FINAL NIGHT, FIRST DAWN [VIDEO]
[The Guide snaps on with a crash, the clattering sound of dishes splitting apart on a hard tile floor sparks the transmission. Two cries of alarm ring out as the Guide focuses. It's the kitchen of the Crimson Lion, closed for the night, and something appears to be opening up, boring a hole in the air seamlessly; a bright anomaly that casts the room in bluish hues.]
[Ran Fan, holding a dishtowel in her hand, looks down. Her face pales in horror as she sees that her feet are now translucent. Panicked, she looks around the room for something or someone to save her. She grabs for a nearby counter for an anchor.]
[A beat. The edges of her feet are now being stretched and pulled towards the wormhole in extreme slow-motion. It's then that she seems to realize what's about to happen.]
[Her eyes go deadly serious, and she reaches for her pack, stowed underneath the counter. She takes out her armor and straps it on, piece by piece.]
[Her voice when she can finally trust herself to speak, as she ties her armor on, is very soft and grave.]
Shinjiro... I never wanted to do this to you. But, it appears I must go.
[There's silence. Somewhere off camera, Shinjiro can't speak. What the hell could he say? 'Goodbye?' Shinjiro was terrible at goodbyes.]
[His face can't be seen, but the strain and panic in his voice, the desperate searching for a solution is apparent.]
Th'hell are you talkin' about? You're not goin' anywhere...! I'll get Ed, maybe he can--... [He stops himself short. Ed couldn't do anything with alchemy any longer. This was happening. She was leaving him.]
[Ran Fan's lips pinch together as she looks back at him, her eyes filling with tears. But she stands up as tall as she can, squaring her shoulders. Her feet are now almost gone.]
If, if I must go, I will go bravely, not crying. I will go and fulfill my duty to my country. Ling will go soon-- or maybe he is already there-- and he will need me.
[Without hesitating, without any second thought:]
I need you!
[Ran Fan blurts out, clutching her mask]
I need you too, you big idiot! What am I supposed to do without you?! I wish that you could come with me!
[There's a pause, a moment's hesitation. A hard-soled shoe enters the frame, taking a tenuous step towards the wormhole. It stops as time slips away, that fierce indecision, the thought of a future always slowing weighted steps further. Moving forward was always the hardest part for him. It was easier to stay rooted in what he'd always known.]
[What he'd always known, huh...?]
[The foot steps back out of frame, but only for a moment. The steps come faster now, growing more and more sure with each clunk on the tile floor. There's a flourish of heavy fabric as a deep crimson coat is pulled on over familiar, hunched shoulders, hazel brown hair tugging its way free of the leather collar.]
[Ran Fan's eyes widen in amazement, and she gulps down her rush of emotions at what this means. Does he even know what he's getting into? What will the future hold now?]
[She ties on her mask, and turns to face the wormhole, tying her hair tight. Polly, if you can hear me, the wormhole is taking me back home. Please, tell my important people I will wait for you all there, in Xing. I love you all. I will never forget you.]
[He tugs on the familiar, worn cap as she draws her hood up. He stops, one last step before the wormhole, and he turns to survey the kitchen of the Crimson Lion one last time. This was it. This was--...]
[His eyes catch the light of his Guide, recording its last message. There's a hint of recognition in his steel gray eyes, he recognizes the limited time he has left. He recognizes that this will be the last he sees of this place. Of the people who saved his life.]
[He sighs. He was never good with words. And he was even worse with goodbyes. The words come quick. Stream of consciousness.]
Maka. ...Thanks. I never got what Aki felt when he lost his little sister. I guess I lucked out...cuz now I know what it feels like to gain one. Punch Beat in th'chops for me when he comes home.
Gon, stay out of trouble. N'thanks...
Kaoru...you've come a long way. M'proud of you. I'm countin' on you to watch over everyone from your world for me.
Ed, Ling...Ran Fan n'I are headin' out before you guys to plow the road. Don't keep us waitin' forever...y'hear? Xing needs an emperor and Amestris has a colonel who needs badgerin'.
Minato. Don't let SEES go to shit. Crimson Lion's yours now...I wasn't cut out t'run it, I couldn't make it into the home for refugees I wanted to. But you can. Kanda and Maka can help you.
[He takes one last look around, at everything he'd accomplished in the last two years, a wistful look on his face. And that look slowly spreads into a smile.]
N'don't worry. This is what I want, for once.
[He steps beside Ran Fan, and as he turns, he waves over his shoulder, his other hand jammed into its place in his coat pocket.]
This...is how it should be.
[When Shinjiro is done speaking, Ran Fan takes one last, long look back at the camera, her dark eyes serious. She says nothing to cheapen the moment. The deepest feelings, she believes, cannot be expressed in words.]
[She closes her eyes and bows her head for a moment to express her gratitude to all, and her well-wishes, and her apologies. Then she turns to face the gaping hole, and grabs Shinjiro's hand out of his pocket, holding on tight. She takes a steady step forward.]
[And with mutual acceptance, the wormhole fades, claiming two more.]
[So long.]
[Ran Fan, holding a dishtowel in her hand, looks down. Her face pales in horror as she sees that her feet are now translucent. Panicked, she looks around the room for something or someone to save her. She grabs for a nearby counter for an anchor.]
[A beat. The edges of her feet are now being stretched and pulled towards the wormhole in extreme slow-motion. It's then that she seems to realize what's about to happen.]
[Her eyes go deadly serious, and she reaches for her pack, stowed underneath the counter. She takes out her armor and straps it on, piece by piece.]
[Her voice when she can finally trust herself to speak, as she ties her armor on, is very soft and grave.]
Shinjiro... I never wanted to do this to you. But, it appears I must go.
[There's silence. Somewhere off camera, Shinjiro can't speak. What the hell could he say? 'Goodbye?' Shinjiro was terrible at goodbyes.]
[His face can't be seen, but the strain and panic in his voice, the desperate searching for a solution is apparent.]
Th'hell are you talkin' about? You're not goin' anywhere...! I'll get Ed, maybe he can--... [He stops himself short. Ed couldn't do anything with alchemy any longer. This was happening. She was leaving him.]
[Ran Fan's lips pinch together as she looks back at him, her eyes filling with tears. But she stands up as tall as she can, squaring her shoulders. Her feet are now almost gone.]
If, if I must go, I will go bravely, not crying. I will go and fulfill my duty to my country. Ling will go soon-- or maybe he is already there-- and he will need me.
[Without hesitating, without any second thought:]
I need you!
[Ran Fan blurts out, clutching her mask]
I need you too, you big idiot! What am I supposed to do without you?! I wish that you could come with me!
[There's a pause, a moment's hesitation. A hard-soled shoe enters the frame, taking a tenuous step towards the wormhole. It stops as time slips away, that fierce indecision, the thought of a future always slowing weighted steps further. Moving forward was always the hardest part for him. It was easier to stay rooted in what he'd always known.]
[What he'd always known, huh...?]
[The foot steps back out of frame, but only for a moment. The steps come faster now, growing more and more sure with each clunk on the tile floor. There's a flourish of heavy fabric as a deep crimson coat is pulled on over familiar, hunched shoulders, hazel brown hair tugging its way free of the leather collar.]
[Ran Fan's eyes widen in amazement, and she gulps down her rush of emotions at what this means. Does he even know what he's getting into? What will the future hold now?]
[She ties on her mask, and turns to face the wormhole, tying her hair tight. Polly, if you can hear me, the wormhole is taking me back home. Please, tell my important people I will wait for you all there, in Xing. I love you all. I will never forget you.]
[He tugs on the familiar, worn cap as she draws her hood up. He stops, one last step before the wormhole, and he turns to survey the kitchen of the Crimson Lion one last time. This was it. This was--...]
[His eyes catch the light of his Guide, recording its last message. There's a hint of recognition in his steel gray eyes, he recognizes the limited time he has left. He recognizes that this will be the last he sees of this place. Of the people who saved his life.]
[He sighs. He was never good with words. And he was even worse with goodbyes. The words come quick. Stream of consciousness.]
Maka. ...Thanks. I never got what Aki felt when he lost his little sister. I guess I lucked out...cuz now I know what it feels like to gain one. Punch Beat in th'chops for me when he comes home.
Gon, stay out of trouble. N'thanks...
Kaoru...you've come a long way. M'proud of you. I'm countin' on you to watch over everyone from your world for me.
Ed, Ling...Ran Fan n'I are headin' out before you guys to plow the road. Don't keep us waitin' forever...y'hear? Xing needs an emperor and Amestris has a colonel who needs badgerin'.
Minato. Don't let SEES go to shit. Crimson Lion's yours now...I wasn't cut out t'run it, I couldn't make it into the home for refugees I wanted to. But you can. Kanda and Maka can help you.
[He takes one last look around, at everything he'd accomplished in the last two years, a wistful look on his face. And that look slowly spreads into a smile.]
N'don't worry. This is what I want, for once.
[He steps beside Ran Fan, and as he turns, he waves over his shoulder, his other hand jammed into its place in his coat pocket.]
This...is how it should be.
[When Shinjiro is done speaking, Ran Fan takes one last, long look back at the camera, her dark eyes serious. She says nothing to cheapen the moment. The deepest feelings, she believes, cannot be expressed in words.]
[She closes her eyes and bows her head for a moment to express her gratitude to all, and her well-wishes, and her apologies. Then she turns to face the gaping hole, and grabs Shinjiro's hand out of his pocket, holding on tight. She takes a steady step forward.]
[And with mutual acceptance, the wormhole fades, claiming two more.]
[So long.]