Chapter 17: New Challenge
Ranma was so restless that the first peeks of light in the window woke him up. As comfortable as the futon was, it couldn't soften his understanding that this was to be an important day. No matter what the outcome with the headmistress was, it would represent a fundamental change in his future. It likely wouldn't be as impactful as the night of the festival had been, but unlike his separation from Genma, he knew this was coming in advance. That made all the difference.
Despite being tired, Ranma was too anxious to try to get another hour of sleep, so he reluctantly climbed out of the futon. He changed clothes and then hopped out of the window for some morning training in the forest twilight around the Ogasawara mansion. It wasn't the same as a spar, but there was always something to be gained from practicing mobility techniques.
The sun was in the process of rising when Ranma returned to the mansion. He cleaned up before sharing breakfast with Sachiko, Sayako, and Tooru. Just like himself, Sachiko seemed unusually awake and tense throughout the meal. After that, Ranma changed and got ready for school. This included using her newly acquired makeup to cover up her facial bruise. If Kondou's boasts were to be believe, her technique was good enough to infiltrate the emperor's palace itself, and Sachiko's and Sayako's disbelief when Ranma emerged from the restroom did nothing to cast that assertion into doubt.
Ranma and Sachiko once again left the Ogasawara mansion and made the long trip to Lillian. As they went, Ranma tried to put out of mind the idea that it could be the last time she would do so. Unlike the meeting with the Yamayurikai, Sachiko had no particular insight into how the headmistress would react to learning the truth. Ranma could very well be tossed out of the school before lunch.
There had been a substantial shift in the character of Lillian since the day before. About a fourth of the tents, chairs, signs, balloons, and other festival paraphernalia around the campus had been put away. Considering most of the student groups hadn't received their assignments until late the previous day, it was impressive how much they had already accomplished.
Ranma and Sachiko briefly stopped at the statue of Mary on the way in, both of them taking a moment to pray. Ranma reiterated her prayer from the day before. The outcome had turned out well then, and she saw no reason to change things:
She wanted to be a good person.
She wanted to improve her martial arts.
She wanted to stay with Sachiko and the others.
She wanted lunch to be good.
Ranma and Sachiko then continued towards the meeting which would decide everything.
The inside of the school building had undergone more of a transformation than the outside had. Some of the classrooms had been fully restored to their original academic state. Others remained untouched. Most of them were in a liminal state of transition.
Shimako and Youko were standing in front of the administration office when Ranma and Sachiko arrived. Shimako was once again thumbing through her rosary, one bead at a time. Youko was similarly focused on the open notebook in her hands.
"Gokigenyou."
Shimako and Youko both looked over. "Gokigenyou."
Youko blinked upon seeing Ranma. She lowered her notebook and approached. "You can't have healed that fast." She peered closely at Ranma's temple and slowly drifted to the side. "What happened?"
"It's makeup," Sachiko said. "We didn't believe it either."
"That's incredible. I can't tell at all," Youko said. She continued to orbit around Ranma's head for a few seconds. "I'm definitely going to need to ask you to give me some tips later." Youko stepped back to a more natural distance. "But for now, can you go and clean it off?"
"Sure, but why?" Ranma asked.
"I was thinking that it'd make a better impression if the headmistress saw what your father did," Youko said.
Ranma looked over to Sachiko, who gave a noncommittal tilt of her head. Ranma said, "If you think so. Be right back."
Ranma walked to the nearest restroom and washed her face. It was extra tedious, as she couldn't use hot water, and it took a few cycles before she managed to clean everything off.
By the time Ranma returned to the administration office, the group there had grown. Rei's presence was unexpected but not too much of a surprise. What was a surprise was that Yoshino had arrived as well. Even more of a surprise than her presence, though, was her appearance. She was trussed up in a heavy jacket with a blanket draped over her shoulders and a knitted cap on her head.
The group was in the middle of some kind of discussion as Ranma approached, but she couldn't quite understand what Yoshino had said in the distance. Rei's response was also muffled.
"Then that's good news," Ranma heard Youko say once she got close enough.
Sachiko noticed Ranma first and turned to look at her. Her motion caused the other girls to look over as well.
Now that she was closer and was facing her directly, Ranma could get a better view of Yoshino. She looked atrocious. Her face had a waxy, ashen appearance to it, and there was a labored quality to how she stood. It looked like Yoshino had lost a bout of wrestling against a giant octopus, demanded a rematch, and lost that, too.
"Are you okay?" Ranma and Yoshino both exclaimed.
"I'm fine," Ranma and Yoshino both said.
"No you're not. Just look at you," Ranma and Yoshino both exclaimed.
Ranma and Yoshino both stopped and looked at each other, daring the other to say another duplicated word.
Sachiko and Rei both shook their heads, and Youko quietly laughed in the background.
"What are you doing here?" Ranma asked, breaking the symmetry between her and Yoshino. "I thought you were sick."
"She is sick," Rei said. "I tried to get her to stay at home, but she wouldn't listen."
"And miss this? No way," Yoshino said. Her emphatic answer was counterpointed by a wince on her face as her body tensed up. Ranma moved to catch her, but Rei had already wrapped her arms around Yoshino.
Rei held Yoshino, hugging her shoulder and supporting her. She said, "You see? This is why I said you should have stayed at home."
Yoshino's face slowly relaxed out of its grimace after a few seconds. She asked, "And what would have happened if I had?"
"You could have just said something," Rei said.
"And you could have just asked," Yoshino said.
"Humph!" Yoshino and Rei both exclaimed. They both turned to look away from each other, which was an awkward thing to do, considering Rei was still holding Yoshino.
A flash of motion distracted Ranma, and she looked down the hallway to where Eriko had stopped. Her shoulders were slumped, and she was shaking her head. She then straightened herself and approached.
"Gokigenyou," Eriko said. Her pleasant voice carried no hint of her attitude a few seconds prior.
"Gokigenyou."
"What happened here?" Eriko asked.
"Somebody..." Rei said, emphasizing the word, "... insisted she come today, even though she's very unwell."
"Somebody..." Yoshino said, also emphasizing the word, "... thought I should stay away, even though Ranma-san obviously needs our support."
"Humph!" Yoshino and Rei both exclaimed again.
"Now, now," Eriko said. "We're about to see the headmistress about something very important. Is this really the time for this?"
Yoshino and Rei both remained quiet.
"I know this is very stressful, but fighting with each other isn't going to help," Eriko said.
Neither Yoshino nor Rei moved.
"I'm sure Yoshino-chan is just worried for Ranma-kun, just like Rei is worried for Yoshino-chan. Let's pull ourselves together, okay?" Eriko asked.
In a small voice, Rei said, "Sorry."
In an equally small voice, Yoshino also said, "Sorry."
The two split apart, but neither really looked at each other. In contrast, Eriko exchanged a subtle, sidelong glance with Youko. Youko returned it with an equally subtle tilt of her head.
"Gokigenyou." Sei was the last one to arrive. "It looks like we have everybody today."
Youko shook her head. She said, "One of these days, you really are going to be late for something important."
"A minute is still a minute," Sei said.
"It's not even a minute," Youko said. "We should go now."
Shimako opened the door, and Youko led the way in. The office administrator looked up and said, "Gokigenyou. The headmistress is expecting you. Please go in."
"Thank you," Youko said. She then proceeded to lead the entire group into the headmistress's office. Rei closed the door behind them.
As compared to the first time Ranma had been in the inner office, it felt much more cramped due to the presence of the crowd. It was otherwise very much the same as the last time Ranma had seen it. There were still the two couches on opposite sides of the coffee table, upon which was a vase holding some lilies. The side table with the statue of Mary was there as well, with some roses in the small vase next to it. Ignoring the freshly cut flowers, the biggest change to the room was the blackboard. The contents of the rows and columns had changed, and across the top was now written, "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. -Proverbs 3:27."
The headmistress was sitting behind her desk on the professional side of the room. She still wore a black tunic, a white collar, a white coif, and a black wimple. Ranma could have been convinced that the woman hadn't changed her clothes at all in the past two weeks, except that her white collar and coif were pristine.
"Gokigenyou," the headmistress said. "The entire Yamayurikai? This is a surprise. To what do I owe the pleasure of your presence today?"
Youko stepped forward. As Sachiko had explained the previous night, this wasn't a request of Ranma's to the headmistress; this was a petition of the Yamayurikai to the administration. As such, Youko would be their representative for this meeting.
Ranma still felt more than slightly uncomfortable resting her fate in the hands of somebody else. It had always been an implicit, and frequently explicit, imperative for her to do things for herself. Relying on other people was a weakness, and she had to be strong.
However, there was one single foundational principle which stood above all others in the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts: do whatever worked. Effectiveness trumped literally everything else. To that end, she saw no reason why relying on other people couldn't be another technique in her repertoire, and she was sure that Youko knew more of these things than she did. And if this stratagem turned out to be a mistake, then Ranma could always adapt as needed.
"Gokigenyou. A matter of great importance has come to our attention. It concerns the student Ranko Sugita," Youko said. She once again spoke in a formal and respectful vernacular to the headmistress.
The headmistress looked over at Ranma, and then she visibly winced. She said, "I see. Please continue."
"This situation is very complicated and somewhat unbelievable, so I would ask you to be patient throughout the explanation," Youko said. She nodded at Ranma. "If you would be so kind?"
Ranma looked up at Sachiko, who also nodded. She took that as her cue, stepped forward, and launched into her explanation, adopting a formal, polite vernacular similar to Youko's. It went marginally better than the previous day's did. The actual presentation to the Yamayurikai provided much more practical experience than the several practice runs she had done prior, just like how an actual fight provided an experience irreproducible through any number of katas. She explained the curse, the deception, the robbery, and everything else.
Once Ranma's presentation came to its conclusion, the headmistress sat back heavily in her seat, a distant look on her face. She asked, "So you're really a boy?"
"Yes," Ranma said.
The headmistress's eyes refocused upon Ranma. She asked, "And you wish to continue to attend Lillian Private Girls' School?"
"Yes," Ranma said.
The headmistress leaned forward. She asked, "Why?"
There were multiple reasons why. She had made numerous friends here. It was where Sachiko was attending. Of all the school she had been in over the years, it was the most pleasant. All of those were true. In accordance with the planning session the previous night, though, she focused on the one which would likely have the most effect. She said, "I have learned a great number of things since coming here, and it's now one of my life goals to be a good person. I believe Lillian is the best place to help me achieve that."
"We agree," Youko said. "Ranma-kun could have just as easily kept his condition a secret and continued to attend as Ranko Sugita. We would have been none the wiser. We believe his actions have demonstrated the effect this place has had upon him, and we fully support him."
The headmistress remained quiet in thought, staring at an indeterminate point on her desk. After several seconds, she sat up straight, refocused upon Ranma, and said, "That is a most laudable indeed. Nevertheless, I'm afraid that I must say that your remaining here is quite impossible."
"Why..." Ranma started to say, but Sachiko's hand on her shoulder stopped her. Ranma turned to look and saw Sachiko shaking her head back at her. Sachiko then nodded to Youko, which caused Ranma to look over to her.
"Why is that?" Youko asked, every bit polite and curious.
"I should think it would be obvious. Lillian Private Girls' School is a girls' school. It is entirely improper for a boy to be here. Everybody would protest," the headmistress said.
"The student body believes that Ranma-kun's continued presence is acceptable," Youko said.
"You can't just unilaterally say the student body is willing to accept a boy into Lillian," the headmistress said.
"We are the duly-elected representatives of the student body," Youko said. It was a simple, non-challenging declaration of fact. "If anybody can speak for them, it is us, just like if anybody is to answer to them, it should be us. If we are to learn how to take responsibility for leadership, we must be allowed to do so."
"The entire Yamayurikai supports this?" the headmistress asked.
"Yes," Youko said. Eriko and Sei nodded as well.
"I see," the headmistress said. "There is the issue of tuition as well. I was going to speak to Sugita-san... to Saotome-san... about this later in private, but it appears to be relevant to this discussion. The check that his father provided has bounced."
"What does that mean?" Ranma asked.
"It means that your father did not pay your tuition. No money has been provided," the headmistress said.
"Oh. I'm not that surprised about that," Ranma said flatly. In retrospect, she had been curious how he had managed to pay in the first place.
"Tuition will not be an issue," Sachiko said.
The headmistress sharply inhaled. She asked, "Am I to understand that the Ogasawara family will be paying then?"
"Yes," Sachiko said.
"I see," the headmistress said. "Nevertheless, I still must reject your proposal. Lillian Private Girls' School began in Meiji 34 as an academy for young women of nobility, and that proud tradition has continued to this day as a prestigious Catholic school for young ladies. For 'young ladies'," the headmistress emphasized. "What kind of precedent would I be setting if I were to allow a boy into the school?"
"If you are concerned that hoards of boys will now travel to China and become cursed such that they can attend Lillian, I do not believe that to be a substantial risk," Youko said.
"Maybe not, but what of those who undertake less exotic and drastic efforts? What happens the next time some boy tries to attend here because his grandmother served as chairman for both here and Hanadera? What should I do then?" the headmistress asked.
"Does that really happen?" Youko asked.
"Not too frequently, but it does occur from time to time. The example I gave was not just a hypothetical one. That boy I mentioned, he sneaked into another Catholic girls' school by switching places with his twin sister. While he was there, he tortured a poor girl and made her life a living nightmare. He isn't the only example, either. I know of a different boy who entered a different school by dressing up as a girl in order to fulfill the final wishes of his late grandfather," the headmistress said.
"Oh," Youko said. She fell quiet.
Ranma wasn't very experienced with this type of situation, but even she could tell that that was a bad sign. Youko was trying her best, but the headmistress's defense was too strong against this type of approach. It meant that it was time to find a different approach. The question was, what other approaches were there?
She thought back to her confrontations and experiences over the past two weeks. What had she learned about social and verbal martial arts during that time?
The most obvious example which came to mind was the equally intransigent Minako. She had pestered, stalked, and generally harassed Ranma over the course of several days until she had been defeated by Sachiko. What was the technique Sachiko had used?
Sachiko had threatened her with reviewing the status of the newspaper club. However, that hadn't actually worked. Sachiko had then asked what would Mary say about how the newspaper club was acting. As Ranma recalled, that had been the decisive blow.
And for that matter, thinking back to her previous encounters with the headmistress, that did seem to be an ongoing pattern. The headmistress had likewise mentioned Mary a few times, both in allowing Ranma to attend in the first place and during her judgment of Ranma's actions with respect to Kashiwagi.
It was a gambit. Her earlier attempts at mimicking Sachiko's techniques with Minako had not been effective, and she had no particular reason to think that trying with the headmistress would meet with any better success. On the other hand, Ranma didn't see success coming from their current approach, either. It would be a risk, but battles were always risky.
"What would Maria-sama say?" Ranma asked.
There was a jolt throughout the room as everybody startled and turned to look at Ranma.
"What did you say?" the headmistress asked.
"I said, 'What would Maria-sama say?'"
A pregnant pause filled the room. The others turned their attention back to the headmistress. This time, she lapsed into silence.
"Would Luke 23:40-43 be relevant?" Shimako asked. Her voice was tentative, but in the otherwise still room, it was perfectly clear.
Once again a shock of surprise went through the room, this time everybody directing their attention to Shimako.
"You would draw an analogy between Saotome-san and the penitent thief?" the headmistress asked.
"Ranma-san is a self-confessed thief, and he has repented," Shimako said. "Would it be inappropriate to suggest that this demonstrates grace?"
The silence extended: 10 seconds. 20 seconds. 30 seconds.
The headmistress sighed. She said, "There is some validity to what you say, and yet." She sighed again. "I will need pray upon this. Return this afternoon at 4:00. I'll let you know my conclusions then."
Ranma had to restrain herself from shouting in triumph. The headmistress's statement was as good as an outright declaration of victory.
This had happened to her more times than she could count. It was always the case where the proverbial gatekeeper blocking her way would need to deliberate with the elders, consult some ancient scrolls, or check whatever they needed to check. The end result of that consultation was always the same: a challenge of some kind. Once Ranma succeeded in that challenge, as she always did, then she would be granted her request.
"Thank you," Youko said. She gave a small bow, as did the others in the room. Ranma quickly noticed them and joined in. They then filed out of the office and into the hallway.
"You seem to be in good spirits," Sachiko said.
"She didn't reject me. That's practically a win already," Ranma said. The rest was a foregone conclusion. Next would be the presentation of the difficult challenge. Following that would be the desperate struggle to learn the new skills she needed to meet that challenge. There would be complications, of course, maybe even to the point that it would seem like all was lost. Then, in the end, she would succeed.
"For now. We still need to see what the headmistress decides," Youko said.
"I'm sure it'll be fine," Ranma said. She was curious what a challenge in Martial Arts Socializing, as she had decided to call it until she learned its official name, looked like. However, she was sure she could handle it, no matter what it was.
"I hope your optimism proves true," Youko said. "We'll see at 4:00 today."
"Don't forget. You need to redo your makeup before going to class," Sachiko said. She gestured to Ranma's temple.
"That's right. I definitely want to see how you do that," Youko said.
"I'd like to as well," Shimako said.
Eriko looked over at Shimako and then Youko. She asked, "Did Ranma-kun do something special?"
"I don't know, but I want to find out," Youko said. "This morning, I couldn't see any hint of makeup at all. It was like the bruise was just gone."
"That does sound interesting," Sei said. "I'm coming, too."
Yoshino nodded towards Ranma and said to Rei, "You can go watch, too, if you want."
"But what will happen if you have another attack?" Rei asked.
Yoshino rolled her eyes and gave a tense hum, but she didn't say anything.
Except for Yoshino and Rei, the entire Yamayurikai proceeded to a nearby restroom. Inside, Ranma reapplied her disguise. It was strange to have an audience as she once again hid her bruise under carefully crafted layers of liquids and powders, but compared to the adamant accusations of Kondou, the occasional questions she received were as nothing. Once she had finished her efforts, the group emerged from the restroom, startling two nearby students at their combined appearance.
Everybody then split up to go to their respective classrooms.
As Ranma walked through the hallways, she passed by numerous girls removing posters and bustling around with bundles of various sizes. It was exactly like the previous week, only in reverse. The signs of the festival were rapidly disappearing, and ordinary life was sure to resume shortly.
Yoshino was settled at her desk when Ranma entered the First-year Chrysanthemum Group classroom. She had removed her cap and her jacket, but she had kept her blanket, which now covered her lap instead of her shoulders. She looked to be in as bad a shape as when Ranma had first seen her in the morning. She could have even been in worse shape.
Ranma exchanged a brief "gokigenyou" with her and then took a seat at her own desk, such as to not exacerbate Yoshino's condition.
Soon thereafter, Ami announced Tanezaki's entrance, and classes began. Just like normal.
And then suddenly things weren't normal anymore.
"Sumazu-san? Are you okay?" Tanezaki asked abruptly.
Ranma whipped her attention over to Yoshino. She had collapsed onto her desk, a grimace of pain on her face. She didn't say anything, but she shook her head in response to the question.
"Would you like to go to the nurse's office?" Tanezaki asked.
Yoshino gave a laborious nod.
"Can you get there on your own?" Tanezaki asked.
Another shake of her head.
"Waki-san, Sugita-san, can please help Sumazu-san to the nurse's office?" Tanezaki asked.
"Got it," Ranma said. She jumped to her feet, leaped over to Yoshino, and picked her up.
And the room grew very still. Everybody was staring at Yoshino. Ranma quickly looked down, concerned that Yoshino's condition had somehow gotten worse. She didn't see a problem, though. If anything, Yoshino seemed to be slowly recovering. Ranma looked up again, but everybody was still staring.
"Is something wrong?" Ranma asked. She looked down at Yoshino again, trying to see what she had missed.
"Oh... uhh... no, not at all," Ami said. "Let's go."
Everybody continued to watch as Ranma left the silent room behind her.
"You're pretty strong, aren't you?" Ami asked as she led Ranma down the hallway.
"I guess so," Ranma said. Genma was stronger, but she was getting there.
"More of that avoiding newspaper girls thing?" Ami asked.
"Right," Ranma said. She had forgotten about that particularly creative interpretation she had said two weeks earlier. Given she was going to continue to attend Lillian, and she was no longer trying to hide herself, she thought it prudent to clarify things. "Actually, it's martial arts. I do martial arts."
"Really? You do? Is that why you're... umm... why you seem to be hurt all the time?" Ami asked in a tentative voice.
It still seemed wrong to refer to bruises as being hurt, but given her experiences with the Yamayurikai, Ranma was sure that that's what Ami was referring to. She said, "Yeah."
"Wow. That looks scary. I don't think I could do that at all," Ami said.
"It's not a big deal," Ranma said. "'The life of a martial artist is fraught with peril,' and all that."
They arrived at the nurse's office, and they quickly explained the situation. The nurse seemed familiar with Yoshino's condition, and she had them tuck Yoshino into a bed and then go to the Second-year Chrysanthemum Group classroom to retrieve Rei. Upon being told what had happened, Rei's face went as ashen as Yoshino's face had been, and she hurried off to the nurse's office. Finally, Ranma and Ami returned back to their own classroom.
The rest of the morning was very forgettable, in that Ranma barely remembered any of it. She was more worried about Yoshino's condition than curious about what her upcoming challenge would be, and she was more curious about what her upcoming challenge would be than interested in class. This was further exacerbated when Rei walked in, informed them that Yoshino would be returning home for the day, and left with Yoshino's things. After that, the classes could have been about learning hiragana for all the good Ranma got out of them.
Lunch came not a moment too soon. Ranma needed a break and a change of scenery.
Shimako arrived at the cherry tree behind the primary gym shortly after Ranma did. Her bearing and movements were, if not more confident, at least more determined than the day before. That rapidly changed once Ranma explained what had happened to Yoshino in class. Shimako's determination melted away into consternation. She said some words of solace that this had happened before and that Yoshino was certain to be alright, but it was obvious that her heart wasn't in it. Both Ranma and Shimako fretted over the course of lunch, even as both of them tried to hide it, and both of them knew they had failed to do so.
Afternoon classes were somewhat better than the morning classes had been. The passage of time had muffled some of Ranma's immediate emotions, and as tepid as Shimako's reassurances had been, it was good to hear that this wasn't the first time Yoshino had had such an attack. Ranma could only hope that Yoshino's fighting spirit would see her through.
The school day came to an end with Ranma working with Yumiri and Sumire to sweep some hallway floors. Once they finished, they exchanged their farewells, and then it was time for Ranma to meet with the headmistress. Anticipation for finding out what her challenge would be came close to matching her concern for Yoshino.
"Gokigenyou," Ranma said as she arrived. Sachiko, Youko, Eriko, and Sei were already there. They looked as pensive as Ranma felt.
"Gokigenyou," Sachiko said. She immediately followed it up by asking, "Did something happen?"
"Yoshino-san collapsed in class today," Ranma said.
The assembled girls gasped, and Eriko asked, "She did? What happened?"
"I don't know. All I know is that she was all curled up and in pain. We brought her to the nurse's office and got Rei-sama. About half an hour later, Rei-sama showed up and said that they were going home," Ranma said.
Eriko let out the breath she had been holding. She said, "That's a relief."
"It is?" Ranma asked. She was confused. She failed to understand how being sent home could be considered a relief in any way.
"Yes. If it was really bad, then they would have sent her to the hospital instead," Eriko said.
"So you think she'll be okay," Ranma asked.
"As long as she doesn't do anything else silly, she should be," Eriko said. She shook her head. "I should talk to her later about overexerting herself. Maybe she'll listen to me more than Rei."
They had a brief chat about some other situations Yoshino had been in, including missing out on the opening ceremony to the school year. It added weight to Shimako's earlier statements that Yoshino had been through similar situations before. That made Ranma feel better, enough so that she was properly excited when 4:00 came and Sachiko opened the door to the office.
After greeting them, the headmistress said, "I had not expected to see so many of you here. This is something of a personal matter, so I believe that it would be appropriate if I were to speak to Saotome-san alone."
"Actually, I would rather they stayed," Ranma said, once again adopting a formal speech pattern to address the headmistress. They were her friends, and it felt wrong to leave them out of the process. Also, having witnesses was a good thing in case the headmistress tried to retroactively change her conditions once Ranma had succeeded in her challenge.
"Very well, if that is what you want," the headmistress said. She turned to address Ranma specifically. "You must understand that Lillian Private Girls' School is a school for girls. And yet, I find the arguments put forward this morning to be persuasive. After much prayer, I have concluded that yes, there is grace in what you have done. I believe that Maria-sama would not condone casting you out, and that there is something larger at stake here. I am therefore left with the dilemma of what to do. It is unacceptable for a boy to attend Lillian, but I am simultaneously unable to deny this request. I can only see one possible way to resolve this contradiction."
This was the climax, when the headmistress would reveal the challenge Ranma was to undertake to prove herself worthy of an exception. She listened with eager attentiveness.
"While I cannot accept a boy as a student into Lillian, it would be possible to accept a girl as a student, even one who happened to transform into a boy with the application of hot water. Would that be acceptable to you?"
"What?" Ranma asked. That wasn't at all what she had been expecting. Climb this cliff using only your feet to prove yourself worthy of learning Martial Arts Tightrope Walking. You must hold your breath for 20 minutes before we can teach you the secrets of Martial Arts Beekeeping. That was a proper challenge, not whatever the headmistress had just said.
"I asked if you would you be willing to be a girl who transformed into a boy with hot water, rather than being a boy who transformed into a girl with cold water," the headmistress said.
The idea struck Ranma hard. She hadn't thought of it at all, although now that it had been said, it was really quite obvious.
Her reflexive impulse was to abruptly and loudly deny it. She managed to restrain that impulsive declaration, though, and actually thought about it.
She was a boy. She had been a boy her whole life. Obviously Jusenkyou had happened four weeks earlier, but that hadn't changed anything. Genma was not a panda, and Ranma was not a girl. She remained a boy no matter what her form was. It was fundamentally who she was.
But was it really?
Recent events had led her to question much of what she had thought she had known about her life.
Was being a girl really that bad? Based on the past two weeks, no. She rather liked being a girl, although how much of that was her preference for the company, food, and atmosphere of Lillian over life on the road with Genma, she couldn't say for certain. One thing she could say for certain, though, was that she had no absolutely issue with using her female form when convenient; using every tool to her best advantage was a core tenant of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts.
Realistically, there wasn't that much of a difference between being a boy and being a girl, either. She certainly didn't feel any different between the two, excepting the obvious. That wasn't to say there were no differences, but they didn't seem that important. It was like the difference between wearing a keikogi and a sailor dress. It changed her appearance, but not her substance. Whether she was wearing a keikogi or a sailor dress, whether she was a boy or a girl, she was still Ranma underneath it all.
Maybe that was the right analogy: it was like wearing a school uniform. On its own, a uniform didn't really matter. Except everybody thought it should matter, so it did matter. Except it didn't matter.
Except it did matter.
"I apologize. I cannot accept your offer," Ranma said.
The headmistress gasped. She asked, "Really? Might I ask why?"
It would have been so easy to accept. It's what Genma had taught her her whole life: use whatever convenient lie was at hand to achieve the goal. The grandmaster had said it was okay, so could you please teach us the secrets of Martial Arts Woodworking? Some highwaymen just robbed us, so could we please stay at your temple until the morning? Ranko Sugita's mother's dying wish was for her daughter to grow up to be a proper lady, so can you please admit her into Lillian?
"Anything Goes" means anything goes. Effectiveness is the only thing that matters. To a large extent, Ranma still thought that. However, she now felt that there was something even more important than results. She wasn't entirely sure what that something was yet, but she was sure she would eventually find it.
"It's because I'm a boy. If I was going to lie about that, then I might as well have continued pretending to be Ranko Sugita. I made the decision to be a good person, and that means being honest about stuff like this. If that means that I need to leave, then that means I need to leave," Ranma said.
"I don't think it'd be a lie," the headmistress said. "A boy who transforms into a girl and a girl who transforms into a boy. Is there really any difference between them?"
"Yes, there is a difference," Ranma said. The ghost of a smirk crossed her face. "Why else wouldn't you accept me like I really am?"
The headmistress closed her eyes and shook her head. She reopened her eyes again and looked at Ranma. "To think I would need to be taught about honesty from one of my own students. Your integrity does you credit." She went quiet. She then gave a large sigh. "Very well. I propose a compromise. I could consider admitting you as you are. However, I must insist that you remain in female form at all times while in school or attending school functions. You may be a boy, but Lillian is still a girls' school."
Ranma immediately saw a problem with that condition. She had managed to avoid hot water for the past two weeks, but she was sure something would happen sooner or later. She asked, "What if I get splashed?"
"Hmm..." The headmistress looked down for a moment then looked back at Ranma. "Accidents happen, of course, but you should take every reasonable precaution to avoid them, and you should change back as soon as you can. I recommend carrying a bottle of water around with you at all times."
"That's acceptable," Ranma said. It was what she had been doing thus far, and the only problem she had had was worry about being exposed, which would no longer be an issue.
"Good. Now for the most important part: this must have the support of the student body." The headmistress turned to address Youko. "I propose we have a referendum two weeks from now on whether or not Saotome-san is to be allowed to remain. I would expect the Yamayurikai to arrange that. If there is a unanimous vote that Saotome-san can continue to attend, then he will be allowed to do so."
That was more like what Ranma had expected: a proper challenge, with a clear goal, deadline, and stakes. So naturally there was only one possible response.
"That is entirely unreasonable," Youko said.
That wasn't it. The headmistress had presented a challenge, so naturally the proper response was to accept it. Youko's statement was entirely unexpected, and it left Ranma confused and worried that she was going to ruin things. This was proverbial uncharted waters.
"How so?" the headmistress asked "You said the Yamayurikai speaks for the student body, did you not?"
"Yes, but not for every single individual. We could hold a referendum on whether or not we should take Monday off as a holiday and some students would dissent. Getting 100% on anything is impossible," Youko said.
"Then what would you propose?" the headmistress asked.
"A simple majority seems most typical for a referendum," Youko said.
"That's not good enough," the headmistress said. "It's inadequate to have just one more student accept Saotome-san than not. This sets a precedent, and I need to make sure it is one which can withstand challenge from any unscrupulous applicants in the future. Requiring a unanimous vote does that."
"You are certainly correct that it does. The concern is that it is too restrictive. Mistakes happen, as do misunderstandings, jokes, and contrarian votes. If Maria-sama herself were to be put to the same standard, I am not entirely convinced she could pass it," Youko said.
The headmistress looked up and then back towards Youko. She said, "That may be true. Then how about a different standard? You mentioned a referendum on whether or not we should take Monday off as a holiday. I believe it would be reasonable to expect a vote of at least 95% in favor of such a proposal."
"I would think it would be closer to 80%," Youko said.
"If the Yamayurikai supports it, as I'm sure you will?" the headmistress asked.
Youko looked up, paused, and then looked back to the headmistress. She sighed. "90%."
"Very well. If Saotome-san gets a 90% vote in favor, then he will be allowed to re-enroll here properly. I believe it is reasonable to say that any person who is willing to conform to the standards of Lillian and who has such ubiquitous support amongst the student body has, and will have, a legitimate justification for attending." The headmistress turned to Ranma. "Do you agree to those terms?"
Youko addressed Ranma. "It's technically possible, but it won't be easy," she said. "You heard what I said. If we offered a free day off of school, we might be able to get to a 90% vote in favor. It will be a lot of hard work for you to get there, if you even can."
The exchange between Youko and the headmistress left Ranma flabbergasted. She had never imagined that challenges could be negotiated. The concept that they could be anything other than imposed ultimatums was completely foreign to her. It felt like the ground had just fallen out from under her.
Luckily, she was an expert in aerial combat. She was back in proverbially familiar territory, or at least hovering above it. She had lost count of the number of times she had been in this situation before. It was a common occurrence throughout her life of martial arts training: an unfamiliar challenge, strange new skills to learn, a looming deadline, warnings that what she was about to do was incredibly difficult.
She had a universal answer to every one of those situations.
"I love a challenge."
"In that case, return here tomorrow morning at 7:30. I would like you, along with anybody else appropriate, to explain the curse to all the members of Lillian's staff. I'll have some representatives from the primary school, the middle school, and the university as well. You must tell nobody anything until then. What happens after that is entirely up to you." The headmistress's face softened. "You may not believe this, but really I do wish you the best of luck. Gokigenyou."
"Gokigenyou."
As the Yamayurikai left, the headmistress also walked out of her room. She said to the administrator in the main office area, "I'd like you to call a meeting first thing tomorrow morning. We'll meet in the primary, no, the secondary gym at 7:45. Everybody must attend. All the teachers. All the office staff. Everybody in maintenance. Everybody in security. Everybody."
"Everybody?" the administrator asked. "You mean everybody everybody?"
"Yes. I mean everybody everybody. I'll need to see if I can get Tano-san, Hirata-san, Hamada-sensei, and whoever else I can think of to come, too," the headmistress said.
"The university has their monthly budget review tomorrow," the administrator said.
The door to the administration office closed behind Ranma, leaving the adults to discuss their business alone.
Shimako was standing in the hallway. She had her head down, and she was once again thumbing through her rosary. She stopped and looked up when Ranma and the others emerged from the office. She asked, "How did it go?"
"It went great," Ranma said. The process itself had been strange, but the final result had been exactly what she had expected. Next would be the desperate-struggle phase.
"'Great' is not the way I'd describe it," Sei said.
Shimako's blossoming smile was interrupted by Sei's statement, and it got stuck in transition. She asked, "What do you mean? What happened?"
"We need to arrange a referendum two weeks from now on whether or not Ranma-kun can continue to attend," Sei said.
"That doesn't sound that bad," Shimako said.
"We need a 90% vote," Sei said.
"90%? Really?" Shimako asked. "That's preposterous."
"I know. Isn't it great?" Ranma asked. She had two weeks to learn Martial Arts Socializing. She was already excited at the prospects.
"That it is," Eriko said. "Here I was thinking things would be dull after the festival. I knew this would be a good idea."
A large grin came to Sei's face. She asked, "Are we sure we Ranma-kun wouldn't be better as Rosa Foetida en bouton?"
"Absolutely," Sachiko said emphatically. "Ranma is my petite soeur."
"Can you imagine what Rosa Foetida and Ranma-kun would do together?" Youko asked.
"Spoilsports," Eriko said with an exaggerated pout. "So what's next?"
"It sounds like we have a referendum to arrange and a campaign to plan," Youko said.
"In two weeks, too. And here I thought the election was stressful," Sei said.
"If nothing else, it will be like a practice run for Sachiko, Rei-chan, and Shimako," Youko said. She sent a quick glance at Sachiko and Shimako.
"If Rei can participate, that is. I'm sure she'll be busy with practice for her upcoming tournament," Eriko said.
"Two of the three isn't bad," Youko said. "Let's go to the Rose Mansion and start planning this out."
Youko led the way. As they walked through the hallways, they drew the attention of all the girls they passed by. Few girls addressed them, but those who offered a hesitant "gokigenyou" were met by a more assured "gokigenyou" in return from Youko. They left the school building, walked through the brisk autumn air, and soon reached the Rose Mansion.
When they stepped in, Ranma and Shimako split off from the others to go to the kitchen. Shimako showed Ranma where the electric teakettle and the tea service were, and Ranma grabbed a cup of cold water just in case. Together, they brought everything up to the others.
Inside the conference room, a large basket of cookies had been placed on the central table. Sachiko and The Three Roses were sitting around that table with a napkin and a cookie in front of each of them. Shimako took a seat and pulled out a pencil and some paper from her book bag. Concurrently, Ranma served tea to everybody. She then grabbed some cookies from the basket and took a seat of her own next to Sachiko.
"Now that we're all comfortable, let's start that list of what we need to do," Youko said. "The first thing is to arrange the referendum itself. The festival went under budget this year, so I think we can use the leftover from that for this."
Eriko and Sei both nodded, and Shimako wrote down notes on the paper in front of her. Youko took a moment to take a bite out of her cookie.
"We'll need to create a referendum management committee," Sei said. "We can't run it ourselves. It would look biased."
Eriko took a sip of tea and then dabbed at her mouth with her napkin. She turned to Ranma and said, "Adequate."
Ranma wasn't sure how to interpret that.
Eriko then turned to Youko and asked, "Do you think the political action club would be interested in helping?"
Youko said, "I can ask them. I'm sure we aren't the only ones who wouldn't mind a practice run in advance of the upcoming elections."
Sachiko nodded at Youko's statement. Shimako continued to write notes.
"I think that's the easy part sorted out. The hard part will be the campaign," Youko said. She looked around the table, particularly at Ranma.
"Obviously getting the Lillian Kawaraban on board is a must. That has to be the first step," Eriko said.
Sei finished her cookie and took another one from the basket. Ranma had likewise finished her cookies and took three more for herself.
"See?" Sachiko said to Ranma. "This is why it's best to not make an enemy if you can avoid it."
"I see," Ranma said. The advice Sachiko had given did seem to have led to a promising result.
"It should be easy to arrange an interview. I'm sure they are still desperate to learn more about 'Ranko Sugita,'" Youko said.
"Seeing how she was just voted Miss Cinderella by the school, I'm sure of it," Eriko said.
"Who would have guessed how appropriate that was?" Sei asked. "Magical transformation, secret identity, being taken in by Princess Sachiko. The article practically writes itself."
"Yes. I think the big question is when do we want to have them publish, this Saturday or next Saturday?" Youko asked.
Everybody turned to look at Ranma. Ranma, in turn, quickly swallowed the mouthful of tea she had and asked, "Why are you all looking at me?"
"This is your campaign. We'll help you, of course, but much of the work will fall onto you, and you're the one who will need to live with the results, so in the end, it's your decision. What do you want to do?" Youko asked.
"What's the difference?" Ranma asked. She really didn't know much about this stuff at all. She had been expecting to learn from Youko and everybody else.
"It will be bad either way. If you want to publish this Saturday, then you'll have a lot of work to do tonight and in the next two days to prepare for it. If you target next Saturday, then you'll have much more time to prepare for it, but you'll only have a few days to convince everybody before the vote happens," Youko said.
Preparation was good as far as it went, but Ranma's real specialty was to improvise and handle things as they came up. If the main downside for going earlier was that it would be a lot of work, then that was exactly what she had been expecting to do for a challenge anyway. She said, "Then let's go for this Saturday."
Everybody in the room nodded.
"I think that they need to have the copy written by Friday afternoon if they're going to get an extra printed, so you'll need to have that interview tomorrow," Youko said.
"Somebody's going to get no sleep tomorrow night," Sei said.
"And have the time of her life doing it," Eriko said.
"I'm sure," Sei said.
Shimako continued to write notes down.
"What else do we have?" Youko asked. She took a moment to take another sip of tea.
"We'll need to introduce Ranma to everybody," Sachiko said. "It's much easier to demonize somebody you don't know in person."
"That's true. It's a good thing you had him talk to all the First-year Groups already, isn't it?" Sei asked. She sent a meaningful glance at Youko.
Youko didn't react to the glance. She said, "Yes, but that was only the First-year Groups, and I'm sure not everybody was present when he visited. We will need to reach the entire school."
"How can we do that?" Eriko asked.
"Can we have a school-wide assembly, like we do for the elections?" Sei asked.
"I don't think so," Youko said. "I'm sure the headmistress wouldn't want us to set a precedent of committing school resources to this. She's asked us to arrange a referendum, so I'm sure we can do that, but I don't think we should officially do anything beyond that."
"We can still do a lot, even if we only act in our personal capacity," Eriko said. "We can help introduce Ranma-kun to all the third-year students. I'm sure Rei and Sachiko-chan can do the same for the second-years, and Yoshino-chan and Shimako for the first-years."
"That's a good start, but I'm sure that will still leave holes among the people most important to reach," Youko said.
"Then how about we do a tournament?" Ranma asked.
Youko looked at Ranma in confusion. She asked, "A tournament?"
"Yeah," Ranma said.
"What do you mean?" Youko asked.
"I don't know, but in every school I've been to, whenever they want to show off a newcomer, they have a tournament," Ranma said. "The student council president will give me some pompous speech about showing me my place, and then there will be some big announcement of a school-wide tournament."
"I really wonder about all these schools you've attended before," Sachiko said.
"Maybe, but that's not unreasonable," Youko said. Everybody turned took at her. "Not a tournament necessarily, but what if we did have some kind of big event? I've always said we should have more outreach between us and the student body. This may be a good opportunity."
"That would be fun, but it will be hard to do without funding," Eriko said. "What kind of event were you thinking of?"
"I don't know. Does anybody have any ideas?" Youko asked.
Several girls looked down, but nobody said anything. After a few seconds of silence, Youko said, "Well, we can think about that tonight and talk tomorrow. What else do we have?"
The discussion went on. They talked about a variety of different topics: Should Ranma make an announcement to her class? When and in what form should that announcement be? Would the newspaper would be wiling and able to change when they distributed this Saturday's edition? How much of an enticement would offering to have an interview with The Three Roses be?
Throughout the conversation, Ranma listened eagerly, soaking up everything she could. This was familiar ground for her: learning crazy new techniques for an equally crazy objective, a dire deadline to meet lest some disaster befall her. She was so caught up in things that she almost forgot the basket of cookies in front of her. Almost.
The meeting came to a conclusion about an hour later. Shimako's pages were covered with notes, and everybody was excited for what was to come next. The main objective for this day would be to arrange and prepare for the interview with Minako. The work would begin in earnest the following morning.
Once things started to settle, Ranma relaxed enough to remember the other big event of the day. The exchange in front of the administration office had allayed many of her more substantial worries, but she was still curious about Yoshino's condition.
"Does anybody know where Yoshino-san lives?" Ranma asked as she started collecting cups.
"I do. Why do you ask?" Sachiko asked.
"I was thinking of running by and seeing how she's doing," Ranma said. It would be good for a warm up, and it would allow her to assuage her concerns.
Sachiko hesitated and said, "It might be better if you were to call instead. I'm sure Yoshino-chan isn't feeling the best right now, and if you went there in person, it could be an imposition."
"That's a good idea," Eriko said. "You should do that. I'm sure it'd make Yoshino-chan happy."
"Okay. Then does anybody know her number?" Ranma asked.
"Sure. Do you have anything to write with?" Eriko asked.
Ranma wrote the number down on the corner of the stack of notes she had received from Shimako. Then The Three Roses resumed their departure with Sachiko.
"Gokigenyou."
"Gokigenyou."
Ranma and Shimako were left in the Rose Mansion to straighten the room, dispose of the rubbish, and clean the dishes. As they worked, they talked more about their concern for Yoshino. Their conclusion was that as Eriko and the others didn't seem overly worried, it was likely Yoshino was okay. That transitioned to a discussion about how Yoshino and Rei had been voted as the best soeur pair in the newspaper's vote during the festival. This naturally led to a discussion about how Rei had been voted Mr. Lillian, which was a source of amusement for both of them, almost as much as the fact that Ranma had been voted Miss Cinderella.
They were still talking about the other titles that had been bestowed as they finished cleaning and left the Rose Mansion. At the statue of Mary, they bid their farewells to each other, with Shimako continuing on to the tall front gate of the school while Ranma remained behind to wait for Sachiko.
While she waited, Ranma turned to the statue of Mary. She took a moment to fold her hands together and offer her thanks. The outcome for the day had been about as good as she could have hoped for. She continued on to offer a prayer for Yoshino's recovery, or even better, for her cure.
Sachiko approached a few minutes later. She said, "Gokigenyou."
"Gokigenyou."
"I've spoken to the newspaper club. We're scheduled to meet with them after classes tomorrow in the Rose Mansion," Sachiko said.
"Sounds good," Ranma said. She joined Sachiko in walking to the nearby bus station.
"It's going to be a group interview. You'll be the focus, but we'll all be there as well," Sachiko said.
"Makes sense," Ranma said. "Can you help me prepare some stuff tonight?"
"Of course," Sachiko said.
They once again got on a bus, transferred to a train, transferred to another bus, had a short walk together, and finally arrived back at the Ogasawara mansion. Upon entering, Ranma took the opportunity to call Yoshino's house. Yoshino's mother picked up, and she and Ranma exchanged greetings. Apparently Yoshino had pushed herself too hard and was recovering now, but she wasn't in any immediate danger. She was resting, so Ranma wasn't able to speak to her directly. However, her mother assured Ranma that she would pass on her best wishes, as well as a message that Ranma would see her in school once she had recovered. Yoshino's mother wasn't sure why that was so important to emphasize, but promised that she would do so.
Ranma changed after that, and then went to the ballroom for some martial arts practice. He brought with him the hoop and ribbon, and he was experimenting with trying to combine them together as some kind of pseudo-flail when Sachiko joined him. She requested a demonstration of some of the martial arts he had listed the day before, and Ranma was happy to oblige. He always loved showing off his skill. Martial Arts High Jumping got Sachiko to go and retrieve Sayako and Tooru, and his subsequent demonstration of Martial Arts Crocheting delighted all three of them.
The four of them then went to the dining room and ate dinner, during which Ranma and Sachiko told Sayako and Tooru about how their day had gone. The upcoming referendum caught Tooru's attention, and the majority of the dinner was spent focused on that, with Tooru helping to develop some ideas about publicity and how to foster a good impression.
After dinner had concluded, Ranma worked with Sachiko and Tooru to train for the interview with the newspaper club. Tooru took on the role of Minako and asked Ranma several pointed questions, most of which completely tripped him up. Sachiko did better on her questions, although it was still clear she fumbled some of them. All three of them then worked on crafting a strategy for how to handle questions like those, as well as a strategy for how to handle the more general questions the student body was likely to ask.
Once they finished, it was late in the evening. Ranma only had a short time to enjoy the hot tub before it was time to go to sleep once more. He returned to his room and once again slid into the warm and plush futon which had been prepared for him. The day had started stressful, but he was happy with how it had gone.
No, it was more than just the day. Now that he thought about it, he was happy with how his entire life had gone since coming to Lillian.
Immediately upon enrolling in Lillian, he had been challenged with blending in and befriending a rich girl. He had succeeded, becoming soeurs with Sachiko. Thereafter, he had been challenged with learning the role of Cinderella. He had succeeded in that as well, making several friends and changing his life along the way. Now, in the aftermath of his success with Cinderella, he had been challenged to convince the Lillian student body to accept him.
He wondered what would happen to him on his way to succeeding in this challenge.
He could hardly wait.
Omake:
The Yamayurikai departed, leaving Saori alone in her office to contemplate their insane proposal. Accepting a boy into Lillian? The idea was ludicrous.
Or was it?
What she hadn't told them was that the second example she had given of a boy entering a girls' school had been very different from the first one. That boy had been transparent of his situation in his enrollment application, and the headmistress of Seiou Girls' Academy had still admitted him for some reason. He had subsequently not only thrived in Seiou, he had helped several of his fellow students flourish as well.
So it wasn't absolutely certain that Saotome's presence would be a disaster. However, could Saori risk the first example in the hopes of the second one? How could she know which one Saotome would be?
As much as she had challenged the Yamayurikai, their arguments had been persuasive, Toudou's especially so. There were more parallels between Saotome's story and the various passages and parables in the bible than Saori was entirely comfortable with dismissing. Besides Luke 23:40-43, there were also Mark 10:28-30, Psalm 82:3, and countless others. It wasn't just the general tenants of forgiveness and acceptance, either. His path into and through Lillian did have a feeling of Providence, and his repentance did have an aura of grace.
Saotome had sought, and received, forgiveness from his would-be victims. Indeed, the Ogasawara family had practically adopted him, from what she had gathered. He had also manage to gain the support of the entire Yamayurikai. The student body, too, if the new fad of pigtails and instant noodles was anything to go by.
Lillian was a prestigious Catholic school for young ladies. A "Catholic" school. Advancing morality and righteousness was of the utmost importance. Repentance did not come easily, and Saotome had developed considerably in this short time. It clearly did him much good to be in Lillian. Would he continue to develop elsewhere? Possibly. However he had certainly developed in Lillian.
Regardless, though, he was a boy. A boy in Lillian. That was simply unacceptable.
It was just as unacceptable as the situation with Seiko had been. Back then, the administration had been callous and heavy-handed, and which had resulted in that woefully tragic outcome. Since then, Saori had always favored a lighter touch when dealing with students, and she had thought it had served her well.
However, there had to be a limit. At what point was too much "too much?" At what point did leniency turn into neglect and sympathy turn into weakness? Surely allowing a boy into Lillian was past that.
And yet, it all returned to that question Saotome had posed: What would Mary think about this situation? The fact that he had even thought it spoke to how much he had developed while in Lillian.
What would she do? Would she, could she, endanger her flock by bringing in a stray lamb? What if that lamb was a wolf in disguise? What if the hole in the fence allowed other, currently unknown, predators entry?
What would Mary think about this situation?
Saori just didn't know, so she did what came naturally to her. She removed her rosary and used it to make the sign of the cross.
"In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."
She prayed the Apostles Creed upon the crucifix. She proceeded up the beads of the rosary, quietly praying Our Father and Hail Mary. She continued around the decades, focusing on the mysteries and the prayers which had become habitual over a lifetime of practice. She eventually finished with the concluding prayer, bringing it to an end.
The familiar ritual brought with it peace and comfort, allowing her for a short time to put some distance between her and the busy noise of life. However, it brought with it no answers: no revelation of understanding, and no idea what to do next. She was only left with the same question she had begun with.
What would Mary think about this situation?
Saori her opened her eyes. Blinking in the suddenly brighter looking room, she looked up. The first thing she saw was the scheduling board, across the top of which was a biblical passage.
"Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. -Proverbs 3:27"
Written by her own hand.
It was a sign. It had to be.
No, it was just a coincidence, a remnant left over from Sunday, before she had taken advantage of the holiday to travel across the country and attend that seminar. It should have already been erased and replaced, but she hadn't had a chance to do so yet, due to the early morning meeting with the Yamayurikai.
Still, it was quite a coincidence.
Saori shook her head and reached over to her daily calendar. She tore off three pages.
And then she stared.
Right there at the bottom of the page, in black and white: "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. -Proverbs 3:27"
It was impossible. She snatched back the three sheets that she had just torn off and checked. On the bottom of the top page, there it was, the exact same quote.
She flipped past the two in the middle, just to check.
Mark 10:30
Proverbs 17:17
Both of them quite nice sentiments, but she didn't see how they applied to the current situation. That was in start contrast to Proverbs 3:27.
Reusing biblical quotes was a fairly common practice. Certain ones just sounded better, and 365 days was a lot of quotes to fill. As years went by, certain favorites came up time after time. However, never in the same year, and certainly never within a single week. It absolutely had to be a sign.
Saori knew what she would do.
She would offer Saotome a choice. It would be a major one which would have life-changing implications, and it was not at all clear what Saotome would choose to do. Considering the revelation she had just had, though, she already knew what the decision would be.
Saori made the sign of the cross again and said, "Thank you for your guidance. Please grant us the strength to face what is to come."
Last Updated: September 17, 2021