Redemption's Overrated

2. That's Debatable

TW: mentions of drinking
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It's around eight in the morning when my escorts arrive. My head is pounding and I have a nasty hangover. I probably drank a bit too much last night.  Yet at the same time, it was not enough given all the sh*t I have to do today.

I hear some intermittent pounding on my door.

"GIVE ME ONE F*CKING SECOND!" I shout as I finish getting on my stupid L'Manburg suit. It's not enough that I have to go to the debate, I also have to wear this uncomfortable piece of sh*t. The deep blue fabric is extremely itchy, and on top of that, they didn't have the courtesy to give me clothes in my size, so everything is too tight for comfort.

After I finish getting ready, I open the door to greet my escorts. Today the people who have the misfortune of monitoring me are Fundy and Niki. Fundy is Wilbur's son, so we automatically hate each other. He's still better than his dad, though. Niki is one of the more bearable citizens, but she still doesn't like me. I'm surprised she even talks to me given what I did to her business partner.

It's a shame what happened. "Blight and Niki's Bakery" had such a nice ring to it, too.

Oh well. No use in dwelling on the past.

"Hello!" Niki says cheerfully. Fundy just gives me a small nod in greeting.

"Hey." I ignore making eye contact with either of them.

"Ready to go?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Alright, I'm gonna turn off your monitor, ok?" Niki fishes around in her pocket, and I look up at the sky. I hear a click, signaling I can now leave my property without getting shocked.

"You're all set!" Her voice has no malice in it, but the words annoy me all the same. She's too nice, I can't mess with nice people. They don't give me any ammunition for my sarcasm.

"We need to go if we want to get to the debate on time," Fundy says, his first words during this entire exchange.

Niki nods, and together we start walking down the streets of L'Manburg.

My house is on the outskirts of the city, so its a lengthy walk.  We head to where the debate is taking place. As we walk across the cobblestone walkway in the sky, Niki and Fundy make sure to stay away from me. It's almost like they think I'll try to hit them off.

Like I would ever do that.

We enter the building and I'm guided to my seat. "You are to sit here and not make a sound. If you do anything to interrupt the debate, it will be considered a breach of your sentence. And you know what happens then," Fundy says.

"Yeah, yeah, I know the drill." I yawn and close my eyes. Maybe if I'm lucky I'll fall asleep. I hear Fundy walk away, leaving me alone in the corner of the room.

I listen to the conversations going on around me, one catching my interest in particular. "This is your moment to choose, Fundy. Do you take your father or... Big Q?" Wilbur says, the distaste in his voice clear as he says the nickname of the other candidate.

"I take neither. I'll run my own presidency." Fundy responds, causing the room to fill with confusion.

"Ignore him. He missed the sign up. He missed the ballot," Wilbur calls out to everyone, trying to get everyone to settle down.

"I know you, alright? I've spent many years growing up under you, and I've seen what you can do. I've seen your leadership." Fundy says. I open my eyes and lean forward in my chair, interested in seeing where this is going.