It was a beautiful night, filled with stars, the chirps of the crickets, and the scent of nocturnal flowers. It was a chilly night, and the Princess's breath was visible as small puffs of mist every time she exhaled. Her clothing was enough to keep her warm, considering she wore a Popo Coat before going out. The thick hide of the animal insulated enough warmth to last the whole night.
As she moved through her village, she would admire the sleeping faces of her people all cuddled up by a fire, a Popo coat of their own wrapped around them and a loved one, or maybe three. Despite it being somewhat close to winter, there were still fireflies around the area. Perhaps it wasn't too cold for them to migrate. Their beautiful lights were enough to make the Princess want to sit down and watch them all night, but she wasn't outside because of that.
As the Princess walked up the hill which lead to the arena, she would hear thuds and grunts, and wood hitting against wood in a crisp snap. Someone was in there. She hurried along the path to see who it was who bothered getting up in the middle of a chilly night to practice in the arena. The bright moonlight illuminated the hilltop, and there, the figure of a young man wielding a wooden Long Sword practicing on a wooden dummy, whom she could only presume as Azen.
She was going to approach the arena when Azen made sudden moves and she heard two loud snaps as he moved. She wasn't really paying attention, but Azen just struck the dummy twice in what seemed to be a graceful sword combo. The Princess quickly hid behind a nearby tree and peeked her head out to watch Azen. The two consecutive snaps as his long sword struck the dummy rang through the Princess's ears. She smiled warmly. It had been two weeks since their first spar in the very arena that Azen was in, and he's already found a way to strike the enemy twice with little to no delay. To top it off, it was extremely basic. Azen came up with an advanced process through the fundamental steps of attacking with the long sword, all in two weeks' time. The Princess would be lying if she said she was not impressed at all.
The moon gave ample light to Azen as he was training, and his sweat gave a slight glimmer every time he swung his weapon. The moonlight was enough to show Azen's facial expression to the Princess as he struck the dummy. She found her mouth agape, completely shocked as to what she's seeing. He swung his weapon true and hard, the sounds of the wooden practice items confirmed that, but never had she seen anyone strike with such force and form while crying. Azen would perform a few sword dances that the Princess and Misaka taught him with perfect form and a truculent force behind each strike, as if his battle prowess was water crashing down on the rocks at the bottom of a waterfall. However, his tears were the same. The Princess felt sadness, loneliness, and nostalgia just from Azen's performance.
Every time Azen took a break, the Princess took note of how he would sit down on the ground and stare at the moon, then he would sing a song softly in a language foreign to the Princess. At that instant, the Princess felt rather flushed. She had forgotten how Azen had come from another place. He mingled with the people and followed their ways, even spoke their language perfectly that you would mistake him as a native to these lands. Obviously, it didn't look like things will change any time soon. Azen's heart was a wandering heart, wandering near and far, high and low, just to get home.
The Princess has had more than enough proof that Azen was a trustworthy man, and adept learner, and a proficient fighter. She emerged from behind the tree she hid from, and approached the Arena. Azen was oblivious to this, but the Princess continued to walk through, and eventually she sat down next to Azen. She quickly noticed that he was abnormally warm. It was as if she just approached a rather lively ember. When she reached out to check if he had a fever, Azen quickly blinked and looked at the Princess.
"Oh. I didn't know you were there," Azen said, a slight tone of fatigue in his voice.
"Don't worry, I won't be here for long."
"No, no. I was just surprised."
"I see. Well, I still won't be here for long."
"Err... I just... want to kinda..."
"Spit it out."
"I want you to stay for a bit," Azen said, rather hesitant as he spoke.
"I see," the Princess replied. She stared up into the moon with Azen. There was a long pause, until the Princess spoke again. "I see that you've been practicing hard," she said.
"Yup. I have always been practicing every night, but please don't tell Misaka that. She gets really angry when I don't get enough sleep."
"Your secret's safe with me," replied the Princess, smiling faintly. She wanted to ask why he was crying as he practiced, but it may be a bit intrusive.
"I want to know your name, Princess," Azen requested. "I wish to call you something other than 'Princess'."
The Princess gave Azen a cold stare, as if to reject him, but her frown turned into a warm, welcoming smile. "Sayako."
Azen would repeat her name and then smile. Afterwards, he would tell her stories about his adventures and how he got his armor. Then it would veer off into the events at New Starfall and how he fought multiple monsters in the monster-infested town, then to the battle with the Tigrex, and his stories of living in Pokke Village. As he would explain to her to beauty of the mountain village, he would smile and pretend he was a plant, who's leaves would waft as the breeze blew past them. Azen told Sayako the stories of when snow accumulates at his door that he has to get out of the house through a window and shovel away the snow at the door to open it. All these things that Azen took for granted, he told them to Sayako. She felt as if Azen had warmed up to her, despite showing him a cold and rather strict demeanor most of the time.
Sayako would stare up in the sky once more when Azen had finished telling stories, and soon she felt something land on her lap. She looked down to find Azen's head, using her lap as a pillow. She was surprised once again by his odd behavior, like how he can sleep immediately and involuntarily, moments after telling a rather exciting story. However, Sayako was rather kind to him recently. She only realized it now, but Azen was conflicted. Physically, he was a young man. A skilled young man. But in his heart, he is still a child. The way he acts around Misaka reveals this fact, and the way he trains and learns and performs combat-related activities proved his skill.
At first, she was hesitant. No one but Misaka saw her maternal side, but she figured that it was fine since everyone was asleep. She carefully ran her fingers through Azen's hair, petting him as he slept. She also positioned her Popo coat to cover Azen as well, making a "tent" over them. The opening was large enough to let the moonlight through and illuminate Azen's face. Sayako would pass her hand through his features - his eyes, his lips, his cheeks - and smile softly. She also felt pity at the same time. Someone like Azen must have been forced to mature quickly to be able to handle tasks that he never got the chance to learn how to do, face questions that his family should have answered for him, or accept challenges that he had no knowledge of the strain it would do to him. Both physically and mentally. However, from Azen's storytelling, Sayako could tell that all he ever wanted was to go home.
Sayako had always wanted to have a son, but she was picky. She wanted a son who would be around the same age as Azen by the time she was at her age now, but that would mean she would have to have had him when she was but a child. She also had a hard time looking for a partner as she was the princess of her village/clan, and the males were pressured into leaving her alone. Through this ordeal, she found Misaka, who showed her love and affection while disregarding gender and titles. They still share the same love right now.
For now, at that very moment, Sayako felt like a mother. Azen was her son, but that all changes the moment they leave from their spots. Sayako wanted to keep this feeling for a bit longer, so she decided to stay there until Azen awoke.
"Are you ready, pet?" Misaka said joyfully, her hands covering Azen's eyes.
"I'm ready," Azen said.
"Tada!" Misaka released Azen's eyes and Azen saw a complete Ioprey Set laid out on his bed. "I made this for you~."
"Really? Thank you!" Azen gave Misaka a hug before starting to wear the armor. Misaka helped him out.
Moments later, Azen was fully dressed in the Ioprey Set, and he shifted his weight from leg to leg, trying to get used to the weight of the armor. Misaka punched his chest and grinned, then handed Azen his Bone Katana 'Dragon'. He wore the long sword, then nodded to Misaka. Outside, the Princess was waiting. There seems to be a gathering around as well, like some sort of ceremony was about to happen. Misaka went out first, and whispered to the Princess's ear, then the Princess nodded to her. Misaka returned inside Azen's lodge.
"Alright, I want you on your proper behavior, pet! This is a big day, and the moment we step out there, I want you to be silent until you are told to speak, understood?"
"Understood," Azen replied. Suddenly, a big gust came from Azen's window and somewhat fused with Azen. He quickly got reminded of his native tongue, then he blinked, but it seems that Misaka did not notice the gust.
"May the initiate come forth!" Sayako yelled.
"That's our signal," Misaka said, as she exited with Azen. He was rather surprised to see that all of the villagers were attending this ceremony. Actually, he didn't even know this ceremony was taking place today.
"You have stayed with us for nearly three moons as of this day, parkan. Today, I grant you the title of shakrun," Sayako said, and lightly touched Azen's head. The villagers were in awe as some gasp and some whispered comments to those beside them. "What have you to say, shakrun?"
"Te'los agrakin," Azen said. At that, the crowd cheered and praised Azen. A celebration took place for nearly a three hours as they sang, danced and ate to Azen's newfound title.
Azen told Sayako and Misaka about the situation of his people. He told them about the exile, and how Ian has been reported to be the one responsible for this mess. Sayako immediately told them to prepare for a journey, as the next day, they will start the voyage back into the Known Territory.
"Ah, you still look as beautiful as ever," Ian said as he wrapped his arms around Mikan. Her belly seemed to have grown a tad bigger.
"You think the baby will be fine?" Mikan asked.
"If there's ever anything that I can do for you or our child, I'll do it." Ian stated, carefully caressing Mikan's belly.
Mikan smiled, then looked out the window. Perhaps this baby would bring the good out of Ian.
Translations:
Parkan - stranger/foreigner
Shakrun - warrior
Te'los agrakin - Thank you
