Chapter 1: Affairs of State
"I'm afraid that is not possible." Guru Clef smiled benignly at the foreign diplomats. It was a bright Sunday evening in the garden of Cephiro Palace, and the ambassadors from Autozam, Chizeta, and Fahren were there on their monthly holiday/ peace assembly.
"But why ever not?" Tarta, heiress to the throne of Chizeta, pried. "I do not see how anyone could not benefit from intermarriage between Cephiro and Chizeta. The two countries would be combined without question. Cephiro would have nothing to fear from outside invasions as Chizeta's army could more than handle such interference, and Chizeta itself would gain from the expansion in territory. How could anything go wrong?"
Clef shook his head slowly, still smiling. "I'm afraid that would be...out of the question. First of all, we of this universe have, as you all know, formed one big alliance already, in agreeance to distribute all we have equally. And if two countries make a pact, the other two must also be included. And," he joked, "we do not have three Crown Princes. This would cause future hostility between the two planets which are excluded, and the two which combine themselves. Mmm...thank you, Presea." Clef swiveled around partway to beam up at the young woman who had just poured and handed him a cup of tea. The pharle smiled back, blushing, as various ambassadors quickly disguised their giggles as coughs. Clef's and Presea's blossoming courtship had to be the worst-kept secret in all the four worlds.
"Oh, Tarta, you're so aggressive! Just let it go!" Tatra giggled as she patted her sister on the head. "Besides, as much as I respect Prince Ferio, younger men simply bore me. And I should hate for you to be forced into a marriage you didn't want." The eldest Chizetan sister shuddered, her smile not wavering an inch.
A heavy southern accent not unlike the Chizetans' broke into the conversation. "B'sides, Ferio is...busy with...certain affairs at the moment." Caldina waltzed into the courtyard, Lafarga on her heels. Both of their hair was considerably messed-up. "Sorry we're late, Guru, but we were just- "
WHAM
"OwWwWww..." Caldina massaged her tender scalp, recovering from Clef's attack to the top of her head. "I really hate that staff..."
"What would possibly make you think we wish to know what you two do in private?" SD Clef growled, sweatdropping as the rest of the party burst into loud guffaws. At exactly that moment, Umi and Ascot raced into the courtyard, breathing heavily and flushing bright red. "Sorry we're late Guru, we were just-"
WHAM
"OWWW!"
It was nearly a full five minutes before there was order in the garden, mostly because Lady Aska laughed so hard she stopped breathing, and Healers had to be called in. Wiping tears of mirth from his eyes, Eagle Vision of Autozam sat back up straight in his chair...well, as straight as he could manage, chuckling as hard as he was. "But what I was going to ask, Guru, was...what could possibly keep a Prince from fulfilling an obligation to his country?"
At that exact moment, the back door of the palace was kicked open by Ferio, who was laughing and grinning from ear to ear. He had Fuu swept up in his arms, and she was holding a bowl of grapes in her hand and giggling so hard she couldn't see straight. "Hey...hey, guys! Oh, good you're all here. Hey, you have to watch this cool trick!"
"Now see here, Ferio! We're in the middle of a meeting-"
"Aww, lighten up, Clef! Okay, okay...here goes!" Ferio set Fuu down on the ground, and she made a futile effort to bow and greet everyone through her giggle-fit. Ferio stepped back about six feet and positioned himself in an attack position. "Is he going to tackle her?" Hikaru whispered to Lantis, who was watching with interest.
Fuu gathered about a dozen grapes in her hands and still giggling, managed to say "Ready...go!" And with that, she launched all of the little fruits into the air above Ferio's head.
So fast everyone could barely follow his movements, Ferio was dodging around the small area, his mouth opened wide. When he finally stopped, swaying a little dizzily, it was obvious from the bulging of his cheeks that all of the grapes had been caught. Taking a deep breath, he gulped hugely, swallowing all of the grapes at once. A little red, he stood up and took his bows, gasping for air.
Slowly, hesitantly, their audience looked around at each other. Then, with almost no notice, they burst into a second wave of laughter and broken applause. Well, everyone who could applaud did, but most were holding their sides, caught in fits of hysterics.
Catching his breath, Ferio straightened up grinning, hooked his arm around Fuu's waist, and pulled her up next to him, much to her surprise. "Thank you, thank you! And how's about a hand for my lovely assistant?" He was answered with more applause and a few "YAY"s coming from Hikaru's direction. "Ah...I see," Eagle managed to gasp between burst of laughter. "Well, I can't think of a way I'd rather waste—er, spend time..." he giggled, cowering under Geo's glare. "Heheh..."
"What, you don't waste enough time already?"
Tarta looked over at her sister, who was still chuckling her head off, to see a tear running down her cheek. "It wasn't that funny, Tatra..."
"No, it's not that! They're just so...so cute!"
Tarta sighed, exasperated. "Mokona help me if I ever get that ditzy..." she muttered.
"Now Tarta, don't tease your elder sister!"
Still grinning and laughing quietly, Ferio swooped in closer to Fuu and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. As Fuu turned red as the sunset which was now looming over the horizon, several feminine "Awww,"s were heard from around the garden, along with a rather loud "WHOOO!" from Caldina's vicinity.
Suddenly Clef, who by now was looking capable of murder, gripped his staff tightly and swung it at Ferio's head. It didn't hit its target: the young prince dodged behind Fuu quickly, and stuck his tongue out at the riled Master Mage.
"I do not believe you..." Clef growled, his voice shaking from rage. "You barge into the meeting late, and in the rudest way... You make an idiot of yourself with tricks a trained animal would perform... You embarrass Fuu and yourself with that unneeded display... And most importantly—"
"I stole your spotlight?"
"THAT'S IT!" Clef roared, swinging his staff above his head and smashing it down within inches of Ferio's foot. The green-haired prince made a small "Eeep!" noise and, bowing to the group, ran for his life, over some bushes, around the edge of a fountain, and through a flowerbed, Clef right on his heels. "Those were my BEST FERNS! You'll PAY for that, Ferio! Get back here!"
"Nyah, nyah! Can't catch me!"
WHAM
"HEY! Watch it!"
Hikaru and Umi walked up to stand beside Fuu, as they and the rest of the crowd watched this new amusement intently. "Will he ever grow up?" Umi asked, laughing.
Fuu blushed, smiling at the antics of her beau and the spazzing guru. "I hope not..."
Tap... Tap... Tap...
Fuu straightened up in the huge bed the girls shared during their stays in Cephiro, to see another small pebble collide with the huge window. Tap...
"Argh! Fuu, go out there and shut Ferio up!" Umi groaned sleepily, flipping over on her side. A devious grin spread across her face. "Any way you have to!" Fuu blushed, and slipped on a sheer white robe. "I shall get you for that, Umi-san," she thought to herself as she ran a comb through her hair and sliding into her thin, white slippers, opened the windows and stepped onto the balcony.
Ferio was indeed waiting below, with a whole other fistful of stones, just in case. They dropped from his hand when Fuu shut the tall glass doors behind her and slowly walked to the edge of the balcony, and his jaw dropped as well. Fireflies were flitting around her face and lighting on her shoulders, and the moonflowers that lined the balcony gave off an ethereal light. And it sure as heck didn't hurt that a tiny breeze was ruffling her gown and causing her hair to float to one side. "You look like an angel..." he breathed, absolutely floored.
Fuu giggled quietly. "Is that all you wanted, or should I go back inside?"
"No!" He laughed, grinning. "I want to show you something! C'mon!"
"Ferio, I can't possibly scale this wall! And it's a two-story drop!"
"A two-what drop?" Ferio shook it off. "Never mind that! Jump, I'll catch you!"
Fuu hesitated. "You...you'll catch me, right?"
"I'd never drop you! Come on!" her prince shot her a dashing grin and held his arms out wide. "What, you scared?"
"This is peer pressure, you know," the ex-Wind Knight began to climb onto the balcony's rim. Ferio scrunched up his nose, confused. "This is what?"
"Never mind!" Fuu stood up straight on the edge of the railing. "Ferio...I'm going to fall...!" she cried down to him, her knees shaking.
"Jump!"
She sprung from the balcony, frozen for a split-second in midair, then she plummeted down towards the ground. "Ferioooo!" she shrieked, as she held down her skirts, which were threatening to flip up. Ferio stepped forwards, arms still outstretched, and caught her, cradling her in his arms. They stared at each other for a few seconds, and then burst into laughter. Ferio set off towards the forest, not letting Fuu down. "I can walk, you know!" she protested.
"Yeah, I know, but I like carrying you! You don't mind, right?" he grinned down at the blushing girl in his arms. "Yes, but...you'll get tired after a while, and..."
"Nah...I'm a big tough guy! I'll handle it! Besides, it's your fault for being so adorable." Fuu thought she'd faint, he was making her so lightheaded; she covered it up quickly. "One of these days, your ego is going to get you in big trouble, mister!" she poked his chest playfully. "And we could have avoided this all by just getting a big bird or some flying device to help."
Ferio smiled happily. "Too much trouble. You know I hate planning. And one of these days, I'm going to carry you off into the sunset on a white horse." Fuu blushed deeply.
The two flirted all the way into the newly-rebuilt Forest of Silence.
"I'm afraid that is not possible." Guru Clef smiled benignly at the foreign diplomats. It was a bright Sunday evening in the garden of Cephiro Palace, and the ambassadors from Autozam, Chizeta, and Fahren were there on their monthly holiday/ peace assembly.
"But why ever not?" Tarta, heiress to the throne of Chizeta, pried. "I do not see how anyone could not benefit from intermarriage between Cephiro and Chizeta. The two countries would be combined without question. Cephiro would have nothing to fear from outside invasions as Chizeta's army could more than handle such interference, and Chizeta itself would gain from the expansion in territory. How could anything go wrong?"
Clef shook his head slowly, still smiling. "I'm afraid that would be...out of the question. First of all, we of this universe have, as you all know, formed one big alliance already, in agreeance to distribute all we have equally. And if two countries make a pact, the other two must also be included. And," he joked, "we do not have three Crown Princes. This would cause future hostility between the two planets which are excluded, and the two which combine themselves. Mmm...thank you, Presea." Clef swiveled around partway to beam up at the young woman who had just poured and handed him a cup of tea. The pharle smiled back, blushing, as various ambassadors quickly disguised their giggles as coughs. Clef's and Presea's blossoming courtship had to be the worst-kept secret in all the four worlds.
"Oh, Tarta, you're so aggressive! Just let it go!" Tatra giggled as she patted her sister on the head. "Besides, as much as I respect Prince Ferio, younger men simply bore me. And I should hate for you to be forced into a marriage you didn't want." The eldest Chizetan sister shuddered, her smile not wavering an inch.
A heavy southern accent not unlike the Chizetans' broke into the conversation. "B'sides, Ferio is...busy with...certain affairs at the moment." Caldina waltzed into the courtyard, Lafarga on her heels. Both of their hair was considerably messed-up. "Sorry we're late, Guru, but we were just- "
WHAM
"OwWwWww..." Caldina massaged her tender scalp, recovering from Clef's attack to the top of her head. "I really hate that staff..."
"What would possibly make you think we wish to know what you two do in private?" SD Clef growled, sweatdropping as the rest of the party burst into loud guffaws. At exactly that moment, Umi and Ascot raced into the courtyard, breathing heavily and flushing bright red. "Sorry we're late Guru, we were just-"
WHAM
"OWWW!"
It was nearly a full five minutes before there was order in the garden, mostly because Lady Aska laughed so hard she stopped breathing, and Healers had to be called in. Wiping tears of mirth from his eyes, Eagle Vision of Autozam sat back up straight in his chair...well, as straight as he could manage, chuckling as hard as he was. "But what I was going to ask, Guru, was...what could possibly keep a Prince from fulfilling an obligation to his country?"
At that exact moment, the back door of the palace was kicked open by Ferio, who was laughing and grinning from ear to ear. He had Fuu swept up in his arms, and she was holding a bowl of grapes in her hand and giggling so hard she couldn't see straight. "Hey...hey, guys! Oh, good you're all here. Hey, you have to watch this cool trick!"
"Now see here, Ferio! We're in the middle of a meeting-"
"Aww, lighten up, Clef! Okay, okay...here goes!" Ferio set Fuu down on the ground, and she made a futile effort to bow and greet everyone through her giggle-fit. Ferio stepped back about six feet and positioned himself in an attack position. "Is he going to tackle her?" Hikaru whispered to Lantis, who was watching with interest.
Fuu gathered about a dozen grapes in her hands and still giggling, managed to say "Ready...go!" And with that, she launched all of the little fruits into the air above Ferio's head.
So fast everyone could barely follow his movements, Ferio was dodging around the small area, his mouth opened wide. When he finally stopped, swaying a little dizzily, it was obvious from the bulging of his cheeks that all of the grapes had been caught. Taking a deep breath, he gulped hugely, swallowing all of the grapes at once. A little red, he stood up and took his bows, gasping for air.
Slowly, hesitantly, their audience looked around at each other. Then, with almost no notice, they burst into a second wave of laughter and broken applause. Well, everyone who could applaud did, but most were holding their sides, caught in fits of hysterics.
Catching his breath, Ferio straightened up grinning, hooked his arm around Fuu's waist, and pulled her up next to him, much to her surprise. "Thank you, thank you! And how's about a hand for my lovely assistant?" He was answered with more applause and a few "YAY"s coming from Hikaru's direction. "Ah...I see," Eagle managed to gasp between burst of laughter. "Well, I can't think of a way I'd rather waste—er, spend time..." he giggled, cowering under Geo's glare. "Heheh..."
"What, you don't waste enough time already?"
Tarta looked over at her sister, who was still chuckling her head off, to see a tear running down her cheek. "It wasn't that funny, Tatra..."
"No, it's not that! They're just so...so cute!"
Tarta sighed, exasperated. "Mokona help me if I ever get that ditzy..." she muttered.
"Now Tarta, don't tease your elder sister!"
Still grinning and laughing quietly, Ferio swooped in closer to Fuu and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. As Fuu turned red as the sunset which was now looming over the horizon, several feminine "Awww,"s were heard from around the garden, along with a rather loud "WHOOO!" from Caldina's vicinity.
Suddenly Clef, who by now was looking capable of murder, gripped his staff tightly and swung it at Ferio's head. It didn't hit its target: the young prince dodged behind Fuu quickly, and stuck his tongue out at the riled Master Mage.
"I do not believe you..." Clef growled, his voice shaking from rage. "You barge into the meeting late, and in the rudest way... You make an idiot of yourself with tricks a trained animal would perform... You embarrass Fuu and yourself with that unneeded display... And most importantly—"
"I stole your spotlight?"
"THAT'S IT!" Clef roared, swinging his staff above his head and smashing it down within inches of Ferio's foot. The green-haired prince made a small "Eeep!" noise and, bowing to the group, ran for his life, over some bushes, around the edge of a fountain, and through a flowerbed, Clef right on his heels. "Those were my BEST FERNS! You'll PAY for that, Ferio! Get back here!"
"Nyah, nyah! Can't catch me!"
WHAM
"HEY! Watch it!"
Hikaru and Umi walked up to stand beside Fuu, as they and the rest of the crowd watched this new amusement intently. "Will he ever grow up?" Umi asked, laughing.
Fuu blushed, smiling at the antics of her beau and the spazzing guru. "I hope not..."
Tap... Tap... Tap...
Fuu straightened up in the huge bed the girls shared during their stays in Cephiro, to see another small pebble collide with the huge window. Tap...
"Argh! Fuu, go out there and shut Ferio up!" Umi groaned sleepily, flipping over on her side. A devious grin spread across her face. "Any way you have to!" Fuu blushed, and slipped on a sheer white robe. "I shall get you for that, Umi-san," she thought to herself as she ran a comb through her hair and sliding into her thin, white slippers, opened the windows and stepped onto the balcony.
Ferio was indeed waiting below, with a whole other fistful of stones, just in case. They dropped from his hand when Fuu shut the tall glass doors behind her and slowly walked to the edge of the balcony, and his jaw dropped as well. Fireflies were flitting around her face and lighting on her shoulders, and the moonflowers that lined the balcony gave off an ethereal light. And it sure as heck didn't hurt that a tiny breeze was ruffling her gown and causing her hair to float to one side. "You look like an angel..." he breathed, absolutely floored.
Fuu giggled quietly. "Is that all you wanted, or should I go back inside?"
"No!" He laughed, grinning. "I want to show you something! C'mon!"
"Ferio, I can't possibly scale this wall! And it's a two-story drop!"
"A two-what drop?" Ferio shook it off. "Never mind that! Jump, I'll catch you!"
Fuu hesitated. "You...you'll catch me, right?"
"I'd never drop you! Come on!" her prince shot her a dashing grin and held his arms out wide. "What, you scared?"
"This is peer pressure, you know," the ex-Wind Knight began to climb onto the balcony's rim. Ferio scrunched up his nose, confused. "This is what?"
"Never mind!" Fuu stood up straight on the edge of the railing. "Ferio...I'm going to fall...!" she cried down to him, her knees shaking.
"Jump!"
She sprung from the balcony, frozen for a split-second in midair, then she plummeted down towards the ground. "Ferioooo!" she shrieked, as she held down her skirts, which were threatening to flip up. Ferio stepped forwards, arms still outstretched, and caught her, cradling her in his arms. They stared at each other for a few seconds, and then burst into laughter. Ferio set off towards the forest, not letting Fuu down. "I can walk, you know!" she protested.
"Yeah, I know, but I like carrying you! You don't mind, right?" he grinned down at the blushing girl in his arms. "Yes, but...you'll get tired after a while, and..."
"Nah...I'm a big tough guy! I'll handle it! Besides, it's your fault for being so adorable." Fuu thought she'd faint, he was making her so lightheaded; she covered it up quickly. "One of these days, your ego is going to get you in big trouble, mister!" she poked his chest playfully. "And we could have avoided this all by just getting a big bird or some flying device to help."
Ferio smiled happily. "Too much trouble. You know I hate planning. And one of these days, I'm going to carry you off into the sunset on a white horse." Fuu blushed deeply.
The two flirted all the way into the newly-rebuilt Forest of Silence.