nerdiethings | Ranma CMO Post

[O-oh. Oh god.

Tears spring to her eyes.]

Y-you don't know what you're saying... I didn't swear to serve because of who you could be... I wanted to serve who you already are...

And who I am is a person who wants to make sure the future is safe and happy for everyone.

[ She lifts her hand to wipe away any stray tears. ]

I accepted your choice. I think you could do much better for your life, but… if this makes you happy, I won’t argue it further.

So do you understand why I want this?

But I-I can't. [She shakes her head, desperately.] I can't get a better life, I don't deserve that. The only thing I can do is...

I want to protect you. I.. I owe you that. I owe your sister that...

You don't owe us, Ranma. You didn't kill my sister, regardless of your family status or who you worked for.

You can't take on that responsibility.

But I could have. I could have stopped... I could have saved...

[The tears only get more pronounced.]

I was there, Fuu.

[Fuu's normally so unflappable. Nothing seems to get under her skin, even in the short amount of time that Ranma has known her, even in her sadness, she seems... prepared, ready, regal, all the time.

That is not the case right now. Her eyes widen and her face just... falls. It's one thing to know your sister is dead. It's another entirely to be speaking with someone who was present for the event that changed your entire life.]

... What?

When the estate... marched on the town... I was there.

I was right outside the house where... Kuu was.

I don't... understand. [Her eyes are glassy.]

H-how... how could you have been there...?

I... was sent out... with the knights. They wanted me to help the... hunt.

I didn't kill anyone... but I might as well have.

The... hunt? W-what on earth could they have been hunting... that could have brought on my sister's death?

...they were hunting... for a healer. A peasant with magic. Lord Genma was paranoid that it would make the locals feel powerful enough to rise up against him...

But she wasn't a peasant! How... how did word even get back to him? She had barely arrived...

I don't think... the rumors were based on Kuu at all. Lord Genma wanted a target to feel strong. The people who wanted to please him invented one.

[She's not sure whether it's better or worse now that she knows what her sister died for.]

... You couldn't have stopped them. No one could have, except the Saotomes themselves. You can't put the weight of that on your shoulders.

[She gulps.]

I could have. Lord Genma's orders may have come first but... I could have lied. I could have invented something...

[She pulls back, only because her legs feel weak. She has to find the bed to sit on.]

... I think... almost every night... that I should have gone in her place. We had talked about it. I could have persuaded her to stay. None of this would have had to happen if it had been me...

But we can't hold that weight. We can't change what already happened... I don't want you to swear yourself to a cause or a person because of guilt. It isn't fair to you or I... and it isn't fair to Kuu. There shouldn't be any more suffering in her name. There's been enough already.

[Ranma's kept a sturdy posture for the most part since she's been able to walk again but. Exhaustion takes over. She slumps to the floor, leaning against the wall.]

That's why... I don't want you to risk yourself. These duties, the way that survivor attacked you...

There's so many small villages and villas, away from the capital and the center target of power. Wouldn't something like that... be better?

I'm not going to run. Genma Saotome wants us to be afraid, to lose hope.

I won't. And in order to make sure no one else does... I'll stay. I have the power to change things now, more than before. I'll just have to be more careful, be more guarded when I go out.

Its not as easy as that... You don't know what to look for.

And... and I don't know if its good if do start looking for it.

If someone wants me dead, they'll find me no matter where I am. Kuu was at one of those towns, further away and safer.

I'm not afraid. [It's a lie. She's kind of terrified.]

[She covers her face in her hands, stress dripping down her face with the tears. She lets out a shaky, struggling breath.

And then when she looks up, her eyes are steely and harsh again.]

Alright. As you say. No guilt should determine my oath.

Pitch me your cause.

[ There’s something that frightens Fuu in that look. Like she’s looking at someone else entirely. ]

My… cause?

If you stick on this path, you're going to be taking over the throne someday. What are you going to do with that power?

[ she balls her fists in the skirt of her nightgown. And then she closes her eyes with a deep breath.

It seems like Ranma is seeing something she isn’t. Like she’s looking into Fuu and passing a judgment more than serving. ]

… I want to unite the noble houses. Bring them all under the same rule of law, so that none can go mad with power like Genma Saotome.

I want to enshrine rights for the people that allow them the same privileges and care as those with noble birth, and create a form of governance with them, where they will have fair representation. I’ll limit the powers of the church and inquisitors to grant them privacy and safety.

I want to put more effort into studying firstborn magic, to see if it’s a gene or a blessing that has been passed down. And if I can find and isolate it… I want to make sure it’s no longer just firstborns and nobles.

[She listens, carefully. Patiently. Without interrupting.]

...Its a good cause. A reasonable cause. It could change the land for the better.

[She doesn't say it gently. Just matter-of-factly.]

How will you do these things?

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