/jp/ - Otaku Culture

I wished her luck, then finally got around to what I wanted to ask. I started by asking if Kagerou had ever heard of Yamame Kurodani. "Er...Maybe? She's, um, that tsuchigumo, right? Lives in the caves near the human village? I had to hide in those caves once, when I got caught in the rain on the way back from the Misty Lake." She'd met Yamame then? "Er, Not...quite." I raised an eyebrow. "I, um, may have gotten caught in her webs. I didn't get much of a chance to see her." Once more, I had to try and stifle a laugh. Kagerou's embarrassment was back in full force, and she put her hands on her hips. "Don't laugh at me! I'm still a dangerous youkai!" That only made it even harder, and it took a minute or so to get myself back together. "S-So, um, anyway. I didn't get much of a chance to actually see her, but she was happy to free me from the webs I was tangled in after reprimanding me for getting tangled up..." Yamame was nice like that. I had personal experience. "She was, er...Nice, I think. People always tell me how dangerous the underground youkai are, but she wasn't mean to me. I might have repressed most of that from my memory, though." No, I said. She is nice. "Oh, okay. That's good. So, um, why do you ask?"

This was the delicate bit. I didn't really want to spill all my worries about Yamame's lack of socialization outside of her sisters, but I did want to explain enough to Kagerou that she understood what I was getting at. In the end, I settled on saying that I wanted to try attending one of the Grassroots Youkai Network's meetings, and I wanted to bring Yamame with me. "Really?" Kagerou asked, blankly. "Sorry, um, I've just...Never heard of a human wanting to come to a youkai gathering before. W-Well, okay, I'll talk to Hime. She knows you, right?" I nodded. I'd been meaning to get over to the Misty Lake for ages. That reminded me, I still had one of Wakasagihime's stones that she'd left behind when I'd first met her. I went to reach into my pocket to grab it, then remembered that I wasn't wearing the same clothes. It was sitting on a shelf in Yamame's workshop, where I'd put it so I wouldn't forget it.
Then, I'd forgotten it. Outstanding.

Kagerou stared at me as I rummaged around in all of my pockets. "Are you, um, okay?" She slowly asked, and I smiled and nodded, mentally kicking myself. Finally, I sighed and said that I'd have to get the stone over to Wakasagihime at the meeting, assuming I could go. Then, it occurred to me that perhaps trying to get Yamame into more social situations by throwing her into a big meeting probably wasn't the greatest idea I'd ever had, so I asked Kagerou how many people were usually in the meetings. "Well...Hime and I. Sometimes Hina Kagiyama from the mountain comes, but her misfortune sometimes gets in the way, so it's only on rare occasions that she makes the trip. I've been trying to get Banki to come for ages, but she's still holding out. Maybe, though...I'll keep working on her." It sounded to me like these were not huge meetings, so perhaps things would be fine. "Well, er, you can count on Hime and I to be there, if nothing else."

I nodded, thanking Kagerou. Hopefully, Yamame would be happy to come along, but I was willing to try and drag her along because I had a suspicion that she would repeat what she had done today and try to use work as an excuse. "So..." Kagerou began, looking at me questioningly. "I'll, er, talk to Hime, but she's almost definitely going to say yes, so how about at the Misty Lake in a week? Sometime after dark, I think." That was a little bit of a problem for me, but it wouldn't be for Yamame, so I nodded regardless and said that I'd be happy to come, and I'd try to bring Yamame with me as well. "Okay! Looking forward to it!" Kagerou seemed a lot more cheerful now, perhaps because she'd gotten someone new for the Grassroots Youkai Network. "We'd better get back inside before your friends come looking for us. You, um, go on ahead." I looked at her for a moment, then agreed and stepped back into the café, pausing when I began to hear quiet talking from outside. Was Kagerou talking to herself? I couldn't hear all that much of the conversation. "-Willing to join, so why won't you?"