A/N: Here's Chapter Four of Novoselic's New Monarchy, which correlates to the "Talent Swap" theme and takes place after "Band Instructors Ibuki and Porkfeet!" Please read and review, and enjoy!
The Ultimate Detective and The Ultimate Hope Gaiden: Novoselic's New Monarchy!
Chapter Four: A Mile in Each Other's Shoes!
"Is all this really necessary?" Gundham grumbled as he walked next to Sonia awkwardly in his new flowing gold dress clothes and black dress shoes.
Albus nodded and confirmed him "Gundham, as Princess Sonia's betrothed, you shall eventually enter into the Novoselic Royal Family. As such, you must be properly educated in the etiquette of Novoselic Royalty, not just the culture of the Novoselic common people. Besides, Princess Sonia is absolutely beautiful in her royal dress, wouldn't you say?"
Gundham blushed, unable to refute their advisor as he stole a glance at Sonia in her golden dress. Unlike Gundham though, Sonia moved gracefully in the confines of her gown, as though it were little more than a second skin.
"Cheer up, Gundham!" Sonia smiled as she proposed "I'll tell you what, if you can get through one day of learning to be an Ultimate Prince, then I'll let you teach me about being an Ultimate Breeder."
"You…you would be interested in learning my dark arts?" Gundham asked hopefully, touched that she had volunteered to learn his talent.
Sonia giggled "Of course! You learned all about my country's culture of your own volition, and even went so far as to follow my country's Golden Makango ritual to propose to me! I would easily return the favor by learning about your own skillset, provided that you behave and put up with these etiquette lessons."
Gundham sighed and nodded before he smiled and agreed "Very well…I suppose I can…try to restrain myself as I learn the arts required to rule your domain."
Albus nodded and smiled as he cheered "Excellent, Gundham. Now, since it's time for breakfast, let us start with your table manners. Now, to the dining hall, shall we?"
Why do I have the feeling that this isn't just going to be a simple meal? Gundham dreaded as he continued to accompany his betrothed and her advisor to the dining hall.
XXX
"Remember, Gundham, fork in your left hand, knife in your right. Take small bites, and not a second until you swallow the first."
I heard you the first time… Gundham grumbled to himself as he nodded and obeyed Albus's instructions.
"Gundham, you have a speck of sauce on your chin. Please dot at it with your napkin so any visiting aristocrats don't mistake you for a slob."
There aren't any aristocrats present… Gundham pointed out to himself before he reluctantly picked up the cloth to his right and dabbed at his chin until it was clean.
With no further commentary from Albus, Gundham continued to eat as cleanly as he could, though the unavoidable scowl on his face made clear he was not enjoying it. Sonia frowned in slight guilt as knew from experience that being watched from every angle while you ate was no fun at all, especially for someone like Gundham. At last, they finished their breakfast and Gundham stood up from his chair before he stepped to the side as Sonia followed suit.
"Push you chair in Gundham, then bow slightly, just as Princess Sonia will do for you."
Gundham kept his grumbles to himself as he followed Albus's instruction along with Sonia before they bowed their heads and chanted "Gochisosamadeshita."
Albus smiled approvingly as he clapped his hands and praised "Excellent work, Gundham. Now, let us proceed to the throne room where we will rehearse how to interact with the aristocrats you will have to meet. Follow me if you please."
This is going to be a long day… Gundham thought wearily as he reluctantly followed Albus and Sonia, barely holding back a sigh of exasperation as they walked through the halls.
XXX
"Now, pretend that I am a visiting nobleman, and you are greeting me as I am standing before the throne." Albus directed as he bowed and began "Your Majesty."
Gundham nodded and began "Greetings, welcome to our doma…OW!" He yelped as Albus swatted his hand with a wooden baton.
Gundham nursed his hand as Albus chided "Wrong! You are supposed to say Welcome to our humble castle. You may rise. Now, try again."
Gundham bit his lip before he nodded and parroted "Greetings, welcome to our humble castle. You may rise." This sounds so stiff and robotic, like one of Kazuichi's mechanical beasts!
Albus nodded and continued "Good, now ask me why I requested to meet with my Royal Majesties."
Gundham nodded and continued "Now, for what reason have you for calling this meet…OW!"
Gundham nursed his aching hand again as Albus chided "No! You are to ask Good sir, for what reason have you requested parley with the royal family?"
Albus sighed as he consoled the frustrated consort.
"I realize that you're used to your…unique speech patterns, and that changing habits will take time, but that's exactly why I'm being so harsh with you. If I don't provide any reinforcement, you'll never change and you won't be able to play the part of a Novoselic King. If you wish to exercise your normal speech patterns in the presence of Princess Sonia or your friends, that's fine. But in public, you must get used to exercising a more socially appropriate speech pattern."
"I…understand…" Gundham muttered. "I will…try my best…"
Albus smiled and replied "That's all I can ask of you. Now, shall we try again?"
Gundham nodded and replied "Good sir, for what reason have you requested parley with the royal family?"
"Good, very good. You're a quick study once you know not to do something." Sonia smiled with sympathetic pride as Albus suggested "Now, let's continue. Next is…"
XXX
"Good work, Gundham. We will continue your training tomorrow. For now, I will leave you and Princess Sonia to your own devices. Have fun."
As Albus walked off, Sonia placed her hand comfortingly on Gundham's shoulder as she smiled and encouraged "I know this training can be arduous and frustrating. Believe me, I know exactly how you feel. I can't begin to tell you how relieved I was when I came to Hope's Peak and I could eat without everyone critiquing me, or speak casually without worrying about having to keep up the appearances of a Princess. But I am proud of you for sticking with it, Gundham."
"Th…thank you…" Gundham muttered, a small smile on his face as he took solace in Sonia's words.
"Now, what do you say we go get changed into something more comfortable? I wouldn't want us to get our clothes dirty when I learn about your animal talents!"
Gundham's eyes shone with enthusiasm, his frustrations with royal etiquette training completely forgotten as he laughed "Hahaha! Very well Princess, let us change out of these restrictive attires so I may train you in dark arts that I have mastered!"
Sonia's eyes shone with glee as she exclaimed "Excellent! Let us be off to our respective rooms to change! I'll meet you in the fields outside the capital city! See you soon, Gundham!"
Gundham watched Sonia disappear down the corridor before he shook his head in amusement and walked down a nearby corridor, eager to get to his room so he could change into his usual clothes and teach Sonia his knowledge of animals.
XXX
"Alright my pupil, are you ready to begin?" Gundham asked as they sat in the middle of a field, dressed in their regular clothes from their time on Jabberwock Island.
Sonia nodded, squeezing her bicep with an excited grin as she exclaimed "Absolutely! I am most ready to learn your skills, sensei!"
Gundham blushed before he shook it away and coughed awkwardly into his fist.
"Very well then, since this is your first time, we'll start with a target most suited to your power level." Gundham laughed as he commanded "Come, my Four Dark Devas of Destruction!"
Sonia beamed as Gundham's hamsters appeared from his jacket and landed on his shoulders before he continued "Listen well, my Four Dark Devas of Destruction. Princess Sonia has decided to study my dark magic arts, so you must aid me in guiding her along this journey. Are we clear?" All four hamsters nodded before Gundham exclaimed "Excellent. Now, let's begin with you, Supernova Silver Fox San-D!"
Sonia breathed in awe as San-D flipped off Gundham's shoulder and landed at his feet before she asked hesitantly "So…what should I do?"
"…Hold out your hand and gesture with two fingers. Don't say a word, just stare into her eyes and allow a psychic connection to build. Once you do, San-D should crawl right into your palm and accept you as her master."
"Okay."
Sonia smiled nervously as she got on her knees and shyly held out her palm while she stared into San-D's eyes. To her surprised joy, the hamster quickly crawled into her waiting palm and started sniffing it.
"That tickles!" Sonia giggled before San-D looked up at her, her whispers curling into something resembling a smile. "Oh, Gundham…she smiled at me!"
Gundham smiled proudly as he praised "Indeed, you have done well for your first task. Now let us move on to another task. Return to me Supernova Silver Fox San-D! You're next, Mirage Golden Hawk Jum-P!"
San-D turned around and scurried away from Sonia before she crawled back up Gundham's leg. Once she rested on his shoulder, Jum-P leapt gracefully from Gundham's body and landed softly in front of Sonia.
"Now, I want you to move your hand up and down rhythmically, like this." Sonia watched as Gundham gestured with his right hand before he continued "When you do, Jum-P should leap into your open palm. You may begin when ready."
Sonia nodded and repeated Gundham's gesture. In a heartbeat, Jum-P leapt straight into Sonia's waiting palm, causing her to beam giddily as he bowed majestically while the other hamsters glared at their comrade's theatrics.
"I did it, Gundham! I got him to jump in my hand!"
"Yes, you did. Now for your next task, return to my side Mirage Golden Hawk Jum-P! Come forward, Crimson Steel Elephant Maga-Z!" As Jum-P leapt back onto Gundham's shoulder and Maga-Z scurried down Gundham's leg towards Sonia, Gundham instructed "Point with your dominant hand towards the ground and rotate your pointer finger in a circle. Maga-Z should run around in a circle in accordance with your trajectory."
Sonia nodded and obeyed Gundham's directions, causing Maga-Z to instantly scurry in a circle as the tip of her finger spun in a circle.
"Oh, that's so cute! I should probably stop before he gets dizzy."
"Indeed, and good job on your penultimate task. Now, return to my side, Crimson Steel Elephant Maga-Z! Time for your grand finale, Invading Black Dragon Cham-P!" As Maga-Z and Cham-P traded places, Gundham explained "Hold out a loose lock of your hair with hand."
"Okay." A confused Sonia nodded as she held out a loose lock of blond hair before she asked "So what is Cham-P supposed to…huh? Where'd he go? Cham-P, where…oh my!"
Sonia gasped as the loose lock of hair was now tied in a perfect braid. Cham-P smiled proudly as he stood on the back of Sonia's hand.
"Oh, Cham-P…thank you! I love it!" As Cham-P leapt off Sonia's hand, she clapped and called out "San-D! Jum-P, Maga-Z, Cham-P!"
Gundham stared in awe, his eyes widened as his four hamsters lined up in a row in front of the Novoselic princess, standing on their hind legs as they raised a paw over their heads in salute.
"Amazing. To think that you have already gotten them to salute you as their master without even asking them to…" Gundham grinned proudly as he laughed "Hahaha! You truly have done well, my pupil!"
Sonia smiled and bowed her head as she replied gratefully "Thank you, sensei."
Gundham smiled bashfully as they stood up and he suggested "Come, let us retire back to our fortress, my Princess."
"Alright, Gundham. Come along, San-D, Jum-P, Maga-Z, Cham-P!" Sonia called out to Gundham's hamsters before they leapt onto her shoulder, riding her as she followed a softly smiling Gundham.
Well, perhaps this etiquette training might be more difficult than I anticipated, but…seeing my dear Sonia take to my dark arts with such enthusiasm and succeed so well at it…I realize that I need to put in the same enthusiasm and effort. If not for my own sake, then to make her proud to be her King Tanaka one day!