4DISCLAIMER: ZUN owns Touhou and its characters, I only own my OCs.
Full Summary: Some of Gensokyo's residents are faced with Shadows; their past or rejected selves. OC gets side-tracked, but into another situation instead of the rampage. Now, this OC helps Gensokyo get better prepared for the shadows. Arcs so far are OC (beginning), first part of Lunarians (Eientei), Ten Desires (First major arc), intermission (1 or 2 chapters for OC to teach new Persona users like Chen how to combat shadows), (Undecided arc), intermission, (undecided arc), intermission, (undecided arc), and the confrontation with Watatsuki sisters. That's the tentative plan, but it will change. Sanae Kochiya is already a Persona user (blame the fandom for having her be an otaku prior to Gensokyo), but she only gets two Personas. Persona fans, Chen's Persona, Nekomata, will be different from the standard one, having progressively better skills as she levels up, Sanae's Personas, Jiraiya and Konohana Sakuya will retain their skills and level up parameters.
Reisen was leading Damion across Gensokyo towards Youkai Mountain. Along the way, Damion recapped his story to Reisen to help pass the time. After telling his story that he remembered so far, he changed the topic to other things.
"Judging by your clothes, I take it you're a student at some private school?" Damion started.
"School? There are only a handful of schools in Gensokyo, but I don't think any of them are private schools. Besides, this is what I normally wear. Is there a reason for asking about my clothes?"
"No, I'm going to guess it's a culture difference between humans and youkai"'
"More like from an outsider who still needs to adjust to Gensokyo" Reisen retorted.
Damion was somewhat offended. "Couldn't you have worded that a little nicer? I only got here in Gensokyo an hour ago, and I STILL don't know my way around"
This time, Reisen backed down. "Sorry, I thought you were making fun of me about my outfit"
"Oh, so this is why you got defensive? My bad. Let's change the topic"
"Yeah"
Damion and Reisen were quiet for a moment. Reisen was upset over the misunderstanding, while Damion was mentally beating himself up for asking a stupid question.
Then, Reisen changed the topic to something more casual.
"In case you were wondering about what I was doing in town, I'm a medicine salesperson for Eirin. As for the weapons, they were standard issue pistols in from… training… in a faraway place" Reisen hesitated with the last part, not wanting to tell him the truth about where she really came from.
"Alright, but I can't help wondering what kind of 'training' you went through to get issued those guns" Damion asked with curiosity.
"I'd rather not talk about it"
"Okay. Sorry if I was prying too much"
"It's just that there's a reason why I don't want to talk about it. Just call it paranoia" Reisen laughed lightly.
"Fair enough. So, who's Eirin?" Damion asked, changing the subject once again.
"Eirin Yagokoro is a pharmacist who moved to Gensokyo a long time ago from… a faraway place… for personal reasons…but doesn't want to go back. As a result, she went into hiding here in Gensokyo and took up a job as a doctor/pharmacist due to her genius-level intelligence and extensive knowledge in medicine" Reisen explained enthusiastically.
"Sounds very interesting"
"It would be as cool as you think, if not for her hesitation to leave her office. I don't know why she stays at her house, but all I know is that it's hard to find her house. There's also another reason why she lives in a hard-to-find location; it so that… assassins or thieves… wouldn't harm, steal, or abduct her"
"Is there someone or something that you don't want others to know about?" Damion asked her, prying into the matter.
"I'm sorry, but I don't trust you enough to talk about it with you" Reisen answered.
Then, the two arrived at the entrance to Youkai Mountain.
"Here you go, Youkai Mountain. I hope you find whatever it is you're after, Damion. I still say you're either bold or stupid to want to venture into the home of Youkai that are out to eat humans" Reisen said to Damion.
"Sorry, but I'm curious as to what you do. I'll check out Youkai Mountain another time" Damion suddenly answered.
"If it means he'll stay away from Youkai Mountain and avoid being eaten, then so be it" Reisen thought to herself.
"Oh, alright. I was headed to the human village to sell Eirin's medicine and then return back to Eientei. That's all I'm really doing" Reisen answered.
With that, Reisen lead Damion to her destination.
During the walk to the human village, Reisen started a conversation of her own.
"Now that I think about it, do you know why you know that instant-death spell?"
Damion pondered the matter for a moment, hoping to jog his lost memories. Unfortunately, the attempt failed.
"I'm sorry. I still can't remember why I know this spell. If I knew why, then I probably would've been able to find out why I'm here in Gensokyo, too" Damion answered apologetically.
"It's not your fault; I think it might've been Yukari Yakumo's for trying out a new gap to bring people into Gensokyo that might've altered memories" Reisen speculated.
"Who's Yukari Yakumo?"
"Oh, her? She's a gap youkai that sleeps most of the time, and is said to have helped in the creation of the Hakurei Border. Unfortunately, she uses her gap powers ways that might be rude or inappropriate"
"In what ways would she use her powers?"
"She might sneak into where you are when you need to be alone for personal matters like… stuff… that people do when they're in heat. She might even pull you into one of her gaps if she's really bored and do who-knows-what when she abducts you. Or worse, she might open a gap inside you and mess around with your intestines"
Damion shivered at the last thought.
"It's best you stay on her good side" Reisen added.
"I'll make sure to keep that in mind"
"One other thing; she's usually seen with her shikigami, Ran Yakumo, or her shikigami's shikigami, Chen"
"Shikigami?"
Reisen sighed in disappointment. "They're beings that serve the summoner" Reisen tried to explain in simple terms.
"Is that so?"
"Yeah, but Yukari's Shikigami was strong enough to get her own shikigami, Chen, so now Yukari's got, say, two shikigamis, in a sense. Does this make any sense?"
"So it's like saying Chen is Ran's bitch, who is Yukari's bitch's bitch?"
"That's a very crude way of saying it, but you have the right idea" Reisen shot back somewhat angrily.
"Sorry, I couldn't think of the right word at the time. My apologies, Reisen" Damion apologized.
"I see"
"Who's a bitch!" came a booming voice around the area.
"Oh crap, it's Yukari!" Reisen said to Damion.
A gap opened next to the two travelers, and out popped a blonde woman who looked to be in her thirties. In her hand was a paper fan that was traditional to Japan. Behind the woman was another girl who looked like a fox/human hybrid.
Reisen hid behind Damion in fear of the gap youkai.
"Wait, this is Yukari Yakumo?" Damion asked, looking at Reisen, and then at the two coming out of the gap.
The fox/human hybrid girl shyly hid behind the blonde woman upon seeing the young man.
Yukari was royally pissed off when she came out of the gap, and she still is after looking at Damion.
"Yes, I am. Now then, what did you just call me!" Yukari yelled at him.
"I didn't call you anything. I was trying to figure out what 'shikigami' were and didn't think of the right word to describe them" Damion shouted back to Yukari.
Damion and Yukari stared at one another with eyes locked onto one another, as though waiting for a single moment to kill one another.
"Yukari, would you mind letting me explain what shikigami are to this young man?" the fox/human hybrid girl hiding behind Yukari asked her master.
Yukari turned to look at her shikigami, and then backed off, slightly less angry. Once Yukari was out of the way, the shikigami bowed politely and introduced herself.
"My name is Ran Yakumo. As you can probably guess, I am Yukari-sama's shikigam. Shikigami come in a variety of forms, shapes, and usefulness. Shikigami are beings that are summoned by humans, youkai, demons, or other strong, magical beings to serve their summoner" Ran explained to him.
Damion took in the information calmly and efficiently.
"As for what I am, I'm a kyuubi youkai. Kyuubi being nine-tail fox youkai. As Reisen mentioned, I have a shikigami of my own, named Chen. Unfortunately, Chen does not have a shikigami of her own, nor does she have the strength to get one of her own" Ran added, talking more about herself.
"Oh, so that's what shikigami are. Are they like maids, butlers, slaves, or servants?" Damion asked them.
Ran became defensive upon being asked the question. "No, we're not maids, butlers, or slaves. Those words are rather derogatory and offensive to shikigami. Servants would probably be the most accurate word that we shikigami tolerate"
"I'm sorry, but I'm kind of new to the idea; I was taught very little about youkai and demons back in my home world" Damion replied apologetically.
"Hmph, if you're done explaining what shikigami are, Ran, then why don't you teach him some manners in front of me?" Yukari demanded.
"Not exactly the first impression I would give to people I just meet. It's more like terrorism than just a spoiled, rotten princess having a temper tantrum" Damion shot back sarcastically.
This enraged Yukari even more.
"Yukari-sama, please let me handle this" Ran begged her master.
Fortunately, Yukari stepped back into her gap to let Ran do the talking for her.
"I'm sorry about Yukari, but it seems she overheard your 'mistake' at the wrong time. She was having a bad day with Chen learning to take over my chores for the day, and Chen messing up so many things that should've just been simple tasks. Please don't view her attack on you as a personal grudge" Ran politely asked him.
Damion nodded. "If that's the case, then I sincerely apologize. Had I known you and Yukari were having a bad day, I would've chosen my words more carefully" Damion apologized to Ran.
Suddenly, Yukari came out of the gap, pushing Ran aside. Fortunately, she seemed to have calmed down after hearing Damion's sincere apology.
"Hmph, I forgive you now that you know what was troubling me today" Yukari huffed before retreating into her gap.
Reisen came out from behind Damion and bowed to Ran. Ran bowed back in return.
"Oh, by the way, what youkai is Chen?" Damion asked Ran suddenly.
"Oh, Chen is a Nekomata. Her power is advanced black magic, and she works for both Yukari and myself" Ran explained.
"Okay, sorry to have bothered and/or upset you" Damion shot back, bowing.
Ran bowed back and retreated into the gap that Yukari made. After both Yukari and Ran retreated back into the gap, Yukari closed the gap behind them.
Damion sighed a breath of relief, but then he noticed Reisen being terrified.
"What's wrong, Reisen?" Damion asked out of concern.
Reisen perked up from being called, and sighed a breath of relief after realizing that Yukari and Ran were gone.
"You scared me, Damion. I thought you were going to be killed by Yukari because of your lack-of-a-better-word moment. Please, don't make fun of or insult Yukari Yakumo because we never know when she's awake and listening to us" Reisen advised him.
Damion apologized to her and had her lead the way, once again, to the human village.
This time, Damion brought up another conversation, completely unrelated to the previous one.
"So, the weather is rather nice, isn't it?" Damion asked.
"That's not quite a question that will lead to a meaningful conversation. It's more like asking a question that only leads to an obvious answer" Reisen shot back.
"I see, sorry. I don't know what else to talk about while we travel" Damion replied honestly.
Reisen just smiled at this, then commented about it. "You're quite honest. Most youkai aren't true to themselves or others, and they like to lie a lot unless it's serious business"
"I try to be honest whenever possible unless there's a really, REALLY good reason for me to lie. For example, having to lie to keep someone safe from harm would be one of those times I would definitely lie. Another time would be if I had to act as a distraction to allow an opportunity to let someone important get to safety" Damion replied.
"Alright then, let me ask you this: Do you believe there is civilization on the moon that aren't humans?" Reisen asked, opening up to Damion a little because of how he stood up to Yukari and the misunderstanding.
"Civilization, on the moon, that aren't people? It's been speculation for us humans for a while, similar to one belief that there were martians. Unfortunately, the belief became a popular topic for fantasy stories on television, stories, and games in the human world"
"That's not exactly what I'm asking. Do you believe there exists a civilization on the moon that isn't human?"
"Oh, I personally am not sure what to believe. I know Gensokyo is a different place, so I would imagine that there would be. Given, I'm in a completely different world where almost anything can happen"
"I see. Sorry for asking you that strange question"
"There is a civilization, huh?" Damion suddenly asked.
"Huh! What makes you say that?"
"Psychology. When a question is asked a certain way after a sense of trust is established between individuals, that means they're testing the other person's ideology behind something before revealing an important fact"
"Ugh, it's like you can read my mind, similar to Satori Komeji's power"
"Who's Satori?"
"Oh, she's currently Gensokyo's only mind-reader with a natural ability to do so. She can also read a person's heart. In other words, you're like an open book if you come across her" Reisen added.
"I guess she uses the magical method of reading minds, whereas psychology is not as reliable but gets similar results as actual mind-reading"
"I guess psychology can't match up to Satori's power"
"You're probably right, but psychology is more like reading another's body behavior, what the other person says and how they say it, as well as the circumstances around the individual around the time when they say things…"
"Like I said before, my brain hurts trying to figure out what you are saying about psychology" Reisen interrupted.
Damion realized he used too many words. "Oh, sorry. Let's just call psychology a 'hunch' based on circumstances around the individual"
"A hunch huh? That seems to make sense, though it doesn't have the same 'feel' of importance"
"It's as simple as I can say, without confusing you with the technical details" Damion admitted.
Reisen smiled though. "So, what 'hunch' were you getting at with what I tried to say?"
Damion smirked and gave his answer: "You were trying to tell me that there is a civilization on the moon, but you weren't sure how to break the news to me. Deciding to use the indirect approach, you introduced me to the idea to get my thoughts. I think that hunch should be detailed enough"
"Holy… psychology is a scary thing to go up against. You practically read my mind"
"Unfortunately, psychology is mostly deductions based on details that you are given, and have to consider details that are not told"
"Deduction?"
"It's mostly putting together information to create new facts that are consistent, or true based on the facts that made them up"
"How does deduction work?"
Before Damion could begin his explanation of deduction, they were stopped by someone in the middle of the road. Behind the woman in front of them was vast, open plains that looked big enough to be the foundation of a big village.
The woman in front of Damion and Reisen. This woman was wearing a blue dress with an unusual-looking hat that seems like a small house. On the hat was a big red ribbon and another ribbon below the collar of her shirt. She has silver hair with blue highlights.
"Ah, hello Reisen" the woman greeted.
"Hello. This is Damion, a human friend who seems to be able to hold his own against the rampaging monsters" Reisen answered, introducing Damion.
"Ah, a human male? That's certainly rare in Gensokyo. Come in, come in. Let me just return the human village's history so we can enter" the woman answered.
"Wait, return the history of a village? How does that even work?" Damion asked.
"Oh, pardon me. My name is Keine Kamishirasawa. I am a teacher of the human village school, as well as the guardian of the village. It's a pleasure to meet a new human" Keine bowed and then began to work her magic.
Keine, before starting the procedure to put the human village's existence back, changed into her EX form. Slowly but surely, Damion saw considerable change in Keine; Her clothes changed color from blue to green. She began to grow a pair of horns with her left horn adorning a red ribbon. Also, her silver hair with blue highlights changed slightly to silver with green highlights Aside from that, there weren't that many changes to Keine's appearances.
"What youkai are you!" Damion asked in surprise.
EX Keine chanted some incantations that Damion did not understand. To Damion, it sounded like a mixture of Latin, Greek, and a variety of other languages that Humankind has used over the course of history. Once the chanting was finished, the entire human village started to appear as if ceasing to being invisible.
"Holy cow!" Damion practically yelled when he saw EX Keine's power.
"There, this is the human village" EX Keine said to Damion after walking Reisen and the young man into said village.
Keine, after using her EX form's power, reverted back to her human form.
"As for what youkai I am, I'm a were-hakutaku. Please don't mention this to the human villagers, as it may lead them to panic, learning that there's a youkai in the village" Keine asked the young man.
"Then, what about Reisen?" Damion asked.
"Oh, I told the humans that she's a human cosplayer who makes medicinal deliveries" Keine answered.
"I kind of have a hard time believing that"
Keine suddenly fell silent. Damion noticed this too.
"What's wrong, Keine?" Damion asked.
"It's just that the humans, despite my efforts to try and convince them that not all youkai are bad, fail to understand that there are youkai that help or enjoy the presence of humans without ill intent or selfish desires" Keine admitted.
"In other words, It's almost futile to show the humans in the village the good youkai" Reisen added.
"I'm sorry, but the mere mention of a youkai near the village scares the humans into panic. I told them that I'm a magician who has the power to hide the village with my magic, and make it seem nonexistent to other youkai. Believe me, I tried to establish a positive feel for youkai, but the men that go hunting get eaten by the youkai they hunt. I end up having to learn from the surviving men that return that some of the men that they go hunting with end up eaten. It pains me to tell the families of the men that their fathers or husbands got eaten by youkai" Keine explained. She was crying while explaining this to Damion.
Suddenly, Damion wrapped his arms around Keine, embracing her. Unfortunately, this act of kindness did not go over well with Reisen Udongein Inaba.
"Wh-wh-what are you doing to Keine!" Reisen yelled quietly to Damion.
Damion hushed her and explained, "Some humans hug one another like this to show support for others in distress of some sort"
Damion then turned to Keine in his arms.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Keine. If you need to cry, let it all out" Damion said to Keine gently.
Taking him up on the offer, Keine began shedding tears at the memories of telling the families the bad news.
"There there, Keine" Damion whispered to her.
After what seemed like a minute, Keine stopped crying and apologized to Damion. "I'm sorry, I'm usually more composed than this, but it really pains me to be the bearer of bad news to the people of the village." Keine apologized.
"Alright, Damion. Please elaborate on what you just did to my friend" Reisen asked the young man sternly.
"It's okay, Reisen. Like Damion said, it's a human thing to show support for others. Besides, leaning on someone for help, both literally and figuratively, is actually one of the most important things to do to show your support" Keine explained for Damion
"Please refrain from doing that, it makes me think you're suddenly taking advantage of her" Reisen countered.
"Well, I'm sorry but some humans act without thinking of the consequences. This was one of those moments where my sympathy took over and acted before me realizing what I was doing. AFTER I realized what I was doing, then I went along with it, thinking I was trying to show support, Reisen" Damion argued back.
"I'm sorry it seemed like a misunderstanding, Reisen" Keine apologized.
Then, Reisen understood what happened; it was a culture difference issue for Reisen, since she never really understood human emotions and how humans support one another in times of need.
"I'm sorry. I guess it's my lack of understanding of humans that caused me to misunderstand" Reisen admitted.
Then, after apologies were made and misunderstandings were cleared, the three of them entered the human village.
Inside the human village, the buildings were mostly made of wood and bamboo. The designs had a modern feel and look to them, but the material says otherwise. Some of the buildings in a newer part of the human village looked like it was being constructed with more familiar materials that Damion was used to; concrete and bricks.
Damion wasn't surprised to see the majority of the humans to be female, with a few men spotted every now and then.
Keine noticed Damion's expression from looking around the village. "I'm sorry there aren't many men in the human village. Most of the men go hunting for food outside the village, or play outside the village but not too far, or just hardly show up in Gensokyo" Keine explained to Damion.
The looks that Damion were getting from the females were making him nervous.
"I have to get to work, so I'll come find you once I'm done" Reisen said to Damion before leaving to do her business.
This left Damion alone with Keine, and travelling through the human village.
"Oh, don't mind the girls' stares. They're just curious about a new face, that's all" Keine assured Damion.
Unfortunately, the comment didn't help Damion's uneasiness.
"Sorry, even with the knowledge that they're curious, I can't help shake the feeling it's more than curiosity in their eyes and minds" Damion answered honestly
"What do you mean, 'more than curiosity in their minds'? Are you like Satori Komeji who reads minds and hearts?" Keine asked, as though hearing a shocking fact.
"No, but it's something I learned in psychology about the situation I'm in"
"Psychology? Can you tell me about psychology, and more about yourself after class? I have to get back to teaching very soon as the children are currently in recess" Keine informed him.
"Oh, do you mind letting me see the school?" Damion asked her.
"Sure. Perhaps you can tell the kids about where you came from" Keine replied happily.
Damion, unfortunately, looked down in sadness.
"There's a problem with me talking about where I came from" Damion muttered somewhat melancholically.
"Oh, is it something painful?"
"Actually, my story, that I remember so far, is quite a sad one that I don't feel comfortable talking to children about. They wouldn't understand half of what I went through, nor would their parents like what I would tell them" Damion warned.
"Oh, you're going to have to tell me that story"
Then, the two of them arrived at the school. It was aptly called "Kamishirasawa School"
Keine led Damion into the school, up the stairs to the second floor, and into a classroom that had her nameplate on the door to the classroom.
"Please, if you don't mind, tell me about your story" Keine asked him, seating herself at her table.
Damion told her everything that he remembered. His creation by a god to be a participant in a 'game' that the god set up to find a successor to his throne and powers, his journey in the tournament and the friends he made, the Heinz Dilemma at the end of the tournament, the prize for winning that tournament on top of being successor to the throne and powers, the tough decision he had to make after learning what he WANTED to do with the god's powers but ended up sacrificing his friends to escape the destruction of his home world. And most importantly, his regret over killing his friends.
"That's… just too terrible!" Keine commented on his story, feeling sadness for the second time today.
"I know, but I don't remember anything past that. I don't know if it's because of amnesia, or because of something else that I can't remember"
"Do you mind if we change the subject?" Damion offered.
Keine nodded upon being asked the question. It also helped calm Keine of her sadness from hearing the story.
"So, what was it that you wanted to talk about instead?" Keine asked.
"It's been on my mind since I got here and since I talked to Reisen about this"
"Yes, what is it?"
"Do the schools here in Gensokyo teach psychology?"
This question seemed like a new, unknown subject that Keine had no idea about.
"Um, I don't exactly know. What is psychology anyway?"
Damion sighed and gave her a crash course on the matter. "It's a subject used by humans in the human worlds to help them understand the actions, thoughts, and motivations behind what other humans do and say. In addition…"
"Sorry to interrupt, but you said 'understand the actions, thoughts, and motivation'? Is it like knowing how to read minds similar to Satori?"
Damion was somewhat upset by being interrupted, but he let it slide.
"I don't know who Satori Komeji is, but I'm going to assume she uses magic to read minds. If that is the case, then psychology is like a lesser version of mind reading from magic, only from a scientific method that involves deduction and reasoning instead of magic"
Keine had the look of confusion, similar to Reisen when Damion tried explaining to her.
"Let's just call it a 'hunch' based on facts that are told and facts that you have to think deeper about" Damion gave her the same answer he gave Reisen.
"So it's a hunch? That doesn't really sound impressive"
"For lack of a better word at the time anyway. Let's just say that it's putting together facts that you hear from someone and then gathering more facts that the other person doesn't tell you. Let me give you an example of how psychology works…"
Unfortunately, Damion was interrupted by the school bell, and the children playing around from recess stormed into the classroom and took their seats.
Damion had the look of nostalgia, as he remembered protecting a child back in his home world, but then Keine noticed Damion's expression.
"Either you have a soft spot for kids, or you're a pedophile"
This comment pissed off Damion.
"I am not a pedophile. I don't know why, but the sight of children playing, and growing up in a safe and lively environment just makes me feel like an old man who's enjoying his last moments of life" Damion shot back defensively.
"Oh, can't you take a joke?"
"Sorry, but I don't take kindly to being called a pervert or pedophile. Please refrain from teases or jokes like that or I might just go crazy with my spells"
The last part of that comment surprised Keine.
"Oh, so you're a danmaku user?"
"No, I'm a magician of sorts, thought I don't remember how I got my powers"
"I see. Let's talk more about this later, as I have class to teach" Keine ended the conversation right there.
She turned her attention to the class and welcomed them back from recess.
"Today, class, I will be introducing you to a friend who came from outside Gensokyo. Meet Damion" Keine introduced Damion to her students.
Damion bowed his head and briefly introduced himself. "My name is Damion, and I'm new to Gensokyo. Like Keine, I also use magic, but not as powerful as her"
Damion became popular with the boys, but some of the girls weren't amused.
"Damion-san, what magic do you know?" one of the young boys asked him.
Damion forgot one important thing; he mustn't tell them that he knows instant-death spell, or he might frighten the children. He did, however, come up with an answer to their question.
"Damion-san, how did you find the human village?"
"Damion-san, do you like anyone in Gensokyo?"
"Damion-san, do you hunt youkai?"
Damion was being bombarded with questions faster than he could come up with an appropriate answer to each one.
Keine noticed the troubled expression Damion had from being asked so many questions, and she hushed the class. "Class, please! One at a time. Can't you see Damion-san is troubled by being asked so many questions?"
With the support he got from Keine, Damion was able to calm down and think his answers through.
"As for magic that I know, I know darkness and fire magic so far" Damion answered the first question.
"Oh, magic similar to Rumia-chan and Mokou-chan?" Keine asked him.
"Who are they?"
Keine leaned in towards Damion's ear and whispered a little about them both. "Rumia is a youkai that eats humans and can manipulate darkness to where she can enshroud herself in said darkness. Fujiwara No Mokou is a friend of mine who sometimes visits the human village to play with the children, and her power is the resistance to and manipulation of fire"
"Oh, okay. No, I'm not that skilled enough to be on par with Rumia or Fujiwara no Mokou in terms of master of ability. Sorry, but I'm not as strong as them" Damion admitted honestly.
Damion's popularity with the boys dwindled a bit from his comment. Damion noticed the disappointment in the children, and asked them, "What, do you expect a newcomer to Gensokyo to be all-powerful and able to overpower each and every youkai he or she meets?"
The response Damion got wasn't exactly what he expected; the kids nodded 'yes' to Damion's question.
"Well, sorry to disappoint. I'm not an all-powerful person; I'm just a person who learned enough magic to fight some youkai" Damion admitted.
The reaction Damion got from the kids weren't exactly the kind he would expect.
"Anyway, for the second question I was asked, I found the human village by meeting Reisen I helped her fight off some youkai, and we became friends from there"
Some of the girls in the class grew slightly jealous at Damion's answer.
"As for the third question, whether I like anyone in Gensokyo, I cannot say because I don't know anyone that well. I told you, I just got here, and it would be crazy for me to just fall in love with the first person I see"
Damion's answer was understood by the children, and made sense to them.
"As for the fourth question, whether I hunt youkai, I don't exactly hunt youkai for fun; I hunt them if I'm the one being hunted. I only hunt youkai if I need to survive and stay alive"
Like the question before, Damion's answer made sense to the children.
One by one, the class got a chance to ask one question to Damion, and get to learn about him. The questions ranged from deep questions like what Damion did before coming to Gensokyo, to simple questions like if he had friends that came to Gensokyo.
One question he was asked was the one question he did not want to answer; "Damion, have you ever killed anyone?"
Damion fell silent from that question.
Keine also noticed the silence Damion was giving. She remembered Damion's story of how he erased the existence of his enemies and friends by destroying their 'diaries' that also kept them tied to their lives.
"I'm sorry, but he's not sure how to answer that question. Who else has a question?" Keine answered for Damion, trying to dodge the question.
The class started becoming uneasy from Damion's silence to that one question.
"Sorry, but can you tell me what you mean by killed? Do you mean people, animals, or youkai?" Damion asked the child.
"I meant people of course" the child clarified.
Damion looked down, and answered, "I would never kill a friend I make"
Keine knew he was lying to protect his image in front of the children, and in fact, protect himself from being shunned or being chased out of the village. If the children knew the truth about what Damion did to his friends back in his home world, he would be chased out of the village even before establishing a positive relationship with the people of the village. That, and it would be next-to-impossible to explain his story in a way that the children would understand.
"He's been through a lot; he told me about what happened to him, and it's not a happy story. That, and some of his memories are missing" Keine vaguely explained to the class.
The atmosphere in the class suddenly became tense.
"I'm sorry if I don't seem like a nice person; I'm just misunderstood, and I'm not comfortable talking about what I went through. You kids probably would never understand what I would tell you anyway" Damion said to the class, bowing.
"Damion, why don't you take a seat next to my seat? I think it's time for me to continue the lessons with the children." Keine suggested, seating Damion in a chair next to her desk.
The class being taught was what Damion would expect; elementary level education for the children. The class was being taught basic mental math, English, history in very detailed explanations, science, and Physical Education.
Damion already knew all the course materials that were being taught to the kids, but he was somewhat unhappy, recalling the things he did to his friends back in his home world; the Heinz Dilemma he was forced into.
Unfortunately for Keine, the class was mostly distracted by a distressed Damion.
Keine noticed this as well, and suggested that Damion freshen up in the bathroom. "I'm sorry, Damion, but can you go to the bathroom and straighten up? The children are more concerned about you than they are about their education"
Taking her up on the suggestion, Damion did just that, and left the classroom.
It took him a while to find the bathroom, being new to the human village and all.
In the bathroom, Damion rinsed his face several times. He also had to tell himself that it wasn't his fault for what he did.
"It's not my fault, it's not my fault, IT'S NOT MY DAMN FAULT THAT I WAS FORCED TO KILL THEM!" Damion kept telling himself periodically. "Every time I think about that moment where I had to choose between the game happening again and having to do my friends in… DAMN IT!"
Splashing his face again in water, he tried his best to forget about the past. Unfortunately, trying to forget the past only made his mental suffering worse.
"Why did fate have to make me choose between two extremely difficult choices! IT'S JUST NOT FAIR!" Damion mentally cursed aloud in his mind. Even more difficult was that he realized he wasn't alone in the bathroom.
He heard a toilet being flushed behind him in one of the stalls, and turned to see who it was. He settled down after seeing that it was only a child.
"Onii-san, are you alright?" the child asked him after seeing the troubled expression on Damion's face.
Damion realized why the child asked him that, and he knelt down to pat the child's head.
"I'm alright. Thanks for asking. It's just that I was thinking about what happened to me that was so sad" Damion answered the kid.
"Are you sure? Your face says that you look like you've had your heart broken by someone you loved" the young boy asked.
Damion knew that hiding the truth was only going to get the child curious, so he told the boy this white lie, "Yes, I've had my heart broken by something terrible. What happened is something that you probably will never understand. It's not that I loved someone and broke up with her, but it's just something that happened that was beyond my control. Thank you for your concern… um, who are you?"
"Suzaku, like the phoenix in Chinese mythology" the child answered him somewhat enthusiastically.
"Alright, Suzaku, thank you for your concern" Damion thanked the young boy for his support.
The boy left the bathroom after saying 'goodbye' to Damion.
The support Damion got from the child seemed to help him calm down enough to accept the fact that he can't keep thinking about the past.
"I guess relying on someone and sharing one's past with others is something I, myself, need to do instead of shouldering the pain of the past by myself… I'm such a hypocrite for sympathizing with others without realizing that I can ask others for help" Damion thought to himself.
Then, when Damion finished realizing his mistake of shouldering his past by himself, he felt a certain familiar surge of power rush into him; it was an all-too-familiar form of power that Damion forgot.
Damion clutched his head in response to the sudden feel of power rush into him from remembering that he wasn't alone. Damion couldn't remember what this power was, but it felt very, VERY familiar to him.
Then, Damion saw something that looked like a hallucination: He saw a shadowy version of himself.
The sight of a darker version of himself was terrifying.
"I am you, and there's no denying it" Shadow Damion said with an evil grin.
Damion, in fear of this, ran out of the school and raced for the exit to the human village.
END OF CHAPTER
Author's notes:
As I was writing this side-story, I felt that I was going to stick with the parent story's RPG style battle, but now that I've brought in the Persona theme into the story (Curse my obsession with the Persona 3 and Persona 4 games). So… yeah… I've decided at the last minute to make this a crossover with Persona 4 and then expand on the parent story's RPG battle system and change it to more Persona-like battle instead of Final Fantasy battle (Even though the main battle system between the two games remains the same, I'll just stick with Touhou style Persona 4 combat system. Cut me some slack, folks!)