August 18, Summer, year 36

I don't know whether to be shocked, annoyed or amused, but I ran into… Uh, Hikari! The same one who Tsukiko sent to cause problems sixteen years ago.

She's actually.. not that bad. A little pretentious, but not that bad…

It was a day for Skye to be in Court, but as often happened he reminded them of their freedom to wander Tranquility halls. The younger kids were playing out in the gardens—Alan had said that Yue might take them to play with some of his friends, and she'd said okay as long as they were careful—with Lauren keeping an eye on them while drawing. Jamie was exploring the many types of plants, hoping to take some back home with him when the time came to leave.

Meri was with her mother, riding her shoulders. They were actually in the Tranquility halls, admiring all the things they hadn't seen as Claire meandered. Smiles were coaxed from a variety of faces as the blonde's cheery laugh echoed down the halls.

Determined to make her own fun despite the attitudes of the nobles who walked passed her, Claire and Meri zoomed down the halls, the small child shrieking in glee as she 'flew' on her mother's shoulders.

This ended when they skidded around a corner and abruptly ran into what felt like a bundle of gauze and silk. Quick as a blink Claire shifted her child from her shoulders to her arms as she tumbled backwards, wincing at the crack of her back against stone. She had been running at near full-speed… it made the resulting crash a little more spectacular than anticipated.

"Er…" and she winced as she sat up. Bruises on her back now. "Sorry about that?"

"Somehow, I find myself doubting that, but you are only mortal."

"Hey! I resemble that remark!"

There was a log pause, as gauzes continued to flutter to the floor. The lady—for the voice was female even if Claire couldn't yet make out the features—seemed highly confused by the comment.

"Should that not be 'I resent that remark?'" she asked after a long moment.

Claire giggled.

"Why should I resent it?" she asked reasonably, rubbing the small of her back. "I am mortal, there's no point in denying it."

Finally, the last of the veils slid to the floor, one landing on Meri who giggled a little, and pulled at it. It revealed a face that Claire had to wrack her mind as to why it was so familiar, before her blue eyes went wide in surprise.

"It's, it's, it's!" She pointed in surprise, which quickly faded to puzzlement. "You know I don't think I ever heard your name. What was it again?"

The lady sighed, but it was very clear from the twitching of her lips that she was trying to not smile. Cat-green eyes glittered with suppressed resigned amusement. This was not how she'd intended to meet the blonde.

"Hikari," she replied. "I am Princess Hikari of Vapors Castle."

"You are her then!"

To Hikari's surprise Claire didn't glare or act suspicious in the slightest. Instead, she giggled. She couldn't help it, the castle name was too silly.

"You look different from what I remember. Your hair was style differently and your eyes looked more yellow than green."

"You are not… angered?"

"Why should I be?" Claire shrugged lightly. "You were under orders so it wasn't like you had a choice in the matter. It would be pointless to tag you with blame when it was Tsukiko's fault."

Hikari felt her jaw unhinge slightly at Claire's plain disrespect for the queen. But then again the blonde hadn't been too impressed with Tsukiko ever since her arrival in court, tired, and needing more sleep than a single 'night' could afford.

"I really am sorry for running you down," Claire offered the silver-haired woman her hand, a friendly smile crossing her face. "Lacking the usual things to keep us busy we're sort of… fabricating our own entertainment."

In a rustle of silk and satin Hikari accepted the work-roughened hand, sliding to her feet in one graceful move. Her hair had been shorn after her failure with Skye, it hung barely past her shoulders now, confined in a simple half-ponytail. They showed off her earrings, two in each ear. One was a surprisingly deep red stone—too dark to be a ruby, but what it was she didn't know—the other was pearl and a blue stone she didn't recognize.

The blonde had quickly learned that there were a lot more in the way of magical stones than she could find in her small town, but learning about them was part of the fun. She made a mental note to ask Skye later as she helped replace the fallen gauze on the Lady, Meri having hidden behind her mother again at the sight of a stranger.

"You were perhaps running through the Rainbow Halls?" Hikari asked, noting the corridor she would have passed had it not been for the collision. "It is not unheard of, even the younger children of Her Majesty do that."

"Is that what the place is called?" Claire flicked a glance over her shoulder as she hoisted Meredith back onto her shoulders. "Suits, though it's plain enough for a name."

"What would you have called them?"

She heard the note of faint irritation and high-minded superiority, and dismissed it. Hikari was PoM, it was understandable that she'd take offense to the comment that 'Rainbow Halls' was a plain name.

"Dunno," and the shrug bounced the small child, making her giggle. "But just calling them the Rainbow Halls doesn't do them justice."

There was another long silence.

"You are a very strange mortal."

Claire cracked up.

"Yeah," she managed between spurts of laughter, "I get that a lot."

"You met Hikari?" Skye's surprise nearly knocked him off the bed where they were lounging. "Should I be worried?"

Claire smacked his head in feigned annoyance, and stuck out her tongue, giving him a shove that knocked him the rest of the way off. He fell as comically as possible, surprising a spurt of laughter from her.

"No, you should not," she informed him tartly, sprawling across the bed to peer down at him. "It was Tsukiko's fault, so there's really no reason for me to be angry with Hikari, is there? Besides, she's not bad. A little bit more stuck up than Miharu, and not as friendly as Ten-chan," the messenger had specifically requested that nickname, so Claire complied, "but not bad. We got into a talk over some of the silly names of the halls. It was fun!"

"So you've contacted her?"

"Yes. She blames the Queen for my actions, so I think there will be no troubles in getting close to her."

"How progresses the plans?"

"I know where and how. They should be executed with no effort upon my part, and blameless indeed."

"Good."

"You agree to my terms? I do not want him harmed."

"He is in the way."

"So is she. If he becomes harmed, I will tell her everything, and get her the proof needed. Your plans will be for naught."

Hands clenched tightly on fabric covered chair arms.

"Instead of death, why not alter his memory?" the comment was neither hasty nor panicked, thought had clearly been put into it. "Erase her and replace it with the idea that he should return with me to my lands, leaving the kingdom in care of another. Then you can do as you will."

"…We shall see. You are dismissed."

Silks and satin rustled as she curtsied and withdrew from his chambers. Hand founds and toyed with a blue-glowing dagger. Perhaps he would have to use it on her instead, as soon as she had accomplished his goals.

Outside of lessons with Miharu and meetings with Ten-chan, I'm going to be talking with Hikari as well. Maybe I'll get a better insight to the court activities from the Princess of the Castle of Vapors.

…it's really hard to write that with a straight face…