Uploaded On: 09th October 2024.
Woe is Me
Five Laws
Natsuki is down beneath the arena the next morning when the door bursts open. The impact is so forceful that it almost sends her flying from her backless bench. "Fumi!" She curses out in surprise, unconsciously leaping up onto her feet.
"I doubt it—" Laura is the first to enter who's then followed by Mai. "Oh, hey Kruger, aren't you supposed to be in the labs?" She motions behind her with a thumb.
'Damn sake, I lost track.' Willing herself to move, Natsuki rushes for the door. "Thanks Laura, see you later!" As she leaves, her fellow Pearls can only glance at each other with mild concern.
Soon she's in the Underground Facility and skipping several steps. Yohko, who has been expecting her, turns to face her without surprise.
"I thought you had chickened out for a second there. You just missed Tokiha's GEM instalment." Nevertheless she aims an amused look at Natsuki before getting straight to the point. "Come and sit yourself down beside my laptop. I need to link your Meister GEM to the database. Would you like to see it?"
Well yeah, of course she does. Natsuki nods, but as she's about to sit, she double takes a shadowy corner. From the darkness, the Archmeister reveals herself.
"Did you forget about me, Natsuki?" The Pearl can barely register a smirk tracing Shizuru's lips.
Natsuki is about to counter her, but finds Yohko's hand on her ruffled shoulder. Before she can react, she gets shoved down onto the chair. "I didn—"
"—Silence, Kruger." The medical officer demands casually as she opens the desk drawer. Inside an assortment of items are removed. To Natsuki's confusion, some of these things have no relation to her.
Paperwork from Fumi knows when… Old elastic bands potentially double her age… Post-it notes with incomprehensible handwriting… Is that a positional action figure of Shizuru? Furrowing her brow as said woman stands beside her, Natsuki slowly transfers her gaze to Shizuru questioningly. The Archmeister only smiles at her, baffling Natsuki even more.
"Oh, finally, here it is! My safe place wasn't too safe, fortunately."
As the faux Archmeister is thrown back away, Natsuki's eyebrows gradually lift. Just as quickly as this commences, a small box is placed in front of her. It is blue with graceful italics printed on the top. It reads: Ice Silver Quartz.
"That gemstone is a form of glass." Yohko comments as she eases the box open. Within is a brilliant GEM cushioned in white velvet. "Like the Bewitching Smile Amethyst, your GEM has been in storage for twenty years. Both were used during the Weaver Assassination Plot. Wear it proudly and prove to your peers that you will do better—or something like that." The officer forces a smile as she shrugs.
With this she pushes aside her desk's clutter and heaves over her holographic laptop. It briefly flashes as she presses her thumb to its scanner, unlocking it via her fingerprint. "I must ask some questions first."
"Ask away, I guess." Natsuki cannot fathom what these questions will be about. Not to mention, her mind is still caught up on that figurine. What's up with that? She should ask Shizuru about it later.
"First, what are the Five Laws of Garderobe that every Otome must adhere to?"
"Honour, innocence, justice, judgement and chastity." Natsuki lists them easily thanks to consistent memorisation. How could she forget? Miss Maria had hounded her ceaselessly on her first day. She sighs at it all, briefly thinking back to the threats of reciting those laws.
"As the Headmeister, what will be your focused law?"
"To safeguard innocence; be it through peacetime or war."
"Very good." Yohko nods to herself, inputting these answers into her laptop's database. "What of the Archmeister? What happens when she is appointed the Deputy Headmeister during emergencies?"
"I…" Natsuki glances at Shizuru momentarily, as though attempting to communicate with her nonverbally. Alas, the Column does not betray advice, and it's likely only she knows the true answer. "The Archmeister's law is justice. Wouldn't it revolve around the security of Garderobe?"
"Actually yes, almost!" Yohko remarks as Shizuru eases closer to Natsuki and squeezes her shoulder. "What of the Informer?"
"Judgement. They frequently go undercover to see both sides of the story. This includes entering enemy territory for interception." Consequently, Natsuki has only just realised how potentially dangerous Mai's role will be. There's another person she shall have to speak with later.
"The Deputy?"
"...Chastity." Natsuki mumbles, inwardly cursing her awkwardness. Though… Natsuki isn't entirely sure what Mahya even does exactly. She's more like a military police officer than anything else. "To police Garderobe?"
"Basically, yes" The officer types furiously, adding: "And lastly, what is the Envoy's law?"
"Honour. Though in recent times that position has become more of an ambassador." During the Weaver Assassination Plot, all five laws had been broken—particularly by Una Shamrock. She essentially enforced the Envoy at the time—Elliot Chandler—to become a dishonourable spy and betray her colleagues. Actually, what even happened to her?
"Well done, you're good to go."
That was fast. Natsuki blinks, feeling somewhat surprised. "So what now?"
"I'm about to get you connected to the mainframe. Your GEM has already been updated. After the ceremony I would like you to return for a check-up however. It's nothing to worry about, it's just a standard procedure. The Archmeister can confirm she went through something similar during her own duel."
"She is correct." Shizuru relaxes her stance beside Natsuki, clasping her hands in front of herself. "Our GEMs—especially Column ones—are prepared weeks prior to the Trias Duels. Luckily Column GEMs are fairly easy to manage as they are frequently cared for. This is especially the case during their dormant stages."
The Ice Silver Quartz has virtually been undergoing a two decade long pampering session. With the utmost care, Natsuki's transition from Pearl to Column should be flawless.
"Now…" Yohko starts, causing Natsuki to apprehensively refocus her attention. "...please prepare yourself by removing your student GEM." Taking a thin metal rod from the drawer, she scoots her seat close to Natsuki's. "The Ice Silver Quartz will remain inactive as you put it in. I must physically connect it to the mainframe."
The cool breeze will soon be overcome with heat.
A/N: Turns out Sunrise remembered the 20th anniversary (albeit it a few days late). There is a cake collab now? Check out Twitter, Mai-HiME has an official account and everything (myhimeofficialz). Sunrise over on YouTube even released two PVs and they aren't even region-locked! Not to mention, the official website has finally been updated. What a time to be alive. Anyway, there seems to be a lot of hints flying around that we might be getting something at a later date (for Mai-Otome's anniversary, maybe?). Oh, to dream.