Mentioned Characters: Remilia, Flandre, Flan

Another music festival is upon us. And the good news? It's my favorite one of the year! This time, the vampire sisters are taking the stage. I expect good things from them. Think about it. They live far longer than humans and are way tougher. I bet you can't even imagine their singing voices. I don't blame you. Humans can only ever see the world through the lens of human common sense. You could learn a thing or two from youkai culture. You know, broaden your horizons a little. Assuming you can stay sane around them!

"Flan. You might not be thrilled about this, but it's work. So at least pretend that we get along. Even if we're pressed up close together, keep a smile on your face." "Got it." No idea why Remilia said all that. I'm super happy to be performing with her. Even if people look at us and say, "Aww, look how much little Flan loves her big sister," in that annoying, cutesy kinda way, I honestly wouldn't care. A tangled mess of emotions suddenly welled up inside Flandre. But she forced it back down before she accidentally said anything revealing. She was used to this by now. She'd keep those feelings buried forever and go on as she always had. Because, in the end, that was what made her happiest.

If sound is the vibration of air, then what is the vibration of the world? In this case, you can think of "world" as spacetime. The answer is gravity. Gravity, or "universal gravitation," used to be understood as one of the fundamental physical forces, alongside electromagnetism, the weak force, and the strong force. But in recent years, it was learned that gravity only appears to be a force. It's actually the difference in the density of spacetime itself caused by distortions and fluctuations. And there's more. Gravity, unlike the other forces, is said to pass between brane universes.

The concert was over, so I wiped the sweat away and caught my breath. As my body cooled off, I was left with a satisfying sense of exhaustion. That's when I called out to my sister. "Hey, Remilia?" "Yeah, Flan?" "..." Even though she was busy with the post-show paperwork, I couldn't help but speak to her. Maybe the heat from all the stage lights had gotten to me. Maybe I'd breathed in too much of the madness in the air. "Never mind," I said. "I'm heading home." "OK. Good work out there. Oh, and put on the rice cooker when you get in."

Everything eventually ends up in Gensokyo. In a sense, all things are merely on their way there. Literally, all things. If everyone is someday destined to find themselves in Gensokyo, then perhaps endings were never something to be sad about.