A Sexy Reconciliation.

Day 4 of The 129th Rasheul Great **** Tournament
8:17 PM

And you said I had to stop slavery by doing slavery! I gotta make Hebi-san surrender, you said? If I want to set my friends free? Those are the rules, right?

Well, guess what? Screw the rules!
And screw that Snake Lady!

I snatched them right out of her clutches! And no one had to be the **** of anyone!
All I had to do was some unethical research, breaking and entering, exploiting the crisis initiative of an entire city, detaining someone under false pretenses, and commiting (temporary) **** using a super-virus with the capacity to wipe out an entire species.

But no slavery!

And I got away with it scott free!
Well, almost. I just got one witness on my case.

Fortunately, that witness was none other than the Bird Brain herself: Sanakia.
Or maybe that 's unfortunately. I hadn't decided yet. Our last encounter didn't exactly end with all loose ends neatly tied up. I did save her life by risking my own, sure. But I was the one who put her in danger to begin with! If we'd never met, she wouldn't need saving at all. And she wouldn't have been kicked out of her master's retinue either. She'd be standing by him even now, and...
And remain trapped under the abusive care of the narcissistic murderer she was tricked to fawn over...

Needless to say, I had no idea how she felt about me. I don't even think she herself knew. That's what I gathered from her blank stare.
With one cautious step after the other, she approached me.

"Oh, Sanakia!" I shot her a smile, "It's –Nice to see you. What brings you to this neck of the woods?"
Her empty gaze locked on to me as if she had no idea what she was looking at. Even though she was the one who looked me up, "Nothing. It's just– Congratulations. On making it to the finals."
"Heh. Yeah, I guess I got kinda lucky. Was spared having to get my ass wrecked by you."

"Yeah. I lost. Do-- You suppose I could've won, if I just tried a little harder?" Her voice started out steady but shook more with each syllable.
I shook my head, "Nah. You already tried your best. As far as I'm concerned, that makes you more of a winner than any of those geeks already."

Sanakia turned teary eyed, "...Who are you?"
"Uh... Last I checked I was still Allison. Feel free to assume that's who I'll always be."
"You sow discord and mistrust wherever you go... Yet you'd upend heaven and earth to rescue those subjugated into slavery. Are you an agent of evil, or a champion of good?"
I chuckled, "No! I'm neither. I'm Allison, like I just said. Accept no substitute! I decide who I am myself."
"... Who you are... Yourself...?" She spoke slowly as if struggling to puzzle the words together, "How?"
"One decision at a time. Just like you, really. And just like everyone else."
"... That is the wish of all, is it not? To act in a way that pleases oneself. Live life according to the whims as it falls one to their tastes. I wished to prove that even a Galmon could discard her own selfish preferences to walk the narrow path. Live a life dedicated to serving others. According to how it was divinely dictated. But..."

Bat Girl stepped up from behind me, tilting her head as she ran her fingers through her hair, "Hey, Sannie... It's great you wanna turn into a better version of yourself and all that. Rivetting stuff, really. But just cause a path was divinely dictated, that doesn't mean it was made for a Galmon. And it certainly doesn't mean it was made for you."
"Yeah! There's as many ways to live a life as there are people to live them, each one as 'right' as the next. Take the advice of your gods as what it is: advice. Use what works, and throw away the rest."
"But how... Do I know what works?"
I shrugged, "Beats me. Can't say one way or another what works for you. But the first step is to stop caring so much what others think. I mean, what exactly does anyone know about how to live your life if they're anyone-but-you?"

Those words were left to linger. The shadowy leaves rustled around us as they were touched by an invisible wind.
"...I saw him fight. Sir d'Artagan. He said something. To his opponent. Something he repeated from you. I wish... I wish I could have made that kind of impression on him. At least once. During all the years of service I committed to him..."
"Haha, yeah! I sure told him off, didn't I? Listen, as long as you play the part of the good little obedient girl, then sure, that's at least not gonna make him blow up in your face. But he's also not gonna need to change anything up. Sometimes what people need is to be challenged once in a while."
The Bird Brain winced, looking away, "But that... No. I cannot challenge him... That would be... ''"
"It's scary for you, isn't it?" I asked.
"No! I mean, I am supposed to face that which is scary without hesitation. I am, after all, a knight. B-but..." Silence fell before she could end that thought. Only a sigh left her afterwards.
"It's not like you have to get back to him just because you could. Especially if it's hard. Better to make up your mind if it's worth it, or if maybe it's best to turn a new leaf with someone else."
"...He really is not as bad as you might presume. I believe him merely to be determined in his ways, and..."
"Sure," I burst into her little shpiel, "I get that, but just because two people are awesome, that doesn't mean they've gotta be awesome together. You kinda need to look out for yourself first. No one else is gonna do it for you. Least of all him."

"I see..." She uttered softly, looking away, "I still want to be a warrior of justice. I still want to rescue those who fall prey to the onslaught of foul desires. That has not changed. But I will no longer do it in his name."
A toned down sigh escaped her lips, and she looked back to me again, "To be honest, being kicked out of his service may have been the best thing to happen to me. And yet, I am scared too. I have never been on my own before."
"Hey! I'm glad that you're scared! That just means you're on the right track! Besides, you were on your own when you nearly obliterated that wicked witch, right?"
"Yeah... I guess I was..."

"So you wanna share what happened back there? All I know is... Well, I suppose I don't really know anything, except that was completely bonkers!"
She sighed, "I wish I knew myself. Everything became cloudy. And yet nothing has ever been so clear to me. There are no words to describe what I saw. But... It was as if I saw in a tunnel vision. Everything around me was black, except my opponent. Didn't see her as a human being either. I saw the blood circulating throughout her body. I saw her joints flexing as she moved. I saw luminous fluid pulsating throughout her being, as if radiating magic itself. Everything else faded out of my awareness. I could only think about how I was going to hurt her. Until... Until it dawned to me. That..."

Bird Brain wiped her eye with the back of her hand, "I cannot do this. I am sorry, but... I have to stop."
"That's okay." I said, holding back just how anxious I was to know what the deal was with all that, "You don't have to share more than you're comfortable with. But I'm here for you if you feel like opening up."
"Yeah!" Bat Girl shrieked, "Same here!"
"Thank you, but... I think that shall not be necessary. There is something else I need however." Bird Brain untied her scabbard from her belt and presented it to me, "At first I resigned myself to the fact my sword was beyond mending, yet with your hands then surely anything is possible. Would you repair it for me?"
I took it in my ams, "Sure, I'll take a look at it. Get it patch up in no time. Just, forget what you saw here, all right?"
She smirked, "Forget what?"
"Exactly! Just swing by tomorrow and I'll have it as good as new!"
"Thank you, miss Allison. I wish to be prepared. My journey is going to be a hard one, and I must be vigilant and armed if I am to make it to my goal." She stepped forward, moving past me further into the depth of the forest. Wedged between an unpleasant past and an uncertain future, yet carrying herself relaxed yet confident. For the moment it seemed she was content just to be.
"Sounds like you already made up your mind about where to go next." I mused, looking back at her over my shoulder, "So... Mind sharing where you're heading next?"
"Where I'm going?" She stopped, peering over her shoulder. She pointed upwards to the flickering stars above, "The sky."