Roxanne's awareness

November 28th

I was being lead to a small and separate room of a cafe near campus. Much to my surprise, the five girls on the target list had already been converted by now. They led me past the regular customers enjoying their cups of coffees and some pastries. Once we arrived in the room, a girl was sitting in the corner of the room and the other five girls left the room, while I closed the door behind me.

As I approached her, I could see a slender girl. She had the build of a formerly athletic woman, but the crutches next to her seat and her leg casts made it obvious why this girl was no longer as athletic as she used to be. I took a seat and she greeted me "So you're the one..."

Me: "Excuse me?"

Her: "You don't need to play dumb with me. I'm very... perceptive, you know? I've smelled something fishy was going on with the vote, and then I could sense my co-councilors were quietly no longer confident in what they believed in mere weeks ago during the election. I knew someone had to pull the strings."

Me: "Oh, that... Let me introduce myself first. I'm Zach."

Her: "I'm Roxanne. Let's not swerve off-topic. You're not a man with a lot of time on his hands, are you? I'll cut to the chase, what do you want? What's your goal?"

Me: "Hm... that's a tough question to answer, isn't it? Why even start with that? Wouldn't you like to know more about why your colleagues changed attitudes first?"

Roxanne: "I'm not worried about it in the slightest. I'm steadfast in my principles. You're not going to change my mind in a debate. And if you're doing something different to them, then I reckon it's already too late for me. You wouldn't have agreed to meet me without a plan, would you?"

Me: "Indeed I wouldn't have. You have a sharp mind, Roxanne."

Roxanne: "Likewise. I may not know what you're doing, but it was obvious to me that you influenced Bonnie somehow. If you wanted me to change my mind with just a debate, then you may simply leave, that would be a fruitless exercise. If you have anything more to offer, I want to know what you're after, before you enact your plan."

Me: "Are you curious? You know what they say about cats..."

Roxanne: "And you would leave me alive even if I didn't ask? Don't mess with me, just answer. I'll be available for your shenanigans afterwards."

Me: "Alright... The answer is not too exciting, though. I simply want power over the college, preferably while staying as hidden as possible. The rest of your questions you should be able to answer yourself by now."

Roxanne: "So you have some kind of method to make others do what you say and make them believe what you want them to believe. Given my observations and your focus on us, it's logical to conclude that you only use your methods on women. If you're as power-hungry as you claim, then that is also not by choice. So am I right in assuming you can subjugate women somehow and wanted our quota to pass because it gives you more people to control in positions of power?"

Me: "Bingo! You didn't even need that much help. Now I want an answer too. Why were you asking in the first place? You must have had an inkling that I could do something, right?"

Roxanne: "Honestly, probably just closure. I know I'm not going to earnestly believe in feminism after our conversation anymore, but I wanted to feel a little safer in your hands. And I wanted to test you as well. You've got a pretty good grasp about how to gain power, but you are too trusting. What if I had wanted to fight you and called in some guys? What if I had let others listen in on this conversation? That being said, given everything you've said so far, your powers are recent. I can forgive your naivety for now. So, what do disgusting men like you do once they've made women this agreeable?"

Me: "Don't worry about yourself too much, Roxanne. I'm after the student council, not another girl to fuck. I probably have over 100 girls under me and can always get more. I'm glad you can find some solace in your future under me. Feminism might just be a tool for me, but I will wield it with full force to my advantage, that much I can promise you. Actually, before I start, let's quickly talk about the quota again. The new newsletter should be out by now."

Roxanne: "You're right..." We spent some time in silence reading the college's statement, printed in full in the email. "So they're going to fight it?"

Me: "About what we expected, to be honest. They're also looking for the worst cases internally, but I have enough HR employees under my control to make these cases go to the court of public opinion before the college can react. I'll use my growing influence in the administration organize some resistance as well. It won't change the dean's mind, but it will make his position shaky and might cause him to give up more quickly."

Roxanne: "You are too focused on the quota. Make sure you have a woman able and willing to succeed the dean and fracture his position with bad press, rebelling staff, and rebelling students until he resigns in disgrace."

Since that part of the conversation was finished, we sat there in a moment of silence until she hesitatingly broke that silence "There's one more reason why I wanted to have this conversation with you. I... am simply tired. Look at me. I used to be able to win in state competitions and had high hopes for the nationals. But instead, I've had to use crutches for a year. Nothing wants to heal. I'm probably never going to be able to do sports again, maybe not even a casual walk. I've changed courses this semester, but... I can only be so happy with my plan B. I've doubled down on my activism in a vain attempt to fill the hole inside me, but I think I just have to face my own fate now. You know, my injury was what radicalized me. My tendons around my ankle are the ones that don't want to heal, they'd have to do some kind of surgery on me. But since I can't become a wealthy athlete because there's less money in women's sports, I'm out of luck. Insurance wouldn't cover it." She started to tear up.

Me: "Oh, I'm sorry. If you want, I can let a specialist look over it, once we have one of those."

Roxanne: "It's... fine. Well, it's not, but you get what I mean. You don't need to pull strings just to help me. You said that you had over 100 women already, you can't be doing this for all of them! You don't need to humor me about this, you know? Just stick to your script and let's get this over with."

Me: "I would have asked you about yourself anyway, Roxanne. I need some sort of weakness to exploit in conversation to get us going. You said you were unsure about your life after the injury, about changing courses, about your activism, about your future ability to lead a life by yourself. I will be your guidance for these problems, Roxanne. You will know what I want from you in every situation in your life and you will find yourself no longer worrying since I will always be there to guide you in spirit and you will find comfort in being guided."

Roxanne was now entering the dopey state of mind I've already put others under. I felt in my bones that this was a moment to shape her life. Roxanne was, at her core, deeply insecure about herself. Did I want to destroy her completely to rebuild her entire psyche and personality anew to my wishes? Or did I want her to carry on with her life and continue with her new choices? As hot as the former was, I had come to appreciate Roxanne's abilities in our conversation and perhaps it was time that my strategic counsel became more than just Becca.

Me: "Roxanne, you understand that even if I could organize a surgery, it would still take a while to do sports at a professional level again. It's better to focus on your new subject instead. I will be supporting you in that process. You will find strength in your devotion and obedience to me, for I will lead you to success. Tomorrow, you will wake up a believer like every other girl in the student council. Let the other girls wake you eventually from this hazy state and take you back to our dorms. And contact Becca once she's back."

Roxanne was unable to articulate words, instead a grunt that roughly sounded like an agreement came out of her mouth. As I approached the exit, the other five girls ran in and sat themselves around Roxanne, propping her up. One of them said "Soon, you'll be our new sister and a lot happier!" They started to pick her up and lead her out of the room back to the dorms.