The Princess That Was Promised (Arashi)

The Jounin meeting had gone as well as Princess Tehniyat could have expected. At least no blades had been drawn and that, the princess supposed, was a good thing. Though Shiroi's speeches may have lacked tact, they did bring to light a few key issues, especially the loyalty of her newly elected Queensguard.

The fact that Lady Akihana's son knew where she was, and would go to her was interpreted as treason by some, and Tehniyat still worried that there was something wrong with her for not completely agreeing. Despite her insistence that the Queensguard served the Queen first and foremost, she couldn't say with utter reassurance if she wouldn't do the same in Prince Arashi's position.

So it was even more important now to understand what he knew and where they stood. Though unwillingly, Lady Akihana had become as important a figure in Hoshigakure as any member of the royal family and very soon, the common folk would start to question here she was. The excuse of her tending to Queen Shiera wooed no longer stand and the people of Haven couldn't take more bad news.

Tehniyat could feel a headache building behind her emerald green eyes but tending to that would have to wait. Currently the heiress was in her library office, Ser Atem keeping a watchful eye at the door waiting to announce Prince Arashi who had been summoned. Hopefully things would become clearer after this meeting.

It didn't take long for the questions to arise.  Ser Meryn was absolutely infuriated, the remaining Queensguard were in a state of complete shock, and it was taking everything the Palace had to keep everything as quiet as possible.  For the moment, they were just additions to the Guard, nothing more.  Other than him, of course.  He was still considered a Prince in this world.  At least the true Princess wasn't holding that title against him.  

Following the traditions of Hoshi was by no means an easy task.  A member of the guard had to have a particular look, a particular stance, and a particular schedule.  That left previous little time for the shinobi to meditate, train, or do anything more than eat and sleep.  Arata was now almost completely absent from the picture.  He saw his younger brother when the boy slept, but that was purely the only time he did.  He didn't even have the ability to ask the Academy anymore... Queensguard had a high dedication he had to uphold.

On the other side, however, there was now also mistrust.  Sure, Arashi sat in on meeting in place of his mother, but now he was more as a placeholder.  Special plans were spoken in quiet tones, and daily he was asked if he was still staying.  It was getting tiresome.  It was getting harder and harder for the shinobi to hold onto his dreams in a world that was really resistance to the type of change he and his fellow ninja brought.  

It was not really surprising when the notice finally came... the one he dreaded since that fateful meeting.  An audience with the Princess.... with the current ruler of the kingdom.  There were only a few subjects that they had any kind of relation on, and the growing days were weighing on him.  What had happened to Akihana?  Was she safe? Why hadn't she come back?

Reluctantly, he reached the hall with her defacto office, mostly accented by the fact that Atem was standing guard.  A good ninja stayed out of sight, just another thought in his head that reminded him that this was still not quite a shinobi village.

"Atem... I'm here to see the Princess.  I have a summons." he said, standing by the door.

Atem stepped aside as the prince approached, holding the door quietly open for the Queensguard. There was no need to talk, if Arashi was here uninvited, Atem would know. As it was, Princess Tehniyat was expecting the young shinobi.

Inside, the nineteen year old blonde sat serenely in her chair, the image of calm perfected over years of training. Looking at her perfectly made up face, delicately arranged royal blue dress and elaborately curled golden hair around a sparkling crown, no one would imagine the afflictions and worries that chased each other in the young royal's mind - no one save the prince himself. He hadn't quite perfected the look of a royal, but she had to admit he was getting as close as it was possible to get without being raised at the palaces.

"Prince Arashi, please be seated," Tehniyat intoned, politely unwavering in her tone. Whatever she asked of him now and hereafter would always be a courteously worded order due to his station and hers. It was unconventional a prince serving as a Queensguard but he wasn't really a prince and she was certainly no Queen.

"I hope you've had a chance to settle into your role, I believe Ser Meryn would have been more than helpful in your transition." It was a test to see if he would complain, if he had what it took to do the job, and one the blonde was interested to see if Arashi would pass. After his reply, the princess would nod, acknowledging his answer before moving on.

"I believe you know why I invited you here. It has come to light that you know several things I do not. The Hogokage can't be reached at the moment so i have little option but to ask you ." Pausing, the princess met his steady blue gaze with her own emerald green one. "Where is Lady Akihana?"

The shinobi had changed, Arashi was more than sure of that... he seemed to fit in the new role better than most.  Eventually the Queensguard would evolve into a more traditional ninja role as more shinobi filled the ranks... that was just how the world works.  But for Arashi, he was stuck in the current state.

Graciously, he took the seat across from her, sitting calmly.  "You calling me that makes it feel like you're my sister... I don't personally mind it from you, but if you want, you can call me informally in a private setting." he said, giving the Princess the option to see him as someone she could be comfortable with.  It was downright essential considering the current situation.

"I have been fortunate in that Ser Meryn and I are familiar with each other.  He was my test to achieve Jounin.... kind of a expert rank in the shinobi world.  Only rank really higher than that is a special mastery rank giving to a few, and of course, the Kage.  But anyways, I do admit it has been difficult to adjust, but I will not fail you.  I will not fail anyone again." he said, unwittingly unveiling the true cause of his motives and determination.

He sighed as she started.  Yeah, it was that subject.  The one he dreaded.  The one that he kept close to his chest to everyone except the people who knew.. or the people he was sure wouldn't tell.  In the meeting it was easy to deny the information.  But here, privately with the current ruler of the kingdom he promised his mother to protect... he had to tell her.  He just prayed it was the right thing to do.

"Kumo... she's in our old village of Kumogakure no Sato.  In the Land of Lightning.  She was supposed to go there in order to ensure peace between our two villages.  And... and to take care of some outlying issues she's had.  I would have gone, the other are right, except that she asked me not to come, and to protect Hoshi as I promised I would.  Its been months though... honestly, I think she's been gone too long.  I just... as far as anyone knows, she's here, you know?" he said, dropping his head.

The princess smiled politely as Arashi explained his opinion on forms of address, that perhaps set him more apart from the royals than anything else. He was no doubt a kind soul, kinder and far more humble than Tehniyat herself would ever be but it was not a princess's job to be humble. And as such she would never want to be referred to by name. "How about we compromise on "Ser" instead?" she suggested politely without giving anything away. He was raised with his values, she was raised with hers.

"It befits your rank of Queensguard and maintains a barrier of formality I've grown accustomed to."

As the knight prince spoke of the land of lightning Tehniyat found herself intrigued - intrigued and disappointed that she knew little of the place. From her cursory readings for diplomacy's sake, the land of lightning offered harsh terrain and insignificant financial yields, the type of yields that had interested her most before Haven was plunged into uncertainty. However, it was clear to see the young ninja was distressed.

"You say she traveled as an agent of peace, yet she has been gone for almost half a year. Do diplomatic missions usually take this long?" Emerald green eyes met Arashi, the question in them clear. The princess couldn't bring herself to break formality and ask yet the query was there: Is she alright?

The young man couldn't help but smile as he crossed his arms, and the Princess referred to him as Ser.  These royals were so... formal... but he had to admit, he had grown to like, and even love them as a family.

"No matter how hard I tried, I could never get the Queen, or the Queensguards, to stop calling me Prince Arashi.  Mom said I shouldn't get upset, as Prince meant I was part of the family.  The second family that adopted me.  So I know that once you make up your mind, there is no changing it.  Very well, I can deal with Ser if it will make you comfortable.  Honestly, I hope that someday we can get familiar enough that labels won't matter.  But I'm also the idealist at heart." he said with a smile, nodding at her.  He didn't spend enough time with the Queen in her life... and honestly he didn't want to make that same mistake again.  Even if there was no blood relation, and even if he would never be part of the Royal line, that didn't matter for him.  He loved family, and he wanted to be part of a family again.  If Aki was now here as family, then he wanted to be here just as much as her.

Arashi noticeably dropped his face, sighing.  "Not... not normally.  At least if they do, there is constant communication.  Not in this case.  Mom- er, Akihana, is probably trying to keep Hoshi's location secret, but especially then its very important that the time schedule is kept, since communication is not possible."

Arashi had to stand up.... when he was nervous, he couldn't stay seated.  "Before you ask, yes, Kumo was the land of my birth, and the village of my family.  But we have no loyalties there anymore.  The current Raikage is the same individual who wiped out the village - single-handedly.  He's also responsible as the one who killed my family, and ruined the land around it.  It's no longer my village.  My village, my home... and my eventual family is going to be of Hoshi.  I just.... Akihana found me, a young boy who just lost everything, and she protected me.  She is my mother, blood or not.  And I can't help but worry for her safety.  She's a powerful shinobi, but she is going up against the very incarnation of evil."

"There is power in names, it defines us," the blonde offered, sidetracked for a moment as the young Prince recounted his own experiences. "I am well aware of those who think we give ourselves ostentatious titles out of vanity, Ser. And I only wish that was true." As a child, the princesses Tehniyat and Lissandra had been seated down to be asked the very question, why they felt they were called princesses.

"But the sad truth is that the prefixes exist to constantly remind us of our duty to the people of Haven. Tehniyat may forget that she exists for her people but Princess Tehniyat, First of her Name, Daughter of Princess Azra and Lord Bukhari will never make that mistake." Raising her sharp green gaze to the Queensguard, she added. "And neither will Prince Arashi Tekiatsu, Anointed Knight of he Sacred Order fo the Queensguard I hope."

The young man appeared optimistic despite no communication from Akihana, and she could understand that. Towards the end of her royal Aunt's life, there had been no communication between Queen Shiera and the rest of her family yet everyone had been contend in believing her alive. Hope was a stubborn thing to kill, especially in people like the prince and his Lady Mother.

"Have you considered the possibility that Lady Akihana may have become one with the stars?" the heiress asked, no emotion in her voice. Tehniyat did not know how to accurately express concern or sorrow, she was slowly learning with her young cousin but office situations did not call for emotions. "Maybe that is why there is no contact. After all, she has been away from her own children for so long, I can't imagine her doing so willingly."

Arashi leaned back in his chair, nodding.  "Sometimes Hoshi still amazes me.  Such a stark difference, its like two different worlds.  Where I come from, our name defined us.  Shinobi were hereditary, or generational in a sense.  If you were born into a ninja family, you were thought to have the predisposition and disciple required to tap into your chakra network.  And because of that, family names had their own meaning."

Arashi took this time to pull out his headgear, with the Hoshi star emblazoned into the metal.  "There were really only two titles that would persist and kept there meaning.  One was sensei, a term for an established shinobi who was also a teacher to others. Honestly, any adult ninja could be a sensei, but the term only persisted to those who dedicated themselves to teaching others the ninja way.  The other title is much closer to your own.  Kage.  Technically, Den is labeled as a Kage, but as the leader of their village, they adopt an identifier.  Hokage is the ninja leader of the Fire nation, Raikage is Lightning nation, and Hogokage is Haven nation.  But for the rest of us, our labels were more private."

He held up the headband so that Princess could see it.  "This is an international symbol.  Outside this village, this here shows that I am a shinobi recognized by my village.  Each shinobi nation has differences in their people, but all of us follow the same core values passed down to us.  A shinobi is an honored title, one that is respected, loved, and feared.  They are sworn to protect their village, and any of those who can't defend themselves.  There are those who betray that trust... this village could attest to that.  But those are rogue ninja.  They might fight like us, but they will never be considered shinobi.  They why they tend to be marked with a line dug into the metal, crossing through their village symbol."

"The other label we hold is our family name.  Each village has distinct families that have settled there, major families that contribute greatly to their village.  And everyone who holds that name is held to a standard.  Mine for instance.  Not Akari, but Tekiatsu.  My family... my real family, we were considered a major family in Kumo.  Loyal defenders, sworn to the Raikage for generations.  When you heard someone with the name Tekiatsu, even if you didn't know who that person was, you already knew that they were a shinobi, and they were loyal to the village.  You knew that they were defend you with their lives.  And... and we did." he said, obviously difficult to speak.  It was clear what exactly he meant by that final line.

It was hard enough holding his emotions in when he spoke of his family... but his eyes were watering as she gave the suggestion he had in the back of his mind for the last couple of months.

"No... no she couldn't... no... she...." he pinched his eyes shut, pushing out the gathered tear, and then opened them again, trying to be strong.

"Even outside of Hoshi, Akihana is considered a master shinobi, especially in the medical field.  She was sometimes called the ultimate defense, her talents in defensive jutsus and healing were unmatched.  It would take a lot for her to be taken down.  Plus... she isn't by herself.  If things get tough, she has an escape she can use, something that only one other has the talent for.  Plus, she has a familiar.  If something happened to her, her familiar would have told us by now." his fists were clenched, but it was starting to sound like he was trying to convince himself more than the Royal Princess before him.

"No.. no, she's alive, I know it.  She has to be.  But... but something has to be keeping her away from the village... or at least keeping her in Kumo.  I just wish... I wish I knew what it was.  We need her here.  I need her here."

All the information the young knight provided about the ninja world, Tehniyat noted with great interest. her own studies in ninja culture had just begun when she had taken over the administration of the shinobi forces of Hoshi but they were by no means complete. Perhaps the prince knew this and was enlightening her without the disgrace and humiliation of her having to ask, and if that was the case, the royal heiress could only be quietly grateful.

"So this Raikage..." she began carefully, hoping not to mispronounce the title as that would be an insult of great measure regardless of whether the object of the insult heard it. "He is no ally of Hoshi as we speak, and Lady Akihana sought to forge such an alliance because I assume she perceived a threat otherwise?" It looked like ninja and royals had something in common after all, though traditionally such an alliance with an enemy nation would have been sealed via marriage. Princess Tehniyat herself had been betrothed to the crowned Prince of Bird Country since she was born to maintain ongoing peace between the two nations.

As the ninja tried to assure her that his Lady mother was still alive, Tehniyat could understand his worries and sorrows. Never having really known her own Lady Mother, the princess couldn't say she empathized but if he felt anything akin to what she felt at Aunt Shiera's passing than he was to be pitied, as was she.

Sadly, the roles of royals went far beyond personal emotions. It was a lesson he would have to learn soon enough if he was to stay and represent her family.

"What if I were to tell you that as a Queensguard, your duty is first and foremost to the Queen and her country, Ser Tekiatsu? What if, despite your worries for your mother's well being, I was to command you to hold your position here where you're needed. Lady Shiroi seem to think you would abandon us at any sign from your mother but what if I ask you to choose your loyalties now?"

Another test, one that would possibly shape his entire future.

Arashi shrugged his shoulders.  "Its not that he's no ally of Hoshi, but at the moment, we've been keeping our own whereabouts secret from him.  We are the survivors of Kumo's attack.  But Akihana knows that someone as powerful as the Raikage.... god I hate using that term for him... its only a matter of time before he finds out about Hoshi.  It's best to come out of the shadows early and prevent any conflict between our two kingdoms, instead of trying to remain hidden and be discovered.  Your people have had enough troubles with ninjas to last a lifetime, and the last thing we wanted was for this village to come under attack." he said, trying to explain the best way he could, from what he remembered in her letter.

Then came the big question.  The one he fully expected... and knew would eventually be a topic.  The shinobi stayed silent for a moment, hands clenched and his eyes down, almost as if he was debating with himself.  It wasn't so, but he had to contend with his own emotions.  In truth, Arashi was remembering the words of his long dead father, his family, and what it meant to the village.  He couldn't help it any longer, and tears flowed from his eyes.  He could picture his adopted mother getting farther and farther away, but he knew in his heart she would agree with his family.

"I... I'm.... I'm disappointed in you, Your Highness." he said, raising his head as the tears fell away.  "I... I thought I already answered that question." He reached up and wiped away the tears from his face, though it didn't stop the flow of more.  But what was behind those tears was a storm of determination.  He was sincere.

"I am a lot of things.  I am Arashi, son of Akihana Akari.  Prince of the Royal Palace of Hoshi.  First raised Jounin of Hoshi.  Knight of the Queensguard.  The Storm Shinobi of Haven.  But with all those titles, there is one thing that I hold higher than anything else.  I am Arashi, the last of the Tekiatsu clan from the Land of Lightning.  My parents, my entire family, swore that they would defend and protect their village to their dying breath, and they did.  Every one of them.  I have a legacy of loyalty and protection to my village.  If I were to abandon Hoshi, not only would I hurt you, but I would dishonor everything my family lived and died for."  he let those words sink in, giving himself a break to breath and try to compose himself.

"What I am saying, Princess Tehniyat, the closest I will ever have to a sister... is that you don't have to order me to do anything.  I have sworn to myself to protect my people in any way I can.  To protect you, protect Tsugi, protect Ser Meryn, and everyone here.  I can't abandon my duty to the village.  To do so would be to abandon my treasured name, the most important thing I own."