Oooh! I can't resist! Must write one-shot about Hime and her reunion with her parents! This is my first fan fic using canon characters. I didn't like that episode 44 of Happiness Charge glossed over Hime's reunion with her parents, so I decided to expand on it! Why? Because I love Hime and felt she deserved some love! I REALLY hope I got her character down. If you feel she's acting a bit OOC, please let me know so I can fix it! Enjoy!
Royal Reunion
A gentle breeze carried the scent of wildflowers across the sun warmed Blue Sky Kingdom. The last time this happened was about a year ago. For a while, the Blue Sky Kingdom was barren, leaving only huge armies of Saiarks and an overly pink, cutesy castle made of artificial sweets and junk food, ruled by the wicked Queen Mirage. But now, thanks to the arduous efforts of the Happiness Charge Pretty Cure, both Mirage and the Blue Sky Kingdom were back to normal.
The kingdom was radiant with joy. Children were running to their parents with sunny smiles on their faces, embraced by relieved parents whose joy bubbled over just from the sight of them. Lovers were kissing and making out in public, relieved to finally be able to see each other again. Shop owners were finally able to get back to their beloved shops, happy that everything's the same as it always was. Bakeries, stained glass shops, toy shops, sweet shops, candy stores, restaurants, museums, embassies, consulates, the list went on. The castle returned to its original state, along with everything else. Everyone was happy.
However, for a certain Cure Princess, this was a kind of happiness unlike any other. For almost a year, she had been burdened by the guilt that laid heavy on her heart. Opening the Axia box made the evil come forth, and she watched helplessly as the evil consumed not just her beloved kingdom, but her parents, loved ones, and everyone else, soon spreading to Earth. She had become a Pretty Cure to atone for this grave mistake, even though in her heart, she was sure she wouldn't be able to do it. But now...that impossible dream finally became a reality. The warmth of the sun. The sweet scent of her favorite flower fields. The smiles on everyone's faces. Everything was back.
The only thing missing was...Oh? What's this?
"Himelda!"
A voice in the distance. Cure Princess's ears perked up, and she whipped her head around, entranced by the sweet, melodious voice. She knew that voice anywhere.
"Princess Himelda!"
A deep, rich voice called out to her. Two beautifully dressed figures came into view. Cure Princess's eyes suddenly turned blurry and wet.
Mother? Father?
Her parents. Her beloved parents finally arrived, dressed in their usual noble raiment. Her father's midnight blue hair was exactly like she remembered. Her mother's sea green hair was done up in a large odango bun, complete with a little golden crown, just like Cure Princess remembered. They still had the scent of rose perfume on their skin. Soon, the tears sprung forth from both sides.
"Princess Himelda…" Her mother's voice caught in her throat.
Cure Princess couldn't take it anymore. The desire to embrace her beloved parents after so long finally consumed her. She was going to hug them whether the heavens wanted her to or not! "MOOOM! DAAAAD!" Like a lost child, a blubbering Cure Princess dashed toward her parents and threw herself into their loving arms.
Oh, how sweet it felt to be back in the safe arms of her parents once more! Her parents arms were warm, just like Hime remembered them. The rose scented perfume embraced Cure Princess's nostrils. She couldn't take it anymore. Cure Princess burst into loud, passionate wails, her face red and contorting in a way very unfitting for a noble princess. But her parents didn't care, nor did she. It was as though they had been separated for a millennium! Neither Cure Princess nor her mother cared if their tears left marks on their aristocratic robes. They didn't care for such trivialities right now. For this family, being reunited once again was what mattered most.
And for Hime, never had she been so happy to be with her parents again in her whole entire life. Her family was her greatest treasure, and she couldn't ask God for anything else.
"Mom...Dad...I've missed you so much!" Cure Princess wailed, her puffy, red, contorted face drowning in a waterfall of tears.
"We've missed you too, dear," Her mother crooned in her usual kind voice.
"Look at you. Our little girl has actually grown up right before our eyes," Her father whispered gently, in his deep, rich voice.
"I'm so sorry...I'm so so so sorry!" Cure Princess blubbered, remembering the time when she opened the Axia Box.
"It's alright, dear child. It's alright…" Her mother held her daughter tighter. "We're just happy you're alive and well…"
Cure Princess's sobs finally quieted down, but the tears didn't stop. "I know. Me too."
It took a while, but Cure Princess finally stopped crying and wiped the tears out of her eyes. The guilt that weighed on her had finally been lifted, and now she felt light as a feather. She de-transformed back into Shirayuki Hime, happy to be with her parents again after so long. There was so much she wanted to tell them! About Megumi, Yuuko, Iona, Seiji, Ribbon, Glassan, their adventures on Earth, school, the cultural festival, all the Saiarks they defeated, the intense battle against Queen Mirage, Blue's assistance-But wait! The other Precure were surrounded by a gaggle of children and parents, in awe of their accomplishments. Shouldn't she join them?
Cure Honey seemed to figure out Hime's dilemma, as she turned to face her and made a gesture that told her to not worry about them. Spend time with your parents, it seemed to say. Hime smiled and flashed a thumb's up, grateful for Cure Honey's consideration. Without hesitation, Hime, with her beloved parents by her side, ambled inside the castle, hoping to catch up.
"Tell us about your time on Earth, Himelda," Her father asked kindly, his eyes brimming with curiosity.
Hime's eyes sparkled with delight, and her cheeks turned red, not in a sad way. "There's sooooo much I wanna tell you! Where do I start?!" She stammered.
As it turned out, telling them about everything proved to be easy. There was Megumi, her first ever friend, the klutzy, well meaning, friendly, sometimes not very bright love freak who seemed to make a living out of helping people. Megumi's exploits as Cure Lovely were definitely a force to be reckoned with. She adapted to life as a Pretty Cure very quickly, even pulling attacks right out of her rear without her enemies ever expecting it, and having far more strength than Princess had when she first started out. But Megumi was always one to lend a helping hand and give her the encouragement and strength she needed to get stronger. Hoo boy, Hoshiiwa really had it coming when she had the nerve to claim Megumi did nice things for people out of ulterior motive! Good thing Princess was there to call her out.
Yuuko was another story. Megumi's friend, the sweet, kind, warm, friendly, food lover who always had honey candy to give out and a kind word of advice whenever Hime was having trouble. Hime wished she could bring her parents to Yuuko's shop and take them out to eat, as Yuuko's cooking was to die for! Her parents would look forward to it, which made Hime chatter on some more. Cure Honey was no slouch in the fighting department either. She was just as good, if not more so, than Lovely and Princess herself. Come to think of it, there didn't seem to be anything wrong with Yuuko. Not that Hime minded, but every person had flaws, weaknesses, and fears. What were Yuuko's? Is she just too good? Hime couldn't help but find that a teensy bit unsettling, but she still loved Yuuko regardless of any faults she may or may not have.
Then she told them about Seiji, Megumi's male friend, and how she's convinced he has a crush on Megumi but just doesn't have the gall to just spit it out and tell her straight. He always tried to help the girls out whenever they fought the Saiarks. There was one time when he did get turned into a Saiark once! Good thing Princess and the other girls managed to save him. Thinking about the time she thought she was in love with him made her snort a little. Lord, was that embarrassing! That way she got to avoid any cheesy love triangle drama with Megumi, as she knew Seiji had the hots for Megumi, and getting in the way of their puppy love was the last thing Hime wanted. Her parents both broke into hearty laughter. It's a good thing Yuuko and Glassan were there to save the day with the whole misattribution of arousal explanation. Back to Seiji, he cared for all of his friends. The time he tried to help her when they were in trouble in that forest one day was a day Hime would make sure she never forgot.
Finally, Hime got to talking about Iona. She had to admit, they had a very rocky start. On impulse, she found herself talking about all the times Iona blamed Hime for everything and picked on her every chance she got, from refusing to listen to a word she said to outright trying to turn her friends against her and make her out to be some heartless raging harpy who deliberately doomed the world, acting like she didn't really care about atoning for her mistake. But before she could finish, her mother suddenly shouted, "Whaaaat?! That girl bullied you?!"
Hime was so surprised by her mother's change in demeanor that she backpedaled and shrank into the couch. "Why that no good, selfish, uncaring, hateful little-! Didn't she ONCE think about what you were going through?! About your feelings on this whole mess?! To think she has the nerve to treat you like garbage!" Her mother was stomping her feet, and her heels made loud tapping sounds with every stamp. "Where are her parents?! I'd like to have a word with them! Nobody treats you like garbage and gets away with it!"
"Calm down, honey," Her father put both hands on her shoulders and tried to calm her down, but Hime's mother just wasn't having it.
"Our daughter's been viciously bullied, verbally and emotionally abused, demonized, and this person refused to listen to what she had to say and continued to treat her like the spawn of Satan! You're just gonna sit there and not do anything?!"
"Mom! It's okay!" Hime shot up from the couch and got in between her parents. She didn't want a fight to ensue. "We're over it now. We both apologized, patched things up, and we're friends now. Besides, everything's back to normal!"
Her mother finally calmed down and dropped the issue, but Hime could see her twirling a strand of hair around her finger and balling another fist as she sat down on the couch. Her mother was a bit overprotective like that. If anyone so much as crossed Hime, her mother would give them epic verbal lashings.
"By the way, Himelda. Did you make this?" Her father asked. Hime turned around to find a yellow basket full of cupcakes wrapped in small plastic bags.
"Hey! That's my Mother's Day gift for Mom!" Hime exclaimed. Her surprise turned into horror upon seeing the decrepit state of the cupcakes. Huge blankets of ugly greenish blue mold covered almost every single cupcake she had wrapped in the bags. It didn't help that some of the wrappers had holes and rips in various places, probably from Choiarks or bugs. "Awwww...they're so old and moldy! Now she can't eat them!" Hime whined. She had wanted so badly for her mother to eat them if she was set free. Then again, those cupcakes had been sitting there for the better part of a year, so it was inevitable that they'd turn moldy and inedible.
Her mother smiled warmly. "It's alright, Hime. I'm just happy you went to the trouble of making it for me. I'm so blessed to have such a kind daughter," She said, with some tears creeping out of her eyes once more.
Hime looked down at her knees shyly, her face turning red. "Thank you…"
It truly felt great to be with her family again. They proceeded to do other little things together, like tell jokes, stories, and even watch some TV together. They happened to catch Masuko Miyo on Pretty Cure Weekly report on the Phantom Empire's destruction and how new Pretty Cure are helping the world. One group she reported on consisted of three Pretty Cure named Cures Mermaid, Flora, and Twinkle. Hime was especially entranced by Cure Flora, with her blonde hair, pink streaks, and beautiful flowing pink dress. If Flora had put some pale purple streaks in her hair, she would look like the spitting image of Lady Lovely Locks. Was that show still on Blue Sky TV anymore? Hime wasn't sure. But she loved watching it when she was younger.
When the evening sky began to don its beautiful colors, Hime found herself standing on a balcony, entranced by the amazing view. The houses, the towns, the flower fields, the people bustling about, the Blue Sky Kingdom had truly come back. All because she and her friends purified Queen Mirage and vanquished the evil in her heart.
"So you're a Pretty Cure now, huh?" Her mother walked up from behind her, putting her elbows against the railing with her chin in her hands.
"Yep. Cure Princess," Hime replied, staring off into the sky.
"You've truly grown up, Himelda…" Her mother mused wistfully. "I'm starting to miss the little baby I raised."
"Jeez, Mom. You're embarrassing me."
Her mother winked cutely. "Don't I always?"
Hime puffed out her cheeks and pouted. "You certainly haven't changed."
Her mother chuckled. "I can see you have."
Hime smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Megumi and the others have been a Godsend. I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for them. Ribbon and Blue, too."
"Look at what you have accomplished, Hime. The Blue Sky Kingdom is back, all thanks to you and your friends."
A chill went through Hime's spine. Had the evil in Mirage's heart truly been vanquished? Were the battles really over? Perhaps...there was more. "I don't know if it's all over just yet."
Her mother's smile faded. "Do you...want to go back to Earth?"
Hime wasted no time answering. "Yes. For now. I have a feeling things aren't over yet. But I'm just happy you're all back," She replied solemnly.
She found herself being embraced by a pair of arms, pulled into her mother's chest. She could feel the heaving of her mother's chest, her sniveling noises, and the tears on her hair. "You've truly grown up, my child. Please...promise me...promise me you'll come back safe and sound. I don't know what I'd do...without you…"
Hime's eyes started to blur again. "Mom...don't cry. You're gonna make me cry again. But I promise I'll come back safely."
"You're my hero, Himelda."
Although it was painful, Hime went back to Earth. She yearned to be able to spend all her time with her parents. But something told her the battle wasn't over yet. To Hime, this was okay. Her parents were safe, the Blue Sky Kingdom was back to normal, and her friends saved Mirage. If she could do all of that and still come out on top, then she could handle anything.
For she was the royal blue wind dancing in the skies, Cure Princess!