Disclaimer: I own nothing.

A/N: This chapter's a little long, but I couldn't find a place to cut it that wouldn't be awkward. Hope you enjoy this. A lot of it is from Amiti's POV, but there's one scene from Karis's. Bit of a cliffie at the end too!

May – Thank you very much! I'm glad you like it!

Knight-Dawn – I was going to include that, but…well…I won't deny it. I got a little lazy and the chapter was getting a little long…*sweatdrop*. But I'm glad you like the chapters and the interaction. I wasn't too happy about the last chapter, but I'm glad it turned out alright.

Anne Iriel Devay – Wow, I really didn't know that that was your name. It was just the first name I could think of (probably because I have an aunt named Ana, lol). I'm glad you liked the chapter, and thank you for reviewing! And yep, Soulshipping has snuck into my story…

Gravaja Umbros – Here's Sveta's arrival for you. And I can't blame you, Sveta has to be my favorite Golden Sun girl so far. Yeah, I know last chapter was mostly dialogue, but I hope this one makes up for it. Enjoy!

XxXxX

A Different Kind of Storm

CHAPTER 9

Acceptance

XxXxX

The Morgal ship pulled into Ayuthay's newly built harbor town, Sveta's personal flag flying from its mast. Eoleo surveyed it with a critical eye.

"She's better than most Belinsk ships I've seen," he said. "Sveta had her built custom?"

"That's what I heard," said Amiti, watching the ship. The group stood together at the docks, Amiti's honor guard forming a loose circle around them. Tyrell had commented earlier how they were all stronger than Amiti's "honor guard", but Amiti explained that he couldn't tell them to stay behind. They were mostly for show. "Morgal's flagship was destroyed in the Eclipse."

Eoleo frowned. "Lemurian outfitting from the looks of it," he said.

"Probably," said Jenna. "It would be just like Piers to stay and help out."

"Have you heard from him at all?" asked Mia, turning to Rief.

"Just from Nowell," said Rief. "And that was before we left Imil."

Amiti looked away from them, glancing at Karis who stood at his side between him and Matthew. She was looking up at the ship, an excited look on her face. He looked at her, thinking back to the last few days. Yesterday afternoon and most of today's morning had been spent making arrangements to survey both Kaocho and Bilibin more intensely, as well as contacting people in Harapa and Passaj and finding out what they knew. It was exhausting work, and he always hated the person he became when he was immersed in politics.

One of the things he had learned about himself since taking the throne was that he was skilled at political maneuvering. This hadn't been an entirely new discovery. His uncle had been preparing him for the throne since before he could talk in full sentences. Monarchs that refused to participate in politics more often than not ended up dead or in ruin…or like Champa where politics gave way to baser methods of negotiation such as piracy. But in a sense, Champa was more honest.

At least they were clear about what they were doing and what they were stealing.

No…it hadn't come as a surprise that he could act as a politician. What surprised and unnerved him was how skilled he could be at it, and even more than that, that he enjoyed it. It was like one of his witty arguments with Tyrell writ large—a complex game that he found he liked to win. He would never admit it to anyone, though. He hated admitting it to himself. It went against all of his principles of honor and honesty.

Part of him worried that he was treating the issue of Karis like another political endeavor. Certainly, he hadn't exactly been forthright with her about his intentions. Was it because he was afraid she would refuse him again?

He thought back to what he intended to do before he left, and wondered if she would even accept…

"Dude, stop staring at Karis," said Tyrell from behind him.

Both Amiti and Karis jumped, and Amiti quickly looked away before Karis could catch him. He swore he could feel his face heating up in embarrassment. "I wasn't staring at Karis," he said. "I was thinking."

"Yeah," said Tyrell. "About Karis!"

"I was looking in her general direction. That's not the same as looking at her."

"That's a load of—!" began Tyrell.

"Pipe down, you two," said Eoleo. "Ship's docked."

Tyrell looked away, still fuming. Amiti looked back up at the ship, watching as they lowered the gangplank. They didn't need to—he had seen Sveta leap from the prow and land on the ground without difficulty—but like his honor guard, there were some things one had to do to keep up appearances.

"There she is," said Matthew, watching as a violet-haired figure appeared on deck, heading towards the gangplank.

"Where is she?" asked Himi from behind them, standing on her tiptoes. "I don't see her."

Amiti and Eoleo obligingly moved out of the way to let the smallest member of their party through. Sveta walked down the gangplank, a reserved smile on her face as her green eyes scanned the party. They landed on Matthew, and Amiti would have sworn that her long pointed ears twitched.

"Sveta!" said Himi in excitement, running forward and giving her a hug. Karis wasn't far behind, and Sveta jumped in surprise as the two of them hugged her at the same time. Sveta had always been the most reserved out of all of them, at least when it came to emotional displays. Amiti smiled and moved forward. She looked up at him and they exchanged a quick handshake, as was proper between two monarchs. Somehow, it devolved into a quick hug. Amiti pulled away, smiling at his friend and one of his two staunchest allies.

"Welcome to Ayuthay, Sveta," he said.

"Thank you, Amiti," she said.

The greetings passed as they normally did, with the other members of their party giving Sveta a hug—except Eoleo, who settled for ruffling her hair affectionately. Her hug with Matthew seemed to last just a little bit longer than with everyone else. He glanced at Karis, catching her eye for confirmation. She nodded at him and grinned, indicating that she had seen it too.

He turned away from the inevitable introductions between Sveta and the Warriors of Vale. Matthew's voice carried over to him.

"Dad, Mom, this is Sveta, the queen of Morgal…"

"What now?" asked Karis, looking up at him.

He turned towards her. "Now?" he asked. "We head back to the palace. I have a meeting in two hours."

Karis made a face. "You're working?" she asked. "On the first day we're all together?"

He gave her an apologetic smile. "Something important came up. I'll make it up to you."

"Why do I get the feeling all of you are keeping secrets from me?" asked Karis.

Amiti's smile grew a little more sheepish. "I'll make it up to you," he repeated.

"You as in me or you as in all of us?"

"Both."

Karis didn't look convinced. He sighed. "You know, a good number of traveling merchants set up stores in the harbor," he said. "You girls could spend the day here, provided Sveta isn't too tired."

"…We might," said Karis, looking around. "I'll ask Sveta and Himi. But don't work so late. Everyone else wants to see you too, and you were working all day yesterday."

"I know," said Amiti. "We'll all have dinner together, and we'll spend the rest of the evening together. How does that sound?"

Karis frowned, considering it. "Dinner," she said. "Or we'll all come in and drag you out of your study, kicking and screaming."

Amiti chuckled. "I'm sure the court would love to see that," he said. "Dinner. I promise. I'll remind the cooks to prepare some mild dishes."

XxXxX

As promised, he had ended his meeting a full half hour before dinner was to start. Amiti stood in his bedroom, glancing at his wardrobe. As king of Ayuthay, he didn't lack for options when it came to what to wear to dinner. Granted, since he had the oddity of wearing—as Eoleo put it—"real clothes", his choices were somewhat more limited than his predecessors, but that wasn't enough to bother him.

He glanced at the bundle of clothes on his bed. He hadn't had dinner with everyone else yesterday. The spy's information had caused him to forego the meal altogether. Now, though…

He walked over to the bundle of white and blue, untying the string that bound it together and unrolling the clothes.

XxXxX

Fifteen minutes later, he stepped into the dining hall. The clothes fit him well, even though they weren't quite what he was used to. The material was thicker than his usual clothes, and slightly heavier. The members of their party, as well as the Warriors of Vale, were seated at the table and looked up at him as he entered the room, stepping out of the shadowed entryway and into the light.

They froze, some of them with wide eyes. Garet actually jumped out of his chair, and although he relaxed when he realized it was just Amiti, the gesture did not go unmissed. He frowned. "What?" he asked, turning to look at one of the mirrors that lined the dining room's walls.

He froze. The clothing was mostly white, with patterns traced on it in blue. The patterns were predominantly in light blue, the same shade as his hair, although there were a few darker patterns as well. His hair had grown over the past two years. Where it used to fall just above his shoulders, it now fell an inch or so below his shoulders. Dressed in Ayuthayan gold and deep blue, there had been some similarities, but now, wearing Mercury Clan clothing, there was no mistake.

He looked like Alex.

He exhaled, reining in his feelings quickly. "I…suppose I do resemble him," he said, turning towards the group. A few of them gave him guilty looks.

"It's…the hair," said Himi, tentatively pointing at his light blue hair.

Amiti glanced back at the mirror and frowned, pushing his hair back slightly. "I'll be right back," he said, turning around and walking back to his room. He shut the door behind him, opening his drawer and pulling out a deep blue strip of cloth, embroidered with several gold designs on it.

He hesitated. He had never tried to tie his hair back before. As a prince, he had never had to bother with things like that, and since he had too much pride to ask someone to do it for him…

"Let me," said a voice, a hand reaching out and taking the cloth from his hand. He looked up. Karis stood there, his bedroom door open behind him. He had forgotten to close it. He frowned.

"Sit," she said, indicating the bed.

Amiti sat, and she placed her hands on his shoulders, positioning him so his back was towards her. He felt Karis's hands grab onto his hair tentatively, her fingertips brushing his collar as she swept his hair back. A shiver ran through him at the touch. He could feel her running her fingers through his hair methodically, teasing out any tangles.

"…You didn't need to come," he said softly as she worked, fixing his eyes on one corner of the room.

"…I wanted to," said Karis.

He sighed. All of his secrets and everything that had gone through his mind since he first found out that Alex was his father threatened to spill out at once, and he had to fight to keep it back. He had already had one breakdown over the issue, the first time he found out. He didn't need another one.

"…It's such a trivial issue," he said. "…I don't know why I came back. Of course I would resemble him. It doesn't matter."

"It does," said Karis. He tensed, and she sighed, realizing her error. "Not to us. But it matters to you."

…That much was true. He thought back to his earlier decisions, the plans he had drawn up and put in place. "…I don't want to resemble him," he admitted. "Sometimes I wish my uncle had never told me the truth."

"Do you?" asked Karis.

"…Sometimes," he said. "…But no, not when I think about it. In the end, I suppose it's better to know the truth. But…"

"But?" asked Karis.

"…Ever since I found out, I've seen him in me…" admitted Amiti. "…The way I act, the things that I do…every time I use Psynergy I remember where I got it."

Karis tensed. He couldn't see her, but he could feel it. "You are nothing like him, Amiti," she said. "You look like him and you're a Mercury Adept, but that's where the similarities end."

Oh, Karis. Would you still say that if you knew what I've had to do to keep Ayuthay alive?

The question was on the tip of his tongue, but he didn't say anything. He would rather live with Karis having an incomplete opinion of him than risk chasing her away again.

"None of us care who your father is, Amiti," said Karis. "Except maybe Rief, and he only cares about it because it establishes some sort of relation to him, and he's proud to be related to you."

He paused. Finding out that he was related to Rief had been one of the high points of all this. That Mia considered him a member of the Mercury Clan, despite the fact that he was the illegitimate child of its traitor was another. Her hands released his hair, and she placed one hand on his shoulder, remaining there for a while. He felt the bed shift as she sat beside him, although he didn't turn towards her.

"…I used to think that it would be better if he had not stopped by Ayuthay at all," he admitted. "But I look out the window and I see Lake Barai. I see the Alchemy Well and what it has done for this people. And I understand why my uncle would respect him, even consider him a friend. I can't help but feel a little grateful for that. And if he had never come, I would never have been born. I would never have met you."

Karis didn't say anything for a while. She didn't move, and for a moment, Amiti was afraid that she had said the wrong thing.

"…I'm glad he came," she finally said, her voice quiet. "…Because I got to meet you too."

They sat there in silence for a few moments. He felt Karis lean forward, resting her head on his back. She hesitated for a moment before her hand moved down from his shoulder, her arms wrapping around him from behind. He didn't move, sitting there and listening to her quiet breathing. She didn't say anything. She didn't need to.

A moment later, they were both standing. He paused to glance at his hair. She had gathered it in a loose ponytail a little below his shoulders, and had tied it with the cloth. He nodded at her in thanks, and the two of them walked to dinner.

XxXxX

Karis smiled, sitting down on the grass outside Lake Barai and looking down at the water. The moon was almost full and reflected on the lake's crystal clear surface. It was hard to believe that there was an extensive set of ruins at the bottom of the lake. She wrapped her arms around her legs as she thought about the memory, pulling them closer to her. It had been at the bottom of the lake that Amiti had found the Insight Glass—the event that spurred him to accompany them.

She looked up at her friends. Amiti sat with Mia, talking animatedly to the older Mercury Adept. He was still dressed in the clothes he had worn to dinner. He had, after all, promised them dinner and the rest of the evening. The two of them were seated closer to the water's edge. Ivan, Isaac, Garet, and Jenna were sitting together—Ivan listening and laughing as Garet told a story, complete with hand gestures. Jenna had finally agreed to come live on the mountain with Isaac and Matthew—Karis wondered if he was telling a story about something to do with that, or something to do with their original quest. Matthew and Sveta sat a little bit away from them at the bottom of a gentle slope, talking softly.

She smiled at them, turning her head away from the two of them to look at Amiti. He seemed happier than she had seen him since before the coronation, and Paithos's death. It must have felt nice—being accepted into a family. Ayuthay's king looked up from his conversation with Mia, catching her eye. He smiled briefly at her, and Karis felt her stomach flutter, color rising to her face as she quickly looked away, staring back at the lake. The brief moment they had shared before dinner would not be forgotten.

She looked at Matthew and Sveta again. They didn't look like different people. They looked just like the two friends that she had known and had grown to love. They weren't touching or holding hands. They weren't even seated that close together. But their eyes lit up as they spoke to each other. They smiled and laughed, and the fact that they were happy was obvious to anyone that looked at them.

…Was that the way she looked when she was with Amiti?

She stared down at her hands. She didn't know anymore. What did she feel for him?

And what did he feel for her?

A sudden chill made her look up. The surface of the lake seemed to harden, then crack, ice spreading out from the center of it. She jumped to her feet as the lanterns surrounding the lake suddenly ignited, their orange glow playing against the spreading ice as the entire lake froze. Karis looked around in alarm at the same time as Amiti did. Where was Rief?

"Ha ha!" shouted a triumphant voice. Tyrell and Eoleo burst out of nowhere, each one grabbing one of Amiti's arms as they jumped on the lake's surface. Amiti shouted in surprise, the three of them sliding on the smooth ice and spinning around like some mad figure skater as Amiti tried to break free.

"Have fun, cousin!" called Rief from the balcony behind them. Karis turned her head to see him leaning over the side of the balcony, grinning. Himi stood behind him, a playful smile on her face as she watched them. [1]

Tyrell and Eoleo released Amiti, sending him spiraling out of control. He spun for the last time and skidded to a stop, staring at the two of them.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"You need to relax," said Tyrell with a grin. "We're helping."

He turned to the group of amused onlookers—aside from Garet, who looked annoyed at him—extending his hand to Jenna. Jenna grinned and ignored him, getting to her feet and dragging Isaac onto the ice. Karis smiled at them, watching as Jenna spun around and grabbed Garet by the hand as well. Ivan and Mia stood up, standing next to each other and watching the others. Rief and Himi ran out of the palace, Rief helping Himi onto the lake.

"Bet you can't top this," said Tyrell, sliding into the center of the lake. He spun around three times in place, managing to keep his balance as he stopped spinning, sliding to the side. Eoleo grinned and slid into the center, performing the same feat as Tyrell, but this time doing it in midair. He slid to the side as well, grinning at a crestfallen Tyrell.

A streak of violet suddenly shot into the center. Sveta jumped into the air, her powerful form making the movements seem effortless. She tucked her arms close to her chest as she spun in midair, flipping over her head. Her violet braids moved slightly slower than the rest of her, forming an arc around her. She landed on her feet on the ice, her legs spread apart and her clawed hand tracing a line on the lake's surface as she slid backwards, her green eyes hard in concentration. She spun around as she straightened up, turning to face Tyrell and Eoleo with a triumphant smirk on her face.

Tyrell and Eoleo stared. The rest of the group erupted in laughter. Karis laughed as well, grinning as Sveta helped Matthew onto the ice, holding onto both his hands. Matthew slid across the lake awkwardly, and Karis grinned. He had never been much good with ice. Usually, all he could do was slide in a straight line until something stopped him.

Something blue and white moved into her field of vision and Karis turned. Amiti slid in front of her, taking her hand with his left hand as he bent down and stretched his right hand out to keep his balance. His mouth brushed the back of her palm, and Karis felt her face heat up again.

"…My lady," he said, "May I have this dance?"

He looked up at her, a playful smile on his face, even as his eyes darkened with uncertainty. Karis smiled, her fingers curling around his hand.

"You may," she said, allowing Amiti to lead her onto the ice, into the group of people. He smiled at her, holding onto her hand and leading her in one circuit of the lake. He pulled her close, as if they were dancing, one arm around her waist for a moment. The others stared, and she saw Tyrell nudge Matthew in the side and whisper something, but Karis was determined not to care.

Let them stare.

XxXxX

He paused in front of the older Adept's chambers. His guests had retreated to their rooms for the night, but the light burning underneath the door told him that its occupant was still awake. He placed his hand on the doorknob and paused for one tense moment, listening. There was no sign of Karis. She hadn't decided to pay a late night visit. He took a deep breath. his hands were cold, and his face was pale.

Tonight had finally driven him to a decision. Holding her in his arms, seeing her at his side, feeling her standing there, one hand on his shoulder, supporting him had made him realize something, something that had been lurking at the back of his mind for over two years now. He couldn't imagine life in Ayuthay without her, and it was hard to think about her leaving again. Ayuthay had been his home all his life, but after she left him there—a changed king in a changed country—it hadn't felt like home. In the two weeks that she had been here, the palace felt that way again.

He would do it.

But if he was going to do it, he would do it correctly. Karis wasn't some political engagement. If she accepted him, she would do it without deceit on his part. He would also do it traditionally. She was not just some prize to be won. If she accepted, she would end up Ayuthay's queen. She deserved no less.

It was the first step of that process that terrified him the most, although he had to admit that the others were no less than terrifying. He took a deep breath, gathering his courage as he knocked on the door and opened it.

Ivan was sitting at his desk, looking over a book that he had borrowed from the library. He looked up, his brow furrowing in confusion. "Amiti?" he asked. "What can I do for you?"

Amiti shut the door behind him and took a deep breath, offering Ivan a respectful bow from the waist.

"I ask for permission to court your daughter."

XxXxX

[1] Cold Snap – You can't actually freeze Lake Barai (I tried), but for the purposes of this story, let's say it's possible since every other body of water in the game that can be drained can also be frozen.