Sakuya Izayoi barely paused in her meticulous ing as the grand front doors of the Scarlet Devil Mansion creaked open. The faint chill of the outside air drifted in, momentarily rustling the curtains. The fairy maids, ever jittery, halted their duties to goward the entrance, unsure whether they should tinue w or flee in a panic.

  Without looking up from the silver tray she olishing, Sakuya spoke in a calm, measured tone. “You are either very bold or very foolish to enter unannounced.”

  Time had paused in that moment as she slowly walked towards the front of the manor.

  Each step Sakuya took was soundless, the air itself frozen in her wake. The fairy maids remained locked iheir wings caught mid-flutter, a testament to the absolute trol she held over the flow of time. With practiced ease, she adjusted a nearby vase that had been slightly askew, tidied the hem of her immacute maid uniform, and resumed her approach toward the entrance.

  With a flick of her wrist, time resumed.

  A gust of wind carried in the st of the ke outside, mingling with the ever-present aroma of aged wood and fihe doors, now fully open, framed the figure standing beyond them.

  A woman with golden hair and an unmistakable smirk met Sakuya’s gaze with amusement. She stood casually, as if she belonged, one haing on her hip while the other adjusted the wide-brimmed hat perched atop her head.

  "Oi, oi, that any way to greet a guest?" Marisa Kirisame teased, stepping ihout hesitation. "Sheesh, ya didn’t eve me say hello before pulling your time tricks."

  Sakuya sighed, though there was no real frustration in it. "Uninvited guests don’t get a warm wele."

  Marisa grinned, uerred. ", I’m not that bad, am I?" She dusted a bit of dirt off her cloak and gnced past Sakuya toward the hallway beyond. "Smells like Patchy's been burnin’ inse again. She still holed up in the library?"

  Sakuya’s eyes narrowed. "If you're here to pester Lady Patchouli, I suggest you turn around now."

  Marisa pced a hand over her chest in mock offense. "Pester? I prefer the term ‘friendly visit.’"

  Sakuya didn’t so much as blink. "Your ‘visits’ tend to result in books going missing."

  Marisa chuckled, no denial. "Hey, knowledge wants to be free, y’know?"

  Before Sakuya could deliver a sharp retort, a soft, amused voice drifted down from the upper baly.

  "My, my, what a lively entrance."

  Both women looked up to see Remilia Scarlet leaning casually against the railing, her scarlet eyes gleaming with intrigue. The vampire’s smile was one of amusement, though there was an edge of knowing in her expression.

  "Marisa Kirisame," Remilia mused, tilting her head slightly. "Here to cause trouble again, are you?"

  Marisa smirked. "Trouble? Me? Naw, just droppin’ by to say hi. I brought some family of yours or something and Remiu had to run and handle some giant doll or something terr the human vilge.”

  Remilia’s smirk faltered ever so slightly, her crimson eyes narrowing. “Family of mine?”

  Marisa shrugged, leaning on her broom as she stepped further inside. “Yeah, weird story. Some blonde girl with wings and a real fancy way of talking. Said she had ties to the Scarlet family. Figured you’d want to sort that o yourself.”

  Sakuya’s grip on her silver tray tightened imperceptibly, though her expression remained posed. “And you simply… brought her here?”

  Marisa chuckled. “Well, yeah. Seemed like the best pp—er, introduce her, y’know? ‘Sides, not every day someone walks outta nowhere g they’re reted to a vampire noble.”

  Remilia’s gaze darkehough her smirk remained in pce. “Iing.” She turned on her heel, motioning for Sakuya. “Prepare the sitting room. If this girl truly has Scarlet blood, I’d like to see for myself.”

  Sakuya bowed slightly. “At once, Mistress.”

  Marisa grinned. “Khis’d be fun. Oh, and about Reimu—yeah, she’s busy dealing with some giant rampaging doll. You know how it is.”

  Remilia sighed, rubbiemple. “Gensokyo never ceases to be an endless parade of absurdity.”

  Marisa ughed. “Ain’t that why we love it?”

  Before anyone could respond, the grand doors of the Scarlet Devil Mansion swung open again, this time without hesitation or theatrics. A gust of cool night air swept into the hall as Luna strode in with an effortless grace, golden eyes gleaming with curiosity.

  “Ah, what a delightfully gothic abode,” she mused aloud, gng around at the high ceilings and rich crimson decor. “Truly a home befitting a noble of the night.”

  Marisa blinked as Luna casually walked past her, nothing more than a passing nod before turnitention to Remilia. “Oh, you must be the Lady of the Mansion. I’ve heard much about you, Remilia Scarlet.”

  Remilia arched an eyebrow, her smirk returning in full force. “Have you now?” Her wings twitched slightly as she studied the newer. “And whom do I have the pleasure of addressing?”

  Luna gave a small, elegant bow. “Luna… Luna Cruze.” As she straightens The air in the room grew noticeably heavier as Luna straightened from her bow, the flickering dlelight casting long shadows across her form. Her golden eyes, now a deep, blood-red, gleamed with an almost supernatural iy. Her fanged smile was slow and deliberate, a gesture.

  “The Cruze family died out shortly before I took mysister and myself into hiding from the Tepes fa.” Remilia states

  “Well, there is a story there. An i think we should get to know eachother first, I mean i could introduce you too my husband and our fiance.” Luna states with a smile.

  Remilia chuckled, folding her arms. “A husband and a fiancée? My, you’ve been busy, haven’t you?”

  Luna’s smile didn’t falter. “Well, eternity is a rather long time to spend alone.”

  Remilia’s amusement deepened. “How refreshingly practical.” Her gaze flickered toward the entrance as if expeg more arrivals. “And does this mysterious husband of yours have a name, or shall I be left guessing?”

  Luna tilted her head slightly, a pyful glint in her eyes. “Oh, I think you’ll reize it soon enough. You’ve likely already heard of Harry Potter.”

  There was a brief silence before Marisa burst out ughing. “Oh man, that guy? This keeps gettier!”

  Remilia, however, merely blinked once before her expressiouro its usual knowing smirk. “Well now,” she mused, her wings twitg slightly. “That does put things in an iing light.”

  “I am actually surprised youve heard of me, i thought this region was isoted from the rest of the world magical included,” Harry announces pulling off his invisibility cloak.

  “I have my mean’s Remilia states.”

  Harry arched an eyebrow, gng at Luna before returning his gaze to Remilia. “I don’t doubt that. You strike me as the type to have more than a few sources of information.”

  Remilia chuckled, stepping forward with an air of fidence befitting a noble. “When one has lived as long as I have, one learns that knowledge is the sharpest bde. Gensokyo may be secluded, but isotion does not mean ignorance.” She took a seat in one of the grand chairs he parlor’s entrance, elegantly crossing one leg over the other. “Besides, tales of a boy who defied death itself tend to travel far, even into the most unlikely of pces.”

  Sakuya, standing ever at Remilia’s side, gave Harry a calg look before turning to her mistress. “Shall I prepare refreshments?”

  Remilia waved a hand dismissively. “Do be a dear and bring out the fiea. We have guests, after all.”