"Marisa! Hey, Marisa!"

Nitori's voice echoed down the hallway, filling most of the cottage.

It was rare enough for Marisa to have visitors. For that visitor to be Nitori, unsocial at the best of times, was outright bizarre. She shouted, "Gimme a sec!" through the door to her workshop, hurrying to get her experiment for the day into a state where she could leave it alone for a few minutes.

With that done she stepped out into the hall, wiping her hands clean on her apron. Nitori was standing right there, barely a meter away, looking expectant. Marisa eyed her. "What's up? Kinda weird for you to just show yourself in, isn't it?"

"Eh? This place is a shop, isn't it?"

"Oh." Technically, yes, Marisa's house was a shop. She hadn't had a customer in three and a half years, though. At least, not the sort of customer who walked in and asked for services. In practice, she was in the business of tracking down frightened villagers and selling them on the Kirisame Magic Shop's 'extermination in three days or less or your money back' youkai-busting plan. "Yep! Welcome to the Kirisame Magic Shop n' all. What's up?"

Nitori hesitated, fretting with the straps of her backpack. "I want to... hire you for something."

"Uh. 'kay. Kinda weird for a youkai to request a youkai extermination, but—"

"Not that! … you steal things sometimes, right?"

"Hey, whoa. 'Steal' is a pretty harsh word, y'know?"

Nitori ignored her protests and leaned in, glancing back toward the doorway like she was afraid that they might be spied upon at any moment. "I want you to help me steal something, okay?!"

"Oh. I mean, it depends on what the thing is, but..."

"It's nothing bad! It's a super-powerful artifact. And the ones who have it are the yamawaro, so it isn't like you'd be stealing from humans or anything."

"Yamawaro? Those, like, mountain kappa? I thought they all went back to the river after the drought ended."

"Most of them did. So the ones who stayed on the mountain are real weirdos."

Marisa frowned at Nitori. Frowned down at her—a rare opportunity, given her height. Everything about this situation felt suspicious. On the other hand, stealing from youkai was basically a victimless crime. "... are you gonna tell me what this thing is? I've gotta know what it looks like to steal it, y'know."

"I'm not sure, myself. I'll know it when I see it. But, leaving it with the yamawaro will upset the balance of power, so that just makes more trouble for you in the long run. If you look at it like that, I'm kind of doing you a favor, right?" Nitori leaned in, an ingratiating smile on her face. "So how about a steep discount? We're good friends, right?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself." Marisa sighed, snagging the mini-hakkero from its spot by the door. "Why don't you start by showin' me where this thing's at?"

The location, perhaps not surprisingly, turned out to be on Youkai Mountain. It was in a stretch of mountainside Marisa had never paid any attention to, a rumpled area of valleys and ridges too high to be called part of Genbu Ravine, but low enough to avoid tengu attention. There, nestled in between ridges and hidden from the air by trees, stood a small yamawaro compound. It was a plain-looking building of cement and metal, with barely even any windows.

There was a barbed wire fence around it, with a bored-looking guard standing out front.

Marisa spent a few minutes scouting before she made a decision. "I don't think sneakin' in from behind is gonna work. … hey, is that bag of yours pretty roomy?"

"Eh? I mean, I guess."

"... think you could fit inside?"

Nitori stared back at her. "Er. Probably. Why does it matter?"

"These guys probably recognize you, right? Swap outfits with me and hop into the bag."

Nitori reddened. "W-what?!"

"You hired me 'cuz I'm the one with experience at stealing things, right? So, trust me, it's part of gettin' inside."

Nitori held her ground for a few more seconds, then relented, grumbling.

The clothes swap was a long and awkward affair. The two stood back-to-back as they stripped down to their undies in the middle of the forest, then patted the ground to find each other's discarded clothes and put them on.

"What, why's there a button inside your sleeve?"

"That's my cloaking device! Don't touch it!"

"... lots of stuff in your pockets, too..."

"You're really one to talk, aren't you? I just found a rock in one of yours."

"That's a lucky rock! Put it back where you found it!"

"Eh? What's so lucky about a rock?"

"It was on the moon, and it got burnt by this big laser shot by a goddess or something. That's gotta be lucky, right?"

"Whatever." Nitori stepped into view, now wearing Marisa's outfit. The hat drooped down crookedly on her head, battling her pigtails for dominance. "Do I really have to get in the bag?"

Marisa was already holding it open. "Yelp. Don't worry, it'll take ten minutes, tops."

"Fiiiiine."

Nitori crouched down and eased herself into the backpack, crawling the last leg of the journey. The bag wasn't massive, but it was roomy enough for her to curl up inside, her knees clasped to her chest. She scowled out at Marisa until the closing zipper obscured her face.

Once it was closed, Marisa grabbed the straps, readied herself, and hefted it up.

… then wobbled and immediately fell again, with a catastrophic clatter of junk and a soft, "Hey!" from Nitori.

"Shoulda figured that wouldn't work. Heavier than you look. Okay, hold on tight. I'm gonna drag it."

After adjusting the kappa cap on her head, Marisa grabbed each strap, leaned forward, and started dragging the bag along behind her.

It was slower progress than she'd anticipated. They'd only been just out of sight of the yamawaro compound, but the trip there was mostly uphill, and the ground was just rough enough to slow things further. When she came into sight, the guard posted out front stared at her. Her staring only grew more incredulous as Marisa laboriously dragged the bag toward her, meter by meter.

"Alright, alright!" the guard finally shouted. "That's close enough." She raised her musket, sort of uncertainly, like she couldn't decide whether it was even worth making the threat after watching Marisa creep toward the gate for three minutes. "What are you doing here?"

"Ain't it obvious?" Marisa released a strap and gestured down toward her outfit. "I'm the new girl."

"... eh?"

"I got tired of bein' a kappa. Here to defect. You yamawaro have a good thing goin' on up here, the way I see it. What with the nice view, and, uh..." Marisa glanced around and tried to think of more positive aspects of mountains. "... always a rock around when you need one. Plus, water? Way overrated."

The guard did not look convinced. "How do I know you aren't a spy?"

"Well, see, I brought this bag full of stuff to share with everyone." Marisa gave it a hearty slap, then tugged the zipper open, just far enough to stick her hand inside. "It's full of some pretty high-tech stuff, like..."

Inside the bag, she wiggled her fingers expectantly. There was no response from Nitori. "Some real cool stuff!" she repeated, louder, giving Nitori a prod.

Nitori finally took the hint. Something slapped into Marisa's palm, and she pulled it out.

It was some kind of outside world gadget, made out of plastic. Most of its bulk was a handle, with a trigger near the top. Above it was a fist-sized protrusion with a little window on front, revealing some mechanical bits within. She'd only seen a gadget with a trigger a few times, and it was that strange gun Sumireko carried around. Best to be careful.

"… like… this thing." She pointed it aside, into the air, and pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened. She pulled the trigger a few more times.

"Uh." She pointed it at the guard's chest. This time, she could see the result—something behind the window glowed, and a grid of red lasers criss-crossed the section of the uniform right in front of it.

The yamawaro's lips crumpled in an indecisive frown. She tilted her head around, inspecting the gadget from different angles. "Seems pretty weak for a laser gun, but I guess that isn't too bad. Take all that stuff inside and get somebody to sort through it. And, uh. Welcome to the mountain, sister! We run a pretty tight ship up here, but as long as you pull your weight, everything is fine."

"Uh-huh." Marisa was already straining to pull the bag through the gate. "Glad to be here."

Nitori coughed and gasped for air as soon as she was out of the bag. "Did you really have to take so long?!"

"I mean. You're kinda heavy."

"This thing is waterproof, which means it's basically airtight too."

"Sorry. … what's with all the security, though?"

"The yamawaro are like that. The water is a kappa's natural defense, y'know? Whatever happens, we can run away and hide there. These girls don't have that going for them, so…"

"So instead they've got a big fence and lots of guns?"

"Basically. Anyway, we can—"

The sound of distant footsteps cut Nitori off. They both froze, going silent. As the footsteps drew closer, they slipped over and flattened themselves against a wall.

Whoever had been approaching stopped, like they were listening for movement. After a few seconds, they proceeded. They walked past a nearby doorway, and Marisa didn't dare to peek through it for any longer than necessary, but she caught the glint of a musket barrel. So there were guards inside too.

She held a finger to her lips, cautioning Nitori to be quiet, then eased herself into the doorway. It opened into an intersection, with one hallway running left to right, and another stretching out in front of her. The guard's back was to the door, and she was clearly trying to figure out if anybody was around, staying still and peering down the hallways. Probably best to act quickly, then. Marisa focused on a spot down the hall to the right, struggling to remember the particulars of a spell she hadn't used in month. Mouthing an incantation, she moved her fingers through a few key motions.

It worked. Far down the hall, a ball of sizzling light appeared on the ground. It crackled and popped like a string of firecrackers, showering the area in a steady stream of sparks. The force launched it into the air, ricocheting from wall to wall and leaving scorch marks wherever it impacted.

The guard froze in surprise. "W-what the heck?!" After frantically glancing around for whatever had caused this disturbance in the first place, she ran off to investigate the light-ball.

As soon as she was a few meters away, Marisa grabbed Nitori's hand, yanked her through the doorway, and took off down the hall in front of them. The miniature fireworks display drowned out the sound of their footsteps.

Exploring the yamawaro facility was a slow and laborious process, complicated by the fact that even Nitori wasn't sure what they were looking for. Every few minutes, they had to sneak past a guard or a group of pedestrians. The guards just seemed to get more frequent, presumably because all the flashy shows of magic, while good distractions, were still pretty damn suspicious. They snuck into a dozen different rooms and found storage areas, assembly lines, hydroponic cucumber farms, armories, and living quarters, but no sign of Nitori's artifact.

Door number thirteen revealed what looked like another assembly line.

On the near end of the room was a pile of boxes. Some of them were clearly from the outside world, brightly-colored and still glistening under a thin layer of plastic. A few were open, revealing clear cylinders filled with stacks of thin, metallic discs. Other, clearly kappa- or yamawaro-made, boxes were stacked on the far end of the room, ready for sale. On a workbench in the middle of the room was an outside world device of some sort: A black box about half the size of a pumpkin, with a few buttons and small displays.

Nitori paused inside the doorway. Then, she rushed over and excitedly inspected the thing. "This is it! It has to be!"

"Is it? How do you know?"

Nitori shrugged her backpack off and undid the zipper, then started packing the device up for transport. She shoveled in a few of the cylinders full of discs for good measure. "I'll explain later, okay? I'm confident this is what we're looking for, though."

"What's supposed to be so dangerous about that thing?"

"Well, er. I didn't say it was dangerous, exactly..."

A firm, metallic click from the doorway announced that they weren't alone.

Marisa looked up. A yamawaro stood there, looking quite satisfied with herself as she leveled her musket at the pair of them. "I knew there were intruders! Put your hands on the ground, both of you, or I'll—"

Marisa snapped her hands up. With no time to think, she couldn't be choosy or elegant with her spells. A blast of rainbow stars exploded outward, with enough force that the recoil almost knocked her over. The yamawaro staggered back with a squeal of surprise. Her musket discharged like a thunderclap, blasting a hole in the ceiling.

The second that the spell tapered off, Marisa lunged over, shoved the artifact from a still-stunned Nitori's hands into the bag, and yanked on her wrist. "C'mon, run!"

Fortunately, there was another door on the far side of the room. Marisa barely even slowed down for long enough to shove it open. Behind them, she could hear the yamawaro scrambling into pursuit. "H-hey, get back here!"

They were going at a full sprint already, fast enough that Marisa had to keep a hand on Nitori's wrist to tug her through a tight turn without the backpack toppling her over. Its cargo jangled and clattered with every step, practically serving as a homing beacon to their pursuer. Another bullet ricocheted off the wall behind them.

They turned another corner, sprinted through a side room, and arced in a long u-turn around a series of intersections, but the yamawaro wasn't deterred. As Marisa skidded around the last corner, she plowed into another guard. The guard stumbled back, jabbed the butt of a musket into her ribs in retaliation, and squealed, "Intruders! There's intruders!"

Now there were two sets of footsteps behind them.

Marisa reached for a pocket, only to find nothing there. She was still wearing Nitori's dress. "H-hey!" she shouted back. "Get that flask outta the right pocket, the one behind the apron!"

"Is this really the time?!" Nitori shouted back.

"Trust me! Just toss the flask back at 'em!"

Nitori didn't say anything in response, but a quick glance back found her rooting around in the pocket. After a few seconds of searching, she found the flask in question and tossed it back over her shoulder. It impacted the floor with a tink of splintering glass. And, then, an explosion that rumbled down the hallway and sent a wave of hot air rushing past them.

The guards behind them staggered to a stop, coughing. Another bullet flew by, this one whizzing so close that it would've taken off her witch hat if she were wearing it.

"Alright! Now that we've got a breather…"

After rounding a corner, Marisa skidded to a stop and whipped the mini-hakkero up, pointed at the wall. She jammed the fuel flow up to maximum and gritted her teeth. The air around them roiled as enough magical energy to level a thicket focused into a single point.

"Hey, uh." Nitori took an uneasy step back. "Is this safe, or…?"

FWOOM.

The laser that erupted from the mini-hakkero was taller than Marisa was. The force shoved her backward, but she braced herself, pushing right back against it. The wall in front of them burst outward like a popping balloon. Sunlight and cool outdoor air poured in through the hole. Bricks flew into the air with the ease of a child flicking marbles. Some of them landed a few hundred meters away, tumbling down the hillside.

"C'mon!" Marisa could already hear hurried footsteps rushing toward them from all directions. In retrospect, explosions probably weren't the best way to avoid drawing attention. "Don't think we can rest just yet."

Fortunately, even yamawaro didn't seem inclined to journey too far from their compound without preparation. A few chased them down the hillside, and the occasional bullet ricocheted off the rocks around them. By the time they passed into the forest around Genbu Ravine, Marisa couldn't see any pursuit behind them. She still didn't dare to slow down for another few minutes.

Even then, she kept an uneasy eye turned toward the hillside behind them as she came to a stop. "S-so," she said, wheezing for air and leaning against a tree for support. "I really hope that thing was worth it."

"Yeah. Y-yeah. Uh." Nitori sounded just as winded. She slid her backpack off, and barely seemed to have the strength left to stop it from plummeting straight to the ground. After opening it, she fished the device out and sat it on the ground between them. "Let's see…"

They both leaned in, inspecting the device. Most of the buttons were labeled, all in a language she vaguely recognized as one of the European ones, and there was larger text on a panel on the front. She knew what the characters meant, but… "Shii… di… aaru. What the heck's a shidiaaru?"

"That's its name. Don't ask me what it means." Nitori traced her finger along a few buttons, mumbling to herself. After a few seconds of thought, she pressed one.

The device groaned indecisively, like the sound a human might make while protesting the need to get out of bed in the morning. From within a little slit on its front, one of those shiny discs popped out.

"Hah!" Nitori yanked the disc out and held it up, grinning. "Yep! This is definitely it."

Marisa stared at the disc. "Uh… so are ya gonna tell me what a shidiaaru is?"

"Heh." Nitori waggled the disc, a smug expression on her face. "Humans from the outside used to carry these things all the time. Most of them have music on them, so they're pretty valuable, but even us kappa could never figure out how to put music onto empty ones. Then, a lot of copies suddenly started turning up from the yamawaro, so it only made sense that they'd found some way to do it."

"... you told me this thing was an artifact that was gonna upset the balance of power 'n stuff."

"Eh? It is! Don't you get it? This is one-of-a-kind technology. If the yamawaro could mass-produce these discs, they'd be able to afford all the guns they want. And now that I have it..."

"You're gonna get rich?"

"Exactly! I'm going to make so much that tengu will ask to work for me!" Nitori cackled with delight, hopping in place. Lunging forward, she grabbed the collar of Marisa's dress and tugged her down, pressing into a firm, but brief, kiss.

When Nitori pulled back, she looked both surprised and embarrassed at the outburst. It didn't last long. "... hey, don't look at me like that. Business is ruthless, y'know?"

Marisa sighed, rubbing at her cheek and trying not to think too deeply about the implications of that kiss. "Yeah, well, maybe it's got just enough charity left that I can get a cut of the profits?"

"Not a chance."

"It was worth a shot. … buy me dinner and a few drinks on the way back? A performance like that has to be worth a bit of a bonus, right?"

Nitori looked up from packing the device back into her bag, considering. "Eh. Yeah, sure. Drinks're on me. We'll make a night out of it."