The sun naturally rose on the kingdom of Noursaia as it has done since the existence of both entities some eons ago.
'Is it morning, already?' Minato inwardly presumes to himself once the sun rays seep through the blinds.
He was about to stretch out his entire body once he observes the light from the window. It was a habit he developed from his master.
The blonde suddenly recalls that something or rather someone that lays on him.
'How could I forget that easily…she snapped last night…' The young man recollects the dramatic event a couple of hours back.
The knight then felt a shift before he observes Natalie's raven black hair enters his line of vision. It was at that moment, he realized that she just awoke from her slumber.
She drowsingly rubs the sleep out of her eyes once she sits completely erect. A slight movement caught her attention.
Her green eyes sleepy cut over to see who is next to her and feels at ease once she instantly recognizes who it is.
"I should've known that it would have been you. You seem to have this ability to find me whenever I don't want to be found." The woman sharply voices while she closes her eyes again and rests her back against the back of the sofa.
Minato could not help but laugh at her statement, "Even after all these years, it seems as if I haven't lost my touch yet."
The raven haired beauty permitted herself to recall a certain memory, 'I remember when he came back the second time to visit my dad and I...'
"Hey! What are you doing up there?!"
"You know you can fall and break your arm." A ten-year-old Minato conveys his concerns for her safety from the base of a rather large tree.
Natalie casually leans her head against the bark of the tree with her eyes affix to an item that was on the same branch she was presently on.
The girl inaudibly sighs before she argues, "I felt like climbing up here that's why! It's not like I haven't broken my arm before."
The blonde shakes his head at just how stubborn the girl still is even after two years since he first visits them with his master.
'It seems as if I have no other choice then.' He conceived to himself. The boy speedily nears the trunk of the branch and cared climbs upward.
The raven haired girl cautiously leans forward, hears some noise, and thinks, 'They're almost here.'
She was completely tuning out Minato's presence due to her not really caring about him at the moment.
He climbed up the trunk and halted once he reached her and commented, "At least you won't be bored up here all by yourself."
His obsidian eyes noted that she intently stared at something because she did not respond to his previous statement.
'What are you looking at?' He inwardly demanded.
Minato then traces her gaze to a nest construct from small twigs, brown leaves, and some other material that holds it all together. What really caught his attention were the three eggs that were currently about to hatch.
The sound of baby birds cries instantly breaks the silence amongst them. The arrival of the little birdies' mother catches their sights.
"Is this why you came up here?" The blonde curiously probed while they observed the mother bird dutifully feed her newborn children.
She still refuses to respond to him. The raven haired girl was silently admiring the very moment of witnessing new life being born right in front of her very own eyes.
For some reason, Natalie could not help but grow curious as to how Minato would asses the situation. She quickly cuts her eyes over to him.
The girl was thoroughly surprised to see that he was even remotely interested expression on his face.
'There just maybe a little hope for him…'
Natalie was opening her eyes to reality before rising to her feet and scratching the back of her head causing her long ponytail to shake from side to side.
"I think it's about time we start heading back." Minato purposely suggests to her before he stands to his feet as well.
She faces him, tilts her head, and thanks him, "Thanks again. You know you really didn't have to come again to help me out."
The blonde casually shrugs his shoulders, returns the stare, and promises, "It will be our little secret then."
'I really don't deserve you as a friend or a rival…' She thought to herself before they departed from her office
Meanwhile at the castle,
Aikka and Eva made their daily morning stop at Rick's office.
"Are you sure she's coming back today?" Eva pried to Rick once again about Natalie's whereabouts after they entered inside of his office.
The raven haired male nods his head at the queen's question and assures, "I have a feeling she'll be back this morning."
"Oh, have you seen Minato too?" Aikka then inquires about Minato's whereabouts as well.
His eyebrow rose at the couple's questions this morning, which sparked his immediate interest.
"Well I did order Minato to go find Natalie for me." He provides an answer to the king's question while he leans back against his chair to get comfortable.
"Is that why you said that she would be back this morning." She alleges after she listens to Rick's answer to her husband question.
He exchanged glances between his wife and Rick that led him to develop the feeling that they knew something that he did not know.
"Eva, are you going to tell me what you two are talking about?" The Noursaian politely demands once he faces his wife, who sits to the left of him.
The young woman then rotates toward her husband and comments, "Of course I will, but right now we have other business to attend to."
The young man could not help but to wear a smile after he hears his wife reassures him an answer to his hesitate question.
This time it was Rick's turn to look confuse as the couple passes cryptic messages on to one another that only they can decipher.
"Rick," Eva's voice snaps him out of his thoughts. He acknowledges her with a nod of his head in an up then down manner.
"Do you think you can come back here when Natalie and Minato return to the castle's grounds?" The pregnant woman requests of him.
'What do those two have planned for Minato and Natalie?' He mulls to himself as he pays close attention to their entire conversation.
"I don't see why not. I plan to met them upon their arrival." Natalie's father agrees before he rotates in his chair.
0000
"So you think that would be the best time is when I leave?" Princess Mai asked for clarification from Jordan, who presently occupied a space in in her temporary room.
He nods his head and explains, "They've already dispelled any thoughts of you being an enemy to them. That would be the perfect opportunity while you maintain your princess image."
"I am due to leave the following week so I need to call them three days from now…" Her voice trails off within her statement.
"Trust me, the Krogs would have no other choice but to listen to the information that you are about to prove them with." The Avatar reassures her and her feelings.
"...but they will not launch an immediate attack. Plus, Queen Eva is due within the next month."
"She might have a miscarriage and I definitely don't want that on my conscious." She conveys her worries with a thoughtful expression on her face.
The young man steps closer to the girl, loops one of his fingers through some of her curls, and advises, "Don't worry about that...leave that up to me. You should just worry about providing them the necessary information."
The princess sights connects with the golden figure's eyes, feels some kind of comfort and nods her head to show that she agrees with the plan.
'That was easier then I expected it to be...' The Avatar concludes to himself with a devilish smile present on his face.
0000
The streets of Noursaia were particularly crowded, especially in the morning, due to the fact that vendors and merchants dutifully set up their shops.
"Were the cloaks really necessary, Minato?" Natalie promptly grills him while she obediently trails a couple of steps behind him.
"Remember to always be cautious when walking in public...besides its a little fun like this." Minato eagerly replies while he glances over his shoulder at her.
'Still so childish…' She was hopelessly deeming while shaking her head. Her green eyes eventually landed on the local park.
"Hey...can you..." The young woman nervously pauses at the end of her sentences. It was as if she could not find the right words to say.
His obsidian eyes promptly surveys their surroundings before he hastily registers exactly where they were. He quickly stops and extends his hand out to her.
"You know, I remember you had a hard time asking me the same thing when we were younger? Even though, you didn't like asking me for help." The blonde chides while he directly stares at her in the face.
The raven haired woman wearily reaches out for his hand. She suddenly matches up to his pace before she honestly admits, "I was angry at you."
His sights study her face to observe her stare off at something in the distance when she mentions, "...because you didn't tell me that you was planning on starting your candidacy for a Knight of the Round so early."
'I had a feeling that this was going to come up sooner or later…' He deems to himself before his attention returns to the road ahead of him.
"There were two reasons why I didn't tell you. but before I do, let me ask you a question," The knight conveys with seriousness present in his tone.
'It's really three reasons why…'
"Is that the reason why you stop speaking to me for about six and a half years?" The young man dramatically popped the question.
'No…' "Yes, some of it was. So why didn't you not tell me?" The woman answers his question before she asks her question.
"You were finally enjoying yourself at the party. I didn't want to ruin your night with that announcement." Minato honestly replies, which causes her to reflect briefly on that memory.
"Then...I didn't know what our relationship was with one another. I wasn't even sure if you viewed me as a rival or a close friend or just the spineless worm who lost to you three times out of the four."
That statement causes her to freeze in her thoughts, 'How could he have not know…'
Natalie was finding herself staring at the ground not knowing how to respond to the blonde's previous statement.
"We're back at home sweet home." Her green eyes then glances up to make out that they were now in front of the castle.
'I can't believe I'm back here again.' While in her thoughts, she unknowingly squeezes his hand.
"Trust me, I will protect you. So try not to worry about him too much." He confidently reassured her after he felt her squeeze his hand.
For some reason, the young woman was at ease whenever she was around Minato, 'Why do I feel calm?'
0000
Eva, along with the twins, were currently in the gazebo as they admired the early morning scenery of the castle.
"Hey mom, didn't you say that Natalie was coming back today?" Kieran occasionally asks his mother while his sister settles off to her side.
Her crimson eyes behold her only son before she playfully quips, "You sure have been asking a lot of question about Natalie lately."
Eva notes how quickly her son became mute when her daughter alleges, "I believe he has a crush on Ms. Natalie, mom."
"You know what Kiera? I believe you just told me the truth." She coyly teases her son once she spots light pink tints on his tan cheeks.
"Mom!" Kieran fretfully spoke since he was irritated that his mom and twin ganged up him on.
A servant approaches them during their talk, "Queen Eva, Prince Kieran, and Princess Kieran, excuse my interruption…"
The queen briefly breaks away from her children before she acknowledges the servant, "Go ahead, what's the news that you bring me?"
"Sir Minato and Cpt. Natalie have arrived on the castle grounds. They're making their way up to the front of the castle." The servant relays the message.
"Kieran and Kiera, can you push mommy?" The raven haired woman with crimson tips requests her children, who wastes no time to fulfill the order.
"Let's go then…" Eva encourages her children before they push her down the ramp.
0000
Minato and Natalie unintentionally drew closer to each other during they trekked up to the castle, which appeared to be so far away for the woman.
'Do I really want to go back…' She was sincerely weighing when finding herself briefly stopping a couple of feet away from the castle's entrance.
"Natalie?" The blonde calmly calls out to her since he no longer feels her hand within his.
His obsidian eyes was watching her shaking her head before catching up to him as if she had to rid a bad thought that was entering her head.
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Author's Note:
12.10.16 Major editing revision
06.25.17 Major cleaning edits