Shigure

"It seems to be another beautiful day here in Hoshido, once again," Shigure said into the distance while riding on his pegasus.

"Of course it is, friend," Ayleito responded calmly.

Shigure smiled. The sun had just began to set above Castle Shirasagi, painting the sky in lavish reds, oranges, and pinks. It was almost entirely silent, save for the flapping of the pegasus wings and the occasional conversing between Shigure and Ayleito. The breeze the two felt up that high in the sky was relaxing, so much so that Shigure fell asleep at one point.

"Wouldn't your parents be wanting to see you soon?" Ayleito eventually said in his same calm demeanor.

"Perhaps," Shigure quietly replied, just loud enough for Ayleito to hear. "I've been missing for dinner many times, they'll understand."

"Last I heard, your father wasn't too keen on you showing up an hour late."

"It'll be fine."

The two of them were interrupted by the sound of another set of wings slowly catching up. Shigure turned aside to see a helmed Hoshidan flying the pegasus, and behind him was Shigure's brother, Kiragi.

Kiragi was nothing spectacular appearance-wise to Shigure. While many of the civilians throughout Hoshido were almost awestruck by Shigure's handsomeness (though he himself never saw it), Kiragi was rarely mentioned, save for some older women claiming him to be cute (which Kiragi never saw in himself). Kiragi had very small features to him, with a slightly angled chin and jaw. He had a small, round nose, and small ears poking out from just underneath his hair. His eyes were round and a bright amber in colour. He had ruffled hair, sky-blue, same as Shigure's, with the back tied slightly up into a knot. He wore a traditional white hakama with a black-and-blue chestguard on top, surrounded by a bear-fur waistcoat.

"Shigure!" his light, high voice shouted. "Mother and Father wish to see you for dinner!"

Shigure sighed, but he could slightly hear Ayleito attempting to hold in a laugh. "Very well," Shigure finally responded.

He turned his pegasus back to follow his brother's, with Ayleito following a ways behind. Much of the ride back to Castle Shirasagi was conducted in silence, before eventually Shigure decided to answer a question that he had been having for some time.

"Is there any special reason why Mother and Father wish to have me back for dinner?"

"Mother says you haven't been spending much time with us lately," Kiragi responded without a second thought.

"Is that all?"

Kiragi nodded. He appeared as if he was going to say something else, but he held his tongue, leaving the rest of the trip to be finished in complete silence.

The two had returned just after the sun had finished setting, letting azure-coloured skies to shine through the windows of the grand dining hall. As he was not a royal, Ayleito began to make his way back to the barracks in order to have his meal for the day.

"Once again, Shigure," his father said sternly.

"Oh, hush now Takumi," Mother said with a smile.

Father took it with a silent sigh. Father was very similar to Kiragi. He had a more angular face that that of Kiragi's, with slightly more dull grey eyes. His nose was slightly larger than that of Kiragi, though compared to others it was still very small. His hair was a very light brown, nearly grey, and was slightly ruffled before going back into a long ponytail reaching nearly to the small of his back. His clothing was rather similar to that of Kiragi's, though with a white chestguard and bear-fur cloak.

While Kiragi had taken much after Father, Shigure looked very similar to his Mother. Her face was more rounded than that of Kiragi and Father, with a petite nose and thin mouth, as well as kind, golden eyes. Her sky-blue hair was only kept organized behind her back, where it reached down to her hips. She wore a elegant white dress, with disconnected sleeves that tapered off into the form of wings as it neared her shoulders. Blue, sapphire-studded flower designs were located in several places around her dress, and she wore a brooch in the shape of a dragon's skull, with an aquamarine gem planted where the dragon's forehead would be.

"Now then, the rest of the family has eaten, so we may as well hop to it as well," Mother said happily.

A wide smile grew onto Kiragi's face, excited to see what he would be eating. Shigure could also feel a slight smile begin to grow on his own face in anticipation for the almost certain feast to come. A multitude of servants bustled back and forth between the kitchen and the dining hall where Shigure's side of the royal family dined. There were several times that servants had tripped, dropping whatever it was that they carried, before hastily cleaning it up and returning to the kitchen area.

After what seemed like an endless supply of food, coupled with a number of hours, Shigure simply could have no more. He had begun to get up, when his father politely asked, "Where are you off to?"

"I am going to take another flyaround," Shigure answered. "I need to work off some of this weight I just gained."

Shigure laughed at his own joke, to be met with silence by the rest of his family. Feeling defeated, Shigure returned to the porch where his Pegasus was seated and took off. He flew to his favourite spot, a cliff with a flowing river and waterfall around ten kilometres from Castle Shirasagi, and began to relax.

He eventually woke up with a start, not realizing he had fallen asleep, and instantly noticed another person had joined him at his lookout spot.

"Who are you?" Shigure hesitantly asked.

"Wow, you really must've been fast asleep," the voice of his Aunt Hinoka responded.

Hinoka turned towards Shigure, and gave a small smile, with her wide, fiery-amber eyes twisting to show that the smile was genuine. Her short, crimson-red hair was even more unkempt than it usually was, suggesting that she had just recently arrived at the lookout. Her small frame was covered up by a set of silver-and-red armour that tapered off into a skirt nearing her knees.

"Did I really doze off?" Shigure asked dumbfoundedly. Hinoka nodded. "Why are you even here anyways?"

"Azura… er, your mother sent me," Hinoka sheepishly replied. "It's well past midnight, and you hadn't returned since leaving for dinner. You know how we mothers act, always paranoid. So she wanted me to find you and get you. We all know that if you hadn't returned by morning, she'd send the entire army looking for you. I figured you'd be here. It's a nice spot; calm, secluded, away from all the hustling and bustling of being a royal." She paused, suddenly realizing something. "Speaking of being a royal, Ryoma wants the entirety of the royal family to meet up with the king down in Izumo, so you'd best get rested so you don't screw something up when meeting the people."

Shigure nodded, releasing a yawn, and agreed to follow Hinoka back to Castle Shirasagi. It seemed as though a long day was ahead of him.

It was growing to be about midday when the royal family made route for Izumo. At first glance, the group may not have seemed to look very royal, with many of them looking very unkempt, but yet they were the representatives of the fair kingdom of Hoshido. The caravan that lead the royal family to Izumo had wagons to separate the different members of the royal family, though the royal family sons, Shigure, Kiragi, and Shiro had decided to head with the caravan on foot. All the parents, alongside Rhajat and Mitama, had decided to stay in their wagons, likely napping.

"Hey! Shigure! Kiragi!" Shiro shouted, beaming with energy. Shiro was one of the tallest people in the family, second only to his father, King Ryoma. He had wild, spiky hair, in a very pale lavender colour, with a black headband tied around his forehead. He had a rather angular jaw, with well defined features, and excited green eyes. He wore a long, white hakama with red sleeves and a greyish-black chestguard on top of it.

"What is it, Shiro?" Shigure asked, attempting to quell his disgust with the always loud and excited nature of Shiro.

"How's about we go and do some sparring? My treat!"

"I don't really feel in the mood for it," Kiragi said, taking the words straight out of Shigure's mouth. "And I doubt that Rhajat or Mitama will want to."

"Those two are boring anyways, Kiragi!" Shiro shouted in response. "Mitama's always napping and Rhajat's just...weird. With all her...hexing and...cursing...and just being creepy."

"What about any of the retainers or their kids?" Shigure asked, trying to get Shiro away from him as quickly as possible.

Shiro sighed. "None of them are here. Dad said that the King of Izumo has something against violence, and just wants the royal family there."

"Wouldn't you think that's a bit suspicious?" Kiragi asked.

"Apparently Izumo has a really long history of nonviolence. There was some war a long time ago and a bunch of refugees came to Izumo." Shiro shrugged again.

"Well, you could ask one of the other guards, such as Ayleito for example," Shigure suggested.

"I've beaten him numerous times. Plus he's not even here"

"Kane?"

"Cakewalk."

"Yukimura?"

"He's running the show while we're out."

Finally Shigure sighed. "Fine," he began, "I'll spar with you."

Shiro's eyes lit up, and Shigure knew that he had made a grave mistake.

The royal caravan had just reached Izumo, and their parley with the King of Izumo would not be until the morning. Shigure was still sore from taking a thrashing from Shiro, who easily defeated him. While he never could confirm it, he could have sworn he felt the same chills down his spine that he would get any time that he was in the same room as Rhajat.

Now Shigure was waiting in the lobby of the inn that the royal family itself would be staying at, bored beyond his mind. He scanned the room, and aside from his family, he recognized no one. He and Kiragi were sitting at a table in the back of the inn, away from all the commotion that was taking place at the bar, where the parents (and Shiro) were.

"Hey, Shigure?" Kiragi eventually asked. Shigure looked at him quizzically. "Have you seen Mitama since we've arrived?"
Shigure realized with a start that he hadn't seen her or Rhajat. While he assumed that Rhajat was somewhere in the shadows, like a beast stalking its prey, Mitama generally would have been forced to come to the inn, unless her father forgot her.

"I do wonder where she is..." Shigure mumbled to himself.

"Where who is?" the creepy voice of Rhajat asked.

She had startled both Shigure and Kiragi, though Shigure had managed to stay on his seat, while Kiragi was sprawled out on the floor. Rhajat laughed to herself. Rhajat had an air of mystery about her. She was always in the shadows, which seemed to surprise a lot of people considering the crimson red hair that she inherited from her mother. He wore her hair straight and simple, reaching down to the nape of her neck and with a small ponytail at the back of her head. She had a smooth face, with dull grey eyes with a certain manic feeling behind them, possibly due to the eye shadow she seemed to perpetually have. She wore a cropped black top, with a dark, thin veil underneath, as well as a flowing, long black skirt.

"What do you want, Rhajat?" Kiragi said, suddenly shouting from astonishment. "If you wanted to ask something, don't just show up out of nowhere!"

Rhajat let another laugh loose. Her demeanor changed in the blink of an eye, and she suddenly was biting her nails and calmly saying, "I heard you mention that you couldn't find somewhere and I wondered if you meant me..."

"No, we were asking about Mitama," Shigure replied, trying to still subdue the scream he nearly let out.

"Oh, our little poet girl?" Rhajat asked. "Poor little Mitama is busy frittering about, rambling on with her poems about who knows what."

"Is she actually in that group?" Kiragi asked, astonished.

Rhajat nodded. "I don't know how these people cope with so much interaction with others. Other vile, uninteresting folk. I don't much care for their noisiness, so I'd rather-"

"Keep to myself," Kiragi and Rhajat said nearly at the same time. Rhajat glared right into Kiragi's soul, making him paler than he already was.

"Never again," Rhajat said disgustedly.

And as soon as she had appeared, she was gone. Shigure helped his brother off of the ground and back up to his table, when Mitama finally showed up.

"Is the gang all here/Rested and well-prepared/Here in Izumo?" Mitama said, making an unnecessary haiku, as was her habit.

Mitama almost could not have looked more different than her cousin Rhajat. While Rhajat had a dark, brooding aura about her, Mitama's seemed to be that of light and carefreeness. She had light pink hair, slightly bobbed and with two braids rolling down the side of her head, with a white bow to wrap up the back of her hair. She had wide, brown eyes with star-shaped irises, as with her father, and very petite features to her, almost like a little child, befitting her being the youngest of the family, only behind Kiragi by a few months. She wore a red dress with white colouring across the middle of the dress, with a red light-armour guard around her waist. Even now, she seemed to be nearly asleep, despite being awake and talking.

"I suppose so…" Kiragi said hesitantly.

"Wonderful," Mitama replied, peacefully but with almost an insulting tone. "I suppose it will be tomorrow that we dine in the Castle of Izumo?"

"From what I hear, that's the case," Shigure answered, with some uncertainty to it.

"Perhaps if you were not simply lazing about all day on your pegasus, you may actually know these things."

Shigure laughed. "You're the one talking about lazing around? You do nothing but sleep and write poems, while I at least help out with some of the servants."

"With you so called 'music'? I quite frankly think it's horrible."

"But you said Shigure's singing was better than mine, and you still liked mine!" Kiragi whined.

"Was that lie needed?/Perhaps if he only knew/How poorly he sings." Mitama finished with a flair to end her haiku.

Before either of the two could respond, Mitama was on her way up the stairs, likely to begin another rest that even the dead would be jealous of. Shigure knew that the next morning would be an interesting morning.