Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 3, Part 3

[Oldmansour]

>On that note, would I be correct in assuming that I should call you 'Rose'?

>Rin smiles proudly. White Rose, mistress.
>Ohh, I like that! Lily cries in your heads before dropping down behind Rin and engulfing her in a hug.

[DracoOmega]

>Smile
>A fitting name.

[Oldmansour]

>Smile
>A fitting name.

>Your approval brings a smile to your Rin's face. It becomes a more concerned look, however, when she asks aloud, "Are you okay, Lotus? Ice got you worse than she got us."
>"Yeah, those were some pretty big bangs she hit ya with." Lily adds, still draped over White Rose.

[DracoOmega]

>How are we feeling, anyway?

[Oldmansour]

>How are we feeling, anyway?

>Not bad, considering. You're a bit sore in your left side and leg, and you feel a bit warm, like you've been outside in the summer heat for a little too long.

[DracoOmega]

>"Just a little sore; nothing to be concerned about, thankfully."

[Oldmansour]

>"Just a little sore; nothing to be concerned about, thankfully."

>"You're pretty tough." Lily remarks, suitably impressed.
>Rin, however, looks a bit more serious, despite the winged blonde's embrace. "You shouldn't even be that. I got too fixed on the Fire one."

[DracoOmega]

>Gentle smile
>"Not at all. You handled yourself with great courage and strength today, and each time you were needed, you were there."

>"I understand why Fire bothers you, and I feel likewise - at least so far as I am able. I promise that we will do our utmost to extricate Ice from his dominion. Somehow."

[Oldmansour]

>Gentle smile
>"Not at all. You handled yourself with great courage and strength today, and each time you were needed, you were there."

>"I understand why Fire bothers you, and I feel likewise - at least so far as I am able. I promise that we will do our utmost to extricate Ice from his dominion. Somehow."

>"Yeah, don't be hard on yourself." Lily adds with a bright smile. "For your first time out, you were great! Handled your power really good."
>"Aye, aye..." Rin admits. "But I still need to do better."

>Rin finally cracks a smile. "Comin' from you, I believe it. But it ain't gonna be easy. I've seen that look in someone's eyes before. I think she really does believe she can't live wit'out Fire. When we beat Fire, Ice's either gonna be completely lost, or she might try to kill you for beating her owner."

[DracoOmega]

>"I suspect there is some genuine truth to their essences being somehow... entwined. If only we knew more about how, or in what way Ice might safely be separated from Fire. Fire himself has a vested interest in asserting that this is impossible, but it may not be so. And if this chain could be somehow severed, perhaps she might be willing to reexamine her own position."

[Oldmansour]

>"I suspect there is some genuine truth to their essences being somehow... entwined. If only we knew more about how, or in what way Ice might safely be separated from Fire. Fire himself has a vested interest in asserting that this is impossible, but it may not be so. And if this chain could be somehow severed, perhaps she might be willing to reexamine her own position."

>"Maybe not severed..." Rin says thoughtfully.
>"What do you mean?" Lily asks, removing her arms from around the kasha's shoulders.
>"When a slave is that.... enslaved, cutting them off from their master can be the worst thing that can happen to them. I know how that sounds, but trust me. If we killed Fire, or even just imprisoned it like you two did with the Water one, it could do more damage to Ice than you can imagine. But... If we could attach her to a different master- Say you're right, Lotus, say there is some kinda connection between 'em that goes deeper than just slave and master. If we could unattach Ice from Fire and attach her to someone else, a new master, that would be better for Ice than cutting her loose completely."

[DracoOmega]

>"Yes, a surrogate of some some kind. Though without knowing exactly how she is sustained by this connection, I could not say exactly what could replace it without doing her genuine physical harm. Assuming, of course, that Fire was being honest about that part; Ice, at least, seemed to think so."

[Oldmansour]

>"Yes, a surrogate of some some kind. Though without knowing exactly how she is sustained by this connection, I could not say exactly what could replace it without doing her genuine physical harm. Assuming, of course, that Fire was being honest about that part; Ice, at least, seemed to think so."

>"We should get her to talk about it." Lily says, then pauses. "Why do you think she didn't talk? The other demons did."
>"Best guess is Fire didn't let her." answers Rin. "Someone like that probably thinks even Ice's voice belongs to him. She took a big risk with those feathers." Lily blinks in confusion. "Those feathers she gave to Lotus after Fire ran away. They were some kind of messages, weren't they, Lotus?"

[DracoOmega]

>Nod
>"They were. When I touched them, I could sense... well, it was less words and more... sentiments, I suppose. But their meaning was clear. She told me that the next time we meet, we shall face a far harder battle than today - not only the full force of Fire's power, but depths to her own that she has yet to reveal. I... believe she may have been holding back today, as best she could get away with."
>"And then she pleaded with me to surrender, promising that the demons would spare those who serve them willingly - that those with the kind of power we share might even thrive beneath them."
>Shake our head slowly
>"She does not wish to harm us - this much is clear. No matter how powerful or vindictive some of her kin may be, her own existence is proof that this cannot be all that they are."

[Oldmansour]

>Nod
>"They were. When I touched them, I could sense... well, it was less words and more... sentiments, I suppose. But their meaning was clear. She told me that the next time we meet, we shall face a far harder battle than today - not only the full force of Fire's power, but depths to her own that she has yet to reveal. I... believe she may have been holding back today, as best she could get away with."

>"Probably Fire's orders there, too." Rin speculates. "He did say he wanted to see what we had to throw at Ice. But it was brave of her to say it."
>"You really think she can do more than she did to us then?" Lily wonders aloud.
>"I reckon so. I think if she really wanted to hurt the others around, never mind us, she would have. Hell, that first sneak attack of hers coulda killed someone, but it didn't."

>"And then she pleaded with me to surrender, promising that the demons would spare those who serve them willingly - that those with the kind of power we share might even thrive beneath them."
>Shake our head slowly
>"She does not wish to harm us - this much is clear. No matter how powerful or vindictive some of her kin may be, her own existence is proof that this cannot be all that they are."

>Lily frowns. "Doesn't that kinda sound like what Water did to Ki... Chrysanthemum?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Perhaps, or perhaps not. But it seemed to me that her request stemmed more from a genuine concern for our lives than any desire to have dominion over them. I do not believe I could yet extend the same sentiment to Water."

[Oldmansour]

>"Perhaps, or perhaps not. But it seemed to me that her request stemmed more from a genuine concern for our lives than any desire to have dominion over them. I do not believe I could yet extend the same sentiment to Water."

>"Mmm, good point."
>Rin clears her throat quietly, seeming a bit uncomfortable. "I don't mean to doubt you, Lotus, but... Well, are you sure? It's possible Ice could have been doing that to get you to lower your guard. I'm not saying I think she IS!" Rin adds hastily. "I'm just saying, some slaves would do that if it would benefit their masters, whether they wanted to or not."

[DracoOmega]

>"Perhaps, but I do not think so; her sadness felt genuine. Though it does not change our course. I cannot surrender and allow other lives to be ended while I might hold the power to change that, no matter the risk this places my own in. Where there is still hope, I will fight."
>Small smile
>"And there is always hope."

[Oldmansour]

>"Perhaps, but I do not think so; her sadness felt genuine. Though it does not change our course. I cannot surrender and allow other lives to be ended while I might hold the power to change that, no matter the risk this places my own in. Where there is still hope, I will fight."
>Small smile
>"And there is always hope."

>Lily smiles oh so brightly. "I love it when you talk so heroically."
>White Rose's smile is a quieter expression, and she looks at Lily when she says, "She does it good, doesn't she?"
>"Oh yeah!"

[DracoOmega]

>A little self-effacing chuckle
>"Please. You'll make me feel self-conscious."

[Oldmansour]

>A little self-effacing chuckle
>"Please. You'll make me feel self-conscious."

>"Aww, don't be shy!" Lily exults as she dashes forward, catching you in a big hug. "You make a great hero!"
>"Shh." Rin hisses, her ears twitching. "I hear someone around the corner."

[DracoOmega]

>Be quiet, listen, and wait
>Oh and, uh, which corner would this be?

[Oldmansour]

>Be quiet, listen, and wait
>Oh and, uh, which corner would this be?

>You are standing near the southwest corner of the school. Around the corner is, among other things, the side entrance you used to enter the school with Kaguya.
>Your ears do detect the sounds of voices, at least two, but are not sharp enough to pick up much in the way of details. Especially not with the ambient din coming from in front of the school.
>Rin's twitching ears are a different matter. "Hatate." she says after a moment. Twitch. "And those twin friends of hers. One of them, anyway."

[DracoOmega]

>Do we know which friends of her she would be referring to?
>Are they coming this way?

[Oldmansour]

>Do we know which friends of her she would be referring to?
>Are they coming this way?

>Most likely, they are the bat-winged youkai twins Akina and Akiko, you don't recall their family name. Affectionately known as the Aki-aki duo around school. They are second years, a year younger than you. Akina is a member of the journalism club, like Hatate, while Akino is a member of the soccer team, as well as the gardening club.
>Twitch. Don't think so. I think they're standin' outside the side door.

[DracoOmega]

>Would this side door be directly in our way out?

[Oldmansour]

>Would this side door be directly in our way out?

>In a straight line, yes.

[DracoOmega]

>Any obvious way to go around it?
>Are these people gossips, by any chance?
>I don't suppose it sounds as though they are waiting for us? Or at least someone to emerge?

[Oldmansour]

>Any obvious way to go around it?
>Are these people gossips, by any chance?
>I don't suppose it sounds as though they are waiting for us? Or at least someone to emerge?

>The simplest way would be to go back the way you came.
>You don't know Akiko well enough to know if she's a gossip, but Akina seems like the sort who values information and enjoys keeping important things to herself. You think. You've only met her a couple of times, and you haven't been able to get a really good read on her in that time. And while calling Hatate a gossip would be unfair to her, she is the head of the school newspaper, and has a passion for revealing the truth.

>Twitch. Someone's comin' this way, but it ain't Hatate or Akina. Those two're standin' still. I think.

[DracoOmega]

>Wouldn't 'back the way we came' imply leaving through the front entrance instead of the back?
>Is the place they're standing on the outside of the school wall or still inside? At least as far as we can assume from Rin's description?
>Then Akiko?