Chapter 14: The Otome Ceremony P1
"I'm so proud, I think I could cry."
"Stop it, mother." Much to Natsuki's chagrin, the President tightened her cross-tie until satisfied. Why was her mother so adamant with her clothing? It isn't like this ceremony was getting televised, was it? Batting the elder Kruger's hands away, she fidgeted in her wheelchair. Hell, it was just them in this grand hall—apart from the nameless door staff, but whatever. Shizuru wasn't even here yet! "Mother, can we get this done already? It's been weeks."
"Patience, patience." Leaning forward, Saeko patted down the woman's jacket suit. Flattening out the collar, she smoothed a hand over Natsuki's shoulder. "Shizuru contacted me earlier. She is ready for you." Easing back, she signalled towards the double door. "Let her in."
At last the Meister revealed herself. Uniformed and ready to go, Shizuru halted by Natsuki's side. Clasping a palm over the other, she smiled at the duo expectantly. "Saeko, Natsuki. Good morning."
"Good morning—morning."
Natsuki unconsciously stared up at the woman. Her uniform looked rather different from the standard Otome's, didn't it? Violet in colour, the outer fabric appeared to be more of a loose-clinging gown. She mildly wondered if there was any significance to the style. Somehow though, it suited her Meister's form. Tabard and boots included, though she couldn't help but find the style rather displaced. "You look nice." She blurted, noticing Shizuru's shoulder ensigns a moment later. Wasn't that Aries' white stallion…? She couldn't really see the detail from here.
"Thank you." The Meister's lips pulled into a smile. "You yourself look rather charming."
"My elder daughter is to be married—sort of!"
"Mother!" Natsuki barked, glaring the President's way, but becoming confused when she couldn't find her. Twisting her torso in her wheelchair, Natsuki cocked a brow. Saeko had dragged a chair before them and was happily watching. "You… are not helping things."
"Nonsense!" Cupping her jaw into her hands, Saeko didn't remove her loving gaze.
"Ugh." Natsuki could only muster a disgusted noise, angling her head away from the President. "Sorry she had to make things so awkward—and that it's just us." Natsuki guessed that it was for the better. If there had been an audience—especially a broadcast, she surely would've blown a fuse. "I-I have no idea what I'm supposed to do." She admitted, unpocketing a small case nervously. Opening it, her Master ring lay within this purple container, delicately cushioned by white silk. Staring at the jewellery, her throat went dry. As much as she insisted in ignoring her mother's words, it was true that this may as well be marriage. They would complete their vows and for an unspecified time be partners. If Shizuru was to be injured, she would feel the effects. Natsuki was also not oblivious to the fact Masters tended to fall for their Otome. A Meister's existence was to protect, support and care for their Master, after all.
"Do not worry, I know." Shizuru gently removed the case from Natsuki's hold. She gazed at the amethyst-fused ring for a time, brushing a thumb along its intricate floral border. Four studs pressed the gemstone into the silver band securely. Its craftsmanship was impressive; certainly befitting an Otome's Master. "You're to receive a small portion of my nanomachines. Since you're female, this makes the process much easier." She teased.
"Men get an Otome's nanomachines?" How did that even work?
"Yes. Though they're edited significantly." Shizuru honestly didn't know how the process worked. Removing the ring from the case, she handed it back to Natsuki. "My upperclasswoman, Anh Lu mentioned the process."
Anh Lu… That name was fa—"The An Nam Princess?" Natsuki arched a brow. She had the vague memory of hearing about the Eastern royal. To think that she knew Shizuru.
"Correct. Anh was my mentor."
"Ah, um. Wow." Natsuki could only mumble. But, wait a minute. Natsuki's brow furrowed; she herself already had some standard medical nanomachines. "If I'm supposed to get your nanomachines, how will they react to mine?"
That… Shizuru expectantly glanced over to Saeko who gawked at them.
"Oh, nah." Saeko wafted her hands. "The statistics from the research very rarely indicated complications due to the mixing of nanomachines. Because the Otome nanomachines are military grade, they will simply cancel out your current ones. Worst case scenario is that you'll feel sick."
Natsuki should feel confident about this explanation. Nevertheless, here she was. It is her mother, after all. Turning her attention back to her Meister, she tilted her head. "What do I do?"
"Your Master ring is useless on its own." Shizuru spoke, running the padding of her thumb along the band. Lifting the jewellery eye-level, she found what she had been searching for. "Position the case upside down. There should be a corner you can pull."
A corner? The Ariesian could only cock a brow, doing just this. Indeed it was the instance as she turned the case around. Breaking the seal, she gently tore the corner, revealing another compartment. To her surprise, a 1mm width pin and micro syringe were strung together inside. Propping the unprepared syringe tube between her thumb and index, she inspected the thing. It was oddly cute—though shady too. "You can't be serious?"
"Absolutely serious, I am afraid." The Meister took the 1mm pin from within the case. "My body is as pure as a nun's." Shizuru teased, guiding the pin to the jewellery between her fingertips.
Merely blinking at the woman's comparison, Natsuki watched her silently. Turns out that her ring had a nook of its own which was prised open by the pin. Once done, the Meister offered the ring back momentarily.
"In order to make this ring work, I must install my GEM's software to it."
Now that was a surprise.
Shizuru cupped her ear in order to twist open her GEM's partition with the thin nail. Located in the side behind the floral pattern, she offered the slim nail back to Natsuki. "Do not wear the ring yet."
"It's dangerous?"
"It is traditional that the Otome puts the ring on their Master." The Meister said easily, her lips only twitching as Natsuki reeled back. Threading a wire from her GEM, the Bewitching Smile Amethyst briefly lit once connected to the ring. The code 'S.V B.S.A Connected' flew across the gemstone before falling inactive. "It should be done soon."
Yet, Natsuki was incredibly nervous. She was about to officially receive her Otome. There was so much potential plot incoming that she had no clue what to think. With an Otome, anything could be possible. Abruptly so, an invisible weight that had hounded her for years had lifted. Like a light switching on, she began to feel optimistic.
"By the jurisdiction of the Founder: Fumi Himeno, I hereby declare you, Natsuki Kruger as my Master." Shizuru murmured, unconnecting the wire from the GEM and ring. Much to the Ariesian's absolute panic, she then sunk down onto one knee. Extending her hands which enveloped the ring, she presented the jewellery over. "Will you, Natsuki Kruger, accept me as your protector and partner, Shizuru Viola?"
N/A: It's definitely a miracle that my motivation's returned. I have also managed to develop Entwined Empyrean's timeline a tonne. What I have planned for this story should hopefully be a similar quality to Impasse II: Twanged Nerves. Getting there however is only part of the leg journey. It's going to be a long while until this section is revealed so more time-lining is required. I also intended for there to be much more in this chapter, but since it didn't flow right I decided against it. These sections will arrive later into the story.
Secondly, a big thank you to everyone who reviewed. My motivation was absolutely terrible, and your reviews blew my writer's block out the water. I had intense motivational issues for months due to the general silence. I would adore you guys if you could keep this up as this communication greatly improves not only my writing overall, but the plot work especially.
2020 Shizuru: I'm glad you mentioned that. I know now at least. The plotline is getting filled out now, so with the motivational boost the previous chapter will probably look tame.
namazato: Muchas gracias. Espero que esto se traduzca con precisión. Siempre me sorprende cuando los hispanohablantes leen mis historias y espero que te resulte bien. ¡Incluso con la barrera del idioma que ayudaste!
luvnanofate: I tend to dislike short chapters too. But whenever writing is being a pain I try to get rid of my block with this format. What you just described is usually how I write Mai-Series stories.