Commander's Rounds Volume 1

Entry 132: Dame in Shining Armor

Three ships had come from the sea, and they came up off of the docks to stand on the path to Azur Lane. They waited patiently, though some with a bit more activity than others.

Suffren was doing her stretches. "Mmm! Not that I mind sailing long distances, but sometimes you just need to get your feet dry and get your land legs back."

Clemenceau smiled, the battleship leaning slightly on her literal staff of office. "Of course. Besides, you've been looking forward to seeing your sister again, haven't you? I bet you have plenty of words stored up for that rambunctious daredevil."

"It's probably going to be like old times." Suffren said. "I mean, it doesn't look like she's changed that much, so what we'll have to talk about is just remembering old times and catching up on new ones, especially since she's got an entirely different kind of knight in shining armor in her life right now."

"Well, try not to be too hard on her, and try not to be too hard on him, either. He is after all, only human." The battleship said.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." She said. "I mean, so are we, basically. One of the things that Richelieu teaches is that we and humans effectively share a soul, so we Kansen are as much the spiritual inheritors of Adam and Eve as they are. So, it's not like we are without sin, either." She did her leg stretches. "And it's not like other people don't believe the same thing. Konig also believes we have a soul, and gets really mad with people that say that we don't."

"This is true." Clemenceau recalled that Konig had a very summary and painful way with people who denied the humanity of Kansen. "It is all right for Richelieu to be teaching such things. Sin or not, we should believe in our own dignity, should we not?"

"Mmmhm!" She said. "So, what are you going to do first while you're here?"

Clemenceau put a finger on her cheek. "See what kind of person the commander is for myself, and what can be done with him. Stories are stories, but you can hardly assess a person of note through reports and testimonies. Not merely how they write, but how they speak, and behave when spoken to. You can learn a great deal by seeing how they behave when they answer as much as the answer itself."

Suffen giggled. "And you were just telling me not to be too hard on someone."

"A boyfriend is a boyfriend." She said. "But the fate of nations is not to be improvised."

Kersaint stepped forward to stand next to Clemenceau, "Ah..."

Clemenceau looked over and down at the destroyer. "Is there something on your mind?"

"Of course!" Kersaint's grip tightened on her bible. "I keep on seeing people get distracted when I'm around, and so I don't want my body to inflict distress on the commander by causing him to go astray from his duties."

The battleship chuckled. "The commander is married, you know. He even has a child to occupy his mind."

"I know." She said, lowering her head. "But still, I can't help but worry. After all, the commander is only human, and-"

Clemenceau smiled, and stroked a hand under Kersaint's chin, causing the destroyer to blush a little. "There's no need for you to fret. The commander knows how he sees the world, and if he were some horrid lech, I doubt our sisters in arms would allow him to be their commander." She tilted Kersaint's chin up. "Now, don't fret about it- I'm sure that the commander will find it in him to only think of you as the sweet and innocent girl that you are."

Kersaint turned a darker shade of red at the touch until Clemenceau let her go. "I... Thank you..."

Suffren perked up. "Ah, here he is now!"