Arc 16: An Alliance After Pretty Sammy and Pixy Misa left, the celebration continued over to the next few days. When it was officially over, the people of Juraihelm began to rebuild the damage. Tsunami did not hold court for a week and spent some of her spare time caring for her flowers in her private garden near her quarters. She was watering a patch of Royal Teardrops when she heard knocking on her chamber door. "Come in." Ramia entered. "Greetings, your Majesty. May I have a word with you?" "Ah, Ramia, welcome back. Please come in." Ramia wove her hands in a spell of Instant Replay which she had learned from the Scroll of Lost Lore. If she guessed right, the spell would reveal the events that transpired in a certain space in time. Ramia directed the spell's energy to Tsunami's viewscroll. The scroll flickered, and the barely discernable scene of Tsunami's room ten years ago appeared. In the scene, a younger Tsunami lounged in her floating recliner as she watched the suspended viewscroll before her. It flickered with images of the people of Earth who are rebuilding their cities after the near devastation caused by one errant Juraihelm candidate, She-who-will-not-be-named. With a languid wave of her hand, the scroll flickered, and showed a similar scene in a quaint Japanese town. Then the scroll flickered again, and showed a scene of armed gangsters pursuing a young girl with blue hair and pink eyes. Tsunami watched the scene in apparent distaste. She wove her hands in intricate patterns. "No one needs to know that you were Pretty Sammy. And now, by the power of Juraihelm, I, Queen Tsunami do hereby declare it so!" Ramia ended the spell and faced Tsunami. "There was a faction of Earthlings that opposed magic. You feared for the magical girls' safety, so you asked me erase the memories of those who knew that Pixy Misa was Misao. You in turn, would erase those who knew Sasami was Pretty Sammy. I did so, but only on Earth. But you overdid it! Your spell caused all of Earth, including Sasami, as well as Juraihelm, to forget Pretty Sasami. By sheer luck, the effect on Misao was minor, because Pixy Misa's ego was not concious at the time. As a side effect of your spell, Earth lost its champion of justice. The Balance didn't react then, since Earth was in no danger. But this last crisis threatened Juraihelm and Earth, so the Balance judged your act. I realized that it was you when we broke the binding magic on Sasami. The three of us began to remember what you made us forget." Ramia victoriously pointed her finger at Tsunami. "Therefore, it was you who caused the Imbalance." Ramia smiled in triumph. "If the magistrates hear about this, they will certainly dethrone you. But only if they hear about it." Tsunami's eyes narrowed. "It appears that you have something in mind." "Ah, you're catching on. Yes, I do. An alliance. Between your house and mine." "Very well." Tsunami's calm response caught Ramia off guard. She quickly composed herself. "Excellent. I will send instructions for a meeting with me and Rumiya." "Rumiya will not be needed." "What? So you're not serious about an alliance?" "I am, but it will not involve Rumiya." "Idiot! Rumiya is my only kin!" "But I'm not an idiot, Ramia. Otherwise, you wouldn't make me this offer." Tsnuami's voice had lost its cheery lilt, and bore a weight of seriousness which Ramia rarely heard. "Let me make it clear - if the Seven could not control me, then you don't have a chance either." "So they knew too? I had a feeling they did. And they still chose you, even though you said that you would simply plant flowers. Furthermore, in all those times you were such an airhead, it was because you closed your mind with a memory lock spell, so that your actions would not hint towards a certain outcome." Ramia paused. "I thought it was merely a glamour spell, but you hid the spell within a spell." In an instant, Ramia remembered several possible occassions of Tsunami's duplicity, and her face grew red from anger and frustration. "All that wasted time, when I had to clean up after you! You didn't tell me anything! All that work wouldn't have mattered!" "What's done is done, and the future remains true. What you did, Ramia, happened because you willed it to, and thus it came to be. It is small consolation for your troubles, and I apologize. But if you think about it, everything has turned out well, and in no small thanks to your efforts." "Is that why you asked me to be Chief Magistrate?" Tsunami pouted. "I'm disappointed, Ramia. But perhaps, I was too subtle. Very well, I will tell you this - given what I knew then and what I know now, I still had to make a choice, because I believe that the future is what we decide it to be. It was my choice to offer you that position, and the future had nothing to do with it." Tsunami watched Ramia's changing reactions. "I am glad that you accepted, for you performed beyond my expectations. You didn't have to work so hard, because I didn't expect you to prove anything to me. I prefer to think that you merely wanted to prove yourself worthy. You were more than worthy, Ramia. Misty Mountain proved that." "I don't believe you. Before I left, you said 'May the stars guide you.' You said that knowing that was the key to solving the riddle of the Hall of Lights. You said it because... because you thought that I couldn't do it." Ramia shook with anger. "But you were the one who solved it and escaped with the Scroll. The barriers and traps of Misty Mountain are not to be taken lightly. And what's more, you realized that the Seven would want the Spell of Reversal - the only spell that can break my memory lock. Despite this, you returned the Scroll and restored Misty Mountain's defenses." Ramia seemed to shiver slightly, but Tsunami could not discern whether it was from anger or fear. (I don't want any more secrets, so I might as well push you.) Tsunami took a step toward Ramia. "Anyway, we digress." Tsunami's eyes bored through Ramia's. "I'm not letting you hide anymore, Ramia. I want you to decide, without hiding behind the pretext about preserving my bloodline, or advancing your political status, or preventing me from keeping my throne. I want you to think hard about it, and decide for yourself." Tsunami took her arm and led her to the door. Ramia panicked. "Why don't you just tell me what I'm supposed to do?!" Tsunami smiled gently. "Because it's your future, Ramia. I am ready to face the consequences of my actions, as well as yours." Then her smile widened into a wicked grin. "Besides, it's much more interesting if you choose your path yourself, than for me to tell which path you would choose. Now go out there and think about it!" Somehow, Tsunami pushed her out the door and slammed it shut. Ramia bit the tip of her thumb in frustration. Tsunami had torn down all her fronts for the alliance, and she couldn't think of any more excuses to hide behind. She felt naked and vulnerable as she remembered how Tsunami locked her eyes in a soul gaze. (Damn, you Tsunami! I'm not ready for this!) Her mind clouded with thoughts of whether Tsunami knew of her plots and sub plots, and even worse, all the other things that she didn't have the courage to do. (Don't play mind games... Clear the mind... Must... Must get away from it all...) She walked unsteadily down the hall way. Tsunami's door clicked open, and Tsunami stuck her head out, and called out in her usual cheerful voice.. "By the way, don't forget to get Misao and Sasami presents next month, so don't go very far. And, it has nothing to do with birthdays. More like a lifetime event." The door closed again. "Hmph." Ramia had enough of nonsense, and wandered out into the courtyard. Then a thought occurred to her, and her eyes widened incredulously. "It... it can't be that they're going to..." (Damn it, Tsunami! Don't think that this little twist will influence my decision!) Ramia looked up into the sky. (Right?)
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