I return! For a little while, at least. Anyhow, on to the good stuff. I've always loved "parental" fics, from Zuko and Hakoda(A:TLA) to Edward and Roy(FMA). So today we're going to delve into Mukaze's character. I always thought that he and Obi should have had some sort of confrontation after Shirayuki's rescue, considering Obi's obsession with finding her, Zen's love, his team's opinion of Obi's skills and mannerisms(I'm pretty sure they referred to him as demon once, or implied it). Not to mention Mukaze is technically an outlaw, so I think he'd naturally be wary about anyone with Obi's "occupation" that is hanging around his daughter. I sure would be!

Anyhow, on to the story.

Mukaze doesn't know what to think of the prince and his company. Correction-he doesn't know what to think of a certain member of the prince's company-a certain dark-haired assassin that has to much intelligence and skill to be comfortable with in this small tight-knit group of bandits. The kind of man that if you saw him in a bar, you'd instantly avoid.

So naturally, Mukaze seeks him out after all is said and done with the prince and his daughter. For having a prince for company was one thing, but befriending an assassin was another, and Mukaze was anything if not careful when it came to his precious daughter's safety. He'd given her up for that fact, hadn't he? No danger was going to be near his daughter if he had a say about it.

He found the boy crouched on the railing of one of the cabins, glass dangling from one hand and a blade tucked between the two fingers of his left hand, glimmering in the moonlight. He looks odd, crouching in the darkness, like he should belong there but has been thrust into the light so many times recently now he has become a little softer against the harsh background of the night sky.

"General." The boy says in a soft whisper. "I did not expect you to take so long." Obi turns his head so he can see Mukaze-never, never let a threat stay unseen-eyes glinting the soft moonlight. A smirk is tugging at his lips, pulling up the brittle edges of his mask. Mukaze ignores it, and goes directly for the hit.

"You are a dangerous person, sir knight." Mukaze lets his coat fall back from his waist, exposing the sharp outline of a dagger there as he leans against the railing Obi is perched on. He doesn't miss the way Obi's eyes drift down to his boots and snap back up, either.

"I am." He says. "I'm guessing this conversation has something to do with my connection with Miss?"

There. There's the hard edge in his voice, the tell-tale sign of a mask being broken. Mukaze seizes the opportunity.

"I've met many men like you in my life," the old general says, "and none of them died well."

Obi grins, canines poking through his lips. "You're worried I'll contaminate Miss." He replies teasingly.

"Yes." Mukaze says bluntly. "I'm worried my daughter will let out to much of her good heart and waste it on a scoundrel who'll only end up hurting her-whether it be intentional or not."

Obi sets his glass down, still half full and sheathes his knife. "Well." He breathes, still not looking into Mukaze's eyes. "I can swear to you this-Miss will never be hurt again while I am with her." His voice tapers down into a growl at the end, self-loathing twisting into his voice and choking his words off.

Glittering gold meet muted green, something fierce and wild holding them locked together.

"I swear on my life." Obi says.

Mukaze sees the slight tremble in his hands, the odd pitch of his voice, the way he forces himself to stay still and not reach for his knives-and nods once. There's no trust in the gesture, just knowledge, knowledge that this boy-this very hurt, very broken boy-would give his life for a girl he hardly knew without a second thought. And for Mukaze, that is enough.


Okay! You have no idea how hard this chapter was for me to write. I re-wrote it like five times, trying to get it the way I wanted and still have the characters not crazy out of character. But here it is, and honestly I love the way it turned out. There will probably be a second part to this piece, since it was pretty short, but I ran out of inspiration to make this part any longer.

Also! I am willing to accept prompts! Pretty much anything except sexual situations or yaoi, I don't write either of those.(I'm fine with writing kisses though, we all need a few good Obiyuki kisses XD)From fluff to angst to drama to slice of life... it can be anything. So if you have a certain prompt you'd love to see me do my version of, or something I've hinted at in the past few chapters that you want more of, PM me! I can only take a few at a time, otherwise school will kill me and so will my parents for having terrible grades. XD But I'd be happy to try my hand at some.

Don't forget to R&R!

~Realm-Leaper