Tale's of A World Traveling Witch
A/N: Hello! I am feeling a bit better today! So I decided to start a new chapter of this story. As I have stated in my last chapter Wisteria is a queen of a small Kingdom but right now nothing but half built buildings and a town of tent's exist on the islands that she owns. She will be going there after this to truly set it up and then on to Balbadd when the first ark of the Balbadd cannon starts. So this is the first true meeting of Sinbad and Wisteria. I hope you like it! Now on to the questions.
To TheMarphasChappers: Thank you and I am feeling better! Now it is just my sinuses messing up! *Thumps head on desk* yep, spring is coming along with my usual allergies. Moving on, yes that is how her Kingdom will probably be set up. The main export will probably be Silk and Rice. The attractions will be the festivals and such. And more like the Meiji era with more complex karts and indoor plumbing becoming big.
To She Who Walks With Death: *snickers* yes, that was what I was aiming for. Shikoen will be paying for that statement later believe me. Mikan right now is cute, fluffy and can bash your face in with one kick. Which was exactly how I wanted him to be perceived. Sinbad will figure that out sooner or later.
To Harlequin320, LunaSunFlowerLily and SoulMore: Thank you for reviewing!
Ps, The Poll is still up! please vote before chapter twenty! Sinbad is in the lead with 23 votes followed closely by Kouen with 18 so if you don't like that please go vote! Now on to the story!
Chapter Twelve: Oh Solomon There Are Two Of Them!
"... The things that are up for trade are Silk's, Rice and Eel. The first to have pick are of course Reim as they were the Kingdome who granted me the land." Wisteria said pointing to some documents that lay between the two rulers as they sat in a spacious study with a large window open to the garden. Sinbad nodded and looked down at the trade agreement that they were trying to arrange. Wisteria and her companions had been in residence of the Sindria Palace for almost a week now and the two had been working on a mutual agreement of trade for the last three days after the Queen had gotten several letters off to Reim and received some news back. Apparently they had taken some of Wisteria's sketches of a half remembered palace in Japan and decided to make that her residence on the main Island. The imagery matched almost exactly with the island's mountainous region. The woman had sent back a large sum of gold to make the Silk factories and main city by the palace. Along with a plan for the city as well. So right now was a great time to start making connections with other Kingdoms.
"Well Silk is always in high demand hear. Most of the clothing is made out of either silk or cotton." The King said as he shifted through his papers occasionally glancing up at the woman who sat opposite him. His gold eyes would trail down her body occasionally, appreciating the clothing that she had donned due to the hot and humid weather. Today her long hair was in a large braid that has half pinned up behind her head in a bun and she wore only lipgloss as makeup. Simple but she really did not need that much anyway. The queens clothing consisted of a light airy sleeveless white dress that ended at her knees and tyed behind her neck. Over that she donned a shimmering sheer blue shawl that covered her lower arms and was pinned just under her bust. Sinbad smirked as the woman caught his stare and raised a brow. She smirked back and gave him the same look making him laugh. 'Really though, It should be illegal to be that good looking. The bad thing is that he knows and he uses it to his advantage. Er…. not that I don't either.' Wisteria thought sweatdroping when she remembered the flirting she did with Yunan to toss him off balance occasionally.
"Well Reim want's to have the first pick harvest of the year both in rice and silk so I can give you first pick of the second season and the second pick of the first season in silk. Is that good for you?" Wisteria asked consulting her small leather bound book that she had been writing the agreements that she had to Reim in. The purple haired King glanced down and nodded when he looked at his own papers.
"Yes, that seems fair given what you're charging for the undyed silk. It would be about what two gold per yard?" Sinbad asked writing some figures on a page. The woman nodded.
"Yes, for any regular dyed ones it would be three gold and for the specially dyed ones it would be five. As Kou is the only other exporter of Silk and they charge out the nose for it I can lower the prices and still make quite the profit for my workers." Wisteria said wrinkling her nose at the mention of Kou. She had been hearing some rather bad things about the place ever since she had started her journey about a year and a half ago. Because her new Kingdom was allied with Reim Wisteria was not to worried about retaliation for her trade but she was conscious about their apparently close friends the Al Thamen. Sinbad huffed and gave a small nod.
"Kou is rather full of themselfs. They used to be a small Kingdom but the previous emperor started expanding and the new one continues on. I have been hearing some worrying rumors about the whole royal family as well." He sighed and put his chin on top of his right palm and looked out the window. "Now I have been having some trouble with Balbadd and the rumors have stated that Kou might well just have something to do with that as well." Wisteria gave the King a questioning look and then glanced down at the bangle on her wrist.
"When I got Eon he told me that I should be careful of one called Kouen do you know why?" The queen asked remembering the odd conversation she had with the young looking Djinn as they had picked up the treasure in his dungeon.
"If you run into a dungeon conqueror named Kouen you should just run, the man is obsessed with learning and he would do anything to get to you if he thought you had some kind of knowledge that he didn't. He would even go so far as to team up with that organization." Eon had said before they had left the dungeon. Wisteria wanted to see if the King would know more about the man.
"Kouen, huh?" Sinbad said narrowing his eyes and giving her a stern look. "Kouen is the crown prince of Kou. If a djinn is giving you a warning about him than something is definitely up with that country. I have only heard rumors that he is an excellent general and that he is a man driven by the instinct to gather all knowledge that he can get his hands on. The older the better." His eyes lost some of their intensity and then he sighed and looked back outside taking note of the sun's position. "Hey," he said eyes flickering over to Wisteria as she stretched her legs and curled them around her chair leg. He swallowed minutely as she glanced up. "Are you hungry?" Sinbad asked pushing his chair out and standing when she gave a small nod. He gave the little queen a smile and offered his hand. "I know somewhere that serves amazing chicken." Wisteria smiled and took his hand.
"Chicken sounds wonderful."
~~~~~ Small Upclass Restaurant By The Palace ~~~~~
Wisteria glanced around the private room that they had been led to by a flushed and proud owner when they had arrived. It was a pretty place that held a table on a glassed in balcony. The glass was stained a light blue that gave the room a soft look and was easy on the eyes. The only wall was solid stone and painted a deep sea green.
"Pretty view." The small woman stated smiling as she caught sight of the sea and the market place. Sinbad smiled at her and glanced out of the window and then back.
"Yes, one would say that it was a most beautiful view." He murmured in a husky tone making her look back at him and shake her head. Wisteria lowered her eyes to half mast and gave him a sultry smile.
"I wonder just how many women fall for that." She said in a seductive tone and he choked on his spit and started laughing. He calmed after a moment and looked back at the woman who was giving him a genuine smile and laughing softly as well. He gave her a soft smile in return.
"Quite a few, actually. You know how to play the game though huh?" Sinbad said as he poured a glass of wine from a flagen that the owner had left when he had taken their order. Wisteria's smile changed to a grim one as she took the glass when he handed it to her.
"I had to." She said after she had taken a sip of the sweet berry wine. "Before I arrived here I was quite the er…. Celebrity I suppose you would say." Wisteria grimaced as she remembered the letters she had received after the war. "And from old blood to boot, the last of it. So not only was I famous but also rich. I had to know how to play the game or else I would be tied down to some one that only wanted me for that. I don't fall for…. Eh… 'pretty words and handsome faces' as a friend would put it." Wisteria said as she looked down into her wine with a sad expression. Sinbad frowned and sipped from his own glass waiting for her to go on. She did so. "I didn't have the best family growing up. My parents died before I ever really knew them and my relatives treated me like I did not exist most of the time. It was only when I was a pre teen that I found out that I was a noble and that it came with responsibilities. First, with me being the last of my house I would have to marry eather lower than myself which I had no problem with or have at least two male children to carry both my husbands name and then my own. Second, there were rules I had to follow that quite frankly I knew shit all about." Wisteria took a longer sip of wine and then sighed looking back at the man who stared back with opaque eyes. "And finally the third thing, I would always be a target. Eather to fortune hunters or to men wanting to say that they slept with the most well know woman in the country. I hated it. So I learned by trial and error how to make them get turned around and fail to seduce anyone let alone me." She put her chin on her palm and glanced out over the ocean, her mouth twitching into a sardonic smile. "I became what I hated in the end I suppose. One who would use every available tool to win. Even if it was for a good reason…. *snort* greater good my arse." the woman mumbled that last part looking mildly disgusted in herself.
"It's going to be the same in your own Kingdom to you know?" Sinbad asked in a soft voice that held understanding. He to knew what it was like to become something that you didn't like. Wisteria nodded and looked back at him flushing slightly when she caught sight of his liquid gold eyes that reflected respect and a knowing glint.
"Yes," she sighed out and stopped as the door opened and three waiters came in and delivered the steaming plates of food. They both thanked the two women and the sole male and waited until the tree left to take a bite. Wisteria hummed as she chewed and swallowed admitting to herself that it was a good grilled chicken. "I know that I will have to have a child and heir eventually but…" She traild off and then smiled brightly. "The men are so much more good looking hear!" Sinbad choked and then started to chuckle when he caught sight of the mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Well thank you for the compliment!" He gave the small woman a wink and then tossed a bite of potato into his mouth. She giggled and started eating herself.
"But really the men hear are so much more… well more altogether than they were where I came from. Most actually work for their goals and don't mind the hard work! I think…" She paused and then smiled softly. " I think I can find someone hear that I will come to love dearly and have a family with. That's all I ever really wanted in the first place anyway. A family."
Gold eyes darkened with desire as the small woman pushed back an errant strand of her blue black bangs and her green eyes caught the afternoon light. She was a truly magnificent woman, one who knew the world and would give anything to the one she would come to love. The little queen sitting opposite of him would give up her wealth and any type of title that she had if in exchange she would get a simple family, nothing extravagant that much he could see clearly. A normal plain man that would love her and give her children. 'Truly,' Sinbad thought as he watched Wisteria eat with obvious pleasure. 'It makes me all the more attracted to her. She is so complex in most things yet… she yearns for only a simple dream of a family. There is the matter of…' he glanced at her jewelry that caught in the sunlight. 'The Djinn's that she wields. Three of them, and from what I gathered Yunan is planning on sending her into more dungeons to. He would not pick someone so like me that would want power after everything that happened. He chose her because she would give it up in a heartbeat to save someone. The fact that she can keep up with my line of thinking and even surpass me….' Sinbad lowed his head and watched Wisteria with burning gold eyes something new sparkling in their depths. Possessiveness. 'I want her and not just as a one off, no. I want to be the one she focuses that ferocity of love on. Huh… guess that Hinahoho was right, I just needed to find the right women.' He smirked to himself and then lifted his head and gave Wisteria a soft smile when she glanced up at him making her tilt her head on lift a brow.
"Ah, I think I get what you're saying. You must like children then to right?" The King asked as the woman was taking a sip of her drink. She choked slightly and then slammed her glass down and looked at him with large startled eyes.
"Ummm, Y-Yes… I suppose." Wisteria gave a nervous laugh and scratched her cheek with her index finger. "I've only been around one child though and he was only a baby…. Uh, I only watched him on the weekends though when his grandmother would go visit with her daughter who was in a coma. He was an easy baby to deal with and didn't wake me up much at night though so i'm not to sure if I would have problems with kids. I have a high pain threshold to so having them wouldn't be a problem. Hmmm…." She was mumbling to herself at the end and the man gave her a startled look when she mentioned that she had a high pain threshold. His metallic eyes glazed when his mind promptly went into the gutter.
"W-Well," Sinbad cleared his throat and then looked the table over seeing that both of these plaits were empty. Firmly shoving his thoughts over to the agenda for the day he stood and looked over at Wisteria who was still in deep thought. The purple haired man then got an idea and carefully made his way over to the thinking queen. He stood behind her and casually draped himself over the back of her chair. The King then leaned his head down beside hers and pointed out the window to marketplace catching her attention. She gave him a questioning look and then cast her gaze out to where he was pointing. "Since we are both done eating how about I show you around the market and you can ask some questions about the Silk from Kou directly from the people who buy them. Let me tell you the merchants are not to happy about the prices they have to pay. The guild will be happy to hear about your offer. Ja'far was quite impressed when I told him yesterday so the deal will probably be sealed when he gets some time to look at the full thing." He breathed that into her ear as the little queen followed where he was pointing and saw the rows of the merchant district. She swallowed dryly and glanced back up at him with darkening green eyes that did little to hide the fact that she was attracted but the defiance in them spoke of her not giving in to him so easily. He smirked at Wisteria as she gave him a dry look.
"Sure, that would be wonderful. I do need to start setting up trade routes and the merchants will need to know first. The Silk will start to be produced soon and the palace is almost finished…. Hmmm…. Half a year and everything will be set up. Gotta love having the fanalis corps on your side." Wisteria said with a bemused expression as she stared up at the King who was crowding her. The woman's green eyes widened when she tried to stand only to bump into the man who hadn't moved. She almost fell back into the chair until a muscled arm slid around her ribcage and held her up, a large long fingered hand almost burning her with its heat wrapped around her opposite shoulder. Wisteria let out a whoosh of air as she was tugged against a firm body. A deep chuckle that vibrated from the man's chest made her look up from her shock. Gold eyes sparkled with slightly dark humor watched her from under shapely brows.
"Hmm… perhaps I should show you how a true man should treat a woman of your standing." His free hand caught her right one and he kissed her palm lightly. He gently let her go and made sure she was steady before he stepped back. Sinbad was still looking at her with those almost amber eyes as he offered his arm and she took it.
'What was that american saying again? Oh right, Huston we have a problem.' Wisteria thought as she was guided out of the building by the tall man.
She truly did not know the half of it. After all Sinbad of The Seven Sea's was not one to give up on something once he desired it and unfortunately for her she was just bumped up to number one on his list.
~~~ Omake ~~~
~ Mikan Finds Out Sinbad Overstepped The Line. ~
Sinbad was having an excellent day. He had just come back from signing the first trade agreement with Wisteria's Kingdom which she had decided to name Sorako and on top of that he had final felt the fine woman's body against his own. Now if only they had not been wearing clothing…. He pouted to himself and then perked up when he remembered that she was still staying for another week to work with the merchant guild. Plenty of time to see if he could entice her into a swim or something…. A perverted smile appeared on his face.
The Idiot King was so into his daydream that he missed the rather heavy killing intent leaking from a small boy down the hall. Mikan had just come from his Onee-chan's room and rather put out that the pretty woman had been in a flushed and worried state when he had come in for his daily lessons on reading and writing. The young fanalis had finally caught onto the fact that his beloved savior was upset at something the King did. So after he had been shooed out of the room by an almost belligerent Shikoen he had searched out the womanizing King and found him gazing into space with a big grin leaking some perverted giggles every now and then. Mikan puffed out his right cheek and pouted. The King was sooo going to get it! He had warned him to stay away from his Onee-chan!
Sinbad was startled out of his dream like state when the ground shook and he looked around franticly to see if perhaps some catastrophe was happening. He should have looked further down. A small growl was all the warning he had. The man glanced behind him to see the small devil of a child glaring at him furiously with his hands clasped together and his index fingers out.
"I told you to stay away from Onee-chan! Take this! One Thousand years of Death!" Was Hissed out and then the King was flying….. Out of the conveniently placed window.
~~~~~ Practice Yard ~~~~~
A loud scream of pain was heard causing the two who were sparring to look up and see a certain purple haired man flying through the air and over another wall followed by a rumble of braking stone and a crash.
"Huh… was that Sinbad?" Sharrkan asked as he propped his sword up on his shoulder. Masrur his sparring partner glanced back at the silver haired man and then up at the window the king had flown from seeing the small fanalis child Mikan glaring at where the king landed.
"Ah." The tall fanalis man nodded and then paused and snorted in amusement as feminine screeching was heard followed by their King screaming. Sharrkan blinked in shock as he listened.
"AHHHHH! NO! NOT THE FACE! NOT THE FACE! AHHHH! YES, THE FACE! YES, THE FACE!"
"D-Did He just land in the woman's bathing area?!" Sharrkan asked before bursting out laughing when Masrur just nodded. "*Snort* Sh-Should we go help him?" He asked gasping for air as he tried to get a hold of himself. It didn't work.
"No." Masrur ansured and then pointed up, to Mikan still in the window. "Divine Punishment for impure thoughts." Sharrkan finally completely lost it and fell to the ground laughing his ass off. There King, bested by a annoyed child! That was too much!
And so Sinbad learned to never underestimate the power of an adoring younger brother and Sharrkan learned that hanging around Mikan gave you the best blackmail. Masrur just wanted to know who taught the kid such a devastating move. His respect of the small Queen was upped when he found out she was the one who taught it to the kid.
A/N: And That's that! Man this Thing is almost eight pages long! Now hear is the where Sinbad gets his interest in Wisteria. He is used to women who just want to be swept off their feet and taken away by a handsome young lord. This woman though only wants to be loved. It wouldn't matter to her if the man who truly loved her was a poor man that was not so good looking she would just love him anyways. He is also impressed with the fact that for all that she is naturally inclined to gain power Wisteria does not really care for it and would happily give it away if she needed to. She can also keep up with him and that really does it for him. He has started to have a real interest in her and wants to keep her and not just as an ally but as his period. He has also in a roundabout way come to think that children from her would not be so bad. No this is not the final pairing but this was always planned out. He is leading in the poll however. I hope you liked the extra! Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it! Please favorite and review!
