Standpoint

From the way Fox had described things, Ace had braced himself for the worst. However he soon realised his lover had exaggerated how bad things were; or perhaps she really had a very serious problem with accepting genuine praise and gratitude. When Swift Hunter had docked at the small jetty next to the fishing boats and other small craft half the locals hanging around had dashed off and the other half had run forward to greet her, bowing and smiling and all utterly delighted. She'd been congratulated on her pregnancy over a dozen times in the first minute, children had wiggled between the adults to show off trinkets or babble about what they'd been up to since her last visit and several women had started reciting a litany of births, achievements, weddings, accidents and deaths as the party moved slowly away from the shore and up the hill towards the village. Fox did not give the faintest indication that she wasn't enjoying the press of bodies and childish hands pulling on her skirts, smiling, listening, commiserating and comforting in turn as she listened to the chatter. Ace had fallen in step behind her, interested in how nobody had so much as commented on his presence. The men were keeping a wary eye on him, but had not even asked him to identify himself.

The flame Logia's first interaction with the locals was with a small girl who had shown off her starfish hair ornaments, who spent about half a minute glancing at him over her shoulder before tugging on Fox' skirt to gain his lover's attention.

"What is it, Nidora-chan?" Fox asked, pausing and turning to look the little girl right in the eye.

"Rokuseizon-sama! Who is he?" the girl asked, pointing at Ace.

Fox smiled. "He's one of my consorts, Nidora-chan. He has a normal name but I call him Kajin."

"Why?" this question came from a boy with albatross feathers in his hair. Ace took this as his cue, grinned and let a fireball coalesce and made it bounce up and down in his palm.

"I'm fire," he said simply. The boy's eyes widened.

"You can show off later, Kajin," Fox said lightly, her smile showing amusement though Ace could feel tension as well through their bond.

"Sure thing Precious," he said casually, letting the fireball wink out of existence and hooking his thumbs back over his belt. It felt odd to be wearing shorts again and sandals rather than boots, but he didn't want any of his new clothes to be stolen by overzealous locals. His shoulder-length indigo hair fell around his face in waves, slightly more orderly than before but no less thick; if he'd been blond he'd have looked like a miniature version of his Pops without the chin.

Fox smiled and the procession continued, though some of the smaller children looked like they wanted to come closer and get him to do more tricks for them. Ace snuck a theatrical glance at the back of his lover's head, then conjured up a dozen Hotarubi to dance between his hands. His diminutive watchers were entranced, peeking out at him from behind older teens and adults who seemed just as impressed as the little ones. Ace continued playing with the animated sparks until they reached the large temple complex he remembered from his last visit and he had to extinguish the Hotarubi before Fox 'noticed'. He hid his hands behind his back and put on his most innocent expression as his lover turned to look at him, which made all the kids watching him giggle and a lot of the adults smile knowingly.

"Rokuseizon-sama!" came a familiar male voice from across the square. Ace turned to see Sako hurrying towards them, both his wives in his wake with three children under the age of five between them.

"Sako," Fox said warmly, holding out her arms towards the massively built warrior; it was a bit odd for Ace to be a good six inches taller than the man who'd loomed over him not even a year ago. Sako walked right up to his 'goddess' and hugged her, mindful of her protruding belly.

"It is an honour to have you here, lady goddess," the warrior rumbled warmly, "and a joy to see you have chosen to bear a child at long last. Is your companion the father?" he looked up at Ace, then frowned thoughtfully as though trying to place him.

"That's quite a long story you're asking for, Sako," Fox said laughingly, patting his arm. "How about I explain why I'm here in private and let everybody else prepare a banquet for this evening and we can tell the tales of my adventures to everyone then."

There was a cheer all around and their audience quickly began to chatter amongst themselves, some running off into the forest and others dashing back down the paved road they'd just ascended. Fox caught Ace' hand and led him into the main temple, Sako and his older wife following them as the younger wife herded the children away towards a grass-roofed shelter with the promise of a story and treats from the cooking she intended to start.

Ace had visited the temple before: it was a simple large stone room with corridors leading out to smaller shrines on three sides. Fox however did not go down any of these corridors but turned into an alcove right to the left of the entrance and led the way up a hidden staircase to the second floor, which consisted of a smaller room with a high ceiling and a colonnaded balcony all the way around it.

"You live up here?" he asked, taking in the bright wall hangings, thick mats and elegant furniture carved in the simple local style.

"It is my temple, Kajin," Fox pointed out dryly, making herself comfortable on a stool. Ace simply dropped onto the mat in front of her, crossed his legs and leant back so his shoulders rested against her knees. Sako and his wife –wasn't her name Truei?– sat on sturdy square cushions facing Fox, making Ace feel like he was in one of those little village schools he'd seen from time to time on small islands.

"So," Fox started quietly. "As you have noticed, I am expecting my first child. However there are those who object to the man who is the father of my daughter-to-be and have tried to harm me. My fathers' enemies have also renewed their efforts, seeing my condition as a sign of increased vulnerability. My father has therefore decreed that I will be spending the rest of my pregnancy in hiding. He is currently in search of an appropriate location, but as soon as he finds one I will be sent there and likely not return until after my daughter is weaned."

"I take it this man is not your child's father then?" Truei asked.

Fox smiled. "I have taken two consorts; my child belongs to the one who is not here. He is training with my father and intends to surpass him."

"Your lover means to defeat your father?" Sako said wonderingly. "He must be a powerful warrior then."

"Currently more young, stubborn and ambitious than powerful," Fox admitted, "but my father believes he has the potential to do so."

Sako chuckled. "Ah, I know the type."

"So," Truei said, "considering that all these changes have come in the past year since you last visited, Rokuseizon-sama, would you share the full tale now? I know you would prefer certain details not to become public. Besides, I feel my husband has recognised your beloved from somewhere, which must be a tale in itself."

Ace tensed slightly but Fox let her hand tangle in his hair to massage his scalp reassuringly. "It is a long tale," she admitted, "with much pain, triumph, horror, adventure and passion to carry it along. It will take a long time to tell, but I dare say the banquet will not be ready for many hours yet so I have time."

"If you would, Rokuseizon-sama," Sako asked with a warm smile. "I for one would like to hear of those who have brought such peace and direction to your heart."

"Always so observant, Sako," Fox sighed, a smile teasing the corners of her mouth. "Very well: attend then to the tale of how I met a young man with the Will to become the ruler of the seas who claimed me for his court and gave me purpose, and through whom I met a young asura who caught my eye and later stole my heart." She smiled mischievously. "The full tale of how I met Kajin here is a story for another time, though it intersects with this one."

"This story begins as I was sailing near Reverse Mountain, at the very gates of Paradise, nearly a year ago and stopped at an island to offer healing…"

So question: Do you want to hear the story as told to Sako and Truei? Or should I just move on to their reactions and the subsequent banquet?