Chapter 6

A Reluctant Alliance

"Absolutely not!" Hayate yelled defiantly.

They had moved their conversation to the Awayuki Estate. They gathered near the massive chimes where Himeno first met her Leafe' Knights. They were still talking about her helping the newcomers.

Hayate heard them say that they wanted Himeno to become their Pretear. That was out of the question. It wasn't even an option. The other knights agreed with him whole heartedly. They were not about to give up their Pretear after just getting her back. They wouldn't ever let her out of their sight again.

Himeno's hand returned to her hips. "Hayate, there is no reason we can't help them."

"Helping them is one thing. You are not becoming their Pretear. You are our Pretear." He emphasized.

Daisuke walked up to him and got into his personal space. They were practically nose to nose. "I was under the impression that you were done with her. Your Princess of Disaster was defeated. You no longer require a Pretear."

"Our bond with Himeno is more than just Leafe' Knight and Pretear, Daisuke." Sasame interrupted, "We are friends…family. She will always and forever be our Pretear. As long as she is willing, we will be here for her."

"As touching as that is, it's unreasonable."

"It's not that unreasonable. You told us that you needed her help to save your Pretear who is now the Princess of Disaster, correct?" Kei asked, crossing his arms, "I would assume then that you wish to keep the Pretear you so obviously care for. Why is our love for Himeno any different?"

"You're right, Kei. Daisuke is just angry. He is worried about Hikaru. She has been a Princess of Disaster for almost a week now." Ryu tried explaining without getting any backlash from their leader.

"That is beside the point. Once we do save her, Hikaru's powers will be no more. She won't be able to be our Pretear anymore. Himeno is the next best candidate." Daisuke said. "Stop making excuses for me, Ryu. They wouldn't understand. They never lost something close to them before."

"What do you know?" Himeno cried.

She marched angrily up to Daisuke and slapped him. He stared at her, stunned. Tears were welled up in her eyes. They all looked at her, surprised by her outburst. She couldn't take the fighting anymore.

"Himeno…" Sasame started, and then thought better of it. Only she could make them understand it seemed.

"You don't know anything about them! They had a wonderful Pretear before me. Her name is Takako. They lost her when she became the Princess of Disaster. They suffered so much and went through so much pain. They dealt with so much that they didn't deserve. They know more about pain and fear and sadness than any of you could possibly know! How dare you belittle them like that!"

She turned and hugged the closest body to her, Kei. He wrapped his arms around her protectively. Hayate watched her as her heart broke for them and growled. Goh spoke before he had the chance to.

"We lost Himeno the same day we got Takako back. She doesn't really remember, but we will never forget it. She used the last of her powers as the Legendary White Pretear and saved us all, including turning Takako back to normal. She died as a result of using all her leafe'."

"Are you serious?" Akira asked.

"Yes. It was a miracle that we got her back at all." Sasame added, "We only just got her back. She only woke up a week ago, and now your trying to take her from us. You must understand why we are against this."

They were all very quiet. Himeno dried her tears and turned to look at them.

"I have no problem helping you. But these are my Leafe' Knights. I will fight with you. I will aide you in any way that I can, but this is where I belong." Himeno said confidently, standing among her friends.

"We will help you if that is what Himeno really wants. But we won't let you take her. She is our Pretear. She always will be." Goh reiterated.

The other knights nodded, and finally agreed. Daisuke had no choice but to cave.

"Very well. Thank you." Daisuke bowed to her.

"Well, now that that's all settled….we should get to know one another. I am hungry. We should go eat. I'm sure Mom and Dad won't mind adding a few plates to the table." She smiled.

Her knights shook their heads and laughed when her stomach growled.

"I swear, Himeno. You are like a bottomless pit. You had all that junk food at the festival. How can you still be hungry?" Mannen asked, grinning.

"Look who's talking, you little monster." She said, giving him a noogy

"Come on, let's eat." She smiled and started for the house.

Her knights walked with her and the others took up the rear, watching them. Some watched with amusement, others with indifference. Things were about to get interesting. They all had a lot to learn and an evil was getting closer and closer.

Next Day:

They all met in the same place as the previous night. The chimes would be the place to meet from now on until the newest threat was defeated. The new knights were already waiting for them. Himeno and her knights approached them.

Hayate held the team back as Himeno greeted their guests with a smile.

"Hey guys. How are you today?"

"Good morning, Miss Himeno. You are looking quite lovely today. Give us a hug." Tsukeida said, pulling her into a tight squeeze.

He didn't miss Hayate's reaction to that. He saw his fists clench and his teeth were bared. He simply smiled and let go of her when she pushed him away. She was blushing. That seemed to aggravate the wind knight even more.

"We should start training. Pret with me, Himeno." Daisuke said without so much as a hello.

"Sorry, Daisuke. Today is a training day for us. I'll train with you tomorrow. You're more than welcome to be our opponents, though. We'll switch tomorrow. Sound good?"

"No. You are already well trained with your knights. You need to get used to following our moves and listening to us."

"Wrong. Perhaps that is why you have such trouble." Sasame said, coming forward.

"What's that supposed to mean. We have never had trouble fighting with our Pretear." Daisuke shot back at him.

Sasame took Himeno by the wrist and pulled her away from the death knight. "You are to listen to your Pretear. You are to work together with a Pretear. If you are good, you move as one. She will learn to trust you and your instincts and you her. The idea is to trust each other. You leading will only get her into danger. You are there to protect her and work with her, not the other way around."

"Sasame is right. Your way will get Himeno hurt." Kei agreed.

"Look, you have your way of fighting, we have ours." Daisuke said.

"Daisuke…perhaps there is something to be learned from them. Let us watch how they interact with the Pretear today and then try out what we learn tomorrow." Kazuki suggested.

"I agree. I was never one for your rash methods, Daisuke. You are too quick to attack and don't use your head. Let's see how their ways differ from ours." Tatsumi said. His only concern was to keep the arguing to a minimum.

Daisuke looked at Himeno. She was smiling. She was enjoying herself. This was very amusing to her, he thought.

"I don't like to be laughed at."

"I'm not laughing at you. I'm just reminded of when I first met them. I had the same sort of thoughts, until they taught me the proper ways to do things."

"Fine. Let's see what you got." He said.