Short summary: Judal teases Kouen about hooking up with Hakuei.

Guardian Lions (6)
Matchmaking Magi

Kouen decided to follow the war council meeting with hot tea and a generous view of the palace gardens. He didn't bat an eye when a long bulbous string of black hair suddenly swung into view, followed by Judal swinging to and fro from the rafters like a monkey.

"Hey, mind if I join you?"

Kouen merely replied with a grunt. The Magi made a graceful leap and landed like a cat onto the stone pavement. With a peach at hand, he broke the afternoon peace with a loud crunch into the fruit. Kouen suppressed a twinge of annoyance.

Judal spoke up again through a mouthful of peach. "You're always starin' off, thinkin'. Whatcha thinkin' about?"

"Hardly anything that'd cross your interest or attention."

"Huh? Why d'you say that?"

"You almost never make the effort to attend the meetings. Frankly I'm impressed that my father has tolerated your laziness for this long."

Judal cringed. "Ooh, that bites. Cut me some slack, Kouen. It's not my fault your father's so damn stuffy and boring."

"Watch your tongue. My father is the emperor, and I won't have you make light of disrespecting him."

"Even if you don't exactly respect him yourself?"

Kouen had nothing to say to that jibe. He had to admit there was some truth to it. He finished his cup and reached for the kettle for a refill.

"Anyways, I have a hunch that you're not thinking about the last meeting," Judal went on. "You've got your mind on something outside the palace. Or should I say someone?"

Kouen said nothing and didn't meet Judal's eyes. He kept his gaze fixed at the cherry blossom trees, following the gentle spiraling dance of countless petals stirred by the breeze.

A sly grin spread ear-to-ear across Judal's face. "I think I'm onto something. Hakuei hasn't returned from her western campaign in half a year now. As soon as she gets back, you two should just have at it and make babies."

Kouen nearly spat out his tea. He shut his eyes, took the time to recollect himself with a long draught of tea. Then, doing his best to rein in his temper, he replied curtly, "I will do nothing of the sort. I'm far from amused at your suggestion to sully my cousin before she's wed."

Judal burst out laughing at Kouen's scowl. "Oh come on, can't take a joke? You're no fun, unlike Kouha."

Kouen lost his glower and reverted to indifferent coolness, though his voice remained thorny. "If memory and knowledge serve me correctly, Magi choose kings, not brides."

"Then don't take my word as a Magi. Take it as a friend."

Kouen interpreted "friend" in the loosest sense of the term. He and the black-haired Magi weren't close, certainly not close as he was with his brothers. Still, the thought of marrying Hakuei in the future wasn't one he was so quick to dismiss.

Judal seemed to read the prince's mind. "Think about it, Kouen. You and Hakuei, ruling side by side as emperor and empress..." The Magi made his point with a broad sweep of his arm. "The Kou Empire will be invincible, all-powerful, unstoppable." Judal swallowed the last bite of peach and shrugged. "But hey, even the greatest of kings don't live forever. When it comes time for you to bite the dust, at least your heirs with Hakuei can keep running the world. Wouldn't that be something?"

Kouen dared himself to picture it for a moment. Hakuei...she was a woman he could love and trust for the rest of his life. She could rule the empire with kindness and mercy that'd complement his strength and ambition, She would be the best possible mother for his children, his heirs who would grow up to inherit the empire, if not the world. Considering every aspect of the future, she stood out as the best choice for him and the empire.

"I'm not pretending to point out some deep insight or whatever," Judal remarked. "Any idiot can see from a mile away that you care for Hakuei, and she cares for you. Like I said earlier, you two should make plans soon. War's around the corner, and who knows what'll happen? It wouldn't hurt to start thinking about giving the empire an heir and a spare."

Kouen drank the last of his tea before it got cold. He blamed Judal for stoking the flames of his passion, his innermost desire to take his relationship with Hakuei further. He supposed it was high time for him to take a wife. Of course, as powerful and high in rank the prince was, he needed consent from her end in order to form a matrimonial union. He held Hakuei in the highest regard and valued her opinion, whatever it may be. However, if Judal's guess served him right, Kouen knew how she'd answer.

The sudden yearning for her to return home from Tenzan Plateau swept him up like high tide. Kouen cast his eyes to the palace walls; the most he could do for now was pray for her swift and safe return, whenever that may be.

The black-haired Magi sensed his victory. Against Kouen Ren, the most powerful man in Kou, it was no small feat.

"I'll consider what you've said," Kouen finally said. "Marrying Hakuei sounds viable."

Judal didn't hide his grin as he straightened his back and flexed his arms. "Ah, well...just doing my job and thinking about the good of the empire, you know? Consider this my late contribution to the meeting. See ya around." Judal disappeared out of sight over the rooftop, no doubt out to nab more peaches and satiate his boredom with antics of mischief. He twirled the wand in his hand, a smirk playing on his lips.

"I should take up a part-time job as a matchmaker," he said to himself. "I heard they make real good money from hooking up people."