Uploaded On: 13th May 2023.

Woe is Me
Systematic Potential

It's been a week since Natsuki started avoiding her.

Quite frankly, Mai's patience has snapped and due to this, she's actively heading to see Helene. She's… incertain about this, honestly. It's unthinkable to imagine she can get any information out of this, yet here she is.

Heading down the hallway, Mai approaches a lone terminal beside an inconspicuous door. "Doctor Helene?" She speaks into its microphone, a screen above buzzing to life.

Upon it appears Helene's grainy physique who spins her chair to face the camera.

"Mai Tokiha?" She looks down to a clipboard attached to the wall. "Do you have an appointment in the Underground Facility?"

"No… I… Doctor Helene, it's about Natsuki."

Something shifts along the woman's face before she leans back in her chair, sighing. "Very well, come on down." Pressing a button, a sound emits from the door, now unlocked. "Mind yourself on the third step down, it was fixed this morning but may still be loose."

That's… concerning. Mai nods, opening the door which grinds shut behind her. Encompassed within darkness, Mai remains idle for a second until lights jingle to life above her. The fluorescence is far too uncomfortable.

Wincing, she cautiously heads for the stairs. She quickly spots the apparently defective step, its steel darker than the rest. Gingerly she stretches past it, hands gripping the rails shrewdly.

Descending downwards, she turns a sharp corner and arrives within the vast Underground Facility.

"Here are the documents regarding the political crisis in the medical field."

To Mai's surprise, Shizuru is here.

"Thank you. I've heard nothing but trouble about this." Helene says as she takes the plastic folder from the Archmeister. Noticing that Mai's arrived, she straightens within her chair. "Ah, Mai; I'm guessing you want to know what's happened to Natsuki?"

"Yes." She glances between both women, feeling that something's off, but she can't discern it well. "What's… with you two?"

Helene's stone-faced expression laxes and she heaves out of her chair. "I suppose I better get the form…"

"No, that will not be an issue." Shizuru cautions her. "Remember what the Grandmeister said?"

What are they talking about? Mai can only warily eye both women as they draw near

A tense pause clicks.

"This must remain strictly private." Shizuru warns her. "Do you understand?"

Mai nods slowly, still not really understanding what is occurring.

"Yohko?" The Archmeister turns to the gigantic monitor connected to the platform wall.

The Chief Medical Officer returns to her holographic laptop and kicks it out of its standby. Soon a series of windows are displayed until a paused recording flashes onto the monitor.

Mai immediately recognises Natsuki kneeling before the Founder's statue.

"Wait, should I seriously be seeing this?"

"There is. We will explain." Shizuru comes to stand beside her, throwing her an encouraging smile.

Thus, all Mai can do is apprehensively watch the video play out.

"I am appointing you as the Headmeister due to this." Fumi Himeno's voice crackles with electric energy, her statue remaining totally static.

"W-what?" Natsuki's voice is hoarse, lifting her head from her leaning position on the floor. "Surely there's better than me? I'm a mess!"

"That is where you are wrong."

"H-how?"

"Natsuki Kruger." There is a pause, almost as though the statue's gears are whirling with thought. "Explain to me why you enrolled in Garderobe Academy and where your aggression stems from."

"I—"

Mai can see Natsuki's knuckles press into the floor as she glares at the tiles. Even through a video feed, Mai can sense the clear signs of confusion and anxiety.

"I… I spent my childhood with just my mom—we were poor. I never knew my dad, he walked out on us when my mom was pregnant with me. She was a lab intern trying to get into the science field. But… I was mostly on my own because of her long shifts. I also recently found out she did… hm…"

The Trias Representative starts visibly struggling with her words.

"...she did sex work on the side. She always said when she came home a mess that they had an accident at work. Mom would just say she spilled a chemical on her hand, or something."

Horrified, Mai gives Shizuru a look who can only sadly exchange that with a sad gaze.

"Sometimes men would come home with her. I think they were loan sharks or… that thing… But… She still won't reveal how, because suddenly when I was about eleven, she hit it big. Some executives at her workplace were fired for misconduct and she shot up the ranks. Before I knew it we were rolling in money with so many options."

"Out of nowhere we… We were able to afford things and I went to private school. Somewhere there mom made Kruger Industries and it was planned I'd become mom's Meister."

The more Natsuki explains herself, the quieter she becomes.

"I… So many corporations tried taking us down because we make affordable prosthetics. Even though realistically the prices should be way higher, mom refused to do it. We had militias and even governments coming to us, demanding we weaponise our products…"

Upon these final spoken words, Natsuki falls silent.

The Founder's eyes light up as she seems to process this bombshell of information. "Garderobe has undergone deterioration for decades due to social pressure and traditionalism. It has failed to maintain systematic change. I believe that you can achieve this."

"B-but why?"

"Today a Headmeister who sees the world's corruption for what it is, is needed more than ever. If the Otome cannot adapt to modernisation, it will crumble like the countless countries before the Immigration Era. This is where I ask you, Natsuki Kruger; how would you start to modernise this institution?"

"...I." Natsuki stares into space, thinking long and hard about it. The process lasts for well over a minute, until eventually Natsuki's shoulders lax. "I would begin by checking Garderobe's historic and modern laws and rights. If any don't match up properly, I'd have them taken to the Supreme Otome Court. After that I'd work on making my own laws. One would be to give small countries access to the Otome Contract Ceremony. How are they supposed to defend their sovereign territory against powerful countries like Aries and Windbloom?

"How would you overcome those attempting to block the change?"

"Garderobe is neutral and is self-funded. What gives them the right to block anything? It should be the Meisters themselves who vote for change, not corporations or governments who only care about profit and control."

Natsuki looks up to the Grandmeister. "We need permission to defend an area from terrorism and war. By the time we have that permission, the damage has already been done. This entire time I've been told it will be my duty to protect the innocent, but how am I supposed to do that if politics and money gets in the way?"

The video ends here, leaving Mai completely speechless.

She feels like she has just witnessed a family member's dying confession. Why on Earl has she been allowed to watch this? "Why would you show this to me?" She demands of both women.

"You have the right to know." Helene says, heading for the desk and unlocking a drawer. Rummaging inside, she heaves out a folder and puts it onto the desk.

"No I don't—"

"—Mai, listen, please." Shizuru rests her hand against Mai's shoulder, tempting her to calm down.

"This is the reason why you have that right." Helene strides over with a document and hands it over.

Apprehensively the Zipangese Princess takes it, reading what is presented.

By Our Lady Fumi Himeno's decree, I appoint Mai Tokiha the Fourth Column of Garderobe Academy.

Signed Maria Graceburt.

Is this real?

Mai rereads it several times, each cycle making her shake her head in disbelief. This can't be happening; it simply cannot.

"Where is Natsuki right now?"

"She has gone to see her mother." Shizuru eases closer, murmuring lowly so only Mai can hear her: "I need to speak with you later. Can you meet me in private?"

Today there are grey clouds within the horizon.


luvnanofate — One of my favourite things when writing is identifying character issues or traits and intensifying them. In Natsuki's case, I've always enjoyed studying her anxiety and adding in potentialities. This time I've added anger that will lean her closer to her manga carnation.

Writing characters the same all the time becomes grating and boring for me. It's especially infuriating how people write her so childishly. Sure, she has anxiety and anger here, but she is going to grow extremely fast. The same can be said for Shizuru.