#touhou baijr

[kirbymongerr]

Ever since Clarste stopped answering asks I have become the most knowledgeable touhou poster. All others are clad in the folly of fanworks, I alone maintain a pure mind, free of thinking about Aka Yakumo or that the characters are getting older and Akyuu is about to die. I am unsullied, full of only righteous wisdom- I sound like if Zamasu was a touhou nerd

[pixelkip]

Curiosities of Lotus Asia ch. 35 has an Aibo in it and I'm gonna be a nerd about it.

Ok I have no idea just how many touhou fans are aware of Laika, Rinnosuke's robot dog introduced in CoLA ch35 but if you're not aware, he finds this robot and it causes all sorts of chaos and wrecks his shop, and they eventually find out its possessed by a puppy spirit. If you're at all curious, go read it on the touhou wiki if you haven't already.

How do I know for sure that it's an Aibo? Well, on top of the fact it definitely resembles one, Sumireko suggests naming it Aibo and in BAiJR Aya literally says it's an aibo. This is one of the few things she probably didn't lie about in this book bc how the hell would she otherwise even know what an aibo is TO be able to lie about it.

(Side note, the official name is just "AIBO", im not sure why she calls it AIBO buddy here, maybe bc aibo is a pun on the japanese word meaning buddy but why tack it onto the end? Idk)

Ok for those who don't know what an aibo is, it's a series of robot dogs Sony made, there were several models released between 1999-2006, and later had the ers-1000 in 2018 which is still available (and I personally have an ers-111 :3)

Pictured: aibo models ers-310, 220, 110, 210, and 7

Ok, so, what kind of AIBO is Laika then?

This is where it gets.. confusing.

this line from sumireko would imply it's an ers-110, as it was the very first model of aibo ever released.

But.. laika doesn't look much like a 110

Ok the way she's drawn doesn't look that close to ANY real model of aibo, but the drawing makes her look more like a 210, with the (probably) white coloration, visor shape, and upturned ears.

(110 vs 210)

It's also possible she doesnt resemble any model too closely to avoid copyright issues, but even then she visually resembles a 210 much more than a 110.

Other than that ch35 doesn't give us much else to determine her model, she doesn't display any particular behaviors that would indicate it, rinnosuke says her expressions can't be read implying her eye lights are non functional, and that she's completely silent. Aibos LOVE to make noise, and usually communicate through music and tones, so it's likely the animal spirit is simply pup-petting (hehe) a nonfunctional aibo body. Rinnosuke also mentions that it's begun to actually listen to him, which would imply a 210 or later (110 and 111 do not have voice recognition) if it weren't for the possibility that again, it's just the puppy controlling it.

So there's a few possibilities here.

- zun didn't depict her to be any particular model to not get smited by sony's lawyers

- she is a 110 but for whatever reason, be it a miscommunication or just zun or the artist deciding it didn't matter that much, that isn't reflected in the art

- sumireko is wrong, and she is a 210

Or maybe she's just a 110 with some cool customization, like paint and custom ear pieces. Then again, she did pass into gensokyo meaning she's been totally forgotten, and that seems less likely if someone took the time to customize her.

So now im curious. Given the evidence, what do YOU think laika is? Even if you didn't know shit about aibo before this post, hell, ESPECIALLY if you didn't, what do you think?

Personally I kinda like to think she's a 210 bc I think they're neat. Maybe even a gold 210, since the yellow tinge in the cover art makes her look like the very pale gold of the pale gold 210s. But as an existing aibo enjoyer I'm a little biased

I really hope laika gets to come back at some point, I have a little bit of hope since beast spirits as a plot point have become a lot more significant. She seems like a very good doggy :]

If you for some reason read all of this thank you for indulging my insanity

[occasionaltouhou]

What was the first touhou print work you read, and was it any good?

UHHHHHHHHH for the print works, i think it was... actually i think i was reading them in order, so it might have been baijr? either that or pmiss. but imo all print works have their own appeal, and they do a lot of worldbuilding that the games and manga can't bc they usually cover such a wide number of characters rather than a small core cast

[rockman-x]

some Touhou characters and their best themes (imo)

Reimu - Dichromatic Lotus Butterfly (DiPP) / Maiden's Capriccio (IaMP)

Yukari - Necrofantasia (MA) / Evening Star (IaMP) / Yorimashi Between Dreams and Reality (AoCF)

Marisa - Vessel of Stars (LLS) / Oriental Dark Flight (PoFV) / Loose Rain (GFW)

Alice - The Grimoire of Alice (UNL) / The Doll Maker of Bucuresti (All of them, this song is just awesome)

Mima - Reincarnation (DiPP)

Yuuka - Gensokyo, Past and Present (PoFV)

Sakuya - The Maid and The Pocket Watch of Blood (EoSD, IaMP)

Remilia - Septette for the Dead Princess (IaMP)

Youmu - Hiroari Shoots a Strange Bird (PCB, SWR)

Yuyuko - Bloom Nobly, Cherry Blossoms of Sumizome (PCB, IaMP) / Border of Life (PCB)

Sanae - Faith is for the Transient People (MoF)

Aya - Wind God Girl [Full ver.] (BAiJR)

Reisen - Invisible Full Moon (IN, SWR)

Cirno - Beloved Tomboyish Girl (PoFV)

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Pages 72-73 - Suika Article and Interview

Season 120, Kisaragi Issue #1

The Midwinter Moon’s Great Explosion

A flurry of moon fragments

On X the Xth, I became aware that the moon had suddenly and silently exploded. Although this was a major event, it occurred so late at night that most people never realized it happened.

The moon quietly scattered out across the sky, and its countless glimmering fragments descended to the Earth. Before long, the fragments thinned out like mist, and then gathered together again to reform the full moon. Since this happened silently over a very short period of time in the middle of the night, it was a stroke of the greatest fortune to bear witness to this fantastically unreal spectacle. Setting out to find out what had happened, I was able to gather enough information to allow me to make contact with the individual who caused the moon to explode.

That individual was Suika Ibuki (oni). She appeared to be extraordinarily drunk, but she spoke quite lucidly when I interviewed her about this incident.

"The moon? Ah, that's just a bit of a threat. Everyone looked like they were havin' so much fun, saying 'oni, stay outside' over and over again, so I thought I'd give 'em a little warnin'. Sure surprised the fire out of ya, didn't it?"

Indeed it did, as I'm sure anyone would be. I then asked her how she'd made the moon explode.

"Just what do you think the moon up in the sky is? Everyone sees that big, round shiny thing and thinks there must be somethin' up there, right? That's just silly. The truth is much more mind-blowin' than that. You can almost never see the real moon, 'cause its appearance is deadly to humans. You can only see the moon's reflection. And the things that make reflections, like water or glass, can all be broken, right? So since the moon you see in the sky is just being reflected in the heavens, all you gotta do is tear the heavens apart!"

I understood how she'd broken the moon, but it was unclear how she'd managed to shatter the heavens. Still, the power of the oni defies imagination. They can probably shatter the heavens with their eyes closed and one hand tied behind their back.

(Aya Shameimaru)

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Interview

Suika: Fill ‘er up!

Aya: You've been drinking all day now.

Suika: All day? Look, I've been drinking non-stop for CENTURIES. The last time I was sober is ancient history.

Aya: I suppose it's too late to say that drinking that much might be bad for your health...

Suika: Wanna have a drinkin’ match?

Aya: Please, I'm not foolish enough to get into a drinking match with an oni.

Suika: Aw, c'mooonnnnnnn. You're a tengu, right? Tengu are pretty big drinkers, toooooo.

Aya: Ohoho, I'm on the job at the moment. Still, I found a nice food stand recently. Would you like to go for a drink afterwards?

Suika: Food cart? They got yakitori?

Aya: Grilled eel, actually. Their fried skewers go great with alcohol.

Suika: That don't sound half-bad. Parties are great, but maybe it's nice to drink quietly once in a while.

Aya: This cart isn't the quietest place, I'm afraid. The owner sings a lot.

Suika: If she's so noisy I can't drink, I'll just make her shut up.

Aya: Hm, hearing that from an oni makes me feel sorry for the poor bird. Still, I was very surprised. That matter of the moon is one thing, but I didn't think there were any oni left in Gensokyo.

Suika: Oh, you know, I just decided to come back since it's been so long. I'm the only one who came, though.

Aya: Gensokyo might become even more lively with an oni around.

Suika: I was pretty sad to see the tengu had lost their hold on the world.

Aya: Please, you're exaggerating. The tengu are still plenty powerful. Besides, the oni have always been stronger.

Suika: You tengu are all talk, same as ever. Yer always so humble to anyone stronger than you, but act all tough towards the weak. Yer all really strong, but go easy on everyone, and ya play dumb even though yer really smart. Just a buncha sly foxes.

Aya: I am a crow tengu, thank you very much. But still, we tengu really aren't as strong as we used to be. We're merely simple rumormongers, nowadays.

Suika: Hm, I wonder. Well, I see y'all still love gossip as much as ya did in the old days.

Aya: And I see the oni are still amazing. To have such power to be able to shatter the heavens...

Suika: Hehehe, that's just a little trick. I'm just good at splittin' and gatherin' things.

Aya: Oh, does that mean you'd also be good at gathering news?

Suika: Huh? N-news? O-of course, I could do that with my little finger.

Aya: Oh, that's amazing. Why don't we continue this conversation over a drink at that stand I was talking about? I'm sure you have a lot of interesting things to tell me.

Suika: Sure. Tonight, we'll drink until we can't talk anymore!

Aya: Ohoho, but I'm a tengu, you know? If I get so inebriated I can't hear your drunken words anymore... Hahahahaha.

Suika: This is why they say, "Never get too close to tengu."

Profile

Suika Ibuki

One of the oni, who have left Gensokyo. Light-hearted and fond of alcohol. She was unhappy about drinking parties decreasing owing to Yuyuko, so she made Marisa and her friends hold parties over the course of three days.

Appearances: Immaterial and Missing Power

[bluealicerose]

Boy, I should really get around to actually reading Touhou’s official written works.

[clarste]

Oh yeah, while I was doing research for the Eirin thing, I happened to find this in the BAiJR article:

The Dream World is another self, says Yagokoro. If the dream is too enjoyable, there's a chance that the real world and the Dream World may switch places, so one must be careful of overdosing.

So the dream selves of AoCF were already a thing in Touhou, including t he idea of switching places with them. The foreshadowing! Too powerful!

[gameringgungke]

cool unsorted touhou hcs but theyre almost all pc98 since they’re more flexible and fun to think of scenarios for

uhhh long? yea. long.

everyone in pc98 is okay and alive (mostly) :]

ellen and koishi are good friends, kind of. they’ll run into each other, befriend one another, play all day, go their separate ways, and then forget about each other. this has happened many times.

sokrates is a bakeneko at this point, and the only thing keeping ellen from getting into too much trouble. although, he has no human form.

rika is from the outside world. someone (mima) told her that yukari was the god of the hakurei shrine, and beating reimu/obtaining her power will let rika go home. she also gave rika a spell book, in order to summon the bakebake. rika also made evil eye sigma using it.

consequentially, rikako was introduced to ‘modern’ science through rika briefly trying to integrate in the human village.

mimi-chan eventually stopped working, so rinnosuke tore the thruster out, and him + mima worked on making it into the mini-hakkero; so marisa can still have mimi-chan, and a better wand.

marisa’s natural hair color is a red-orange. she changed it to yellow using magic, (with help from mima) and it’s always been curly and messy

reimu, on the other hand, will not explain how or why her hair was purple for a while. trying to make her budge will not end well for you. (she used the yin-yang balls and thought purple would look amazing on her thanks to meira)

when flandre is annoyed with you, she will start yelling in french. this is terrifying to non-french-speaking fairies.

marisa named her pet tsuchinoko loaf, and they will still stop by her house to get fed, pet, and sleep.

alice is from bucuresti, but managed to get into makai alice in wonderland style. alice didn’t have a (good?) family to go back to, so shinki saw this small child and went “who’s child is this? nobody’s? yoink this is mine now”

elly has a southern accent. a really thick southern accent. how? i said so. thats it thats my take

rinnosuke is half wolf tengu. he hides a small tail, and has small fangs/pointed ears that he hides. 

i’m taking yumeko’s theme, ‘doll of misery,’ way too literally. yumeko is literally a giant doll. think mannequin but with doll joints, or a big medicine. shinki made her as an assistant, and alice (who already liked puppets and all that) was awed by her. basically, the reason alice wants to create an independent doll so badly is because she saw ‘mom’s’ cool independent doll, she’d reach new heights with her knowledge, and also she’d have a good friend probably. (that’s where the ‘i saw a living doll a long time ago’ in BAiJR comes from)

because eiki and narumi are jizo statues, they are both unnaturally heavy, because stone. they cannot walk on thin bridges or ride on boats because they will fall. swimming is impossible, they just walk on the ground. if they get an arm cut off or something, then someone can just carve a new one, (or just use the old one) they can reattach it to where the ‘injury’ is, and it will fuse back on. also mario bros 3 tanuki statue shenanigans.

while in france, remilia would keep her mansion out to those who’d need to spend the night. mostly for her fellow supernatural beings, but also to homeless or lost humans who managed to find the mansion. in return, the guest would either need to help clean or cook, or give some of their blood up. refusing to do so would not end well.

sakuya was indeed, a vampire hunter at some point. while she was trying to kill remilia, when her time powers started working randomly, mid-fight, and she vanished. remilia was confused, and eventually calmed back down. 100 years later, remilia ran into someone who looked just like the hunter, but she was an amnesiac and had gray hair. remi decided to let her stay at the SDM out of curiosity, but she grew on remi. remi named her sakuya, since they were already planning on moving to japan at some point.

so basically: you know those urban legends about time travelers randomly vanishing in the street, only to appear years later? that’s sakuya.

clownpiece was born in a part of hell mainly for americans, so she has the most Generic American Accent possible. once in a while she will just start yelling in pure english, and has absolutely taught every fairy in gensokyo how to say fuck. color vs colour is an argument you do not want to have with her

the second ruukoto ran out of power, reimu hid her. when reimu built her shed, she hid ruukoto inside. the fairies of light eventually find her inside and dig her out, leaving reimu to try and explain to kasen why she has a ‘corpse’ in her shed.

cool and brief analysis of some LLS characters’ themes edited from a discord message, starting with kurumi bc shes my baby

kurumi’s theme is very upbeat, with a very short melody. so she’s naive and cheerful, while also being pretty prideful in herself. (judging on her dialogue) she does her best to keep people she considers her friends safe and happy.

elly’s theme is slow and more cautious, while also giving me the vibe that she’s powerful but holding back. (due to being rusty?) so she’s a bit scatter-brained (dialogue), but also weary and careful. and for whatever reason, SP~PC just makes me think of the word ‘hardy,’ so she’s that too

orange’s theme is short and cool-sounding, to get your blood pumping for her fight. even though she’s trying to run away from danger, so the song has a panic-y and dangerous feel too because she is scared of reimu/marisa. so she’s VERY prideful and does her best to make herself look strong, but is extremely cowardly, unless she’s cornered.

flower youkai are a real thing now, and yuuka, elly, and orange are all examples of this.

to make up for the fact that it’s placement no longer makes sense: mugenkan, the lake of blood, kurumi, and orange are all in the same space inside the hakurei barrier-- like mayohiga. not just ‘in the mountains.’ the way to get to it is in the mountains, yes, but it’s just not sitting up there casually. people would’ve noticed a lake of blood by now. (also! remilia and flan are noted as ‘the only vampires in gensokyo.’ someone would’ve seen kurumi by now as well.)

the reason why yuuka has a blue border surrounding her sprite in MS is also due to this. her body isn’t used to existing ‘physically’ like ‘that.’ it’s her energy keeping itself into a sensible form.

alice traveled to gensokyo in mystic square to avenge her and shinki’s defeat. mima is the one who found her and beat her, forcing alice to be her servant, until alice managed to run off. (probably with marisa’s help, i don’t see marisa as the type of person to let mima keep alice as a servant. close mom relationship or not.) alice couldn’t get back to makai, so she was forced to settle into gensokyo.

part of alice’s reclusiveness is thanks to being beaten up five times within a week, and then being forced into being a maid. thanks mima very cool

i say mima since there’s a hidden recording of ZUN beating MS’s extra stage as mima, last i recall.

yuuka’s interest in magic was quickly killed thanks to marisa.

after being defeated four times over, shinki’s power collapsed in on itself, and she was forced to pull herself, pandæmonium, and all her creations into a small orb of energy that sits where pandæmonium once was. every demon or magician that was in gensokyo at the time erupted into flames as their souls got pulled back into makai. this incident almost killing shinki and countless others is what helped convince reimu/yukari to set up the spell card rules.

byakuren, sariel, yuugenmagan, and elis are safe. sariel and yuugenmagan are fallen angels, therefore not created by shinki. elis is just a demon that drifted into makai, so she’s good too. we all know where byakuren came from and how she is. 

pulling from the slow piano section of judas kiss’s midi version; mai didn’t like yuki at all, and is fine with her being gone, but she’s been with yuki so long that living without her seems impossible. like it’s just left a hole within her, that she won’t expose because she just hates yuki to that degree.

also using magic mirror for elis; elis is like a reverse-vampire when it comes to mirrors. she exists as an energy more than anything, and will use mirrors to communicate with people in places she can’t go. she ‘works’ for sariel, being the demon version of a telemarketer for the angel of death basically. that works exactly how it sounds like it works. elis is also in makai because she escaped hell. makai has a constant pump of magic through shinki, so elis can exist comfortably here.

the reason the management of hell has such a small budget is because hecatia keeps pulling the funding for things she considers important, but actually aren’t. the yama (and other gods of hell) literally cannot stop her. hecatia says it’s to support ‘disorder and chaos’ because ‘authority sucks’ without realizing she’s being the crappy authority figure.

not only is hecatia basically 3 different celestial-level gods, but they’re MASSIVE. bigger than kaiju-size. her human body is basically a vessel for her to travel in, anchored down by her collar and planets. the planets let her ‘switch’ between which ‘god’ is going to ‘pilot,’ even though all three are still hecatia.

since SoPM says kogasa can’t let go of her umbrella; if she does, her human form will disappear in a puff of smoke, and she’ll have to hop around as an umbrella for like, two hours. benben follows somewhat similar rules, but she’s still ‘holding’ her biwa since it’s chained to her. she’s offered, but kogasa says no to chains.

kogasa smiths with her umbrella in her mouth or something.

IKU NAGAE IS RENKO USAMI AND IN THIS ESSAY I WILL

extremely similar appearances!!!! there’s the changes in colors, but that could just be youkai-ification (like how possessed kosuzu had pink hair instead of orange)

iku’s power, reading the atmosphere, can be seen as an ‘evolution’ of renko’s, like maribel and yukari. she goes from being a living gps to a living weather channel host. godspeed for her

conspiracy theorist useless lesbian = funny tired fish lady. it makes perfect sense i swear!!

[yamayuandadu]

Something I occasionally see in fanworks is depicting Keine as distrusted by the villagers and self-loathing as a result, which seems odd to me; there appear to be two misconceptions behind it, one about the school from Touhou itself and one about the historical institution. The school she teaches at is specifically supposed to be a terakoya – a so-called “temple school”, which is a bit of a misnomer. While the oldest historical ones were indeed founded as an extension of temples (usually Buddhist ones, Shinto terakoyas were extremely uncommon at less than 10% of the total number according to most estimates), and Buddhist clergy remained numerous among the teachers, with time all kinds of public educational institutions started to be referred with this name. In the late Edo and early Meiji periods (before the education reforms), when terakoyas were the most numerous, only one in five was strictly speaking a temple school. The teachers were usually commoners who themselves received some degree of education previously (eg. through another terakoya) or attained a certain degree of success thanks to education (the freshly emerging merchant class was a good example; additionally about one in ten terakoyas was ran by a doctor). Most teachers were men, though we know from both documentation and depictions of terakoyas in art that female teachers also existed, especially in the final few decades of terakoya activity. Regardless of the background, the work of the teachers was viewed as a prestigious public service (some of them operated strictly for profit, but most were already well-respected members of society working pro publico bono). Thus it seems weird to me to assume Keine wouldn't be respected in the village, or that she's hate her life. Canon appears to support my interpretation – PMiSS makes it sound like Akyuu not attending the school is seen as something unusual so the turnout ought to be reasonably high (irl the turnout in terakoyas is estimated to be at 70-80%, but many areas lacked them so literacy at the dawn of the Meiji era was at around 40% for men and 20% for women). The mention of it being unpopular, prominently displayed at the wiki, comes from BAiJR which supposedly describes the situation right after the school was opened rather than in the present day (plus Aya is a less trustworthy source than Akyuu, arguably). An additional argument that the school must be doing well in the present day is the fact that it has its own building in Forbidden Scrollery (and if I'm not mistaken there were more teachers shown?) – something very uncommon irl for economic reasons; most terakoya classes took place in borrowed temple rooms or at the houses of the teachers (or particularly affluent students). I don't really think Keine's status as a part hakutaku would impact this in any capacity – even taking into account that the hakutaku is a youkai, it is portrayed uniformly as benevolent and an omen of good luck and prosperity (hakutaku charms were very popular through the Edo period before the baku replaced it as the default symbol of prosperity), in a way a completely different kind of being to the spooks and boogeymen most youkai are in folklore. If anything it probably would boost her social standing.

[mononomemenofuto]

Some gold nuggets from Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red

[rabbiteclair]

most recent speaking appearances of Touhou characters

After a discussion with @justherefortouhoulesbians​ last night, I was left curious just how long it had been since a lot of characters have spoken, and how many of ‘em have never spoken outside of their first appearance. So, here’s a list of Touhou characters and the last time they spoke. Where the last time the character spoke was also their original appearance, I put a star next to their name.

I only included characters that have appeared in games playable or as enemies (so no Akyuu, Kosuzu, Watatsukis, etc), even if they’ve been in backgrounds of fighters. I didn’t bother with Reimu and Marisa because they get new appearances every ten minutes. I excluded characters without a canon name. I didn’t count Vs. mode dialogue, but did count written articles in the case of Hatate. I also didn’t count Inaba of the Moon, but I think that wouldn’t have impacted anybody but Keine.

Very recent manga chapters might not be covered either, except the newest VFiS, because @hungry0bookworm literally started telling me about its contents while I was compiling this.

Also I threw this together in like 45 minutes, so don’t think it’s super-authoritative. I probably got a year wrong somewhere.

Never Spoken Lily Shizuha

August 2005 Rumia (BAiJR) Flandre (BAiJR) Letty (BAiJR) Chen (BAiJR) Lunasa (BAiJR) Merlin (BAiJR) Lyrica (PoFV) Wriggle (BAiJR) Medicine (PoFV) Yuuka (PoFV)

August 2007 * Minoriko (MoF)

May 2008 * Tenshi (SWR)

August 2008 * Yamame (SA) * Parsee (SA) * Yuugi (SA)

August 2009 Meiling (Hisou) Alice (Hisou) Utsuho (Hisou) * Cap'n Murasa (UFO) * Shou (UFO) * Nazrin (UFO)

December 2009 Ran (CiLR) Keine (CiLR)

February 2011 Mystia (OSP Ch. 13)

August 2011 * Tojiko (TD) Patchouli (OSP Ch. 15)

April 2012 Hina (SoPM) Momiji (SoPM) Iku (SoPM) Kisume (SoPM) Hatate (SoPM) Kyouko (SoPM) Yoshika (SoPM)

May 2012 Seiga (WaHH Ch. 12)

August 2013 * Wakasagihime (DDC) * Sekibanki (DDC) * Benben (DDC)

February 2014 Suika (WaHH Ch. 21) Komachi (WaHH Ch. 21)

May 2014 Kagerou (ISC) Yatsuhashi (ISC) Seija (ISC) Raiko (ISC)

February 2015 Kogasa (WaHH Ch. 27)

May 2015 Koishi (ULiL) Ichirin (ULiL) Futo (ULiL) Kokoro (ULiL) Shinmyoumaru (ULiL)

June 2015 Satori (WaHH Ch. 28) Rin (WaHH Ch. 28)

August 2015 Tewi (LoLK Ending) Eirin (LoLK Ending) Kaguya (LoLK Prologue) Sanae (LoLK) Kanako (LoLK Ending) Suwako (LoLK Ending) * Seiran (LoLK) * Ringo (LoLK) * Doremy (LoLK) * Sagume (LoLK) * Junko (LoLK) Nue (FS Ch. 31)

April 2016 Remilia (WaHH Ch. 33) Youmu (VFiS Ch. 2) Yuyuko (VFiS Ch. 2)

May 2016 Sumireko (CoLA Ch. 29)

July 2016 Cirno (VFiS Ch. 3)

August 2016 Sakuya (WaHH Ch. 35) Mamizou (FS Ch. 43) Yukari (FS Ch. 43)

October 2016 Aya (FS Ch. 45) Hecatia (VFiS Ch. 4) Nitori (WaHH Ch. 36) Kasen (WaHH Ch. 36)

December 2016 Reisen (ULiL PS4) Mokou (ULiL PS4) Miko (ULiL PS4) Byakuren (ULiL PS4)

January 2017 Eiki (VFiS Ch. 5) Sunny (VFiS Ch. 5) Star (VFiS Ch. 5) Luna (VFiS Ch. 5) Clownpiece (VFiS Ch. 5)

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Page 93 - Music Columns “Musical Sense of Illusion”

The Strange Everyday Life of the Flying Shrine Maiden

(Song from Dolls in Pseudo Paradise)

This is probably the most realistic song in Dolls in Pseudo Paradise. It doesn't really have any fantastical parts (excluding the piano solo), so it doesn't feel like I could use it in a game except for the credits, but I think it has the right qualities for the final song on a music CD. Or that's how I appraised it back when I made it.

However, I'm a little concerned with it now since this song doesn't make me visualize much at all. Maybe it's a fault of the song being too realistic, but I don't know if that's really the whole problem.

In particular, I have no idea what made me come up with the title of this song. I think the shrine maiden mentioned in the title is Reimu. It's Reimu, but it's not written in a way that really reflects her. I suppose that my past self valued this song a little too highly. Yes.

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Pages 40-41 - Yukari Article and Interview

Season 119, Hazuki Issue #3

Youkai Practices Animal Abuse

The silent terror that assaults our idyllic Gensokyo

On X the Xth, I suddenly heard a yelp similar to that of a fox's at around 2 in the morning. It did not seem like a trifling matter, so I rubbed my sleepy eyes and headed for the source. When I arrived, I saw in front of me a youkai cruelly sitting on a fox in a shocking display of animal abuse. As I am a crow tengu, it was an extremely heart-wrenching scene.

The offender was Yukari Yakumo (youkai). She is an elusive one-of-a-kind youkai. Her very being itself is a mystery, as is her background. She always wears ostentatious clothing and an unsettling smile, intimidating all who come in contact with her. The offender had this to say regarding her actions:

"Animal abuse? My, when did I ever do such a thing? Ah, you mean Ran here. This isn't abuse, just a little disciplining. Besides, Ran may look like a fox but she's a shikigami. She's not an animal."

Since the offender's words are completely illogical nonsense which any normal person would have difficulty understanding, I've taken the liberty of interpreting them such a way that will make things clearer. The offender's excuse can be explained as followed. Ran, the fox that was being abused, is not an animal at all but a shikigami. Shikigami are not animals, but merely tools, and the more one uses a tool, the more one loves it. That is why she uses her frequently. She says that emotion alone is not enough, that this is another form of love as she smacks the fox's head with her parasol.

"Listen. Shikigami need only do as they are ordered. Today, you went ahead and fought with humans, did you not? I do not recall ordering that. No matter what may happen, no matter how dangerous the situation may appear to be, you are only to do as I say. That is what is best for you."

The offender continued with her irrational claims, attempting to justify her abuse. As I am half animal, I intend to pursue this further.

(Aya Shameimaru)

Interview

Yukari: I see. And?

Aya: I will never yield when it comes to animal abuse.

Yukari: I'm not abusing any beast. Besides, you are the one that wrote this, no? Then you should fully understand.

Aya: No, I do not understand. What I witnessed was nothing other than animal abuse.

Yukari: Seeing things from only one point of view shows that you lack imagination and analytical skills. Even if the answer is right before your eyes, you will overlook it. That is because you are only looking at the back side of the answer. But that sort of quality is well-suited for a reporter.

Aya: Even if I do not understand what you are saying, all I need to do is find the reality of the situation. That is because my job is to tell only the truth.

Yukari: How can you see the truth without seeing the whole picture? Your newspaper is going to stay shoddy like that.

Aya: The “Bunbunmaru Newspaper” is nowhere near shoddy!

Yukari: At any rate, I will explain once again for Ran's sake. It is not abuse; it is discipline. Ran is a shikigami, so if she does not do exactly as I say, she will be unable to perform at her optimal efficiency. Despite that, she ignored orders and fought with humans. So, I scolded her.

Aya: ...Wouldn't she have been in danger if she didn't fight?

Yukari: Not at all. She was only in danger because she fought. Do you not understand? Ran is not a fox, but a shikigami.

Aya: That claim is what I do not understand. Exactly how are they different?

Yukari: By following my will, Ran can obtain power equal to my level. Therefore, if she properly follows my orders, it would be impossible for her to lose. If she acts on her own, her power will be weakened to a degree that could not compare in the least. Fighting in that state would be nothing more than foolishness.

Aya: What if she was sure she could win like that?

Yukari: With a more reliable method for victory on hand, what need is there to choose a hazardous one? That would only end up with Ran in danger. That is why unless I am somewhat strict in my teaching, it would not be of any benefit to her.

Aya: ...

Yukari: In addition, Ran occasionally forgets that she is a shikigami, a servant. That is extremely dangerous. If she does not have a firm grasp on her position, she will easily diverge from the path I have laid out. It was likely because I was unable to supervise her while I was asleep, but at the very least, it now seems like she will not soon lose sight of who the master is.

Aya: Isn't that only because she is scared of being abused?

Yukari: No, there is a difference in power, and virtue, between us.

Aya: I will not be fooled by your self-accomodating explanations!

Yukari: You truly have no comprehensive faculty.

Aya: I am only burning with righteous anger. Whatever reason you may have, I cannot overlook abuse.

Yukari: My, my, you are quite the cute one.

Aya: Wh-What do you...

Yukari: Become my shikigami. Maybe you will come to understand by putting yourself in Ran's shoes?

Aya: I am against animal abuse!

Profile

Yukari Yakumo

A youkai living in Gensokyo from long ago, and has the ability to control boundaries. As an old friend of Yuyuko, she is sometimes asked for favors. Usually sleeps during the day, but possesses enormous power.

Appearances: Perfect Cherry Blossom, Immaterial and Missing Power, Imperishable Night

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Pages 62-63 - Cirno Article and Interview

Season 120, Minazuki Issue #1

Ice Fairy Eaten by Giant Toad

Severe punishment for fairy whose prank went too far

On the Xth of X at around noon, a prank-loving fairy was eaten by a giant toad. She somehow escaped, and suffered no major injuries.

The victim is an ice fairy, Cirno (fairy). It seems that while she was enjoying herself by freezing frogs in a swamp, she was discovered and eaten by a giant toad that was nearly the size of two humans. Since she simply reaped what she sowed, the giant toad was not at fault.

"Geez, why the heck was there a giant toad in such a small swamp?! If it was anyone else but me, they wouldn't have been able to get away."

The instant the victim was devoured, she chilled the insides of the toad which surprised it enough to spit her out. The giant toad was the master of that small swamp and, after hearing that a fairy was freezing the frogs there, decided to punish her. The fairy had this to say about her game of freezing frogs:

"If immediately I freeze the frogs all the way, they won't die, and when they thaw, it's like nothing happened. I'm not playing, but training my ice powers. I'm definitely not doing it because frozen frogs are cute, or because their croaking gets on my nerves, or because I get excited when I juggle them since they might break if I drop one."

Fairies generally enjoy pranks, so there are many cases in which they receive severe punishment for such pranks. The victim in this case is one such fairy. However, most fairies only try to prank those stronger than themselves. Even if she is always bullied, perhaps most would see that taking out her frustrations on weak, little frogs is somewhat pathetic.

(Aya Shameimaru)

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Interview

Cirno: What the heck is this!?

Aya: Gensokyo's fastest source of accurate information, the Bunbunmaru Newspaper.

Cirno: No, not that! I mean the article! You made it look like I'm the bad guy here!

Aya: The content was based on objective views.

Cirno: Grrrrr! You've never been eaten by a giant toad! What do you know!?

Aya: The only things that the giant toad has ever eaten would be... flies and you.

Cirno: Flies...

Aya: Yes, flies. An insect that doesn't think about the annoyance they cause, flapping their wings so busily as they buzz around.

Cirno: I don’t buzz around!

Aya: Oh, but I was talking about flies.

Cirno: A-Anyway, couldn't you have made a cooler article about me? Like, "Ice Fairy Defeats Despicable Giant Toad!"

Aya: When did you defeat it? I don't write lies, even if it makes money.

Cirno: I ain't gonna make you money!

Aya: Then all the more reason not to.

Cirno: But this article just makes me seem really lame...

Aya: I'm sure anyone who saw it happen would've thought you looked extremely lame.

Cirno: At least make the article cool!

Aya: If you succeed in being eaten in a cool way, then I will

Cirno: Then change the normal frogs part to giant toads.

Aya: I refuse. If it bothers you so much why don't you go and defeat the giant toad?

Cirno: It was an even match! When I ran away I completely chilled its stomach, enough to cause more than stomach problems!

Aya: I have a direct testimony from the giant toad who said that it only surprised him and that no actual harm was done.

Cirno: You don't even know what it feels like to have your eyeballs pushed in while you're being swallowed by a giant toad!

Aya: I don't think anyone would want to know that feeling.

Cirno: Freezing toads and bringing them back to life is a high-class technique!

Aya: It isn’t useful at all.

Cirno: Eeeeeeek!

Aya: You're really just an underdog... or rather, underfairy, that lost to a giant toad.

Cirno: What are you trying to do by spreading that all over Gensokyo!? If you stayed quiet about it, nobody would know!

Aya: Now, now. They say rumors between humans and youkai only last 75 years. I don't think you'll be laughed at for too long.

Cirno: You're the one that started it!

Aya: I just tell everyone the truth of daily happenings in Gensokyo.

Cirno: There should be more than enough fairies being punished in the first place! Why only me!?

Aya: That day was really peaceful, so there wasn't anything else happening. As I was worn out from flying everywhere, I saw you sticking your head out of a giant toad's mouth. You should consider yourself lucky that there was an article on you at all.

Cirno: I’m actually lucky then? All right!

Aya: Yes, lucky.

Profile

Cirno

A mischievous fairy at the lake. Has the ability to manipulate cold.

Appearances: Embodiment of Scarlet Devil, Perfect Cherry Blossom. Phantasmagoria of Flower View

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Pages 84-85 - Special Feature Article Memo

Season 119

Classification: Special Feature Article Memo

Editor: Aya Shameimaru

The Night Without Dawn

An incident of seldom magnitude leaves tensions running

It is early morning of X the Xth. A severe incident of unknown cause has amplified tensions throughout Gensokyo. This considerably long night continues to remain on the verge of dawn, and the moon has stopped its procession across the sky as well. All on the night of a full moon, no less. There are few beings in Gensokyo who are not affected by the full moon. Because of this, madness is thought to be spreading throughout Gensokyo.

The cause and motive are completely unknown, and because of her stubbornness to fight in these situations, I decided to move before waiting for the shrine maiden to do so. That is how concerning Gensokyo's current state was. In the end, after an indeterminate amount of time, the moon suddenly jerked forward with frightening speed and disappeared beyond the horizon. The sun has finally returned.

What anyone would gain from stopping time during the night, as well as how this problem was resolved, will remain a mystery. I heard rumors that the shrine maiden went on the warpath again, and due to her sudden willingness to resolve the incident, I regret that I was unable to observe her actions. However, there is still one issue weighing on my mind. Is there a youkai that would benefit from stopping the moon in its tracks? Is there anyone other than youkai who would do something like this, such as a human? That seems to be the more likely theory.

It is said that nights are long during the fall, but that night was too long. Even the youkai whose motto is that fun can be found in any kind of situation were irritated by this dire incident. However, when it comes to who would cause such a thing, much less how much power they would need to be able to do so, my mind is blank. But is there any need to actively pursue the answers?

I heard another especially interesting rumor while I was interviewing others. The moon on the Endless Night and the moon on the night after were completely different. Although slight, the color and the light reflected were both different, as well as the energy that it radiated.

Perhaps, on that night, the moon may have been reborn. The ceremony of reincarnation required sufficient time, so the moon needed to be stopped. Taking that angle into consideration, it's no wonder. If that's the case, that incident wasn't the doings of youkai, but perhaps a natural phenomenon. Certainly, it is unlikely that the youkai who are easily influenced by the moon would be able to think to stop it so easily. I should have considered it to be an act of the moon itself, and not of those who are influenced by it.

Still, if the rumors of the shrine maiden's rampage are true, I find her arbitrary actions to be rather rash, just like during the other incidents. To handle a dangerous incident on that scale in the same simple manner as before was extremely hazardous. It is necessary to quickly investigate the root of the problem first.

(Aya Shameimaru)

Game Profile

Touhou Eiyashou ~ Imperishable Night

Many were hoping to welcome the harvest moon in autumn, but the actual full moon was slightly different. The major youkai were troubled by this moon that had lost its power, and they worked together with humans, who weren't aware of the incident at all, to find the missing real moon. The night was stopped until the true full moon is returned to Gensokyo...

[toho-literature]

Bohemian Archive in Japanese Red: Pages 66-67 - Reisen Article and Interview

Season 120, Shimotsuki issue #2

Rabbit Horn League Protests Shrine Banquet

Rabbit stew is annual tradition, says shrine maiden

On X the Xth, the Rabbit Horn League protested the use of rabbit in the stew served at the shrine banquet. Talks remained distant as the shrine responded to the protest: "Of course I'm using rabbit. It's rabbit stew!"

The incident began when youkai rabbits crashed the shrine banquet. Upon spotting and tasting the delicious-looking stew, they realized the meat in it was rabbit and reported this to the leader of the Rabbit Horn League, Reisen Udongein Inaba (rabbit).

"It's unthinkable that they're using rabbit meat in a stew. How can something so uncivilized still be allowed? We of the Rabbit Horn League will continue to fight until rabbit meat is removed from the menu for good!" said Reisen.

In response, the shrine's Reimu Hakurei said:

"What's so uncivilized about rabbit meat? People have been eating it for ages. Or are they saying the rabbits themselves are uncivilized? Well, I suppose running around fields for no reason might be considered that."

Her stance was clear that she would not stop the use of rabbit meat.

The Rabbit Horn League, led by the moon rabbit Reisen Udongein Inaba, is a group of youkai rabbits working to form a rabbit utopia. Handling all the non-youkai rabbits is Manager Tewi Inaba (rabbit). Manager Tewi had this to say:

"They're ordinary, helpless rabbits. Humans are gluttonous pigs who'll eat anything, so I guess it's simply unavoidable that a few will get eaten. If they want humans to stop eating them, they'll have to look a lot more charming. You can't eat something cute, right?"

The manager is considering self-defense measures for the rabbits rather than trying to stop the humans who eat them, so there are dissenting opinions even within the Rabbit Horn League. The opinion of the regular rabbits are unknown.

Currently, both parties have agreed to a compromise, in which chicken stew will also be made available whenever rabbit stew is offered.

(Aya Shameimaru)

Interview

Aya: It seems you've compromised on having them offer chicken stew as well, though I find that a bit questionable.

Reisen: Humans are so stubborn! We keep repeating ourselves, but they don't listen!

Aya: That shrine maiden is deceptively inflexible, isn't she?

Reisen: She adheres far too much to tradition and custom. I'm sure there are plenty of other kinds of food they can stew instead of rabbit.

Aya: There's potatoes, mushrooms, and wild vegetables.

Reisen: Or poultry.

Aya: You're saying that on purpose, aren't you. You think I'm a bird.

Reisen: You’re not?

Aya: No, I am! I am!

Reisen: They can eat their fill of poultry, for all we care. Yakitori is fine by us.

Aya: Changing the subject, why are you called the Rabbit Horn League? Rabbits don't have horns.

Reisen: And because we don't, they are a constant ideal. It means a group of rabbits who are never satisfied with the status quo, but who always strive for improvement.

Aya: I see. And here I was sure it meant a group that horned in noisily on just about everything.

Reisen: I think I'll make crow stew tomorrow.

Aya: By the way, how were you able to reach a compromise with offering chicken stew?

Reisen: There was nothing to eat.

Aya: Oh, so you're taking part in the banquet?

Reisen: We're protesting since we're taking part but have nothing to eat.

Aya: You seem to be losing the focus of your protest...

Reisen: Who wants a banquet with nothing to eat? Or are you saying it's fine as long as there's alcohol?

Aya: It depends on the mood and the alcohol, though I like some snacks with my drink.

Reisen: Mind you, we're leaving management of the Earth rabbits to Tewi, so if she says it's unavoidable, that's it.

Aya: Rabbit camaraderie is weaker than I thought.

Reisen: She's particularly cold.

Aya: What about you?

Reisen: I'm the only moon rabbit, so I don't have that much camaraderie.

Aya: And yet you formed the Rabbit Horn League? Even if there isn't that much camaraderie or anything like that, carrying on so coldly just seems wrong.

Reisen: Well, the Earth rabbits won't listen to me at all!

Aya: You're quite the leader.

Reisen: Anyway, I'm the only moon rabbit, and too few Earth rabbits understand human language...

Aya: That's true enough, but I still can't believe you formed a league.

Reisen: That was just a decision between me and Tewi. Since rabbits only follow her orders, almost everything's left to her.

Aya: I see. So what's Tewi like?

Reisen: Apparently, she was controlling rabbits long before I got to Earth, but... well, I don't really know any details.

Aya: I can't believe you'd make such a senseless, suspicious rabbit your subordinate.

Profile

Reisen Udongein Inaba

A moon rabbit who escaped from the moon when Earthlings began an invasion. Her red eyes drive humans mad.

Appearances: Imperishable Night, Phantasmagoria of Flower View