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A Shot Heard Across the Court! Champion Duelist Clorinde Wanted for Murder!
Fontaine’s top duelist is now the nation’s top criminal. Earlier today, the famed duelist suddenly and fatally shot Court Justice Gerard whilst he was on his daily commute towards the aquabus elevators through Vasari Passage. Clorinde then fled the scene and managed to elude the Gardes in pursuit. The Special Patrol has been assigned the duty of arresting Clorinde in the aftermath of her initial escape. According to our latest updates, she is attempting to flee to Nod Krai with the authorities in hot pursuit. Her motive for the crime currently remains a mystery. Follow the Steambird for all future updates on this ongoing case.
Furina paced around her apartment in a frenzy, stealing glances at that dreaded newspaper headline hoping that this time it would change. That it would say anything else. The Salon Solitaire weren't faring much better, attempting to soothe their master to no avail. Mademoiselle Crabaletta tried to present a fresh slice of Gatau Debord while Gentilomme Usher wrapped himself around Furina's shoulders in an awkward combination of a hug and a massage. Surintendante Chevalmarin however, understood that there would be no assuaging the master's anxiety so she simply sat by and watched her peers' futile efforts.
The idea was simply inconceivable. How was she supposed to believe that Clorinde murdered a man on the street? The hunter that staunchly believed in the nation's justice, no matter how bureaucratic it could be at times. The duelist that dedicated her life and craft to upholding justice. The champion that stood at her side for years. The woman she now shared her life with.
The weight of the news was finally starting to sink in. Clorinde was gone, on a boat to Nod Krai never to return except in chains. The best part of her now mortal life, gone. It was supposed to be a normal day today, but now she has to spend the rest of hers with a hole in her heart. No, this is not going to end this way. If Clorinde is leaving Fontaine, leaving her, then Furina would simply go to Clorinde.
“Salon pack my-” Her order was interrupted by the click of the door lock. That could only be Clorinde, no one else had a key to her apartment. She quickly dismissed the Salon as the door slowly creaked open. Furina heard her first. Labored breaths, uneven steps against the tiled floor, and a slight thud as a body leaned against the door. Furina finally saw Clorinde when she finally crossed the threshold into the apartment. She was wearing her usual uniform except her signature hat, epaulets, and cape were missing. Dried blood, meka oil, and dirt peppered her weary face. The tip of her pistol was blackened with gunpowder. This wasn't the pristine champion her lover liked to present herself as, but Furina recognized and loved her all the same.
“Clorinde!” Furina rushed her girlfriend with a hug before she had the chance to leave, closing the door as she wrapped her arms around Clorinde's waist, and nearly bowling the exhausted hunter over in the process. Years of training and instinct barely managing to keep them both standing. Clorinde hesitated before returning the embrace, tightening her trembling arms around Furina’s shoulders.
Furina let out a choked sob into Clorinde's chest. After a brief moment she looked up at her.
Clorinde froze as their eyes met. Tearstained mismatched blues met dull exhausted violets.
“You didn't do it right?” Furina asked, hoping to hear a quick ‘no’, instead Clorinde flinched as if she had been shot instead.
“I killed him,” she confessed. Her voice wavered. “I’m sorry.”
“Why?” The duelist bit her lip and turned away, eyes squeezed shut. Furina could almost hear the duel in her mind. The tragic choice between duty and selfish desires. They both knew which side would win. After all that sense of duty was something they shared just one of many things they loved about each other.
“I'm sorry,” was her only answer. But that didn't matter to Furina, there was still a chance for all of this to pass like some bad dream.
“Well you can just duel for your honor and-”
“I can't,” Clorinde interrupted. She returned to Furina's gaze, but her violet eyes were now distant, almost glazed over and blind. “for the good and safety of Fontaine, for you and everyone else I love, there are things I must do before I stand trial. It may take me days, it may take me months, but it must be done,” her words almost sounded mechanical, no doubt rehearsed in her mind countless times since the murder. Still, her arms started to tremble around Furina, that infamous composure of hers crumbling with each syllable.
“Furina, I understand if you don't want to,” Clorinde briefly choked on her own breath as tears began to well in her eyes, but she forced herself to continue, “be with me anymore.” The cracks in her voice only grew with each sob. “I’ll be a murderer, I can't be here for you, I can't risk you becoming an accomplice to my crimes, and I-” Furina reached up to her girlfriend’s face and raised her lips into Clorinde's. For a while, neither one of them moved an inch. Eventually, Furina lowered herself wearing the gentle smile that always captivated Clorinde.
“Don't say that my love,” Furina said as she wiped the tears from her girlfriend's eyes. “Nothing could change my feelings for you. Not murder or this self-assigned mission of yours. No matter what, I will wait for you.”
“You're not upset?”
Furina shook her head. “I know you wouldn't go through all this unless it was for the good of all Fontaine. So how could I be? When I made the same decision myself so long ago.”
“Furina I,” Clorinde’s tears and sobs returned although for an entirely different reason now. “Thank you.” After taking a brief moment to compose herself, she let out a deep sigh of relief, her breathing steadied as muscles relaxed and returned to strength. The familiar countenance of the stoic duelist finally returned although the electricity sparking in her eyes betrayed the elation she felt. “I should get going, it won't be long before Chevruse realizes that I never left Fontaine.”
“Wait,” Furina exclaimed as Clorinde finally released her. She gripped onto Clorinde’s now steady arms and asked, “I know you don't want me getting involved, but is there anything I can do to help?”
Clorinde stopped herself from instinctually shouting ‘no’ and instead contemplated Furina’s offer. Despite her own wishes, she couldn't deny her lady's determined gaze, “Alright, there is one thing you can do.” She clasped Furina’s hands together and placed a small wooden box and a worn envelope inside them. “Hold on to these for me. Don't let anyone know about them. Don't open them unless I ask you to.”
“I swear on my name. They will be safe with me.”
Clorinde gently cusped her lady’s face. “Thank you, Furina. I don't deserve you.”
“Oh please, you're stuck with me whether you like it or not.” She giggled then placed a quick chaste kiss on the lips. A cheery smile gave way to concern as Clorinde turned to leave. Just before her girlfriend left the apartment, she blurted, "Come back safe.”
Clorinde stopped and took one last look at her lady, to burn the image into her memory for the time they would have to spend apart. She couldn't help but smile as she gave a simple reassurance, “Don't worry, it will take more than Fontaine to kill me,” before she vanished into the night.