November 17, Fall, year 36
Protective is one thing, over-protective is another. Someone's going to get smacked if they don't knock it off…
Dang it, I thought we were over this… Errrgh…
Claire sat on one side of the room, Skye stood on the other. The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife.
The argument was a simple one. He didn't want her over-exerting herself, and she felt fine enough to wander around. Maybe sometime in the near future, once her stomach bulged out more than an inch or two beyond normal, she would feel bad enough to stay sitting for a while.
"We've had this argument before," iron control laced Claire's words, but the anger simmered underneath. "I know my own limits. You're being both paranoid and ridiculous."
"R-ridiculous?!" Skye spluttered. "Claire, while you may have made friends, you've also made a great deal of enemies in this place! I'm not going to risk having one of them find out that you're carrying children. Who knows what they might come up with!"
The blonde pressed a hand to her forehead, trying to ease the tension of a frustration headache. While he had a good point he seemed to be forgetting several fundamental details.
"One," her voice was tight with anger. "I don't go anywhere alone. In case you hadn't noticed, I tend to have either Hikari, Ten-chan, or one of your siblings following in my footsteps. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to want to be alone and no one will allow it? Two!" and she cut him off before he could speak, "I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself! How many years have I been working on the farm?"
The question was rhetorical, and Skye found himself once again on the losing end of the battle. Since this argument had been repeating itself at least once a day over the past week since Hoshiko's birthday, it was understandable that he would start losing.
The door to the children's room was open slightly, and four pairs of eyes watched the argument. This was likely to be make-or-break day, the fighting would end with one of them as the winner.
But which one?
"Chores for a week it's Mom," Lauren whispered. "The only time she concedes an argument is when she runs out of reason to fight."
"No way," Jamie hissed back. "Dad's got to win this one, he's trying to protect her."
Silence stretched five, ten minutes. Neither Claire nor Skye was budging. In fact, what broke the tension with a snap wasn't anything they did, but the door being tossed open—rather spectacularly—and another argument spilling in from the hallway.
One that made even Claire take cover. Hatoko and Arashi were fighting again. The specifics couldn't be understood—Claire caught a word here and there, and something about a brother—but the argument was getting dangerous enough that she abandoned her position on the bed, choosing instead to take cover behind it, in case Ameko wasn't with them.
Skye's own eyes widened in more-than-mild alarm, and he took several quick steps to cover the ground between the bickering girls and the open door. Before he could get to them, Suiren darted into the room 'accidentally' impacting him and sending them both tumbling to the floor.
Lauren growled slightly under her breath. She didn't like Suiren, there was something about her that was too manipulative, worse even than the attempts that Tsukiko made. Not that many people took heed of it.
Thankfully, Ameko intervened, her gentle voice cutting across the other two girl's, and sending them both into a sheepish, sulky silence. Skye gently set Suiren on her feet and Claire came out from behind the bed.
The six Princesses made their way into the room, followed by a rather hassled looking Daisuke and Toshihiro.
"We came to collect you for the Bamboo float," Tsuyu smiled shyly at Claire. "We did not mean for them to start arguing…"
Daisuke rubbed his temples, and muttered something under his breath that made Toshi kick him. Claire deduced what it was after a second and brought up a hand to hide her grin. Skye's snort was audible, and Toshi's glare transferred from Daisuke to Skye, who didn't even try to look remorseful.
"Don't worry about it," Claire replied, dusting herself off. "Something needed to break the monotony around here, why not a few destructive fights?"
The Bamboo float was near-identical to the one on Earth. Wishes were written on or tacked to small bamboo boats and floated down a river—in this case, the largest river of the Moon kingdoms, that flowed into the Sea of Tranquility—and if they floated out of sight without sinking, the wishes were supposed to come true.
The familiarity of the festival was more of a balm than coming to any agreement about Claire's protection, and some wish-rafts even had little candles floating on them. It had the air… of a true party. There were booths selling foods, games for playing, things to look at and buy…
Hikari had joined them once they had mingled into a crowd and for once the Princess seemed to be genuinely pleased about something.
This could not be happening. The plans couldn't be falling apart so quickly! He didn't dare threaten that fool of a wench who had changed sides on him, she would go to them, and then everything truly would be in tatters.
There was another girl though, who wanted him, but hadn't the skills. She could do the threatening perhaps, and take the brunt of the blame. They would both have to be killed in the end…
Yes. A shift in plans, but if carried out properly, it would be quite successful. More death, but then, that had been inevitable since the beginning. It was good that the fool female had gotten with child, trapping all of them there, even if her innate talent for making friends out of enemies did wreak all types of havoc with the neatly laid plans.
"Arguing?" Hikari seemed surprised. "But I do not understand why…"
Claire shook her head slightly, annoyance and amusement flicking across her face.
"It's stupid really," she sighed, leaning back against a tree. "He's trying to wrap me in wool again, to keep me safe, but it's smothering. I know why he does it, but it's the doing that peeves me."
"Perhaps…. You should humor him," Hikari's voice was quiet as she looked up at the flawless blue of the sky. "I cannot reveal everything just yet, but there are… Claire, there are many dangers that are waiting for you here, and I do not wish to see you as the next to die."
Claire gave her friend a sharp glance.
"You know something?" she kept her voice soft as well, but it was clear that she wanted to know. "Hikari, what?"
"I cannot, not at this time," the Princess sighed. "I am too… deeply entangled as of yet. Once I have freed myself fully, I shall explain all, this I promise."
The blonde studied her friend, and Hikari let her. Finally Claire gave the cat-eyed woman a one-armed hug, and sighed.
"So difficult to get anyone to give me straight answers," she muttered.
Hikari left Claire with her family, and went to wander the festivities alone. She couldn't face him right now, and didn't dare to tell anyone the truth of how far she had fallen.
As much as she hated to admit it, Claire's good-nature had pushed aside something within her. It's hard to bear someone resentment when they don't hate you right back. It's even harder when they treat you like an equal, and then a friend.
Hikari had never had friends. She was a Princess, and the royalty weren't encouraged to be friends. And then along came the farmer, and suddenly things were starting to change. People who had never been interested in the Earth were starting to wonder what it might be like to have a hand in the lands again, whispers were being made of allowing permits again, so that visits could be made, procedures so that immigration could be done…
How could one small, insignificant person, who had done absolutely nothing, change their world so utterly?
A hand landed on her shoulder, making the cat-green-eyed Princess jump. She looked up into a pair of chilly grey eyes, and had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Suiren looked up at Hikari.
"As one Princess to another," and her voice was saccharinely sweet, "I do believe that I require a favor."
So Hikari's in a SNAFU, or maybe even a FUBAR situation, and until she can extract herself from any danger of blame she won't tell me about it.
What a night, what a night…