Disclaimer: Once again I do not own anything from Kannazuki no Miko, the only thing I own is the plot and ideas that you will read about in this newest chapter, the character belong to whomever produced and made Kannazuki no Miko, and I hail to you oh great genius.

Author's Note: Anywaysssss! Hi everyone! I know, you've all been wondering: "Where the heck has she been? When's the next chapter going to be up?" Well, the wait is over! Not that a lot of you may care, but the end of the semester which ended on the 21st (the supposed end of the world -.-) had been kicking my butt up till its finishing. But now that it's over and done with him and I'm on winter vacation I'm going to try my best to get more chapters up to make up for the big space in between alrighty? Well enjoy readers! ^^

Chapter 6:

An Allegro of Altered Affairs

It was a bright morning. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining even more so brightly than it usually did, and the breeze in the air, for once, didn't chill me to the bone. No, for once, it actually felt… nice.

Getting out of bed on this fine morning, I sat up and stretched, releasing a yawn that was oncoming from the moment I opened my eyes.

'Today's going to be a good day.' I thought to myself as I allowed my feet to touch the floor so I could walk to the bathroom and prepare myself for the day. For a change, when I got out of bed today, my body didn't feel as heavy as it usually did, and my mind, not as foggy. Usually when I had to wake up in the mornings, I felt sluggish; With the mixture of my mother's voice calling out to me to get ready, the thought of another day without a voice much less any progress on getting me one, and the visits to the doctor's office, all had me dreading mornings. But, this morning was different. In fact, the only thing I could think about was tonight.

I smiled as I grabbed my normal princess wear and placed it on my body, then hurrying off to grab my comb and brush it through my hair a few times to get it styled just the way I wanted it. I then took my famous yellow headband and slid it through the front part of my hair, stopping somewhere amidst my hair in the middle of my head to hold back my bangs. I smiled, picture perfect and ready for today. As I made my way down the stairs to the kitchen area, my mother's voice once more greeted me, and she seemed to have a cup of some warm liquid she was drinking in her hands, my eyes then catching sight of her.

"Oh Chikane, dear. Good morning." She smiled. "How are you today?" I nodded to both of those questions. I swore, my mother knew I didn't have a voice and yet she persisted in asking me these questions she knew I'd have to have a voice to answer. I didn't know why she did that; Perhaps she thought of it as incentive? She laughed accordingly with my little nods. "Oh Chikane dear, you're so cute and sweet yet. Well, don't forget, I love you. And, remember! Your operation is soon." She reminded me once more and took a sip from her cup whilst walking away, going off to her own devices. I rolled my eyes. Did this woman ever give it a rest?

Now that my mother was out of the picture, and my dad had recently been sent away on some foreign business to negotiate, the question was: What to do? My mother was always off doing her own thing, which always left me with a ridiculous amount of freedom. (So long as I stayed in the palace.) Not a single thought came to mind: What was there to do? Then, it hit me.

'The ballet shoes!' My inner thoughts exclaimed. But I had to be careful I didn't get caught. I watched my mother sit and write down some things on a parchment she'd had sitting on the wooden table in the living room. Busy in thought as she appeared to be, I quietly snuck down the stairs to the lower level: The dance studio. I remembered how I did this last time, I needed to set off one torch in order for the rest to light. And so, I did just that; The row of torches lighting up in sequential order around the perimeter of the studio, and brightening the whole room so that the dance shoes came into view. A big smile curved my lips, even showing my teeth some, as I hurried towards the pair of footwear. Carefully, I took off my shoes I was already wearing and placed these upon my feet, tying them on at just the right tightness. My feet felt so free in these ballet shoes that whenever I danced in them, it was almost like walking on air. I happily danced to the imaginary music playing, closing my eyes as I moved gracefully around the room in different sequences of movements. And almost as if I'd planned for this to happen, after a few minutes of shutting my eyes; I began to hear a faint voice echo in the depths of my mind. I couldn't see anything, and yet the voice (the voice from my dreams) was propelling me to go faster, and to continue this unstructured dance I was performing. But this time, the voice was singing a much different aria. Instead of it singing a solemn and yet guiding tune to me, to allow me to dance on with comfort in the mist of my dreams, this time it was singing, she was singing something more upbeat, quick, lighthearted. The beat of it actually, almost matched in rhythm with my heart. And the smile I'd been wearing before, even so smaller now, still remained noticeable on my face. Dancing was such a delight for me.

The voice gradually grew louder and louder, almost a little too loud for me to concentrate on the balance and movement of my body, but soon it quieted again into more of a humming sound. It had such a gentle and lovely quality to it, and soon the song I was dancing to, sounded oddly familiar. I'd heard it before, yes, but where? As soon as my own thoughts began to stem up in my mind again, the song began to fade into the distance and I felt I was quickly losing grasp. My body followed what my heart tried so desperately to do, to hold onto the faint humming sound still present somewhat in my mind, and soon, I found a hard surface hit against the side of my face. I'd managed to lose balance, reaching forward into the air in an awkward position, and fell over. Immediately I awoke from my euphoric daydream and found a side-view of the right side of the wall with the torches still lit awaiting me. I watched the wall a few seconds more with an unamused glare. How could I have been so clumsy? Deciding I didn't want to be a "doormat" any longer, I hoisted myself up using my arms, and eventually my feet followed. I'd come back to standing and I was sure my mother was going to call for me at any moment. So, of course, I took the ballet shoes off my feet and put the other ones I was wearing back on, using the watering can to put out all the fires save one and I made my way out of the darkened dance studio. I sighed. If only those little moments of freedom and tranquility could last me more than a few minutes. If only that serenity could last me a lifetime.

I made my way up the stairs and saw that no one was waiting for me; Good, I couldn't have anyone finding out that I'd been down there. But as I walked further and away from the stairs leading down where I previously was, I found my mother waiting for me with a smile upon her face. I knew that smile. It was the "get ready, we have somewhere to be smile", and I'd wondered what it was she wanted me to get ready for. I trekked my way up the stairs to my room and prepped myself again for whatever it was we were about to do. The life of a princess, one never rests.

Meanwhile with Himeko. . . .

(Narrator Change).

I was so excited about tonight. I couldn't wait to see my new friend again. She was so beautiful, she had long locks of midnight blue hair that shone under the moon's light just right. She had pale but flawless skin, just as if she were a porcelain doll. She seemed to have the perfect body too; She was curvy, and tall with very slim legs, and not to mention she was…

"Oh stop it Himeko… you know you're not allowed to think like that. A-and besides, Chikane-chan's just a friend. Yeah, a friend." I happily smiled, and then sighed. Then I sprang up, something had just come over me.

"Oh that's right! I need to go get things ready. Oh goodness, what am I going to do with the time between now and dinner tonight? Think Himeko, think. Hm! I could buy Chikane-chan a gift. Y-yeah, that's what I'll do. I'll get her a gift. I think it would be nice to thank her for being so nice to me." I giggled and grabbed my things, setting out for town and the market ahead.

My mission was to find the perfect gift for Chikane-chan; One she would really like. But, what does she like? I had only met her yesterday night. And just as I had been looking through the selection and really concentration on what to get her, I heard a loud bellowing of my name and then a bunch of arms throw themselves at me for a hug. Once more speed and precision, and that voice; Automatically I knew who it was.

"Himekooooooooooooo!" Mako raced to me and through her arms around me in a great big hug for a greeting. I could just barely keep my balance and hug her back with a small blush upon my face.

"Hi Mako-chan. I-I don't know how you do it all the time, you're just amazing. B-But I wasn't expecting to run into you today. Didn't you say you had training to do or something?" I blinked and thought for a moment, touching one of my fingers to my lips. She just looked at me curiously, and laughed as well at my, what I presumed, empty-headedness.

"And what would I have to do today that would keep me away from hanging out with my best friend? And besides silly, if I had something to do today, I would have already taken care of it. You know how I like to do things. Fast and diligently!" She pumped her fist into the air and did a small running motion, I giggled. Mako-chan was so funny when she wanted to be.

"Mhm, so what is it we shall do today Mako?" I smiled.

"Hmmm, I don't know. I'm up for anything. Why don't I help you with whatever you were doing before I sorta um, hugged you. Ehehehe." She laughed nervously and turned her attention towards what I was looking at. Her eyes sparkled with surprise and wonder both. "Himeko~, these are beautiful. You sure do have an eye for fashion and the finer things." Mako said whilst still looking at some of the pins. Then her eye caught one I had missed, it was a small lunar barrette that was well polished and had a small diamond near its center, probably representing a star. She picked it up and placed it in my hair, fastening it. All the while, from embarrassment, I had that same pink blush in my cheeks. When she was finished, I looked downward, unaware that I was modeling it off.

"Woooowwww Himeko! You look so fancy with that barrette. It looks nice on you. Oh if only we could afford these things. But I'm afraid I don't have the money, do you?" She questioned me. Unfortunately, no, I didn't have the money to pay for such a thing, so I shook my head. But when the man had seen the sad look on our faces both, he felt a pang within him of sadness as well, and deciding to be nice, he offered:

"You know ladies, I usually sell that particular pin for a lot since it's so rare. The production of it isn't made a lot around these parts. You know, pride for the Kingdom of the Sun and all. In fact right now, that's the last of the lunar pins I have. So, I'm prepared to offered you some kind of deal. And you tell me what's best for you, young miss, okay?" He smiled and my face instantly brightened. I walked over to the merchant and took off the pin in my hair, handing it back to him gently, careful not to break it. I didn't want such a lavish thing on me anymore if I couldn't afford it. It just didn't feel right.

"Alright, what's the deal?" Mako crossed her arms and tried to seem a little tougher than she was. But, inside she was bursting with happiness.

"Well, I can hold this little trinket for you if you like. Until you have the money, or I can lower the price right now and see if you can give me a good buy." Mako nodded and turned to me, and I nodded back.

"Can we do both sir?" I asked him politely. "It's just that… I don't know how much I have on me right now, and I'm sure it isn't enough to pay for that beautiful hairpin. But, if I give you what I have now, and ask you to hold it till I can get the rest of the money to pay for it, would you?" I asked.

"Well sure. If it really means that much to you. I'll do it." The merchant confirmed with a smile. At this very moment I was so happy, I just felt like singing! Sing to the whole world my song of happiness. I was overjoyed and as Mako was prepared to whisk me away again with one of her hugs, I caught a glimpse of the hairpin shining in the light once more. Hm, a crescent moon. I hadn't realized how perfectly it fit Chikane. But now that I knew it did, I'd do anything to obtain that hairpin.

"And I'll even give you my money too, Himeko!" Mako said determinedly. We paid each in full whatever money we had on us at the moment, and the merchant totaled it out. He smiled grandly.

"Well, would you look at that. You only have a bit more to go before this piece here is yours. How about another deal? Can you bring to me a special kind of crest? I've seen a young boy walking around the city with it, wearing it as a decoration on his clothes. He looked rather regal. I've already spoken to him and he said he'd be happy to have one made for me. But, my sales are dwindling and that's just too long a wait for me! You know nobles, they never keep their word. So I was wondering if you two lovely girls would ask him for it for me. He can't say no to a couple of cute faces like yours right?" I felt pressured, and uneasy about this. And I could tell by the look on Makoto's face as well, she did too. But we couldn't say no, after all, I really did want that hairpin. And just as I was about to hang my head in defeat and accept, Makoto intervened with a question.

"What does this boy look like?" She asked suspiciously. Thank goodness Mako, for quick thinking.

"He has brown hair, just a little above his shoulders. Brown eyes, and he's a little taller than you. He wears blue suits a lot." The merchant spoke directly to Makoto and then directed his gaze at me, and then back at her. He was trying his best to describe him.

"Hmmm, do you know his name or what family he comes from?"

"No, I'm not entirely sure. But I've seen him on the market a few times looking at some things. It's weird. I thought all nobles would shop other places. This doesn't seem like the type of venue someone of that stature would shop unless it was for someone special." The merchant crossed his arms and one of his hands came up to scratch his head. He was utterly puzzled.

"Well gee, I don't know who that could be. A noble with simple interests." Makoto too took a moment to think, scratching her head as well. And that's when it hit me. My eyes widened with uneasiness and my heart began to speed up. I was so quiet about this change in me that Mako nor the merchant noticed. But, I could barely contain myself, and the happiness I was just feeling a moment ago went away. How could I do this to someone whom meant that much to me? How could I attempt to take away the thing that gave him pride? How could I ever do something like this to…

"Hey Himeko." A voice called out from behind me, a male one. And as I turned around, there he was: Souma Oogami. I could barely respond, and that's when I felt a chill run down my back.

MEANWHILE WITH CHIKANE…

(Narrator change).

Mother was at it again. She was dragging me to places I didn't wish to be. She was making me do things I didn't wish to do, and all because she claimed it was a part of the "process to receiving my voice". No mother, if you wanted me to have a voice so badly, you would have already went through with it and gotten me one without all this hassle. Those thoughts resonated from the back of my mind, and even if I had a voice I would never say them. For a few reasons; For one, they were directly insulting and disrespecting my mother, disrespecting the queen and the women who had given me life is not something I intended to happen. She might never forgive me if I badmouthed her. She wasn't the forgiving type. And for another reason, I am not the type of person to speak what is I'm thinking out loud. I just wouldn't do it. And sometimes, I wonder if this voicelessness is rendering me better off, so that way I'm not tempted to say what I'm thinking out loud. But all these thoughts swarming my mind, were nothing compared to the main thing I was focusing on ever since I woke up.

'Himeko…' I thought. That wonderful name for a wonderful girl. Perhaps, and I know I had already thought this through a thousand times, she was the reason the sun shined in our kingdom so brightly. Or perhaps even, I would say, she was the reason the sun rose in the morning sky. She was quite possibly another motive as to why my feet couldn't stay away from those dancing shoes. It's because she inspires me, she makes me feel happy where my mother doesn't. And, she makes me see that: To have a voice or not, you don't need one to express your need for friendship or to make one either. Himeko was a lovely girl. She understood me like no one else.

Well, as much as she could understand without her knowing every little thing about me. There were still secrets I kept and didn't intend to tell her yet. It'd need to be the right moment. It'd always need to be the right moment.

"Chikane, I want you to meet the man who will be performing your operation. We scheduled it to be next month." My mother spoke to me. The other doctor who was heading the procedure, the one that my mom had been meeting with daily, was there as well. He flashed a smile to me and I politely waved hello. But the other doctor stepped into my field of vision, in fact, right in front of me and offered me his hand to shake. His eyes glistened and as I gave him my hand, he bowed respectively and kissed it. A ladies man, was he?

"So this is the beautiful silent princess I've heard so much about. Well don't you worry my dear, I'm going to take excellent care of you while you are under my knife. Haha! That's a medical term for operating! I make jokes hehehe. Anyway, you shall be a joy to have under my care. I shall see to it that you are given a voice. The best voice in the entire kingdom!" He spoke with a heavy German like accent. I wasn't sure if he was a special doctor they hired to come all the way here and do this operation, or he was a resident from another kingdom, making a living here in Japan. At this point, the man was skeptical and quite creepy. And his jokes were not funny. Truthfully, I didn't feel comfortable being under anyone's supervision right now; And all I wanted to do was get out of here. I smiled sheepishly and slowly took my hand back, nodding to him, showing him I understood was he was saying. He stood back and gave me my space as he returned to his original position.

"You'll have to excuse her, she's always shy when meeting new people. But she's kind and cordial nonetheless. It's how I raised her." She brushed through my hair lightly and chuckled in that friendly way that I knew was just for show. My eyes gave a sidelong glance no one noticed; Mother, please don't touch me right now.

And as I was on my way back to the palace, after a short visit and discussion with the doctors on my voice case, I was busy checking out the sights and sounds surrounding me. I'd noticed them at night when I snuck out, and they were even more astounding in the day. Especially with the now, setting sun. The downcast sky of color, the mixture of pink and purple, orange and yellow, and of course blue just painted the perfect picture. Time sure does pass fast when you're busy thinking about things.

My mother was gabbing on about the doctors and the operation and where my father was and the negotiations; All things I really didn't care much for. All I cared for right now was that blonde haired beauty who shone like the sun herself, the dancing shoes in the secretive dance studio in the dungeons of my palace, and of course, our plans tonight. I couldn't wait to sneak out again. What would I wear? An almost instant smile was brought to my face when suddenly my mother's voice interrupted my thought processes.

"…AND honestly Chikane, are you even paying a speck of attention to any of the words I'm saying?" She turned to me, and I woke up from my small daydreams. To be honest, I wasn't, but I sighed and hung my head, slightly nodding.

"Well good, because I'm doing this for you. Not me." She went back to talking. That "song" of my mother's voice was rather annoying, and it was tiring at times to hear. It didn't have that wonderful tone to it, it didn't have musicality, it had flatness and darker tones that didn't much please my ears. It had minors that would constantly clash with each other creating dissidence. I sighed, trying to tune my mother out once more, when suddenly that song, the song of my dreams, I heard faintly coming from a little ways behind me. It seemed some girl was humming a tune, a relaxing one. I closed my eyes for a moment and felt myself relaxing too, an instant smile formed on my face, and just from the sound of the voice alone, I felt better. That voice was magical, it changed me, it relaxed me, it made me feel happy, or sad, it made me dance. And now, I was this much closer to it.

A FEW HOURS LATER…

It was now night and the moon had set in. It was glowing in the sky with a silver hue and some clouds passed in front of it, creating the mystery that the evening is ever so infamous for. Quietly, I had gotten on some nice but older and more casual clothes, placed on my grandmother's cloak and snuck down the stairs as silently as possible. And I continued, having made it down the stairs, which tonight decided to creak. It seems whenever one is trying to remain stealthy, everything that is an obstacle that is to be overcome must make noise. The unfortunate truth of that event is quite saddening.

Now, came the door.

I found myself lightly adjusting my hand to the doorknob, and turning it ever so slightly. Slowly and careful as to not be forceful with it and risking waking anyone. Success! Within a matter of minutes, I was able to open the door and close it; I honestly felt like I was becoming a shadow myself. Part of the darkness, unseen and unheard of by anyone lurking around. I even thought of nicknaming myself "The Shadow Princess". It was something to amuse me and pass the time while I wandered the streets outside.

Now came time to meet Himeko. Right. I believe we said we'd meet at the Hot Springs and go get something to eat. I'd made sure I was hungry and dirty just for her. You see, I didn't shower and I'd went outside the rest of the day to read and note the different animals present in the courtyard of the palace. I gardened and played with the critters that lived locally nearby that garden. I fed them too. Then, I came inside and washed my hands as dinner was being prepared. We had a full course meal, complete with any kind of dish you could imagine, I simply took a piece of bread and placed some butter on it, eating that. When I was asked if I wanted anything more to eat, I waved it off. I shook my head to my mother's protests claiming I simply wasn't hungry. With that, she let me go to my room and do whatever it was I wanted. I thought some more, I wrote, I daydreamed, all to pass the time away till Himeko.

I headed over to the Hot Springs. The same ones I'd been to the night before when meeting this precious person. I took my clothes off in a changing room and stored them there, grabbing a towel along the way to the waters. And that's when I saw the steaming hot bath awaiting me. It was almost calling my name, in a manner much more pleasant than my mother. I carefully slid myself into the rejuvenating springs beneath me, and allowed my body to adjusted to the heat it was now receiving. It felt wonderful on my unclean skin and hair, as well as my sore muscles from today's activities. I closed my eyes to relax a little, throwing my head back in relaxation. And I'd expected to hear that same little shy voice speak to me suddenly, but no words came out. Perhaps she was running a little late tonight, I wouldn't mind waiting.

… And soon an hour had passed and there was no sign of Himeko. The water was beginning to burn instead of heal now from remaining in it too long. And just as water does, it was making my fingers and toes as crinkly. I decided to get out of the water and use the towel to dry myself off and go get dressed. I did so, placing the towel in the "too be washed" section of a box set on the floor, fastening my clothes on me just right, and styling my hair the best I could with it still being wet. I wondered where my blonde companion from last night's meeting had gone. Was I really left alone?

I looked around the vicinity for her, and wandered around the nighttime market and other streets a couple of times. But there was no sign of Himeko, none. And I couldn't comprehend why. It seemed last night she was so thankful to have met me, and so joyous about our plans. It was something for me to look forward to. And I thought as much for her as well.

All of a sudden, I felt my heartbeat slow, and my smile break, and all of the happy tension that was sitting in the air, all of the unsettling excitement, became a burden upon my back of shame, as well as a bundle of heaviness that sat directly on my heart known as.. Disappointment.

And I walked back with it, alone.

[END OF CHAPTER 6.]