Satsuki, there won't be trouble. Satsuki starts apologizing for her behavior after you land, but you brush it off for the moment; it'll be something you can focus on later! There are a few offices and rooms up here, and then you descend to the second floor. Satsuki is delighted to hear about your request for slats over the bed; like you, she's satisfied with the heavy curtains, but as you suspected, the extra security would be greatly appreciated. And then you head downstairs again to find an empty meeting room. It doesn't have a wallboard you can use, unfortunately, but there is a stack of blank papers sitting by one of the computers, and a pencil is easily scrounged as well. You give them to Satsuki and have her sit down.
"Now, you don't have to use them, but we are going to cover a fairly broad category today, so it might be helpful to have a reference sheet. Have you ever had formal education in etiquette?" She frowns nervously.
"Etiquette? Like use of honorifics?" You nod.
"Among a great many other things, yes." She shakes her head and looks down at the table.
"Not … no formal education, I guess. My parents taught me, of course, but …. Have I messed up?" You smile kindly and shake your head.
"No, no - but remember, one of the things I am doing for you is educating you. While there are a number of places I could start, etiquette seems like as good a choice as any. Now, let's begin." You skip the more normal forms and jump straight to proper forms of address - the tengu are fairly notorious for their hierarchal structure, and some youkai are quite particular about how they're addressed, and simply 'being polite' to some of them can cause trouble. As your servant, it is unlikely that she would have to deal with anything herself, but it's much simpler to prevent a potential issue than it is to have it be used as a cause for political intrigue of one kind or another. And, of course, there's Reimu - the wonderful shrine maiden of paradise, the advocate of the myriad gods, et cetera and so on, capitalization frequently optional. Quite a few youkai are quite proud of their titles, and if a few are of lesser strength than Satsuki, a few of the more powerful ones become indignant if they're flubbed. And a few have particular titles they don't like being used … or certain words or phrases to avoid using around.
And, of course, all this requires a bit of explanation and history regarding the individuals in question, some of which you don't know, but it lets Satsuki know more about the people she may interact with without simply lecturing her on the history of Gensokyo. And, of course, you don't stop there - you explain about the formal titles for your sister and you, how and when it's appropriate to use them (rarely, of course), and why and how you received them, transitioning relatively smoothly into an explanation of the German and Imperial titles - not an entirely unrelated lesson, as many Belkan titles are rather similar, and the Sankt Kaiser Church probably uses some of them due to its heritage. Satsuki does make use of the papers - quite heavily, in fact, and even though her handwriting is neat and fairly small, she's already halfway through the sheets you gave her. Well, if it helps her learn everything, that's fine. You'll just have to remember that she writes down a lot of things.
Once you're through with those, however, you switch trains of thought entirely and delve into the somewhat complex details of European tableware. You really wish you had a board of some kind for this, but you make do with a sheet of paper on your own to draw the various spoons and forks and glasses on - it's not much of a problem with only Satsuki here, after all. It also keeps her from having to write everything down … although you're going to have to teach her German, too. English is not a suitable language, and you get tired of writing in Japanese. Once that subject is finished - at least, for the moment - you turn to the somewhat touchy subject of apologies. Certainly, there's a time and place for obsequiousness, but rarely with you or Remilia, and therefore it's something you're going to have to train out of her. And she's a vampire, and a pretty powerful one, so she shouldn't be doing things like that anyway! Not to mention that knowing the proper way to apologize means you don't have to apologize for failing to apologize correctly the first time, and then having to repeat the first apology correctly, and then apologizing for wasting someone's time with unnecessary apologies! You drill into her the proper forms - how polite she has to be, number of repetitions, body language and eye contact, particulars of language, and so on.
And then you settle down and bow your head. "Very good, Satsuki. I think we're done for the night." She blinks at you and looks down at her mass of notes. You take out a blood pack and thaw it for her; her eyes gleam and she downs it quickly, licking her lips satisfiedly before focusing on you once more.
"We're … done with this?" You giggle and shake your head.
"For tonight. We've barely scratched the surface of etiquette, much less gone into something really complicated like politics. You still need to learn things like which customs are going to cause or prevent offense, societal norms, what jobs and duties are expected, required, or prohibited for various ranks - and that's not even getting into cross-science discussions like orders of precedence, which really needs at least a moderate background in politics so you can do things like subtly insult someone without actually doing anything wrong by coming up with a way to put them behind someone they really should be in front of. And how to prevent accidentally insulting someone, of course, by doing that. But - like I said - we're done for tonight. You're free for now; we'll come up with a proper schedule of activities once we know what I'll be doing." Satsuki nods and smiles happily at you.
"Thank you, Flandre-sama." She stands and bows, and you bow politely back. She laughs quietly and her cheeks redden a little. "Did you know? One of the things I asked for were some textbooks so I could work on my schoolwork when I had some time!" You chuckle and shake your head, and she bows again before withdrawing. You tidy up the few things you moved and slip out as well, wondering if Satsuki even noticed that she hasn't bothered turning on any lights. Of course, she could be used to it by now …. You slip around to find a window, but you raise an eyebrow at the result you get. Still, when you find a clock, it reinforces your internal time-keeping and the night sky, showing it to be a little after one in the morning. Interesting, how you could just keep talking at Satsuki like that for so long without getting bored or tired ….
What do you do?
[ ] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
[ ] Clone War! Fight three-against-one against your clones.
[ ] Other?
- [X] Then sit down and start teaching her.
- - [X] Etiquette.
You shake your head. "No, although I thank you for the offer. I did mean it when I said I would try to keep out of their way, so if they want to return to finish their meal it's probably for the better that I not be there. Besides, I have something to do!" She frowns at your cheerful grin, then bows her head.
"Alright. I … hope you and Nove get along better in the future, but you're right, it's probably not a good idea to push you two together. And - Satsuki, was it? I hope your stay is enjoyable." She bows politely.
"Th-thank you!" You glance at Satsuki and shake your head minutely at her deep bow. As Ginga leaves you wonder whether you should have said anything about Due. She was probably the one who kidnapped Vita and Verossa and used Lutecia to try and … do something to you. As far as you know, she isn't necessarily dead, and you didn't do anything immediately lethal - but if she can't fly, she'd basically be falling through the grey void between worlds until she got lucky and hit a portal. Which might not have happened yet. And even if you didn't kill her … you brought about the events that led to her vanishment, from a certain point of view. Besides, what would you gain by saying something? And should you just tell Ginga, or tell Cinque too, and leave it up to them as to whether it's a good idea to tell her sisters? You shrug; it's not like you can't tell someone later, after all. You turn to Satsuki once Ginga is back in the cafeteria.
"Well, Satsuki, come along. I'm going to show you around." She nods brightly and smiles.
"Yes, Flandre-sama!" You start by showing her around the first floor, the meeting rooms and lecture halls and offices, the medical area, the computer workroom, and so on. She looks interested, and her eyes light up when you explain that, apparently, you're supposed to be getting a computer account. Instead of showing her upstairs, however, you take her outside after finishing up the first floor. Picking her up, you ignore her frightened whimpering and fly her up high enough to show her the Combat Simulator and that you hope to be allowed to have her use it to practice, and point out the more mundane training areas. She nods appreciatively, but it's undercut somewhat by her obvious fear and the way she clutches at you. Whatever Remilia did to her while you were gone, it obviously didn't work; if you can't get her over it, you're going to have to complain to your sister. You'll probably do that anyway ….
As you descend to the top floor of Long Arch, a splash of color attracts your eye - a blotch of red hair over a glaring face. Ah. Well, as long as she doesn't cause problems for you or Satsuki, there won't be trouble. Satsuki starts apologizing for her behavior after you land, but you brush it off for the moment; it'll be something you can focus on later! There are a few offices and rooms up here, and then you descend to the second floor. Satsuki is delighted to hear about your request for slats over the bed; like you, she's satisfied with the heavy curtains, but as you suspected, the extra security would be greatly appreciated. And then you head downstairs again to find an empty meeting room. It doesn't have a wallboard you can use, unfortunately, but there is a stack of blank papers sitting by one of the computers, and a pencil is easily scrounged as well. You give them to Satsuki and have her sit down.
"Now, you don't have to use them, but we are going to cover a fairly broad category today, so it might be helpful to have a reference sheet. Have you ever had formal education in etiquette?" She frowns nervously.
"Etiquette? Like use of honorifics?" You nod.
"Among a great many other things, yes." She shakes her head and looks down at the table.
"Not … no formal education, I guess. My parents taught me, of course, but …. Have I messed up?" You smile kindly and shake your head.
"No, no - but remember, one of the things I am doing for you is educating you. While there are a number of places I could start, etiquette seems like as good a choice as any. Now, let's begin." You skip the more normal forms and jump straight to proper forms of address - the tengu are fairly notorious for their hierarchal structure, and some youkai are quite particular about how they're addressed, and simply 'being polite' to some of them can cause trouble. As your servant, it is unlikely that she would have to deal with anything herself, but it's much simpler to prevent a potential issue than it is to have it be used as a cause for political intrigue of one kind or another. And, of course, there's Reimu - the wonderful shrine maiden of paradise, the advocate of the myriad gods, et cetera and so on, capitalization frequently optional. Quite a few youkai are quite proud of their titles, and if a few are of lesser strength than Satsuki, a few of the more powerful ones become indignant if they're flubbed. And a few have particular titles they don't like being used … or certain words or phrases to avoid using around.
And, of course, all this requires a bit of explanation and history regarding the individuals in question, some of which you don't know, but it lets Satsuki know more about the people she may interact with without simply lecturing her on the history of Gensokyo. And, of course, you don't stop there - you explain about the formal titles for your sister and you, how and when it's appropriate to use them (rarely, of course), and why and how you received them, transitioning relatively smoothly into an explanation of the German and Imperial titles - not an entirely unrelated lesson, as many Belkan titles are rather similar, and the Sankt Kaiser Church probably uses some of them due to its heritage. Satsuki does make use of the papers - quite heavily, in fact, and even though her handwriting is neat and fairly small, she's already halfway through the sheets you gave her. Well, if it helps her learn everything, that's fine. You'll just have to remember that she writes down a lot of things.
Once you're through with those, however, you switch trains of thought entirely and delve into the somewhat complex details of European tableware. You really wish you had a board of some kind for this, but you make do with a sheet of paper on your own to draw the various spoons and forks and glasses on - it's not much of a problem with only Satsuki here, after all. It also keeps her from having to write everything down … although you're going to have to teach her German, too. English is not a suitable language, and you get tired of writing in Japanese. Once that subject is finished - at least, for the moment - you turn to the somewhat touchy subject of apologies. Certainly, there's a time and place for obsequiousness, but rarely with you or Remilia, and therefore it's something you're going to have to train out of her. And she's a vampire, and a pretty powerful one, so she shouldn't be doing things like that anyway! Not to mention that knowing the proper way to apologize means you don't have to apologize for failing to apologize correctly the first time, and then having to repeat the first apology correctly, and then apologizing for wasting someone's time with unnecessary apologies! You drill into her the proper forms - how polite she has to be, number of repetitions, body language and eye contact, particulars of language, and so on.
And then you settle down and bow your head. "Very good, Satsuki. I think we're done for the night." She blinks at you and looks down at her mass of notes. You take out a blood pack and thaw it for her; her eyes gleam and she downs it quickly, licking her lips satisfiedly before focusing on you once more.
"We're … done with this?" You giggle and shake your head.
"For tonight. We've barely scratched the surface of etiquette, much less gone into something really complicated like politics. You still need to learn things like which customs are going to cause or prevent offense, societal norms, what jobs and duties are expected, required, or prohibited for various ranks - and that's not even getting into cross-science discussions like orders of precedence, which really needs at least a moderate background in politics so you can do things like subtly insult someone without actually doing anything wrong by coming up with a way to put them behind someone they really should be in front of. And how to prevent accidentally insulting someone, of course, by doing that. But - like I said - we're done for tonight. You're free for now; we'll come up with a proper schedule of activities once we know what I'll be doing." Satsuki nods and smiles happily at you.
"Thank you, Flandre-sama." She stands and bows, and you bow politely back. She laughs quietly and her cheeks redden a little. "Did you know? One of the things I asked for were some textbooks so I could work on my schoolwork when I had some time!" You chuckle and shake your head, and she bows again before withdrawing. You tidy up the few things you moved and slip out as well, wondering if Satsuki even noticed that she hasn't bothered turning on any lights. Of course, she could be used to it by now …. You slip around to find a window, but you raise an eyebrow at the result you get. Still, when you find a clock, it reinforces your internal time-keeping and the night sky, showing it to be a little after one in the morning. Interesting, how you could just keep talking at Satsuki like that for so long without getting bored or tired ….
What do you do?
[ ] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
[ ] Clone War! Fight three-against-one against your clones.
[ ] Other?
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are not locked.
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
3
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
3
A Wise Hermit
Well, Sometimes.
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
A smart choice. There isn't really anything we can do without having to go through asking one of the higher-staff, not to mention going through the hassle of getting through people that don't like us.
A smart choice. There isn't really anything we can do without having to go through asking one of the higher-staff, not to mention going through the hassle of getting through people that don't like us.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are locked.
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
5
Update in an hour-ish?
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
5
Update in an hour-ish?
Uneventful Night
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Get some rest - sure, it's night and you don't need it, but you'll probably be back on a day-schedule like last time.
You shrug and drift through the building to your room. It's something different, and you like Satsuki - and she's good at absorbing information - so it's not a hassle. It's like teaching Lutecia how to play the piano, only not quite as much fun. Trying to teach people you don't like, or who just have trouble taking in the information you present, that would probably annoy you into stopping after a few minutes. You poke your head into Satsuki's room; she's sitting at the desk with a couple big books, one of which is open and in use. Her head pops up and she turns toward you. "Flandre-sama?" You wave your hand.
"I just wanted to let you know that I'll be taking a nap in my room in case you need me. Don't worry." She frowns, expression stiffening, and you shake your head, smiling. "Nothing's wrong, but the last time I was here they wanted me to go with the same 'awake during the day, asleep at night' setup that everyone else used. Apparently people got nervous having me wander around at night, although I can't imagine why." She giggles and relaxes.
"Um, if anything happens …?" You nod.
"I wake up pretty easily, so just come get me if you need something. I'll make sure to have some time for you, but depending on the schedule they want me to have, it might be more or less than this." Satsuki bobs her head energetically.
"No, no, it's fine! Really. Just … um, thank you for teaching me, Flandre-sama. Have a good night." She stands up and bows, and you wave her off before bowing a little in return.
"My pleasure, Satsuki. In case I don't see you before you go to sleep, rest well." You slide back and walk into your room. The coffin fits comfortably on the bed, although you'll have to be careful to not throw it open too energetically - in fact, for today, you don't even close it, just to get used to the place more easily. You drift into an empty sleep ….
You wake up, stretch your arms, and cock your head at the voices coming from the next room. Careful to avoid making noise, you hop-slide out of the coffin and the bed, gliding out of your room and toward Satsuki's. You poke your head across the doorframe, just enough to see, and Satsuki stiffens into an upright stance. Darn. Cinque turns around, too, when you enter, and bows politely.
"Um, F-Flandre-sama - um, she was just trying to make me feel more welcome …." She trails off nervously and you wave your hand dismissively - it's not like you object to her speaking to others, after all. A glance out the open window reveals that it's going to be time for Satsuki to sleep soon, but she does have some time before then.
"Good morning, Satsuki. Cinque." Satsuki blushes embarrassedly and bows deeply.
"G-Good morning, Flandre-sama! Did … did you sleep well?" You giggle and hop forward, giving her a quick hug before lightly bopping her nose. She relaxes a little and you smile more naturally before turning to Cinque.
"Are you always up this early?" She shrugs lightly.
"Sometimes. We can get by with a lot less sleep than normal humans - we can stay up for several days straight if we want - but we usually get up around dawn. There isn't a training session today, so unless you need her for something, Sergeant Nakajima will probably spend her time teaching us." You cock your head to the side.
"What does she teach you?" She frowns sadly and looks down at her hand for a moment.
"About … what's right and what isn't. About how we're … still humans, even though we're cyborgs, and how the mistakes we made in the past don't need to determine our future. It's why we're here, instead of in a more traditional prison; the Bureau is willing to give us a chance …." You nod, processing the news. These three, at least, want to be able to do things instead of stay imprisoned, and are at least willing to say that what they did in the past was wrong. Whether or not the Bureau would grant them the same leniency if it weren't wounded and reeling, you don't know. Perhaps it all depends on the reasons involved. "And I want to apologize for Nove's behavior last night. She … she has been getting better, but she still frequently thinks of enemies as things to be destroyed, and with the restrictions on our behavior and activities, she gets frustrated easily."
"And between my interrupting the call with Dieci and intruding on dinner, and then talking about touchy subjects, she got upset." It's not really a problem unless it continues too long, or it starts causing problems for Satsuki; certainly, Nove doesn't have anything on your temper tantrums … you giggle at the memory of your fight with Nanoha's group. Too bad you probably won't be able to do something like that again. Cinque bows again.
"Thank you for understanding." She hesitates, as if torn between wanting to ask something and wanting to leave, but you don't give her the choice.
"How often do training sessions occur?" She frowns, thinking and shakes her head.
"There are usually one or two each week; there's supposed to be one scheduled for tomorrow, but Sergeant Nakajima said that since Captain Harlaown is to be released from the hospital tomorrow, they may shuffle the schedules around a bit. It depends on whether a group needs the extra training possible here or not - the normal training grounds suffice for almost everything, but the Combat Simulator here is larger and more capable than others." You nod; it would make sense that what is basically a type of prison wouldn't have units based there, after all. That they would change a training session's date because of Fate's getting out of the hospital, though … curious. Do they have something special planned?
"And you take care of the paperwork side of things when there's a training session?" She nods.
"Yes. Tracking cadets' outputs and reserves, performance compared to previous examples and sessions, reports - things of that nature. A lot of it is automated, but having a human brain compiling the data is more comfortable for most people." Hmph. They have the tools to do the job, but they prefer to have a person do the job instead? … Well, that's understandable, really. Just because magic can make a piano play perfectly doesn't mean you want Patchouli messing around with your pianos when you could be playing them instead.
What do you do?
[ ] See if you can observe Ginga's lessons.
[ ] See if you can use the Combat Simulator.
[ ] See if you can go look at those music stores Ginga mentioned.
[ ] Other?
You shrug and drift through the building to your room. It's something different, and you like Satsuki - and she's good at absorbing information - so it's not a hassle. It's like teaching Lutecia how to play the piano, only not quite as much fun. Trying to teach people you don't like, or who just have trouble taking in the information you present, that would probably annoy you into stopping after a few minutes. You poke your head into Satsuki's room; she's sitting at the desk with a couple big books, one of which is open and in use. Her head pops up and she turns toward you. "Flandre-sama?" You wave your hand.
"I just wanted to let you know that I'll be taking a nap in my room in case you need me. Don't worry." She frowns, expression stiffening, and you shake your head, smiling. "Nothing's wrong, but the last time I was here they wanted me to go with the same 'awake during the day, asleep at night' setup that everyone else used. Apparently people got nervous having me wander around at night, although I can't imagine why." She giggles and relaxes.
"Um, if anything happens …?" You nod.
"I wake up pretty easily, so just come get me if you need something. I'll make sure to have some time for you, but depending on the schedule they want me to have, it might be more or less than this." Satsuki bobs her head energetically.
"No, no, it's fine! Really. Just … um, thank you for teaching me, Flandre-sama. Have a good night." She stands up and bows, and you wave her off before bowing a little in return.
"My pleasure, Satsuki. In case I don't see you before you go to sleep, rest well." You slide back and walk into your room. The coffin fits comfortably on the bed, although you'll have to be careful to not throw it open too energetically - in fact, for today, you don't even close it, just to get used to the place more easily. You drift into an empty sleep ….
You wake up, stretch your arms, and cock your head at the voices coming from the next room. Careful to avoid making noise, you hop-slide out of the coffin and the bed, gliding out of your room and toward Satsuki's. You poke your head across the doorframe, just enough to see, and Satsuki stiffens into an upright stance. Darn. Cinque turns around, too, when you enter, and bows politely.
"Um, F-Flandre-sama - um, she was just trying to make me feel more welcome …." She trails off nervously and you wave your hand dismissively - it's not like you object to her speaking to others, after all. A glance out the open window reveals that it's going to be time for Satsuki to sleep soon, but she does have some time before then.
"Good morning, Satsuki. Cinque." Satsuki blushes embarrassedly and bows deeply.
"G-Good morning, Flandre-sama! Did … did you sleep well?" You giggle and hop forward, giving her a quick hug before lightly bopping her nose. She relaxes a little and you smile more naturally before turning to Cinque.
"Are you always up this early?" She shrugs lightly.
"Sometimes. We can get by with a lot less sleep than normal humans - we can stay up for several days straight if we want - but we usually get up around dawn. There isn't a training session today, so unless you need her for something, Sergeant Nakajima will probably spend her time teaching us." You cock your head to the side.
"What does she teach you?" She frowns sadly and looks down at her hand for a moment.
"About … what's right and what isn't. About how we're … still humans, even though we're cyborgs, and how the mistakes we made in the past don't need to determine our future. It's why we're here, instead of in a more traditional prison; the Bureau is willing to give us a chance …." You nod, processing the news. These three, at least, want to be able to do things instead of stay imprisoned, and are at least willing to say that what they did in the past was wrong. Whether or not the Bureau would grant them the same leniency if it weren't wounded and reeling, you don't know. Perhaps it all depends on the reasons involved. "And I want to apologize for Nove's behavior last night. She … she has been getting better, but she still frequently thinks of enemies as things to be destroyed, and with the restrictions on our behavior and activities, she gets frustrated easily."
"And between my interrupting the call with Dieci and intruding on dinner, and then talking about touchy subjects, she got upset." It's not really a problem unless it continues too long, or it starts causing problems for Satsuki; certainly, Nove doesn't have anything on your temper tantrums … you giggle at the memory of your fight with Nanoha's group. Too bad you probably won't be able to do something like that again. Cinque bows again.
"Thank you for understanding." She hesitates, as if torn between wanting to ask something and wanting to leave, but you don't give her the choice.
"How often do training sessions occur?" She frowns, thinking and shakes her head.
"There are usually one or two each week; there's supposed to be one scheduled for tomorrow, but Sergeant Nakajima said that since Captain Harlaown is to be released from the hospital tomorrow, they may shuffle the schedules around a bit. It depends on whether a group needs the extra training possible here or not - the normal training grounds suffice for almost everything, but the Combat Simulator here is larger and more capable than others." You nod; it would make sense that what is basically a type of prison wouldn't have units based there, after all. That they would change a training session's date because of Fate's getting out of the hospital, though … curious. Do they have something special planned?
"And you take care of the paperwork side of things when there's a training session?" She nods.
"Yes. Tracking cadets' outputs and reserves, performance compared to previous examples and sessions, reports - things of that nature. A lot of it is automated, but having a human brain compiling the data is more comfortable for most people." Hmph. They have the tools to do the job, but they prefer to have a person do the job instead? … Well, that's understandable, really. Just because magic can make a piano play perfectly doesn't mean you want Patchouli messing around with your pianos when you could be playing them instead.
What do you do?
[ ] See if you can observe Ginga's lessons.
[ ] See if you can use the Combat Simulator.
[ ] See if you can go look at those music stores Ginga mentioned.
[ ] Other?
