Aftergathering 6

[clearasmud]

Rule 17 hits like a gutpunch. The plan she'd talked about, as improbable as it already was, had just become much harder.

But something - someone - digs its heels in inside her, the same way it did prior to their most recent trial. The presence of their latest, insurmountable hurdle, has the odd effect of only making Youko more determined.

They're going to win.

There's hot soup, rice, and tea in the kitchen. We're holding a meeting tomorrow morning in the conference room. I want you to be there.

- Youko

Comments

[clearasmud]

...Oh.

[ That... Seriously, oh.

Quietly: ]

I'm sorry, Elise. I had no idea.

[ And it's true - she may have been perfectly neutral towards the other woman, but it doesn't change that Youko let something completely slip her by. Ignorance was always a sin, even when it was bliss. ]

But... if things have changed - might I ask what caused that? That's quite the view to back down from.

[announcemyvictory]

[sigh] It's silly, honestly. Why should I change that? But Ashley said she trusted me. Hibiki believed in me. For some reason, they gave more than I was willing to.

[clearasmud]

I don't think it's silly. People change. It'd be much stranger if you stayed exactly the same.

[ ... ]

And those are pretty good reasons to feel differently.

[ Those girls... she wished they could have gotten better. ]

[announcemyvictory]

I suppose. With my memories, I feel differently about my farm, too. I want to learn to put more work into it myself, instead of having the servants tend the grounds and take care of the crops and watch the chickens and cows and sheep all the time. Oh, I've got sheep now! Premium livestock, of course, the festivals are in the bag. They're sort of cute when you get to know them.

[clearasmud]

Ah... That's nice, you know. Hard work feels good, no matter where you've come from or where you're going. Because it doesn't have to be about anything other than what you're doing in that moment.

[ Working hard. Not thinking too much about things. ]

I'd call it one of my favorite things, actually.

[ She knows very little about sheep, but the way Elise talks about it all - it sounds pleasant. ]

Whatever happens here, if that's the place you're headed home to - your future's a good one.

[announcemyvictory]

I hope so. I miss it... I miss living in a normal world. Not just because I was special there. Because no one had to be afraid.