[x] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess.
[x] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. Maybe… she's a Kitsune? Shimizu are said to have a little kitsune blood in their veins… Is that why she was visiting the graves?
[x] [Offering] You hit it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal or insect to make it into a meal.
If we think there's a kitsune visiting the family graves, the least we can do is leave some food for her.
[X] [Arts] You should learn more. Buy some periodicals. Browse them in store when you can. It's a big world, but you'll adapt.
[X] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. She could, nonetheless, be a servant of the Shimizu family. Weren't there multiple ninja servants in your memories? The Kuno family had one, and Ukyo hired a kunoichi retainer.
[X] [Offering] You hit it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal or insect to make it into a meal.
I'm a fan of either suspicious stranger vote, but for now I'm more in favour of Ninja. Also very much in favor of getting some periodicals. But maybe not going overboard right at the start.
[X] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess.
[X] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. Maybe… she's a Kitsune? Shimizu are said to have a little kitsune blood in their veins… Is that why she was visiting the graves?
[X] [Offering] You hit it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal or insect to make it into a meal.
[x] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess.
[x] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. Maybe… she's a Kitsune? Shimizu are said to have a little kitsune blood in their veins… Is that why she was visiting the graves?
[X] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. She could, nonetheless, be a servant of the Shimizu family. Weren't there multiple ninja servants in your memories? The Kuno family had one, and Ukyo hired a kunoichi retainer.
[x] [Stranger] She seemed painfully familiar, and she was visiting the same set of graves. You know next to nothing about your mother's side of the family, maybe she's your cousin or a young aunt?
[X] [Offering] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go.
[X] [Offering] You hit it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal or insect to make it into a meal.
[ ] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess. (-1 stress to Know-It-All-Not, +1 stress to Precarity)
[ ] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. Maybe… she's a Kitsune? Shimizu are said to have a little kitsune blood in their veins… Is that why she was visiting the graves? (+1 stress to Legacy) [] [Offering] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go. (no stress change)
Total stress change: -1 stress to Know-It-All-Not +1 stress to Precarity +1 stress to Legacy
Totals after change:
Legacy
Regrets
Caretaker
Know-It-All-Not
Honorbound
Precarity
Rating
1
3
1
0
2
1
Stress
1
1
5
3
0
3
These changes will be fully applied after I finally type out the crisis updates, which at at least halfway done at this point.
Had a small neighbourhood blackout last night, so couldn't call the vote yesterday nor spend time on writing. Since writing on workdays is usually much slower for me, it's with a sad heart that I have to admit that it's likely the update will take me until the next weekend.
💙 Sorry and see you soon. 💙
On the plus side, I got a little artwork from Beedok to add to the upcoming update, too ^^
[] [Offering] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go. (no stress change)
... right, sorry, your last day vote tied it up and I didn't even notice, since I was thinking about a slightly earlier calculated total which had no ties.
This specific vote category does have some meaning, but it's mostly cosmetic anyway.
I need to think about it for a bit what's the fairest solution. I could just solve it by doing it half way for both... or, toss a dice to decide.
Then again, seeing as believing in kitsune vote has won, leaving the offering makes a tiny drop more sense.
You know what... since I'm not gonna finish the update until saturday or sunday... we can have a little tie breaker vote for a couple of days. And to make it sweeter, I can give a tiny reward for catching my mistake:
[ ] [Offering2] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go (-1 stress for Precarity)
[ ] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal. (-1 stress for Know-It-All-Not)
[ ] [Offering2] You ate half of it, leaving the other piece hidden in a nook of the grave. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or an insect to make it into a meal. (no stress change)
This tiny tiebreak vote will be called ~ 2025-04-12 💙 maybe 04-13 if I'm late.
[x] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
We think she's a kitsune, we should leave the food for her.
[X] [Offering2] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go (-1 stress for Precarity)
[X] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal. (-1 stress for Know-It-All-Not)
[X] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal. (-1 stress for Know-It-All-Not)
[X] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
[ ] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
It's as Eternal_observer says, this vote is invalid unless there's an X or x between brackets, the tool will not count such a vote. Sorry for the inconvenience.
[X] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
(-1 stress for Know-It-All-Not)
[x] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess.
[X] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. She could, nonetheless, be a servant of the Shimizu family. Weren't there multiple ninja servants in your memories? The Kuno family had one, and Ukyo hired a kunoichi retainer.
[X] [Offering] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go.
[X] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
[x] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
[X] [Offering2] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go
[x] [Arts] You should learn as much as possible. It's a little expensive, especially before your first payday, but you should get as much of the martial arts periodicals as you can, whenever you can. Everything from martial arts baseball to boxing chess.
[X] [Stranger] She seemed to have a suspicious air about her. There's something a little inhuman about you running into her today. She could, nonetheless, be a servant of the Shimizu family. Weren't there multiple ninja servants in your memories? The Kuno family had one, and Ukyo hired a kunoichi retainer.
[X] [Offering2] You ate it. You do like the taste of fried tofu, and you remember your father liking it too. Eating it in the rain and outside was a little odd, but that's how offerings can sometimes go
[x] [Offering2] You hid it in a nook on the grave, out of the packaging. There, partially protected from the rain, it waits for a stray animal, a kitsune or insect to make it into a meal.
Is a clear winner, the tie-break has been solved.
Removed one stress from Know-It-All-Not, leaving us at 2 stress in it.
Expect an update in a a matter of hours. Want to do an extra pass on the text and check the options (changed my own plans a drop, you'll see). And... sorry in advance for the crisis stuff. 💙
You know that tomorrow's first lesson is important, which is why you set out to head to sleep even earlier than you would usually… Except your mind is absolutely unable to stop buzzing, even when it's getting later and later.
What are you thinking, attempting to teach with such minimal actual knowledge?
Why are you even doing it instead of heading out to find Ranma? Why haven't you even tried to at least catch a glimpse of them yet?
It chafes.
A heavy weight drops on your chest, an unexpected and painful landing of the leaping animal. You let out a gasp of breath. The creature is dark, near invisible in the dark. Chaos.
"Ran!" you complain at her, but before you can push the dark cat away, she leaps off once again without regard to your comfort and zooms outside of your bedroom. Soon, Chaos starts running around the house, looking for a way outside, and meowing into the night, demanding freedom.
You end up getting up.
As soon as you enter the main room, the banner flutters from the winds caused by the running cat - or maybe the slightly ajar window.
You stare at the suggestion to end your life and sigh. Maybe the cat has the right idea.
A short while after letting her out, but only after her demands for goodbye scritches are met, you decide to dress back up, and go for a walk. It's late, sure, but you won't be sleeping either way.
…
You don't know where exactly you're going.
It's a lie. You know exactly where you wanna go. Who you want to find.
But even as your feet carry you further and further from your home, haunted by contract, weighted down by the sword you still ended up grabbing at the last second, you keep lying to yourself. You keep pretending this is nothing.
While at first it's just a regular walk, if at a quicker pace, soon you are properly running. The kimono is a little restraining, but you still can very much run in it.
You push yourself to the very limit. Then, a little more. A little further.
You run until it hurts, and then continue in a hobbling, slow walk until you catch your breath and then continue on in a sad half-running gait. You're quite surprised at how well your body can move, but maybe it's the delirium caused by the mounting exhaustion. Or, maybe, you've got the same spark in you that every high level martial artist does, except it was never pushed to the limit.
You can't tell for sure how much time has passed exactly in that exhausted daze of state, but it takes you probably a couple of hours of running yourself ragged, until you eventually find it.
The Tendo Dojo.
It's a mistake. You are tired, tense and completely lost in the maze of your own thoughts. To top it off, it's already past midnight, and nothing is visible in darkness.
Just one look.
The gate is not locked. You linger on the edge of the property, your breathing uneven. At night, it's hard to read the signs, but you're sure you're at the right place.
You clench your hands tighter around the sword. You shouldn't have brought it.
It's the same as you've imagined it. It's different. You've never been here, and yet you've read - and seen so many stories play out here, you can't help but feel like you know the place.
You don't follow the short paved path towards the main entrance, but instead duck to the side, to the backyard with the pond and the trees.
The lights are all out - and it's absolutely silent. Only the wind is blowing. As you walk slowly towards the pond, you realize that your initial guess was a little wrong.
There is a weird reflection of light from under the building. Someone is down there, crawling underneath the house, using a flashlight.
A burglar!
Without really dwelling on what exactly you're doing, you unwrap the sword in a quick move, and draw the blade free.
You step forward, not in any combat stance yet, blindsided by the potential danger. The tip of your sword peeks underneath, as you try to catch a glimpse of whoever's there in the reflection of the shiny blade.
The instant the point of the blade touches the darkness, there's a flurry of motion from underneath. Someone jumps, slams right into the floor above them with a loud crash, and then skitters away, all very creature-like.
You lean down to look properly and find a discarded mirror and a flashlight.
Maybe… it was a wild animal after all, playing with the light?
You sigh, but the tension doesn't leave your body. What are you even doing here? Why have you drawn the sword? This is not what you wanted to do.
You straighten back up. It doesn't seem like the loud bump woke anyone, for the house is still quiet.
It's all a big mistake.
Maybe… you should just go home.
Movement catches your eyes as you find yourself staring into the eyes of a child.
It's a girl. Dark brown hair. Not red. Long, straight, not bound in a pigtail or bound at all, for that matter. Her gaze is unfocused, she's wearing massively oversized pyjamas with stylized cat heads, and is dragging a teddy bear that's half her size on the floor behind her.
She's probably ten years old. Maybe twelve if you squint. Can't be Ranma.
She slides the glass panel to the side, and stares at you.
Her face is dirty, cheek marked with a remnant of some late night snack. Probably ice cream or something else sweet and creamy she ate just before bed. She's clearly not noticing it at all.
And within all that childlike innocence, to the point where it looks almost artificial, you still sense something else about her. She's half-asleep, yes, but you get a sense that should you make a sudden move, she would wake up and spring into action. Her eyes aren't focused on the sword, but she clearly has noticed you holding it and chosen to ignore it as a threat completely.
She's clearly a martial artist. And dangerous. Who exactly is she?
Maybe… Has your Ranma gotten a different curse? You remember multiple stories where Ranma played the part of a little girl - or even was one, by the virtue of some magical mess or artifact.
"Hello," the girl says sleepily. "What's happening now?"
"Are you a… Tendo?" You ask, instead of responding to her question.
"No," she says, and yawns. "Maybe one day," she adds a little wishfully, as if picturing some kind of fairytale wedding in head.
Could this actually be a child Ranma, dreaming of a future wedding with Akane?
The girl yawns again, clearly losing interest in you. "I'll go get some water," she mumbles, more to herself than you, and shuffles along, dragging the bear behind her, leaving the glass panel wide open. Ignoring you completely.
You want to call out, to make her explain if she actually is Ranma or not, but… you can't.
You don't know what the contract means if Ranma is a little girl. You can't do this tonight. Coming here in the middle of the night was the biggest mistake you have made since waking up in this new, messy, insane world.
But you did catch a glimpse of Ranma, so that has to count for something…
You end up leaving in the way you came, closing the gate behind yourself.
You will be back - another day.
Fever
There's not that much time until you have to get up, but your body is barely able to move. You set the alarm clock for the precious two hours you have left and crumple onto the futon. Your heart is breathing unevenly, and your body feels like it's burning up.
Tomorrow is your first day.
This time, you fall asleep easily.
…
…
You do not remember waking up.
You are lost in the towering walls and corridors of the Shimizu estate. You do not believe it was ever as large or expansive as it feels in your dream-like memories, but you're walking in the hall sized for giants.
Ahead, you can already feel the rising fire of the forge, and hear the rhythmic beat of the hammer. The scents are all mixed together, the satisfying taste of hot steel warring against the eye watering stench of burned flesh.
Each hit of a hammer is a well measured strike, echoing through the whole pathway you're taking. Your memories suggest it should have been a half-open walkway between the main house and the forge, but you are clearly in an enclosed space, walls inching ever so slightly closer and looming higher with every moment.
The path back is lost, and you feel yourself sweating with the increasing heat.
Still, you press forward.
Soon, you can feel the flame burning in the next room, even though the door is heavy and thick. Inside, muffled voices follow each strike. One - furious, agitated and harsh, each word a lash of a whip. Another - barely audible, calm, but firm.
You open the door slowly. It's heavy, imposing, and lets out a quiet squeak, but neither of the two men in the forge notice you.
As you sneak up a little closer, all to get a better look, ignoring the swirling heat, the rhythmic beat of the hammer ringing in your ears, you miss a step. Then, you bump into a table with tools and a handful of them fall down with a loud clatter.
Your grandfather is right there in your face, having grabbed your hand at the wrist, squeezing so much that it hurts. He shouldn't be as tall as you see him now, but he is. He towers over you, eyes blazing with hateful fire. His hand swings back, gaining momentum.
The blows of the hammer stop.
A strong hand grasps you, pulls you away, takes the strike in your place.
You stumble backwards, as you see your father clutching at his side, and the door closes behind them.
A half-forgotten woman catches you and pulls you away. She's familiar, for you've seen that brown hair and that worn kimono somewhere… She doesn't say anything, her gaze distant, even as she drags you away with a firm touch, despite your protests.
You know your father is in pain.
You scream.
…
…
You do not remember waking up.
The naked blade of the family sword is in your hands. You're standing firm, blade extended forward, ready to leap forward at a seconds notice. Your opponent is kneeling a bit further ahead. Her eyes are tired and she doesn't look like she's gonna try and attack at all. She's given up before the fight even started.
You're kneeling in a formal seiza, tired and weary. You know there's no fighting against grandfather's will. A strange woman stands further away. Her eyes are burning, her blade is drawn and she thinks herself a fighter and a hero. She's already lost herself.
You're confused.
"Fight me," you demand. "I'll prove what I can do!"
"Give up," you offer calmly. "There's no no point."
You strike.
You do not move out of the way, for the hit never comes even close.
Your hands are shaking. You're furious.
You're calm even as your body is heating up from the inside.
What can you even do?
…
…
You think you wake up.
Your body aches, and you're clearly running a strong fever.
The rest of the day is a blur. The only things you manage is to eat a little plain rice and drink some water. It leaves you hungry and tired, but you can't even think about preparing something more - much less going outside to lead a lesson.
Eventually after minutes, hours or even days spent in exhausting daze and brain fog, you fall asleep again, ignoring the occasional weird beeping sounds that must be all in your head.
…
…
Bad dreams still haunt you - but not as intense, nor do you remember them as vividly.
…
You lose a little more time to fever and dreams.
…
Eventually, you are woken up by someone knocking on your door.
Confusion gives way to a burst of fear as you realize that you had to have missed at least one lesson. It's hard to tell what time it is exactly.
You prop yourself up, confused, and look around.
The Shimizu family blade is embedded in the floor right next to your futon. Orchid, the tabby cat you don't own, is currently licking clean a bowl nearby, one that had the rice you somewhat remember making for yourself.
There's clear signs of you moving around - some discarded clothes, a few things have been pushed around, and the usual wrapping of the sword is in the doorway out of the bedroom.
You feel a little stronger, but still a little strained as you get up and attempt to make yourself somewhat presentable. There's a few more knocks, followed by the barking of the dog.
A dog?
You hobble to the door, but not before splashing your face with water and returning to grab the sword. Just in case.
When you open the door, the sun hurts your eyes, but the man standing with a bi-colored dog is very much familiar.
"Taiga?" You mumble out. "What are you doing here? How… did you?"
"Easy there, Nochan," he cautions you, as the dog runs up to sniff at your legs.
In the house, you hear a quick hiss, and a panicked skitter-skatter of Orchid running away.
You rub at your eyes. "I - I couldn't make it to pick you up yesterday," you say, and bow your head in shame. "I'm sorry."
"I ended up taking a taxi," he explains. "And it's Thursday. You missed three days, not one. Took me a bit to find you, even when I got the address from Konjo. Shirokuro helped." He points at the dog.
You stare at him, blinking. You do remember filling in the forms at Seisyun High that included putting down your place of residence. You open your mouth and close it again.
"We're martial artists. It happens," he waves it off. "Have you been in a fight? Are you injured?"
"No," you shake your head. "Just a fever. It's fine." You're not - exactly - fine, but it doesn't matter.
He nods. "Konjo was a little annoyed at you, but she knows how martial artists can be. She wanted to go and check up on you - or send someone else from the faculty, so I volunteered. If you feel up for it we should be able to still make it today until the regular classes end… But it's gonna be fine if you take the rest of the week off, don't worry, Shirokuro can find the place for me," he says. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
That's a good question.
You lean down to pet Shirokuro a few times while you think.
Vote [Help]:
[W] [Help] You could use Taga's and Shirokuro's help getting the house back in order. Tidying up, getting some groceries, all the while you make yourself properly presentable instead of barely. (no stress change)
[ ] [Help] You can look after the house later. Use the opportunity to get some last second training in, before Taiga has to go. After you a quick shower, of course. (+1 stress to Legacy)
[ ] [Help] It's fine. You can take care of yourself and your house on your own. Taiga can wait outside. Well, you should give at least some water for Shirokuro while they wait. (+1 stress to Caretaker)
[ ] [Help] It's fine. You can take care of yourself and your house. You can make him tea while he waits for you to get ready, invite him in. Give Shirokuro some water and look for what snacks you could offer. (+1 stress to Honorbound)
VOTE FOR ONLY ONE OPTION FROM [Help] VOTE
Vote [Rama]:
What do you tell him about what happened?
[W] [Ranma] The truth. You went out to look for Ranma, saw a girl that might or might not have been her - and ran away. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
(no stress change)
[ ] [Ranma] Partial truth. You went out to look for Ranma, didn't see anything useful, ran yourself ragged. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
(no stress change)
[ ] [Ranma] Almost nothing. You went out to train, pushed yourself a little too much.
(no stress change)
[ ] [Ranma] Overshare. You don't remember if you ever told the full story. Talk about the suicide oath Genma took in Ranma's name. Talk about how you're scared to find Ranma and not sure how you should do things. (+1 stress to Precarity)
[ ] [Ranma] Overshare. Tell him that you know a version of a future - mention different realities and timelines, and generally make a messy explanation - you can't understand it yourself, so explaining it in full is gonna be a challenge. The girl you have met is not the Ranma you know or expected, but she could still be a Ranma, if this world is different enough. (-1 stress to Know-It-All-Not, +2 stress to Precarity)
VOTE FOR ONLY ONE OPTION FROM [Ranma] VOTE
Vote [Kendo]:
The Blacksmithing classroom shouldn't even be ready yet. What do you do about the kendo lessons? Seisyun still has the main instructor, but they were hoping you would have joined the classes already.
[W] [Kendo] Try to go to Seisyun today. You're tired, but you've already missed three days, and you don't want to make it four. Whatever strength and mental power you can scrape for the lesson is good enough. (+2 stress to Legacy, +2 stress to Precarity)
[ ] [Kendo] Take Taiga's advice and skip the rest of the week. Recover. Rest. Catch your breath. The only chore you can do is helping Taiga get to school and back if he asks for it. He can't keep relying on Shirokuro alone. (+1 stress to Precarity)
[ ] [Kendo] Take Taiga's advice and skip the rest of the week. Train. Prepare for the lessons as much as you can. You'll help Taiga get to school and back home if he asks for it. He can't keep relying on Shirokuro alone. (+1 stress to Legacy)
[ ] [Kendo] Take an extra day to recover. Go to school tomorrow. It's not gonna be perfect, but it's a compromise. (no stress change)
VOTE FOR ONLY ONE OPTION FROM [Kendo] VOTE
Vote [Defiance]:
You have taken a first step of defiance against your Grandfather. Is that… really a path that you want to take?
[W] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself. (changes Legacy focus from fear to anger and defiance)
[ ] [Defiance] No. You will train others, and while it is a challenge to your grandfather, it's not a declaration of intent to become a martial artist. Not yet. You can teach, and you can defy him - bit by bit, but you're not a fighter yourself. (no change in Legacy)
[ ] [Defiance] Maybe. You have defied your grandfather once, you might do so again. You're still not sure what exactly it means and how you'll deal with it moving forward. Time will tell. (leaves both paths for Legacy open and in flux)
VOTE FOR ONLY ONE OPTION FROM [Defiance] VOTE
Vote [Introspection] II:
You can also spend even more time thinking about your future. Find a different balance of priorities.
[ ] [Introspection-II] The Legacy of your family is more important than the oaths and finding Ranma. Move one permanent point from Honorbound (reduce rating back to 1) to Legacy (increase to 2)
[W] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
[ ] [Introspection-II] Nothing else needs to change.
(+1 stress to Regrets)
VOTE FOR ONLY ONE OPTION FROM [Introspection-II] VOTE
Voting will be open until 2025-04-22 or a clear supermajority
Notes:
This... update took a bit out of me. It was fun, but I've underestimated the multiple small stacking issues. Nothing new, but the continuation of my regular hubris :/
I hope you liked the update, regardless of all of my little failures! 💙
I considered handling the vote differently, giving you a full on action vote, but when I started arranging the votes, I've realized that the most likely winner (if I had done as I planned), would just be just chosing the option for the lesson - and I didn't want to create multiple variations of it this time, nor did I want to effectivelly cause a vote that does a 180 change of heart and say, drops the lessons entirely - especially after the importance I gave the crisis causing Legacy vote in my plans.
Hopefully, this means that after this vote the next update is gonna be a little quicker and easier on me, and then we'll finally have the updated Major Action vote after it.
💙 The little commission is from Beedok. She's amazing, like always. 💙
[X] [Help] You could use Taga's and Shirokuro's help getting the house back in order. Tidying up, getting some groceries, all the while you make yourself properly presentable instead of barely.
[X] [Ranma] The truth. You went out to look for Ranma, saw a girl that might or might not have been her - and ran away. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
[X] [Kendo] Take Taiga's advice and skip the rest of the week. Train. Prepare for the lessons as much as you can. You'll help Taiga get to school and back home if he asks for it. He can't keep relying on Shirokuro alone.
[X] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself.
[X] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
[X] [Help] It's fine. You can take care of yourself and your house on your own. Taiga can wait outside. Well, you should give at least some water for Shirokuro while they wait. (+1 stress to Caretaker)
[X] [Ranma] Partial truth. You went out to look for Ranma, didn't see anything useful, ran yourself ragged. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
(no stress change)
[X] [Kendo] Try to go to Seisyun today. You're tired, but you've already missed three days, and you don't want to make it four. Whatever strength and mental power you can scrape for the lesson is good enough. (+2 stress to Legacy, +2 stress to Precarity)
[X] [Defiance] No. You will train others, and while it is a challenge to your grandfather, it's not a declaration of intent to become a martial artist. Not yet. You can teach, and you can defy him - bit by bit, but you're not a fighter yourself. (no change in Legacy)
People should bear in mind that not only have we not actually visited the grandfather/done anything about him beyond resolving to ignore his orders, but Nodoka just committed to a full-time job and is working on the Ranma issue. Throwing on martial arts training on top of that all is going to start limiting her available time to do things.
[X] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
[x] [Help] You could use Taga's and Shirokuro's help getting the house back in order. Tidying up, getting some groceries, all the while you make yourself properly presentable instead of barely.
[x] [Ranma] The truth. You went out to look for Ranma, saw a girl that might or might not have been her - and ran away. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
[x] [Kendo] Try to go to Seisyun today. You're tired, but you've already missed three days, and you don't want to make it four. Whatever strength and mental power you can scrape for the lesson is good enough.
[x] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself.
[x] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
[x] [Help] You could use Taga's and Shirokuro's help getting the house back in order. Tidying up, getting some groceries, all the while you make yourself properly presentable instead of barely. (no stress change)
[x] [Ranma] Overshare. You don't remember if you ever told the full story. Talk about the suicide oath Genma took in Ranma's name. Talk about how you're scared to find Ranma and not sure how you should do things. (+1 stress to Precarity)
[x] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself. (changes Legacy focus from fear to anger and defiance)
[x] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
[X] [Help] It's fine. You can take care of yourself and your house on your own. Taiga can wait outside. Well, you should give at least some water for Shirokuro while they wait. (+1 stress to Caretaker)
[x] [Ranma] Overshare. You don't remember if you ever told the full story. Talk about the suicide oath Genma took in Ranma's name. Talk about how you're scared to find Ranma and not sure how you should do things. (+1 stress to Precarity)
[X] [Kendo] Try to go to Seisyun today. You're tired, but you've already missed three days, and you don't want to make it four. Whatever strength and mental power you can scrape for the lesson is good enough. (+2 stress to Legacy, +2 stress to Precarity)
[x] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself. (changes Legacy focus from fear to anger and defiance)
[x] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
I'm hoping that there will be time later to re-examine defying grandfather, but right now seems like a bad time to be doing it, what with everything else. That being said, I do kinda like overshare as an option just because it feels like the timing lines up well to make it possible? But it could also be too early in having reconnected with Taiga, I honestly don't know.
Edit: Changed my Defiance vote to Yes after some discussion on the vote.
I think it's pretty likely the little girl we ran into was Hinako Ninomiya, who is actually not a little girl at all but a young women who's magically stuck at 10 unless she absorbs the "battle aura" of a martial artist. (Which would explain why she didn't feel threatened.) In canon she works at Furinkan as a teacher and is in love with Soun Tendo, which would explain the "fairytale wedding" she imagines at the idea of being a Tendo. This of course raises the question of why exactly she's staying at the Tendo Dojo. The most likely reason would be that she's in a relationship with Soun, but in canon all the Tendo siblings and Ranma are against them getting together, and while that could be different here I would think if they were in a relationship so commited that they were living together her thoughts on marriage wouldn't be "Maybe one day". (To say nothing on the whole issue of her being 10 most of the time.) I have to wonder if she was potentially the one under the floor, and simply was trying to pass herself off as a member of the house to whoever came by, but if that was the case surely she'd have just lied and said she was a Tendo to go with the act.
[X] [Help] You could use Taga's and Shirokuro's help getting the house back in order. Tidying up, getting some groceries, all the while you make yourself properly presentable instead of barely. (no stress change)
[X] [Ranma] The truth. You went out to look for Ranma, saw a girl that might or might not have been her - and ran away. Pushed yourself further than you should have.
(no stress change)
[X] [Kendo] Take Taiga's advice and skip the rest of the week. Train. Prepare for the lessons as much as you can. You'll help Taiga get to school and back home if he asks for it. He can't keep relying on Shirokuro alone.
[X] [Defiance] Yes. To train others, you will have to become a martial artist yourself. It's gonna be a long and perilous path, but you're a Shimizu, hardened by flame. And, you're no longer sure your grandfather deserves the name himself. (changes Legacy focus from fear to anger and defiance)
[X] [Introspection-II] You no longer have the luxury to run away from the truth. Ranma is more important. Move one permanent point from Legacy (reduce rating back to 0) to Honorbound (increase to 3)
Vote wise I'm mainly mixed on is Defiance, I'd rather have Nodoka become a martial artist than not but I'm not sure if now is the right time, so I'm going with the Maybe option for now, if things start leaning more towards not martial arting I'll probably shift my vote over to that though.
I'm hoping that there will be time later to re-examine defying grandfather, but right now seems like a bad time to be doing it, what with everything else.
If you feel that way why not vote for Maybe? Unless I'm misreading it is seems as though waiting to later re-examine whether we're going to go full defiance is what this option is for.
If you feel that way why not vote for Maybe? Unless I'm misreading it is seems as though waiting to later re-examine whether we're going to go full defiance is what this option is for.
Awright, let me weigh in on how I see the [defiance] choice. It's a choice between fear and defiance based legacy pull.
If you choose fear (the "no" option), you soft-lock the narrative pull into fear, as it was before, causing stress when choosing choices for defying grandfather and reducing stress when choosing to bow down to fear (or, well, generally resting) options. If you choose defiance (the "yes" option) - you also soft-lock narrative, but in an opposite direction - the crisis vector would pull Nodoka towards choices of defiance, and taking fear and cowering down options would start to give stress instead, and the training and preparation options would start reducing it.
If you go for the "maybe" option, it should, in theory, lead to more stress gain overall when it comes to legacy, since more options would cause it and there would be less chances to reduce it (both defying and fear are opposites, so if you follow one not choosing the other would cause some stress), but the stress gain for both would be smaller than in a committed option.
The "no" and "yes" options are intended to be long-term, so there shouldn't be many opportunities to change again, but if you keep picking expensive stress gain choice in the opposite direction and cause another crisis scene or two in Legacy, I might have another vote for the direction anyway.
The "maybe" option implies that the choice is delayed (or you are forever torn between the two extremes), and there should be more opportunities to pivot to one or the other (or stay undecided).
As for the Narrative impact, I try to include the pull more the more Crisis Vector trait has ranked up, so if Legacy stays at 1 or after introspection, a 0, it won't have as big of an impact in narration flavor anyway. (You're still in "Ina tries to emphasize regrets in all things" mode due to Regrets being the only one trait at 3)
I think it's pretty likely the little girl we ran into was Hinako Ninomiya, who is actually not a little girl at all but a young women who's magically stuck at 10 unless she absorbs the "battle aura" of a martial artist.
For the record, Nodoka's Know-It-All-Not-ness would know who Hinako is, but it doesn't mean that it would be the first guess - especially in a different flavor crisis mode - which was why I didn't bring her up in the narrative. ^^
Let me post a couple of totally completely unrelated manga panels that I've shared over at discord when receiving a question about the girls identity. Maybe it will help. 💙
