Chapter Text
Hair of the Dog
***
It seemed like a good idea at the time.
If fairies had tombstones, those nine words would adorn every single one. But since Nature had granted their race resilience instead of wisdom, fairies could laugh off their mistakes, including death, within minutes. That still didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell, as Cirno was about to find out. Again.
She yelled as she tumbled through the air. Occasionally, she'd catch Hina Kagiyama's glare as the goddess of misfortune spun past. More distressing, however, was the tree looming ever larger in her view.
So maybe, just maybe, the ice fairy shouldn't have tried to make Hina slip on a patch of ice as the goddess danced her circles through the forest. Sure, it would have been funny, but how could Cirno have known that the curse goddess would just hop over the ice? Or even worse, that someone as kindly as Hina would catch Cirno and, after a few quick spins, launch the fairy high into the air?
There was no reason for Hina to get mad. Cirno meant nothing by her little joke. Everyone knew that grass grew, sun shined, kappas built, and fairies tricked people. It was just the natural order of things…
As Hina spun past once more, Cirno turned blue. Gagging as her stomach leapt into her throat, she swallowed down her lunch for a second time. The tree loomed ever closer. Begging for mercy from whatever god might hear her plea, the ice fairy swore a solemn vow:
"I swear I'll never prank again… again…"
Cirno slammed into the tree trunk, spraying frost and snow into the air. One last though passed through her mind.
"And this time I really, really mean it."
***
She woke up at the base of the tree, sheltered in a small pile of newly made snow. Clutching her head and leaning back into the snow, she sighed. The soothing cold lessened the vice squeezing her head, allowing the protests of other aches and pains to be known. Cirno groaned, "What was I thinking?" At least the ice fairy would never run out of ice packs.
But no ice pack soothed wounded pride. The strongest of all fairies found herself in the middle of a dry spell when it came to mischief. Cirno still owed Sunny an earful for suggesting that attempt to untie Reimu's swimsuit. The shrine maiden had almost sealed her away for that. And it only got worse. Mokou had almost melted her and Cirno's game of hide and seek with Koishi had landed her straight into Flandre Scarlet's lair. Only the loudest of the ice fairy's latent self-preservation instincts had kept her out of Yuuka's sunflowers. She shook her head and cringed, cursing another bad idea in a growing series of bad ideas.
The world stopped spinning. How many times had she skulked away after another failed joke? It seemed like every day Cirno sat in a pile of fresh snow no larger than her body, soothing away her hurts with ice.
It was enough to set a fairy straight. No more pranks, no more jokes, no more of anything that could backfire disastrously on the ice fairy. Cirno even considered swearing off frozen frogs. She laughed at that thought. That would never happen; she had to keep some hobbies. Maybe she could still catch the frog goddess-
She shook her head against and leapt to her feet, wobbling slightly. No, it'd be nothing but the straight and narrow from now on.
Bushes rustled nearby. Cirno dove behind the tree, peering out to take a look. Alice Margatroid carried a large picnic basket as she walked through the forest. When she stopped, four Shanghai dolls spread out a thick red blanket at the doll maker's feet. The puppeteer set the basket down, piling bread, cheese, and fruit onto a cloth napkin.
Cirno licked her lips as a Shanghai doll uncovered the piece de resistance; a chocolate cake larger than that strange book Alice always carried around. The ice fairy's momentous decision deserved a celebration. Fate had rewarded her sacrifice with a most glorious treat. Alice would understand if she snuck one little bite. But just in case the doll maker didn't, the ice fairy untied her green bow from her hair, replacing it with a length of red ribbon she had borrowed from Rumia.
Adjusting her new bow, Cirno walked out towards Alice's cake, trying to act as doll-like as possible…
***
Touhou Project belongs to ZUN and Team Shanghai Alice.
Thanks go to Kerreb17 for proofreading.
Chapter 2: The Stained Lintel
Chapter Text
Sunny Milk cringed as she carried the heavy jug out into the moonlight. She much preferred the daylight over the false moon her friend, Luna Child, kept grumbling about. Sunny couldn't tell a difference; the full moon still made the night as bright as those gaslight lamps the kappa made.
Either way, the Sunlight Fairy was certain that the sun should have risen by now. The missing sunlight itched against her skin like that powder Star Sapphire had once slipped into her shoes. Between the false moon and the endless night, something odd walked through the forest, and worse would follow in its footsteps.
Incidents like these took a toll on fairies. Something about the magic in the air brought out the worst in a fairy's mischievous nature. Even now, Sunny could feel that call. Some tried to find safety, but all too many took after Cirno's example, only to awaken days later sore and with a roaring headache. A few unfortunates never returned to play with their sisters and friends, sealed away forever during the clashes of magic and will.
"Star, Luna, come out here and help me," she called over her shoulder. Inside the living room, an overturned table slid further away from the door, and a brief flash of blue cloth peeked around the corner. "I can still see you."
The two fairies stood up from behind the table."You look like you've got it taken care of," Luna said, warily eying the open door.
"You promised to help. At least be a lookout," Sunny said. Luna and Star turned towards each other, sighed, and thentrudged outside. As the Fairy of Moonlight passed by, Sunny murmured, "Keep an eye on Star." Luna nodded curtly, keeping her hand on Star's shoulder.
"Hey, trust me for once," Star said, shivering in the warm night air. The Starlight Fairy's powers made her an excellent lookout; she just didn't tell her friends of the danger all the time.
Sunny pulled the cork out from her jug with a loud pop. "I don't like doing this," she said, dousing a white rag with red wine. She reached up on her toes and painted the lintel, or the fancy wooden frame above the door, with the dripping cloth.
"We saved up a long time for that," Luna said, planting her free hand on her hip. "This better work."
"Daiyousei said it would. This was how she made it through that Snowy Spring without a scratch," Star said, tilting her head as if she was listening to the wind. She pursed her lips and inched toward the doorway until Luna squeezed her shoulder.
Sunny wrung out the rag, taking care that each drop fell onto earth instead of stone or tree root. "What did she say to do next?"
"The offering," Luna said. She glowered at the ground and sighed. "At least it isn't coffee."
Sunny shook her head and upended the jug. Red wine splashed on the ground, making a dark stain even in the moonlight.
Star's eyes snapped open and she grabbed her friends by their arms. "Inside," she hissed, pulling Sunny and Luna into the tree house. The door slammed behind the trio.
***
Out in the Forest of Magic, illuminated only by fading danmaku flowers and the light of the moon, a red and white blur flew through the forest. Wherever it passed, danmaku fell still, and fairies dropped motionless to the earth like rain.
As the blur neared a great tree ringed with rope and tassels, the storm of danmaku slaked and fell silent. In that calm, the red-white blur stopped its relentless flight, and Reimu Hakurei landed on the grass surrounding the tree and frowned.
The lack of danmaku was just as suspicious as the false moon. She could only spare a second or two, but she had to check; Yukari would understand. Of all the places in the forest, it surprised the shrinemaiden that a great tree would be the focus for the eye of a danmaku storm. Trees such as the one that towered before her usually housed fairies, and it seemed that no fairy could resist taking a potshot at her tonight.
"Could the tree be sick?" Reimu murmured, reached her hand towards the tree. If so, she'd ask Yukari about it after the incident. Her eyes followed the trunk to the stained earth. Reimu's hand pulled back suddenly. Tracking the stain revealed a small wooden door covered in dull red.
Reimu stared at the stained tree and earth, laughing demurely behind her sleeve. To think fairies would know the old ways. Leaving the tree behind her, the shrinemaiden flew off into the Imperishable Night.
***
Author's notes:
Thanks to Mephiles666, Iced Fairy, and Roukanken for their prereading comments. Like always, all mistakes are my own
It's been a year since I first started writing again. I thank everyone who read my work and hope you all find the next year's works even more enjoyable.
Chapter 3: To See the Ocean's Shore
Chapter Text
Cirno hated the salt spray that stung her eyes. It made her job more difficult. The ice fairy wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "There's too much. I can't do it." Her lower lip quivered as she stared at the white breakers crashing against the shore.
Daiyousei hated the salt as well. And she wasn't much fonder of Mamizou Futatsuiwa, either. She wrapped an arm around her friend's waist, taking care not to ruffle the girl's ice crystal wings.
"I don't see what the big deal about this place is," Cirno said, her bravado rising like the waves on the beach. Then, as quickly as her confidence gathered, it ebbed away. "I can't make an ice cube here."
Daiyousei cringed at her friend's whisper. "But now you've done something that Reimu never has."
Cirno's smile failed to reach her eyes. "You know that I'm better than any silly shrinemaiden." She snapped her fingers and a thin sliver of frost hung in the air, melting away into steam. "Stupid raccoon girl."
"Silly girls, you haven't even seen the ocean's shore." Mamizou's taunt haunted Daiyousei's memory. Didn't that ring-tailed trickster know that her words had issued a challenge to the strongest fairy?
The journey itself had been simple. The Hakurei Barrier might not have existed for the two mischievous fairies. Children always knew the myriad ways out past their backyard fence. After that, a short flight took them to where the iron horses passed by. Mamizou had called them trains when she awed little and not so little girls with tales of the outside world.
Yet, neither fairy could help but feel lonely. Millions of Reimu's kind bustled about on the outside, but Daiyousei and Cirno had yet to see any of their sisters flying around. If being lonely in a crowd of people was what it was like to be human, the humans could keep it.
"I think it's beautiful," the fairy queen said with a shy smile. She led her friend across the sandy beach down towards the water. "There's nothing like this in Gensokyo. Mamizou's stories never said it would be anywhere this big." Deep blue water roiled against honeyed sands as far as the eye could see. Blues, whites, greens, all the colors danced vibrantly, livelier than even the most magical hideaways inside the magical land of Gensokyo.
"It is," Cirno whispered. She drew in a breath as she stepped into the last ebb of a chill wave retreating from the beach. "But I can't do anything to it. My power isn't enough."
Daiyousei sighed. "Then you'll have to get stronger. Show the world just what a fairy can do."
Cirno's smile lit up her eyes. She slipped out of her friend's hug and splashed through the water before spinning around. "Of course I will. I am the strongest, after all." A wall of water crashed into her, leaving the ice fairy shivering and sputtering.
"Let's play," Daiyousei said, mirth lighting up her eyes. She held her hands out before her and pushed forward. Another wave surged into Cirno, knocking her off her feet.
"Don't think you'll get away with that," Cirno said, spitting salt water. She spread her arms wide on the water's surface and clapped her hands, drenching Daiyousei in the ocean's tide.
The air grew thick with the laughter of fairies. For those fortunate enough to visit the beach that day, the ocean surged with a life seldom seen. And if the vibrant and joyful winds and waves danced mischievously about, showering the unwary, it only added to the magic of that perfect day.
"Let's go back," Cirno said, after a few hours of play left the two fairies lounging in the warm sun. "I want to show Reimu and that bossy raccoon girl what we can do."
A week later, during the hottest months of summer, the surface of the Misty Lake froze over for the first time in living memory.
Chapter 4: Misty Lake Secret
Chapter Text
That long haired rabbit princess never caught anything interesting. Cirno pouted as she watched the woman and her rabbit girls fuss with a bamboo pole. Someone needed to tell the princess that it was called fishing, not booting. Only leather and trash dangled from the line after the beautiful princess's long struggles, yet she didn't seem to mind. Cirno just wanted to see the little rabbit push the bigger one into the water. At least that was funny.
Summer had come again to Gensokyo, and as the hours grew, so did the crowds that visited the Misty Lake. Cirno never liked that they scared all the frogs away, but the picnickers always seemed to have yummy treats for fairies. Those that didn't, well, a picnic basket often became a fairy's treasure when no one was looking. Others came for the fishing. Monster fish lived under the waters, and although Cirno had noticed that the fish in stories grew bigger with every telling, she knew it to be true. One tried to eat her last year. The ice fairy didn't need to exaggerate its size, Aya had snapped a picture of the fish so all Gensokyo could see.
Cirno floated along the lake's edge, drifting from group to group until she saw a brilliant flash of red against green further down the shore. The young woman in green Chinese clothes knelt by the water, fiddling with something silvery in her hands. "Meiling!" Cirno shouted. The fairy's eyes lit up as she dove towards her.
Cirno liked Meiling. The exotic guard was pretty and proved that a girl could grow up and still be cute without having to give up running through the forest, sleeping in the grass, and climbing trees. The fun stuff, like being better that boys. (Cirno didn't know any boy fairies personally, but she knew she had to do everything better than them.) Meiling knew great secrets, told only in whispers and giggles. That didn't mean that the fairy would be caught wearing pants like the Chinese woman. Everyone knew that girls in Gensokyo wore skirts.
"What are you doing?" Cirno asked, fluttering to a stop by the guard's shoulder. She glanced around the lake. Those three words would bring any fairy who heard them running. Secrets like that begged to be shared.
Meiling smiled as she picked up a wooden fishing rod. Pulling it over her shoulder, she whipped it out towards the lake. A baitfish flew through the air and splashed into the water. Cirno stared at Meiling. That fish was big enough for a meal. "Fishing," the Chinese woman said. She set the pole into a cleft in a nearby pile of rocks. "For giant catfish." She knelt and patted the ground next to her.
Big bait for big fish. Cirno nodded as she sat down and then her brow furled. "Wouldn't that cause an earthquake." She thought she remembered Kosuzu telling a story like that last week.
"Sakuya pulled one out of here last year. Wasn't an earthquake then," Meiling said with an easy smile. She leaned in closer to the ice fairy and whispered, "Of course, she cheats." The Chinese woman cast a worried look over her shoulder and laughed.
Cirno clapped her hands together as she laughed, basking in Meiling's confidence. It made her feel important, just like her strength. "Can't you cheat as well? Even better, can you show me?"
Meiling shook her head. "Sakuya used her power. Everyone else has to do it the old fashioned way." She pointed to the fishing rod.
The fairy tapped a finger against her cheek just as her eyes flashed. "I could freeze one out."
"This way's more fun. Besides, the big ones are really deep. No one's dove that far. Sakuya's cheating almost didn't work." Meiling frowned as she watched the line drift in the water. She stood up, took the rod in hand, and reeled in the line.
"Why do you want to catch one?"
Meiling turned her face towards Cirno, still working the reel as she watched the ice fairy through slitted eyes. Cirno wriggled under the cold stare. She hated when people gave her that look, almost like they were comparing her to something and she didn't measure up. Just like a child.
Melting ice! She wasn't a kid, she was a fairy and the strongest of them all as Marisa and that giant Miss Alice had at her place and that freaky pretty fire crow underground had found out. Cirno stopped shifting under Meiling's gaze, straightened her back, and gave the Chinese girl a frosty glare right back. Although it was event colder than that. Glaciers! What was colder than ice? She'd figure that out later.
The fisherwoman turned away from the staring contest as her hook rose from the water. The silvery fish still flopped at the end of the line. A quick cast flung it out farther into the lake. Meiling set the rod back in the rocks and returned to her kneeling place. This time, she faced Cirno and showed her that easy smile that made her a friend to fairies. "Once upon a time," the Chinese guard began.
Cirno leaned in closer, her frosty resolve melting. Meiling told some of the best stories. This one, about some foreign calamity god and his catfish servants, was one of her best, made even better because the scarlet-crowned woman swore that each word was true. Then Meiling told her the strongest secret that the fairy had ever hear. The pretty Chinese guard had vowed to beat this god, and because of this fight, he had sent a catfish servant against her friends. Of course, Meiling would confide in Cirno, she was the strongest, after all.
"Let me help," Cirno begged, clutching Meiling's hand.
The guard's face turned white. "C-cold!" she chattered, pointing to the fairy's grip.
Blushing, the ice fairy let go. "Sorry."
Meiling chuckled as she rubbed her hands together. "It's okay." She leaned in closer and glanced around. "Want to hear another story?"
Cirno cheered and then she heard about how that mean head maid had embarrassed herself in town and that the stuck-up Scarlet Devil was really just a little girl trying to act like a grown-up, and what Reimu actually said to Marisa that caused the witch to duel the shrine maiden for an entire day straight. Eventually, rumor turned into the stories that Meiling's mother had told her when she was smaller than Cirno, growing up on a river far away. The ice fairy sat spellbound, anxious to tell Sunny and Luna and Star what Meiling had told her. Even prissy Lily would be jealous.
The reel spun, chattering like the wind-up toys in that forest merchant's shop. Meiling grabbed the reel and pulled back on it, hoisting it high into the air.
Cirno thought that all a fisherwoman would need to do next was reel in her catch. That's what they did with the smaller fish, after all. But Meiling let the line run out and then cranked hard on the reel. She did this over and over again, as the rod bent and flexed. Sweat rolled down the Chinese's woman's brow in rivulets, yet still she fought on in the see-saw struggle with whatever was on the end of her line. The summer air grew colder and more agreeable as Meiling stayed locked in the back and forth with her fish. Finally, the line no longer ran out towards the lake's depths. Meiling wound it in, a tired but triumphant smile on her lips.
Cirno hovered over the line, looking down into the water. She wanted to see how big this catfish was. The fairy clutched a spell card in her hand. If this was the one that tried to eat her, Cirno would be ready. A dark shadow rose from the depths-
Thick clouds of danmaku shot rocketed from the waters like a wall rushing towards the ice fairy.
"PERFECT FREEZE!"
In the end, Meiling had to fish both her catch and a water-logged fairy from the lake. As Cirno regained her footing on the shore, she didn't see a giant catfish next to the fisherwoman. Instead, a young woman floated in the air next to Meiling.
"My name is Wakasagihime," the woman said. Two silver fins poked out from a mass of blue princess curls. She tugged on a metal hook tangled in a ruffled green robe that looked like a mix between maid's clothes and the traditional robes in the Village. A thin line ran from the hook, past a silvery scaled fish tail where her legs should have been, and up to Meiling's fishing rod.
"What are you?" Cirno said, staring at the feathery fins that passed for the woman's feet.
"A mermaid," Wakasagihime said, pulling the hook free and casting it onto the ground. She poked a dainty pinky through the hole it left and sighed. "An unhappy mermaid." She spoke in high, precise tones, keeping a measure of grace as she glowered at Meiling.
Crino's brow furled. "Is that like a fish youkai?"
The mermaid made a moue of disgust. "I am a cryptid, not a youkai."
The fairy stared at her blankly. Meiling wrapped a towel around her and whispered, "I'll explain later." Cirno nodded, wrapping the fluffiness around her. The Chinese woman straightened up. "On behalf of my-"
"Did you have to hurt that fish?" Wakasagihime drew herself up to her full height or length or whatever. She was as tall as Meiling, even without her fin feet. Cirno was impressed, the fishy crypto-whatsit could do cold stares just as well as she could.
Meiling blushed and her mouth moved until the words caught up. "I was fishing for giant catfish."
Wakasagihime made another of those pouty scornful moues and shook her head. "They do make for terrible neighbors. You'd do the entire lake a favor if you could get rid of just one. Please, though, don't use other fish to catch them." She held up her hand. Red beaded in lines across her fingertips. "The fish you used is fine, by the way."
Meiling's typical smile grew strained. "It's how my father showed me to catch them."
"Use rice bran instead. The giant catfish isn't picky about what he eats." Wakasagihime fingered a ragged circle of frayed cloth at the edge of her robe.
Cirno nodded; she knew that first hand. "Why do you care about the little fish and not the big ones?"
"Someone has to look after the little ones. The big ones take care of themselves. I only wish that they weren't such bullies about it." Meiling and Cirno both nodded.
The scarlet guard cleared her throat and gave a quick bow. "My mistress would like to meet you. She has a fascination with cryptids of all kinds. She'd never let me hear the end of it if I didn't at least invite you to meet your neighbors over dinner." She smiled as Wakasagihime's fins fluttered nervously. "Don't worry, she's not a seafood kind of girl. More like a rampaging sweet tooth. You too, Cirno, you helped find our guest. I'm sure I can talk Remilia and Sakuya out of an ice cream sundae for your help."
Cirno beamed as the trio set off to the Scarlet Devil Mansion.
theunnamedman (Guest) on Chapter 1 Thu 02 Oct 2025 03:36AM UTC
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