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Deep, dark, black, and absolutely suffocating. This place was a medium of the mind, between the waking world and her purest fantasies. Throughout her life, she had never been the ruler of her dreams, with foreign presences drifting in and out her mental landscape like dust bunnies being swept out from the inner crevices of her subconsciousness. There were no exceptions, even now.
The countless and sleepless eyes watching her never blinked. She felt all of their gazes on her, but one pair caught her attention.
Beyond the plane of the void, into the distance, were a set of wooden chairs and a table. A woman sat at one end, sipping something from a tea cup she held in her hand, but her eyes were fixated on her.
Without an invitation, Merry walked past the walls of eyes and towards the only empty chair left, and had a seat across from the person she had met before.
“Yukari Yakumo.”
“Maribel Hearn,” the woman replied, smiling and settling her cup back down into the saucer. The words rolled off of her tongue, smooth and natural as if she had spoken Greek all her life. “Pretty name, isn’t it? The clan your generation originated from has only devolved in its boundary detection. But you were quite special, right from the moment you were born.”
It’s clear to her by now that this woman, or rather, due to the aura of control and power she gave off, this youkai, was somehow connected to her and knowledgeable on all of her past and perhaps maybe even the future.
“It’s such a pity that your potential is going to waste.”
That snapped her back to the present.
“What do you mean it’s going to waste?” she clenched her hands into fists on her lap, but Yukari noticed it anyway.
“Running around with your dear partner, chasing and looking for the supernatural when it’s only a disguise for yourself. You want to find out just exactly what you are and what you can do, don’t you? Cracking myths and legends is only an added bonus.”
“That’s not true,” The time that she spent with Renko was irreplaceable. There were memories and experiences she would have never made if not for her. Nothing will invalidate that, not her of all. “They have as much meaning as my dreams do.”
“Then I wonder what this dream means.”
“That’s up to me to find out.”
They stare at each other, the silence filling in the lull. Beyond the darkness, the eyes flicker among themselves, as if they were communicating in a different language. It was strange. Some hidden, unexplainable connection permeated the air, and it wasn’t just the fact that Yukari looked and dressed like Merry either. A sort of heavy premonition, as if they both knew they could destroy one another in an instant.
“What do you want to know?” Yukari placed her gloved hands together underneath her chin, her indigo eyes slightly wrinkling in amusement, as if all of this was a theater performance for her own enjoyment.
“What you are. Why you’re here. You’ve been plaguing me ever since I’ve dreamt of Gensokyo.”
“You’re right,” sliding back in her chair, Yukari stood up, straightened herself, and looked down at her. She reached her right hand out, offering it towards Merry.
“Care to join me?”
And do what, exactly? To take her on an mesmerizing journey, or to trap her away in some containment if she is such a liability? That hand could be the answer to those questions she asked, or it could be nothing more than just an offer, a trick.
Yukari stood smiling with her hand outstretched, waiting patiently, as if she would stand there forever until the end of time. Merry slipped out of her chair and stood up, facing her. The gloves were a pearly white and silk smooth. Reaching out, she grasped the youkai’s hand before realizing she had been pulled into a waltz without music. A hand slipped down to support her waist as their clasped ones raised slightly above with their shoulders, Yukari taking the lead.
Merry had never danced in her life, and the only thing she was familiar with were the basic steps from movies, but Yukari leaned down next to her ear and whispered, “Don’t worry, just follow after me.” Despite the silence and the amateurish way Merry stumbled along, the two were on the same wavelength and slowly moved forward into the indefinite and watchful void, clasped close to each other. At first, Merry’s mind wondered how remarkable and strange it was for her to be able to keep up almost instantly, but then she pondered the reason for this meaningless activity. Surely, there was more than what met the eyes, pun intended.
“You’re wondering why we’re doing this, right? You said so yourself, you wanted answers. Here is where you’ll find them,” Yukari said, doing a ninety degree turn. Merry side-stepped to avoid bumping into her partner and readjusted her position.
“I don’t understand. All we’re doing is dancing. And you know I can’t dance if my life depended on it.”
“Really? I would think differently, just on seeing how quickly you caught up.”
“This is different,” Merry looked up at her, frowning. The glint in Yukari’s eyes never went away. “You’re leading me on to God knows where. I don’t see how waltzing is going to explain what you have to do with my dreams.”
“That, my dear, is exactly why.”
They slide into a complicated move, with Yukari leading Merry into a twist and turning gently with her hand. Before Merry could turn back around and crash into her, Yukari took a calculated step back and the girl leaned forward until their faces were less than a few inches apart. Merry’s breath caught in her throat.
“It takes two to tango, and in that way, you cannot have youkai without humans, and vice versa.”
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s try again. What do you want to know?”
Merry gave Yukari a frigid stare, feeling as if she was the butt of a joke. The youkai only smiled back, moving in step as they continued their endless dance. Guess it’s always better to be direct with someone like her.
“Who are you?”
“I am not you, if that’s what you’re thinking. An identity is built off of a personality, and a set of morals.”
“Are you implying that—”
“Now, what else do you want to know?”
Merry bit her lip and sighed.
“Why are you here, inside my dreams?”
“The same reason you go to Gensokyo.”
That reply nearly made her lose her momentum as she struggled to formulate a response.
“But I don’t
go
to Gensokyo! I can’t choose where I go in my dreams any more than I can choose the weather.”
“But you
can
go, and that’s all that matters, is it not?”
“You’re unbelievable.”
“How very true.”
They moved into a twirl and went apart, meeting again with their hands clasped and even closer this time. Merry could feel the sweat in her palms. There’s something she’s been meaning to ask, all this time.
“What do you want from me?”
Yukari leaned closer, her fair hair brushing past her cheek. Merry stiffened in her steps.
“There is nothing I
want
…” she trailed off, and suddenly pulled the girl into a dip. Merry’s breath hitched as came near the woman’s face. A strong arm supported her waist, and they stared into each other’s eyes for a long moment before she pulled her back up. Somehow, this dance seemed to be telling her something, but what that was, she didn’t quite understand yet.
“But if I had to answer, then it would be for you to take the right path. Pick the right choice.”
“You’re always beating around the bush.”
“I can only help you, but in the end, it’s up to you to understand the meaning of this dream.”
I must have the patience of a saint,
Merry thought to herself.
To be able to put up with the games this woman throws at me.
“Fine, then. I guess I’ll find it sooner or later.”
Yukari only let out a hum in reply. It’s only now that as they dance, Merry realized the music they’ve been moving to was there, playing softly in the background from all sides. A sort of light melody but evasive tone in the song encaptured the moment the two shared. Yukari noticed the change in her face along with the more confident way she moved in time.
“You see now, anyhow, that it is possible. To dance, that is.”
“Yes,” Merry admitted, understanding what she meant and gazed behind Yukari’s shoulder at the eyes watching them. “Where are we going?”
“Wherever you want to go. This is your domain, and I the guest.”
“Intruder is more right.”
The woman chuckled softly and smirked.
“That being said, do you have any more burning questions on your mind?”
Merry let herself go with the flow of the waltz as the music picked up pace, taking her time to think.
“Since when have you started watching me like this, dream or not?”
Yukari’s eyes slowly traveled to meet hers, her mouth quirking up into a mysterious and complacent smile.
“Really, that’s something you should ask Renko. I’ve already lost track.”
A shiver slipped down Merry’s spine at her words.
“How on Earth do you even know about her ability?”
“You already know.”
She tugged and pulled away from Yukari. The music slowed to a halt. Rage boiled inside her.
“You’ve been playing with me ever since I’ve met you. You answer questions with ones of your own, and you always avoid giving me a definite response no matter how much I prod you. You’re hiding something, aren’t you? This dance was just a distraction.”
“Humans are always so quick to judge,” Yukari shook her head sadly. “Haven’t I answered all of your questions with patience and grace? Only, it’s not the answers you were expecting, so you take it as if all the words I’ve said are empty.”
“What are you?”
“A monster. Someone you should be afraid of. Someone you might turn into.”
Her whole body shook with grief. Grief over what? She didn’t know, but it was there, deep and painful.
“Leave. And don’t come back.”
“Then heed my warning. Or you’ll lose a lot more than your humanity, Maribel Hearn.”
One by one, the eyes in the deep, dark void close as Merry’s own eyes open from her nightmare.