(I own nothing, well, save for NaTal, but hey, I created her)
*****
Keith was sitting at the monitoring equipment in the castle of lions when Lance walked in.
"Hey, Keith," he said suddenly, startling the captain, "Anything interesting?"
"Not much, though there was a bit of activity coming from the Alliance space academy."
"What sort of activity?"
"A transport ship left the docks nearby, but there's nothing mentioned about any outgoing vessels scheduled for today."
"You sure they just didn't forget to register the flight?"
Keith just looks over at his friend with a look that asked 'do you honestly believe that?'
"So I take that one of us is going to go over there and start asking questions?"
"More like I'm going to go over there to start asking some questions."
"And why can't I go?"
"Because you'll probably get yourself executed for some stupid reason."
"Aww, you know me better than that." He caught the look his friend was giving him. "What?! Can't a guy tell a joke?"
Keith's only response was to shake his head in exasperation.
She slid into her room quietly and tossed her hand pack onto her bed. Looking around, she found that the only thing that had really changed since she had left was the sheets.
"Still a room for child, I see," he mumbled to herself.
"Your father sometimes forgets that you're growing up, NaTal," a raspy voice said from behind her.
"Oh, Haggar, I didn't hear you come in," NaTal said nervously.
"Tut, tut, dear girl. I am a very powerful witch, you know that. There are things I can do that would scare even that father of yours," she said, reaching up and dusting a stray strand out of the girl's face, "Things that you, yourself will one day be able to do. One day, men throughout the universe will tremble at your feet."
"Before my power and before my beauty, you've been drilling that fact into my skull since I was a child," the girl said, turning around to face her mirror.
"But this has to go," the witch hissed, pulling at something in the girl's hair.
The rest of Natal's snowy white hair fell to her waist. Around the last six inches, it turned dark gray and curly. One of Haggar's knurled hands captured one of the curls.
"At least those idiots didn't see fit to chop off all your hair."
"Haggar?"
"What is it child?"
"You know my father better then anyone else, right?"
"Yes, why?"
"Can you tell me why father saw it fit to send me off to an Alliance military school rather then sending me through the same training that he sent my brother through. And why he has also seen it fit to not tell anyone that I'm alive?"
"It's for your own safety, child. You know full well that there are people who would kidnap and mistreat you souly for the fact that you are Zarkon's only daughter."
"Life is always a disadvantage, isn't it?" she asked, turning to face the witch once again.
NaTal was met mid turn with the back of Haggar's stern hand.
"Don't think that just because you're about to become an adult that you can go around behaving as though your life is about to end!" the old witch snarled as the younger woman fell to the floor.
"I'm sorry," NaTal mumbled, nursing her cheek.
"You shouldn't apologize to me, you're only hurting yourself with that kind of thinking," the witch said, walking out of the room.
"Funny," NaTal mumbled to herself, "It seemed to me that you were the one who hit me."
"Sire," Haggar said quietly as she entered the thrown room, "I think we may have a problem."
"What sort of problem?"
He watched the look the witch was giving him and muttered a particularly vulgar Drule comment.
*****
Yes, it seems like this is going nowhere, but I assure you, as soon as I can figure out what I'm doing, you'll know! Bye for Nyo!
Keith was sitting at the monitoring equipment in the castle of lions when Lance walked in.
"Hey, Keith," he said suddenly, startling the captain, "Anything interesting?"
"Not much, though there was a bit of activity coming from the Alliance space academy."
"What sort of activity?"
"A transport ship left the docks nearby, but there's nothing mentioned about any outgoing vessels scheduled for today."
"You sure they just didn't forget to register the flight?"
Keith just looks over at his friend with a look that asked 'do you honestly believe that?'
"So I take that one of us is going to go over there and start asking questions?"
"More like I'm going to go over there to start asking some questions."
"And why can't I go?"
"Because you'll probably get yourself executed for some stupid reason."
"Aww, you know me better than that." He caught the look his friend was giving him. "What?! Can't a guy tell a joke?"
Keith's only response was to shake his head in exasperation.
She slid into her room quietly and tossed her hand pack onto her bed. Looking around, she found that the only thing that had really changed since she had left was the sheets.
"Still a room for child, I see," he mumbled to herself.
"Your father sometimes forgets that you're growing up, NaTal," a raspy voice said from behind her.
"Oh, Haggar, I didn't hear you come in," NaTal said nervously.
"Tut, tut, dear girl. I am a very powerful witch, you know that. There are things I can do that would scare even that father of yours," she said, reaching up and dusting a stray strand out of the girl's face, "Things that you, yourself will one day be able to do. One day, men throughout the universe will tremble at your feet."
"Before my power and before my beauty, you've been drilling that fact into my skull since I was a child," the girl said, turning around to face her mirror.
"But this has to go," the witch hissed, pulling at something in the girl's hair.
The rest of Natal's snowy white hair fell to her waist. Around the last six inches, it turned dark gray and curly. One of Haggar's knurled hands captured one of the curls.
"At least those idiots didn't see fit to chop off all your hair."
"Haggar?"
"What is it child?"
"You know my father better then anyone else, right?"
"Yes, why?"
"Can you tell me why father saw it fit to send me off to an Alliance military school rather then sending me through the same training that he sent my brother through. And why he has also seen it fit to not tell anyone that I'm alive?"
"It's for your own safety, child. You know full well that there are people who would kidnap and mistreat you souly for the fact that you are Zarkon's only daughter."
"Life is always a disadvantage, isn't it?" she asked, turning to face the witch once again.
NaTal was met mid turn with the back of Haggar's stern hand.
"Don't think that just because you're about to become an adult that you can go around behaving as though your life is about to end!" the old witch snarled as the younger woman fell to the floor.
"I'm sorry," NaTal mumbled, nursing her cheek.
"You shouldn't apologize to me, you're only hurting yourself with that kind of thinking," the witch said, walking out of the room.
"Funny," NaTal mumbled to herself, "It seemed to me that you were the one who hit me."
"Sire," Haggar said quietly as she entered the thrown room, "I think we may have a problem."
"What sort of problem?"
He watched the look the witch was giving him and muttered a particularly vulgar Drule comment.
*****
Yes, it seems like this is going nowhere, but I assure you, as soon as I can figure out what I'm doing, you'll know! Bye for Nyo!