Sinful Sinbad
This one is inspired by another fanfic, but I'm not sure what it is called…? It's a death note one I'm pretty sure…Or X-men… Or both… Set as if the Kou ark never happened. (I wish it didn't.)
Pride
Pride, if Sinbad had to pick one, was probably his worst sin. People said it was the mother of all sins. Each sin somehow branched from it. Humans thought they were better than others, and that was why they deserved more than most. They didn't have to work as much, got more food, they were allowed to act out, want what they want, do whatever they want. Sinbad didn't think he took it that far. He didn't think he deserved more than anyone else. At least, not consciously. Sometimes he thought he was better than others, but he tried to keep that in check. It was harder to do that for him than most.
"You are such a great king! The country you have built is spectacular!"
"Oooh, Sin, you are sooo handsome! Let me go next!"
"How did you capture that many dungeons? That's amazing!"
He tried not to get a big head. He really did. If it weren't for his generals (And his enemies if he was willing to admit it) He would have been a lot cockier than he already was. Ever since he'd become a king, very few people brought his pride down to size.
Hakuei was one of them.
"I don't trust you."
Her response was so blatantly honest Sinbad didn't know how to respond right away. Hakuei tipped her head to the side ever so slightly, waiting for his reply. Just enough for her raven dark hair to slip just a tiny bit, enough for Sinbad to notice the blue tinge to it. His first thought when he'd seen her was she was quite a beautiful young woman. His first impression hadn't been wrong.
Kouen closed his eyes, coming to Sinbad's rescue. "What my cousin means to say is that she will agree to the treaty conditions." Hakuei frowned, turning to face her cousin.
"No, that is not what I meant to say. I meant that I don't trust him. Just because I am agreeing to a treaty with his country doesn't mean I have to trust his king." Officials around them, various parties from Kou, all glanced at each other in confusion. Like they expected it to all be a prank, and why wasn't Hakuei laughing and saying she was sorry yet? But the princess didn't budge. Her glare sent chills up Sinbad's spine. He'd had to deal with a similar reaction from Kougyoku last he saw her, but at least she pretended to be alright with it. The elder princess was different that way.
From behind, an advisor from kou wearing a similar garb to the one Kouban wore slipped forward. "P-princess Hakuei," he muttered, trying to be silent but couldn't stop the others from hearing him. "Might I suggest you keep your opinions to yourself?" Hakuei's eyes narrowed, and she turned so she could catch the advisors eyes.
"No, I do not think that is appropriate. If we are truly to be allied with him as well as his country, is it not in our best interest to be honest with each other?" The advisor shivered back into the crowd. Hakuei turned again, catching Sinbad's eye. She refused to break eye contact, her bright blue eyes holding the depth and determination of any warrior.
"I do not trust you. The only times I heard of you directly in the past was from Judal, Kougyoku and my brother Hakuryuu. Judal said he wanted you to be his king, and knowing Judal that makes me wonder what kind of a person you are. Hakuryuu praised you, but the way he spoke of you made me wonder if you were really a friend or just another king trying to use him. Kougyoku…well, I suppose you would have known what she would have said. The first time I saw you was when you were about to battle my siblings to gain control of a country, and though it didn't come to that, I truly doubt that you would have had a problem with hurting the people I care about. I have not heard a positive thing about you that can lead to me trusting you. While you are powerful you are also conniving, deceitful and overall a very suspicious man. The people from your country and mine are innocent, and that is the only reason I will sign the treaty so that they don't have to go to war. I do not trust you, I doubt that I ever will, and despite the treaty I hope I never have to work with you directly in the future." Sinbad didn't respond. He wasn't entirely sure how he could. He hadn't faced a situation like that in a while.
The eldest prince, Kouen, must have known that it was a lost cause. With a sigh he took out the paper and got the pen ready. "Is that all you have to declare cousin?"
The princess nodded. "Yes."
He held out the paper. Hakuei took it quickly and put down her signature before she could change her mind. Kouen glanced over the paper, making sure it was legitimate before nodding to dismiss her. She and her soldiers bowed politely, before turning and following Hakuei out of the room. She didn't as much as glance at Sinbad as she left. If she had, she would have seen his eyes following her every move, even after she left the tent.
Not many people were able to make the king of Sindria speechless.
Sloth
Lazy? Of all the sins, that wasn't one of his bigger ones. He didn't build his own country by saying he only needed 'a few more minutes.' There was too much to do! When it came to paperwork, he wasn't going to lie. He would put that off for as long as humanly possible before Jafar had to hunt him down and drag him to the office. But when it came to things important to him, his country, allies or friends, it didn't matter how early or late it was. Sin would do whatever it took to make sure everyone was alright. Even after his country had been made he worked constantly to continue and build on more than just his country, but the world. Sinbad tried not to sleep more than he needed.
One morning however, he considered it.
What time was it? Late. Very, very, very late. Even in his dream he knew he should get up. He was in that stage where he was starting to realize that it was a dream, and he'd better get up soon. Just at the end, if Yamu's studies on dreams had been correct. He didn't know what time it was, but he knew he had to wake up. But that morning, the dream was harder to leave.
He was somewhere in Kou. That much he could understand. The building and architecture were unique only to Kou. Said buildings stood in the distance, a little ways from where he sat on a plain of grass. Somehow there was no one around him. Just a random patch in the middle of a city. Any venues or little shops were miles away from where he sat. It was a dream, it didn't care about his opinions on right and wrong or how the world worked. In the dream, Sinbad was lounging around, leaning back as his hands supported him. There was an ocean in front of him, even though he knew there were no oceans that close to Kou's palace. But he didn't question it. Weird or not, it was a relaxing dream.
"You should be getting back to the palace," a voice from behind him said. He blinked, then turned to face the vision walking up to him. Even before he did he knew it was Hakuei Ren. In the dream her blue eyes were sparkling, her hair let down for the first time Sinbad had seen. She was wearing a long sleeveless dress he KNEW she would never wear in real life.
But he couldn't take his eyes off her.
Now, Sinbad knew it was a dream. The princess of Kou and him were not on close terms. She didn't trust him. Sometimes he wondered if she hated him. Considering how the relationship between their two countries was so tense, he doubted that would ever change. Until that dream, he never thought he'd cared too much. Sure she'd crossed his mind more often than he would admit. But he'd immediately assumed that had been because he had been planning on getting her on his side.
It hadn't occurred to him that he'd been thinking of her as more than just an ally.
A smile crept up on his lips as she stepped next to him, silently slipping down to sit on the green grass. She leaned against him, resting her head on his chest. If he wasn't sure he was dreaming before, he was CERTAIN he was then. Going with it, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. Her hair was soft as he nuzzled it gently with his cheek. Hakuei blushed a little, but didn't pull away.
Tipping her head up, she met his eyes. "You should wake up Sinbad. You're going to be late." He blinked at her. Late? Wow, even his dream was telling him to wake up.
"Maybe in a bit," he purred. Leaning down he playfully kissed her on the cheek. She giggled, trying to slip away.
"Y-you've got to get up Sinbad. You're wasting daylight." Sinbad chuckled, using his other arm to grab her legs and swing her around so she was on his lap. She gasped, but didn't pull away. Unlike what the real Hakuei would have done.
"Not just yet," He muttered, leaning closer so he could whisper in hear ear. "I've still got a lot of things I'd like to do with you.
The princess's face turned bright red. "I, ah…"
Sinbad was not lazy.
On the other hand, sleeping in one day never hurt anyone.
Gluttony
Food? Sure, Sinbad liked food. Who didn't like food? People need it to live. Sinbad liked living. It was one of his favourite things. He loved fish. Greasy food wasn't his favourite. Alcohol was his weakness, but he wasn't sure that would be put in the same category. Jafar would have put it down as a sin when Sinbad was concerned.
A day a few weeks after his dream that he'd come to both feel equally guilty for and hope that it would come back, he ran into Hakuryuu on his way to lunch. More like got tackled when Hakuryuu was running and didn't see him.
"S-sorry King Sinbad! My apologies!" He hurried to help him up, Jafar and Spartos as well. He bowed quickly. "I hope you are alright. Now I-I really must be going." Before he could escape Sinbad grabbed his arm.
"What's wrong Hakuryuu? Where's the fire?" he looked like his soul was going to be sucked out of his body if he didn't get away as soon as possible.
"I'm having lunch with my elder sister, Judal and Kougyoku. Hakuei suggested she should cook." Sinbad hadn't been in Kou that long. He didn't know the Kou family very intimately. But after only a few days, he'd heard enough rumors to understand that was a bad thing. "I've got to hurry over and convince her I'll cook before she gets the chance."
The thought of seeing Hakuei was enough of an encouragement for Sinbad to come along.
He and his two generals followed Hakuryuu over to one of the smaller kitchens that was mostly used just for people who liked to cook. They found the three of them, Judal sitting on a table and Kougyoku looked absolutely terrified. To make it worse, Hakuei was holding a plate filled with….No one knew what. She turned around to face them with a smile on her face. "Ah, brother! You got here just in time! I've just finished a delicacy that is famous from," She stopped herself when she saw Sinbad. Her smile fell as quickly as it had appeared. "Oh. You brought company."
He tried for a charming smile. "Surprise!" She didn't return it.
Hakuryuu became so pale Sinbad thought he was going to faint. "Hakuei, I thought you…d-didn't Judal tell you that I was going to cook lunch today?" All of them turned to face the magi of the hour.
Judal shrugged carelessly, taking a quick bite out of his peach. "What can I do? She wanted to cook." The amusement in his eyes said he hadn't tried very hard.
Rushing over Hakuryuu tried to grab the plate from her hands. "T-thank you for trying sister, but I insist on cooking. There's this new recipe I've wanted to try from…um…"
"Sindria?" Sinbad offered helpfully, saving them both. That helped Hakuryuu with his dilemma as well as explained why Sinbad had come along. To Jafar and Spartos as well. When Jafar raised his eyebrows at his king however, he wondered just how much he knew about how often the princess he was supposed to be ignoring had crossed his mind.
"Perfect," Judal interrupted, returning all the attention to him again. "Hakuei was trying to cook a Sindrian delicacy as well. So there's no difference then." Sinbad raised an eyebrow. Had he heard that right? With a smirk he tried to catch Hakuei's eye, but she wouldn't look at him. Usually she was so good at keeping eye contact. That just proved she was hiding something. Why would she be trying to cook something from his country specifically? That may have been his pride talking.
Her brother shook his head, again trying to take the food…disaster…from his sister. "It was cool to try, but don't worry, I'll handle it." He was an inch away before Hakuei snatched it out of his reach.
"Why? I'm almost done with the fish." THAT'S what it was? Sinbad had thought it was a cow or an attempt at spaghetti. "Why don't you try it? It's not that bad, honest. It just looks weird." All kou residents in the room held their breaths hoping she would take it back. Judal took another bite out of his peach, eyes wide in anticipation. Sinbad could almost hear his thoughts. This is going to be good.
"Uh…" Hakuryuu mumbled, trying to think of some kind of excuse. "I…I'm not really up for it, how about…"
"I'll try it."
All eyes turned to him. Judal dropped his peach he was so shocked. "W…What?" Sinbad turned to Kougyoku who was had backed away from him like he'd lost his mind. "Are you crazy? Why would you do that?" Even Hakuei looked surprised.
But for the first time, she didn't look angry when she saw him.
"Sinbad! Do you want to die?" It took him a moment to think about that. He glanced at the food in front of him. Then back up at Princess Hakuei's sparkling blue eyes.
Worth it.
Wrath
To be a good dungeon capturer, Sinbad had to have some wrath. If he didn't know how to fight, he wouldn't have captures all of the dungeons he had. But all things considered, he knew he had a good control over his strength. He'd never lashed out on a friend violently or tried to attack someone just because he'd felt like it. All his battles and violence had a reason. A plan behind it. He never acted out rashly when he shouldn't have.
"Such an arrogant princess does not deserve to be a queen!"
Of course, to every rule, there was always that one exception.
As Sinbad, Jafar and Masrur were on their way to discuss a matter with the Kou brothers when they heard the yelling from the courtyard. There was Hakuei standing with some of the Kouga tribe members with what looked like a prisoner and some guards holding him back. His beard was long, and judging from the look of his clothes and the crazed look in his eyes, he'd been a prisoner for a while. Sinbad didn't recognize the man, but Hakuei seemed to. Her expression was sour, but her face was set in a tight line of hardly maintained control.
Call him strange, but it was nice to see she hated others more than him. It gave him hope.
"The man's name is Ryosai from what I've heard," Sinbad overheard Jafar whispering to Masrur behind him. "A previous soldier who worked under the princess. According to Aladdin, he tried to kill her and take over her army in the process. He was brought into custody with Aladdin's help, likely kept in the dungeons waiting for a judgment on his punishment. Since he's being brought out like this, I'm assuming they decided." Sinbad wondered what they'd decided. Trying to overthrow a princess was likely a heavy crime, especially in a place like the Kou Empire. A country that but much value into respect and dignity.
From the way Ryosai was reacting, he hadn't gotten the memo. "What a joke! You are too naïve to lead any real army into battle!" He screamed. The only thing holding him back was the two guards grabbing his arms. Their faces were strained, showing it was harder than it looked. There was spit coming from his mouth with every word, making him look more like an animal than a person. "The only reason you sent me here is because you were threatened by my power, isn't that right? You knew I was stronger than you, but you were too selfish and proud to admit it!" he spat, some of the spit splashing on one of her soldier's faces. He hurried to wipe it away with a disgusted face.
Somehow, Hakuei was able to keep her calm under his attacks. "You were brought to the prisons for trying to enslave the Kouga tribe, cause a war between the Kou Empire and their tribe as well as attempting to kill me and the soldiers who remained at my side. You are here for your actions and yours alone Ryosai. Blaming someone else will not change that." But Ryosai wouldn't accept that as he fought against his bond trying to get free. Trying to get to her.
Sinbad frowned. Jafar noticed it out of the corner of his eye. "Shall we get closer to inspect the situation Sinbad?"
They walked over to the crowd, Sinbad in the lead. As they approached, he caught Hakuei's eye. For a moment she looked surprised, but hurried to hide the expression. Sinbad hoped it wasn't just his imagination when he noticed a tinge of red on her cheeks. When her expression changed, Ryosai turned to see who was coming.
When he recognized him, to Sinbad's surprise, his face brightened.
"The king of Sindria! If you won't listen to me, perhaps you'll listen to someone higher than you!" Say what? Ryosai turned to him, easily fighting the struggling guards behind him. They weren't doing their job very well. "King Sinbad," He began, ignoring Jafar and Masrur moving to defend their king. "Wouldn't you agree with me in saying that someone as naïve and foolish as this princess shouldn't be a general? Don't you think that a spoiled princess couldn't understand the depths of war? Weren't you the one who said he would never let a lady fight?" Sinbad felt the blood drain from his face.
Snap. His past words were coming back to haunt him.
How had he even heard that?
Hakuei's eyes narrowed, looking almost sad at the idea. Ryosai's eyes were filled with hope, the exact opposite of what he wanted to see. He knew he had to say something quick.
"…I don't believe a woman who does not know how to fight should go into battle," Sinbad explained carefully. "Just as much as any man, child or magician who does not have the skills should not fight when they don't know how. But from what I have seen, princess Hakuei is fully capable of fighting in battles that only a select few would be capable of surviving. Just recently at the battle of magnustand, she fought bravely among the other princes of Kou and dungeon capturers of other countries." Risking a pause, he glanced over at Hakuei.
Though she tried to hide it, he could tell she was beaming on the inside. When she caught his eye she gave him a quick nod, one he interpreted as a thank you. He was just happy she was actually happy to see him for once.
"You took my words out of context," Sinbad explained, turning back to the prisoner, whose hopeful expression was being crushed easily. "When I had said that, it was because the woman with me either couldn't fight, or I hadn't known that she could. Princess Hakuei can, and judging from the power that her army has, I'd say she has done a tremendous job at it." Ryosai looked dumbfounded at his words. He looked absolutely stunned, as well as humiliated in front of the crowd they had gathered.
Just when Sinbad thought Ryosai was going to leave without a fight, he bared his teeth in anger. "Then you are a fool as well! She cannot fight! All she does is make allies with useless peasants and try to talk instead of going into battle!" Spinning around he turned on Hakuei again, who quickly hardened her expression. "A spoilt princess like you. Assume you can do whatever you want because you were lucky enough to be born into a special family. Without your title you are nothing and you know it. Nothing!" With his words he fought back stronger than before. As he did one of the guards stumbled backwards, losing his grip on the prisoner.
With the stumble, he was able to free one arm.
"You are nothing you little wench!" He yelled, grabbing the sleeve of her dress. It tore apart with a resounding rip that echoed through the halls. Hakuei's eyes had widened in shock, and some of the servants around them gasped and dropped whatever they were doing. Jafar's mouth dropped open in surprise, and even Masrur looked shocked. Their king hardly noticed their expressions.
Sinbad's hand was already on his sword.
Later, his friends told him that the prisoner was going to be okay.
Mostly.
Envy
As stated before, pride was one of Sinbad's greatest problems. What others didn't have, he usually did. Unless he didn't want what they had. Most of the time, Sinbad had no reason to be envious of anyone.
But man, did his head burn when he saw her with that BOY.
Seisyuun was his name if Hakuryuu hadn't lied to him. Her first household vessel user and second in command. Sinbad understood that their relationship wasn't romantic in any sense. They were loyal friends, who had worked together for years. There was nothing beyond friendship for either of them.
That made it even worse.
See, lovers could go away. They could fall out of love if the feelings weren't strong enough, they could be separated by her country if they worried she was getting to close, someone in the future who was in a relationship with one of them could demand that they stop seeing the other out of worry for their own relationship. If it had been a romantic relationship, Sinbad was confident he could have won her over. That may have been his pride talking, but he didn't want to admit he may be wrong.
But FRIENDS.
You couldn't get rid of a friend. They were there forever.
It wasn't that he felt threatened. He knew there was nothing there to make him worry. But they were just so close! Every time Sinbad saw the two of them together, his fists would clench when he was reminded how much closer he was to her than him. Even if he did get close to her, he couldn't just make those years and experiences that she'd shared with him and not Sinbad go away. A friend would have seen a side of her he would never get to see, and Seisyuun had been around long enough to see more than any of her soldiers.
And her SOLDIERS. Do not even get him started on her soldiers.
Why did they get to occupy her time so often? Why did they get to live only a tent away from her while traveling? How come they were allowed to go on adventures and missions with her and they all speak as if they were long lost cousins? How could he even try and get that close to her?
As Sinbad watched her sitting with Seisyuun and a few of her soldiers at a party, those thoughts invaded his mind like a poison, conquering his every thought and feeling.
Sharrkon, who sat at his side, tried to cheer him up. "Come on my king! What's going on with you? You are usually the life of the party!" The king barely heard him. His eyes were trained on the table a ways below them. The princess's expression as she listened to one of her soldiers tell a story. How it lit up when Seisyuun did something funny. How annoyed he felt when he knew he could count the number of times she'd looked that happy around him on one hand.
His friend looked genuinely concerned at his lack of attention. "Come on Sin. Have a drink! Or better yet, let's go find a girl you'll like! The country of Kou is filled with beautiful women!" As if to make his point, he waved over one girl with long red hair. She skipped over to them, her face brightened when she saw him. He knew better than to fall for it. She'd been circling them for a while. Even while in his trance he could tell that. Sharkkon moved over so the girl could squeeze next to Sinbad, wrapping her arms around his to get his attention. Sharkkon laughed, assuming Sinbad would enjoy it. "There you go! Have fun for a bit!" Sinbad glanced over at the girl, automatically giving her a smile. Her face turned sly as she started fingering at his cloak. Part of him wanted to just go along with it and forget the beauty at another table.
With other people.
Not him.
Only then did he noticed princess Hakuei watching him.
Sinbad looked up to catch her eye, but she quickly turned away, embarrassed. Scooting away from the group she quickly excused herself with some excuse Sinbad couldn't hear. Slipping away she headed out to the edge of the party over by where many of the ships were docked. Sinbad knew it had been a good idea to hold the party outside of Kou's capital.
Pushing the girl off of him, he followed the path she took. When he finally found her, she was sitting next to the docks. Her eyes were trained on the ocean beyond them, and the spot where the water met the sky. Somewhere Sinbad had been trying to reach his entire life by had never gotten there yet. One day perhaps.
"Enjoying the view princess?" She nearly jumped into the sea she was so surprised. When she turned to face him she had a pout on her face. Pout as in not an angry or hoping Sinbad would die look. He was making progress.
"Are you spying on me king Sinbad?"
The King raised an eyebrow. "Depends. Were you spying on me?" Hakuei bit her lip for a moment, then turned away without answering. Interesting.
"The view is nice. I don't get to see the ocean much in my line of work." At first he didn't understand why a general would not be near the ocean, but then he remembered Hakuei's regiment and soldiers were all landmarked. The Kouga tribe was best at fighting on land, so he doubted they went near the ocean when they didn't have to.
With a tilt of her head she gestured to a ship a little ways away. "That's the ship that we brought to get here. It took us much longer than the rest of Kou's troops to get here. No one really knew how to steer a boat, and we were continuously getting lost at sea."
"Perhaps you need a good teacher," Sinbad offered. "Someone who knows the sea better than your soldiers do." For a moment, Sinbad wondered if she would get the hint. Or if she did, would she even accept it? But she tilted her head, thinking about it for a moment.
"How about…you teach me some time," Hakuei suggested, trying to look brave instead of embarrassed and nervous. "My soldiers are used to horseback riding, but they are not skilled at how to steer a boat. They are used to being on land…That is, if you ever have the chance, I'd like to learn." Though he didn't have to, he pretended to think about it. Time alone with the princess. Something that her soldiers and Seisyuun couldn't do.
The king smiled at the thought of having a connection with her they couldn't reach.
Lust
Now lust. THAT was a feeling he could relate to. He'd lusted over more people than he'd be willing to admit. It was an easy temptation to fall into. There were few women who had ever refused him which made it even easier. It was his favourite one, so much so that he hardly considered it a sin anymore. He knew that the feeling itself wasn't a sin, but wrong course of action was. Sinbad acted on it many, many times. Often he'd later forget about it. After a few days he wouldn't even remember who it had been. It had become something fun to do.
But Hakuei. Oh how his blood boiled whenever she came around.
The only problem was, unlike the other times, he doubted he would be able to act on it anytime soon. While Hakuei had finally started to warm up to him, she still claimed she did not trust him and did not want to work with him on any matter of importance. Once he'd tried to hold her hands so he could show her how to steer, and despite his honest intentions (Mostly) she yelped and he nearly fell off the boat in her surprise. After that she got suspicious whenever he was more than two feet close to her.
It was aggravating. Sometimes he thought she was doing it on purpose. That she hadn't really let her hair down that day because she wanted to try a new style, but to give Sinbad another reason to stare at her. That she hadn't worn that dress because it was too hot outside, but for Sinbad to have to practice his self-restraint against his will. She was torturing him. She had to be doing it on purpose. There was no other explanation.
But he couldn't tell. She acted to innocent, oblivious to any kind of romantic intentions. A few times he'd tried to flirt with her, but she'd just give him a blank look like he was from another world. The clothes she wore were never anything more than the regulated clothes for a princess, unless you counted her djinn equip. All her actions and intentions were strictly business, or friendship at the most. Sinbad wondered if she'd ever cared about someone in a romantic way…ever.
"My country wants me to marry," She told him out of the blew one day. Sinbad had been so surprised he'd nearly fallen off the docks they were sitting on and into the water.
"They do?" Sinbad asked, quickly composing himself. Hakuei nodded, pretending not to notice his blunder.
"For a while they had not considered marrying me for any form of alliance because I was not the daughter of the latest emperor. But now that I'm into my 20's they decided they should hand me off in marriage soon before I reach thirty." She sighed, turning off the stare out into the ocean longingly.
"…I can tell by your town you don't want to?" Please be right, please be right, please be right.
Thank all the stars, she nodded. "It's not that I have anything against marriage, but I know of the people they would choose for me to marry. Many of them would not approve of me being a general, while others would just say that in order to get control over my army. Princess's here are thought to be nothing more than figureheads for the country, and not many would object." Sinbad hadn't considered that. Hakuei was such an outstanding general, he didn't think anyone would be foolish enough to even consider something like that.
"Perhaps you should marry someone who would fight alongside you," Sinbad suggested.
Hakuei let out a cheerful laugh. "If you find someone like that, I'd be happy to." With a sigh, her spirits died. "I don't believe every general here in Kou would do such a thing. Just the ones on the list are known for such actions. That's why marriage never crossed my mind too often. In a way, I had been relieved when they'd told me there was no reason for me to marry. No one really liked me enough for me to even consider it."
Again, Sinbad nearly fell into the water.
"No one really liked you?" Sinbad couldn't believe that. She was much more oblivious than he thought. That, or something was very, very wrong with the country he was beginning to regret making an alliance with. They had to be crazier than he thought to think that.
When Hakuei turned to stare at him, and he realized his reaction had been wrong. "No, I wasn't one of those girls that knew how to flirt or learned how to makeup. Instead I learned how disarm an enemy and go undercover if necessary. You don't need to laugh at me for not being very popular or desirable." Actually, the thought of Hakuei going undercover sounded very desirable to him. He couldn't help but wonder what kind of costumes she'd have to wear. And if she still had them.
That may not have been the thing to ask about that time.
Before she could decide to leave he changed his answer. "That's not what I meant. I wasn't laughing, I was surprised." Hakuei glared at him, and he could tell he was in deep trouble. Great, and just when she was finally starting to not HATE him. "Do you honestly think you could be anything but attractive?" He had to ask. It was border lining dangerous territory there, but he was too surprised to ask.
Again, wrong move. She crossed her arms across her chest. Did she think he was trying to get out of trouble? Well, he was, but he wasn't in trouble in the first place. "What about me is so attractive then? If there is anything of course."
If there was anything?
Sinbad's eyes roamed over her against his will. Sort of against his will. He took in her long dark hair that he'd imagined was soft if he were to run his hand through it. The blue eyes like the sea he'd sworn to explore. The curve of her mouth that was naturally as red as blood.
…Bad analogy.
Moving his hand, he slipped it around so it was supporting him behind her. Hakuei's eyes widened in surprise as he leaned closer, closing the distance between them. "U-um…" She hesitated, trying to move away. But she wasn't quick enough. His eyes locked onto hers, slowly moving down to her lips.
"I could name a few if you'd like," he whispered so that only she could hear him. "I'd like to know a few more if you'd let me." Attractive? More than that.
Lust was the hardest sin to resist.
As Sinbad tried to lean in, Hakuei jumped away before he could get to close. "K-king Sinbad, I ah…I-I get your point, you don't have to do that." rushing to her feet she hurried away from him, and Sinbad regretted his actions quickly.
"Hakuei, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bother you!" Hakuei relaxed slightly, but not enough to come back. Instead she just turned and waved to him goodbye.
"Thank you for listening," Hakuei told him. Her smile was sweet, but it wasn't what he wanted. He wanted more than a smile.
Hakuei, clearly, did not have a problem with lust. Given the position she was in and how strict official attitudes in public, he doubted she'd ever had much experience with it.
That was something he should change.
Greed
When Sinbad wanted something, he got it. That much never changed.
And Sinbad wanted Hakuei.
"Hey Hakuei?"
"Hmm? Yes King Sinbad?"
"You still up for getting married?"