Could not resist an homage to the "Show Yourself" scene in Frozen 2. So here's my take on it, complete with lyrics! Enjoy!
Ichigo could feel the odd swelling of her Nen, and calmly called it back inside of her. It was like a pulse in her very soul, one that felt natural.
"So what now?"
King smiled. It instantly raised her suspicions.
He promptly shoved her into the crevice of the sacred tree they were training next to.
"Try to make it out of the labyrinth!"
"I'm dying your hair pink when I get out, you jerk!" she shouted back, before the crevice closed.
"That was mean, brother," said Elaine.
King smirked.
"I'm a fairy. I have to be devious, even if it's to my own successor," said King.
With Ichigo...
She was annoyed, but let it drop. King had specifically taken Chastiefol back from her, though now she had a good idea why.
Her primary method of attacking was using the spear...her quirk wasn't the best for offensive use.
The labyrinth of roots seemed to stretch on forever. Even when she finally dared to move a few branches or use the odd rock to mark her path, she kept going around in circles.
It was positively maddening.
Sighing, she paused and leaned against the tree to rest. She was exhausted.
She didn't know why, but she felt like humming. It was strange, and almost wildly inappropriate, but she was bored and going nowhere fast.
(Begin playing "Show Yourself" from Frozen 2.)
Every inch of me is trembling
But not from the cold
Something seemed to resonate inside her soul as she began to sing.
Something is familiar
Like a dream I can reach
But not quite hold
The tree no longer felt quite as foreboding as before. It fact it felt nice, almost welcoming.
I can sense you there
Like a friend I've always known
I'm arriving
And it feels like I am home
She slowly stood up, unaware of what she was doing, but knowing what needed to be done almost instinctively. It felt like something had taken a hold of her body, resonating with the song she was singing.
I have always been a fortress
Cold secrets deep inside
You have secrets too
But you don't have to hide
She started walking, this time with purpose and intent. Unseen was the fact that the tree had lightened up considerably, making it easier to see. Almost like it was being light up by an internal source.
Show yourself
I'm dying to meet you
Show yourself
It's your turn
Are you the one I've been looking for
All of my life
Show yourself
I'm ready to learn
She could feel the tree calling her. Singing in counterpoint to her own voice. It was beautiful. She didn't even noticed that her pace had quickened, as she followed something towards the deeper parts of the tree.
I've never felt so certain
All my life I've been torn
But I'm here for a reason
Could it be the reason I was born?
I have always been so different
Normal rules did not apply
Is this the day
Are you the way
I finally find out why?
Her heart beat sped up as she calmly ran through the sacred tree. She didn't even notice the hurdles and pitfalls before her. Something allowed her to pass through with ease. She felt excitement run through her.
Show yourself!
I'm no longer trembling
Here I am
I've come so far
You are the answer I've waited for
All of my life
oh, show yourself
Let me see who you are
She passed through what looked like an elaborate doorway made of vines and other plants. It almost looked too neat to be natural, yet she had the sense that was how it had always looked like. She could see a pool of water in the center of the tree that was glowing. Inside was a strange basin that looked remarkably like a bird bath of sorts, and the water was flowing out from it.
She headed towards it without thinking, walking onto a platform that was completely hidden by the water.
Come to me now
Open your door
Don't make me wait
One moment more
Oh, come to me now
Open your door
Don't make me wait
One moment more
Ethereal voices sang around her, in a haunting but beautiful chorus.
Where the north wind meets the sea
Ah-ah-ah-ah
There's a river full of memory
Come my darling, homeward bound
I am found!
Power surged from the basin, filling her up to the brim. Ichigo didn't even think twice. She allowed it to coil around her as she continued to sing.
Show yourself
Step in to your power
Grow yourself
Into something new
You are the one you've been waiting for
All of my life
Oh, show yourself
Ichigo vaguely noticed the power settling in her body. She was more preoccupied with the fact that it found an outlet for the excess in the form of ethereal wings on her back that were a prismatic white base. Crystals made from unknown energy swirled around her, as her clothes went from casual to a ethereal white dress that went down to her feet and her shoes went from plain sneakers to low-level heels made of what appeared to be glass but were far more sturdy.
Her Nen fluctuated, before settling as it accepted the new upgrade and altered itself to adapt to her new abilities. Even her quirk was affected, as it developed a slightly more regal feel to it.
Unknown to Ichigo, even her hair was affected. It went from a dark verdant green to an almost pale silver that shown like ice.
When she walked out of the sacred tree, she immediately took note of the fact that the sky was practically filled with fairies. All of them were eagerly watching the entrance.
It took her a split second to see a familiar item flying towards her, almost like an eager puppy.
"Oh that is so not fair...how did you get wings upon your ascension and I had to wait hundred of years before they finally appeared?" complained King.
Ichigo's smile didn't disappear as she suddenly vanished before punching King in the stomach.
"Oof!"
"That is for pushing me into the tree without any warning," she said smiling.
King could hear Elaine cackling to the side.
Some time later...
"So what happens now?" asked Ichigo. She was still enjoying the new outfit, though her wings had vanished once her Nen had settled. Apparently her new fairy abilities were tied to her Nen, which was still too new to keep out constantly.
"Well for starters, you're now considered the next official monarch of the Fairy tribe. You're not the full Queen yet, as we have a bit of an age restriction for this sort of thing," said King.
"...There's an age restriction?" said Ichigo in disbelief.
"You can't be considered a King or Queen until you're over a hundred," said Elaine.
"Why?" asked Ichigo.
"Partly because most fairies are still actual children at that age, but mostly because of their human backgrounds. The stories about changelings aren't just fairy tales, and after a hundred years their human parents and the majority of their immediately family would have died off by that point," admitted King.
"It also gives you enough time to settle into your powers and for you to be converted into full fairy," added Elaine. "Since you've taken on the mantle as the future queen, your human genetics will slowly be rewritten into becoming a full fairy."
"Neat. So does that mean I can still be a hero later?" asked Ichigo.
"Pretty much. It's not like we care about what you do so long as you show up to defend the forest and help other fairies outside these realms. I mean they've mostly forgiven me about the mess with that demon all those centuries ago once they found out I wasn't lying about the amnesia."
This was mostly due to the fact that the forest itself wanted Ban to free Elaine from her job as the sacred guardian. Otherwise King would have lost the right to be their ruler.
Though not even the forest could have anticipated the demon showing up.
Kikyo absolutely ADORED Ichigo's new look, especially the wings. King was perfectly fine with her receiving training from the Zoldyck clan, as even he had to admit they had 'proper standards'. If she could survive their idea of training, then she would be well prepared for anything he threw at her later. Besides, they were likely to find new ways to help Ichigo learn how to fight without relying on Chastiefol all the time, which King couldn't do.
Though he did have a list of potential avenues for Ichigo to play around with. Particularly when it came to poisons.
Considering what the magic of Disaster could do with a simple wound, adding poison was a logical next step.
What followed was five months of pure hell. If King's training was harsh, Kikyo's training (which was sometimes supervised by Silva) was straight out demonic.
However Ichigo knew that there were going to be more than villains after her once she stepped into the spotlight as a Hero Hunter. Especially if she followed through and ended up betrothed to Killua, provided he agreed to the idea.
There were no end of bad people in the world, quite a few of them obscenely rich, who could hire even worse people like the Spiders to kill her.
If she wanted to stand on her own without being a damsel in distress, she would have to put in the effort.
Besides, it put her one step closer to standing on the same level as her own favorite Pro Hero, All Might. That single thought alone was enough to drive her on, no matter how sore she was.
Killua had that shiver again. It had been getting progressively worse for months now.
The last time he had that shiver, his mother had started dressing up his youngest sibling as a girl to make up for the fact Alluka was unable to be trained in the family business.
"Are you okay Killua? You've been having weird shivers for a while now," said Gon.
"I just have this horrible feeling mom's up to something again," said Killua.
"Is that a bad thing?" asked Gon, tilting his head.
"Last time I had these bad feelings, mom dressed my youngest brother up as a little girl and dad refused to do anything about it," said Killua flatly. "I felt actual pity for him because she didn't have a daughter to train and he was stuck with those lessons."
His youngest brother complained to him, but as long as Silva and his grandfather Zeno refused to stop her, there was nothing he could do to stop their mother.
"So...it's a bad thing?"
"It means mom's conspiring again. And considering the feelings I think it has something to do with me. I have no clue what though...dad said I could travel with you," said Killua.
"Come to think of it, I think Ichigo-nee said something about training with someone with your family," said Gon.
Killua's head whipped towards him, face twitching.
"What?"
"Yeah, she said someone from your family took a liking to her, or at least found her quirk 'fascinating' so she's been undergoing major training as a result."
Killua put his hands on Gon's shoulders.
"Gon. What exactly did she say about this training?"
"Just that they were training her to use that spear of hers more effectively and that she's recently started poison resistance training. Apparently she passed whatever test King planned to give her, so they're insuring she learns how to actually fight with it," said Gon.
Killua paled, which considering his natural coloring made him look almost ghostly.
"Gon... Do you have any idea why my family would take an interest in your cousin? Any clue at all?"
"Not really, I mean I barely know them outside what little you've told me," said Gon.
Killua had a bad feeling as to why his family had taken an interest in Ichigo...especially if they were training her.
"So...what's Whale Island like?"
"Quiet. Peaceful. Ichigo used to despair at how long it took to get news about Pro Heroes. Especially when the internet went down," said Gon. "Aunt Inko is really nice and Aunt Mito is pretty much my mom."
"Any chance Ichigo is going to be there?" asked Killua.
"Actually she's already there," said Gon. "She just called to let me know she got a reprieve since Aunt Inko's birthday is soon."
Now Killua was really suspicious about why his family...or more likely his mother...was training Ichigo. They didn't believe in 'reprieves' during the early stages of training.
Which really begged the question of why they agreed to train her in the first place.
To say Inko was a bit...leery...about the whole betrothal idea was an understatement.
Fortunately King was willing to explain it to her in a way that didn't make her reject the idea outright.
"So because my daughter is slated to take over the fairy realms in the next hundred years, it's better for her to start making powerful allies now rather than wait for her ascension," said Inko, face twitching.
"It's not a set thing yet, Mama," said Ichigo, sipping her tea. "Killua still has no idea about it and they aren't going to try and pressure us to get married right away. This is more of a contingency plan for at least ten years from now, so they don't have to try and find that fits the family requirements and someone Killua can stand."
That seemed to calm Inko down. Her daughter was far too young to consider marriage right now.
"And why doesn't he know about it?" asked Inko, trying to understand why her daughter had gone for an exam and come out with a possible husband of all things.
"Mostly because he's at a rebellious age," said Kikyo. "But also because Ichigo thought it would be hilarious to spring it on him later when we had plenty of cameras and video recording equipment ready to capture the moment."
Inko's mouth twitched, just a bit.
Okay, she could get behind that sort of thinking.
She would reserve judgment on the boy as a potential son-in-law for when Gon returned home for a visit.
She would end up cooing at the idea after meeting Killua and would eventually come around to the idea of the contract. Provided neither of them went further than second base before they were at least sixteen. After all, Ichigo wanted to go to UA eventually and it would be impossible for her to attend if she ended up pregnant.
Considering Ichigo's plans, that was a reasonable restriction that all parties could live with.