Was it over?

Was this it?

Why?

She had finally found it – what she had wanted. She didn’t even know that there was a thing she truly desired. In all honesty, she had prepared herself to go her entire life being an object. A trophy to possess, something that was fawned over by collectors.

But then he appeared. His warmth was genuine.

The way he spoke, the way he looked at his Resonators. She was jealous. She wanted what they had. She wanted to be them.

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It had lit again – the fire in her heart. Though small, its warmth spread through her, corrupting her, and ruining what so many had ground into her. For so long, she had lived the life of a collector’s item; doing as she was told, never expressing any want or desire of her own. In those precious few moments, she had been tainted, stained by the rhythm of someone who cared, someone who saw her as a person. She yearned for that kind of connection. No, she lusted after it and for that sole purpose, Rebecca Renard was alive!

Slowly, red eyes opened up, taking in their surroundings. Water. Awful water. However, she calmed upon finding it was warmed to her liking. She wasn’t immediately drowning, which drew her attention to the mask thing around her nose and mouth, enabling her to breathe with great ease.

What had even happened? It was all such a blur.

Glancing down, Rebecca found her feet had been restored to perfect health. She had been certain she’d never walk again with how hard she had pushed herself trying to protect Lyle and then herself. Previously discarded emotions rose in the young vixen. How dare he toss her aside like that! As soon as there was an opening, he just bolted with that bitch Liza. She trembled with a fury she had never felt before.

Was there a way she could rid herself of him?

That required further rumination, but at that moment, a man walked into the room. Upon the lapel of his uniform, there was a pin that looked like a stylized MA. He immediately took notice of the vixen floating in the Viva Unit – she was conscious.

“Ah, you’re awake. Let’s get you down.” He rushed over and with a couple of taps on the attached keyboard, the water began to drain, finally setting her on her feet. The glass lowered into the pedestal she had been floating above. Rebecca removed the mask of her own accord.

“Where am I?” she inquired.

“The North Fercy Maestro Affairs Office,” he spoke with the same cadence he used when greeting guests at the front desk. Rebecca nodded slowly, still processing how she even got back to the MA Office in the first place. “There’s some socks and shoes here for you, yours were destroyed.” He motioned to a small table and chair where the aforementioned socks and shoes lay. Rebecca sat down, starting to slip on the new footwear. “They aren’t fire-resistant, so be mindful of your ad-Lib,” the attendant advised. The vixen tied up her new shoes. A plain white pair in contrast with the rest of her orange and yellow clothing. They were logoless and brandless; generic government-provided shoes.

“Ah yes, I have a message for you from Maestro Shouri,” the attendant suddenly spoke up.

“Shouri?” She tilted her head. That wasn’t a name she was familiar with.

“The gentleman with the green jacket,” the front desk attendant tried to clarify for her.

Thankfully, that was a detail that had been burned into her mind. Sensing she was on the same page as him, the attendant relayed his message. “He told me to tell you that he purchased you from your original Maestro, and asked for me to provide you this.” Presented to Rebecca was her tuner.

It had been left on the ownership screen, which was currently blank. There was a lot to process, but Rebecca was doing it. She had been liberated from Lyle without any fuss, but now she was Maestro-less – a stray. Where other Resonators would see despair, a flicker of hope came to her eyes.

“I’m free?” she asked, staring at the fiery red tuner being offered to her. No motion was made to formally accept the device. Resonators were rarely ever allowed to touch their tuners; it was a social taboo in her experience.

“Yes ma’am. From what I understand he spent quite a bit to obtain this, but he insisted on having your ownership rights transferred to you.”

“I’m free?” Rebecca repeated. In her mind all she could see was his face; she could feel the warmth, she could hear his voice, feel his rhythm coursing through her veins. The comradery between Shouri and his two Resonators.

She wanted that.

She wanted that so desperately.

She wanted to be useful, she wanted to be needed, she wanted to be loved.

But before her new life with him could even start, it had ended. He released her from the shackles of being owned by a Maestro. He bought her for the sole purpose of unlocking her chains. And she didn’t want that. She wanted to be his. Long had she waited for the warmth of another. However, as soon as she found it, she returned to the cold again as she watched it helplessly leave her life.

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No. There was a voice in the back of her head. A voice screaming at her to chase the warmth. A voice telling her not to give up. A voice begging her to be selfish.

Rising to her feet, she snatched up the device. Rushing to the door, she looked back. “What room is he in?!”

“Oh! He left just before I came to check on you. I believe I overheard him talking about going down the Corhia River.”

That mattered not – she had two working legs, she’d chase him to the ends of Riterra if need be.

“Thanks!” And with that, Rebecca ran out of the room.

----------------------------------------

Rebecca burst out the front door of the MA Office. Tuner in hand, she asked around and was pointed towards the Corhia River. Even losing those precious few minutes was worth it: she trusted the directions from a random stranger and just started running in that direction.

What would she say? What would she do? All she knew was she had to find him. She wanted to give him a chance. After all, he had given her a second chance at life.

Some might think her crazy for getting her freedom and then immediately throwing it away, but those people just didn’t understand. They couldn’t understand. And frankly, she didn’t want to be understood.

Through Fercy she ran, passing by many Maestro and Resonator alike. They saw the look of desperation on the vixen’s face as she pushed her body to its top speed all for the task of making it to him in time. Even if her body protested, her heart refused to give in – she had to make it.

Eventually, she found her way out of the city limits and into the fields that surrounded Northern Fercy. She glanced down at the tuner in hand, reminding her of her goal. Ahead of her was a forest that flanked the Corhia.

Thankfully there was a footpath that went into the winding woods. Though she had no map to follow, it mattered not - the real force that acted as her guide was her heart. An invisible string pulled her along as her feet beat against the dirt path.

On and on she kept running, it honestly felt like it went on forever. Her desperation physically manifested itself. Fighting it off was futile as it swelled in her chest, she released the frenzied cry of her heart:

“SHOURI!”

As if the universe itself had heard her anguished shout, he appeared in her line of sight.

“Ah!” Rebecca skidded to a halt in front of the Maestro and his two Resonators. She had run so far and so fast that her body was basically in shambles. Barely able to hold herself up, she remained hunched over for a moment, haggardly attempting to catch her breath as sweat poured off of her. It was taking everything left in her to even remain standing.

Finally, she gathered enough strength to stand up straight. Composing herself, she faced the boy. “Shouri,” she spoke his name once more.

“Rebecca? You found us,” he noted. The other two Resonators remained quiet, studying the sudden interloper with suspicion.

“Y-you left me there,” she blurted out.

“I wanted you to be free,” he replied.

“What’s wrong with you?!” Rebecca was speaking from her heart at this point.

Shouri smirked, shaking his head. “Lots of things.” He chuckled.

Rebecca glared at him for a moment. “I wanted to thank you personally,” she began. “You saved my life, in more ways than one…” Taking in a deep breath, the Resonator presented her very independence to Shouri – her tuner.

“I want to be your Resonator. Please take me with you.” Her arm was trembling as it remained outstretched. “I swear I’ll do my best – anything you want I’ll do it.” Averting her gaze, she expected the worst. He already had two Resonators; he didn’t need a third. Especially not someone as weak as her.

A sigh escaped Shouri’s lips. “Taika, Pacifica?” he asked the two behind him.

“Well, we did spend 3500 notes on her,” Pacifica spoke up.

“3500 notes we almost all died for,” Taika chimed in.

Guilt coursed through Rebecca’s very form. She wasn’t present for the transaction, and as such wasn’t aware of the financial damage she had inadvertently wrought upon Shouri.

“I know I’m asking a lot.” Rebecca’s arm continued to shake as she continued to hold the device out.

“That’s for sure.” Shouri shook his head. He too, scrutinized the fire fox standing before him, her extended arm, and the tuner she offered to him.

Placing a hand over the tuner, he took hold of the device, though he didn’t lift it from her hand. “Are you sure? You can do better than me,” he said.

She shook her head, managing to break a smile. “You’re wrong, I could never do better.”

“If that’s really how you feel, then I guess I don’t have a choice – welcome to the team, Rebecca.”