- Within a Suddenly Disarrayed Palace -
Prince Toneri's Ambassador is a stout, irritating creature.
Having arrived two nights following the Prince's initial proposal, the Ambassador has left Konoha Palace in a disastrous disarray of havoc. He is more toad than man, with bulging eyes and a flat jaw. He waddles and storms about the hallways, demanding time with this important person and that. The creature is here to make sure all orders are prepared by demand of Her Majesty, The Queen, Prince Toneri's mother, and he does so with the most diabolical countenance imaginable.
The staff of Konoha's Palace are not very pleased. They are already on edge by the presence of the Prince, who remains coolly distant and inhuman. The maids think him a phantom still attached to the living world. They have nightmares about him coming into their chambers and turning the air around him so cold that they freeze to death in their sleep. He terrifies them, but his ambassador frustrates them. Awful table manners. An odd pallet that requires the cooks to make him his own, separate dish. The footmen around him have been asked to change uniforms several times; apparently, the usual cobalt they wear is ill on the Ambassador's eye. Even the nobles who come and go through the palace find the creature annoying, but no one matches the distaste that one Snake Mage holds for him.
Come a sweltering morning, Sasuke arrives at his laboratory to find most of the equipment confiscated. The Ambassador is barking orders as men carry boxes of equipment and specimen out from the room, lightning zapping above their heads. They avoid the eye of the Snake Mage carefully, knowing well that he is not pleased by the sight of them. And, indeed, he is not. He was given no warning or word of this — and if he were, he would have rebuked. Does the Ambassador not understand how important his research is? Is he so blind to the Empress's curse?
Frowning, Sasuke steps past the men and approaches the Ambassador, who has a sharp leer to his gaze as he continues to bark orders. Upon noticing the approach of the Snake Mage, the Ambassador quiets, then clears his throat.
"There you are, boy. Perfect timing." It takes a lot of audacity to call a powerful dark magic mage such as him a boy. Sasuke does not hide the irritation screwing into his features. "I've been authorized to see to the removal and replacement of the equipment here. As you surely know, my kingdom conducts its own sort of research and experiments, and with Prince Toneri soon to become emperor of this palace, I saw it fit to prepare all areas for his rule."
His rule. As if an emperor is the only ruler with power in Konoha.
"Has the Empress agreed to this . . . revampment?" Sasuke asks.
At that, the creature snorts and laughs. "What a jest! Of course I would not dare to bother Her Ladyship with something as meager as this."
Another bitter taste comes to Sasuke's mouth. Of course Hinata hasn't a clue about it. If she did, he is sure she wouldn't allow it. The laboratories were created and supplied by her lady-in-waiting, after all, and Sasuke would much rather trust Katrin to provide the correct type of equipment for magical experiments than some lousy Ambassador from a kingdom that only practices Moonlight Magic and nothing else.
"Well." Sasuke glares at the nearly empty room. "If you would be so kind as to let me know when your revampment is finished . . . ."
The Ambassador takes a moment to shout at a man, then turns back to Sasuke.
"Is that necessary?" he asks. "After all, what good is a laboratory to you when Her Ladyship's curse is broken by Prince Toneri's magic?"
It feels as though a hornet's stinger has implanted itself between his ribs. Because the slimy creature is right. Soon, once their engagement is made official, Prince Toneri will offer his magic, and there is a great chance it will be enough to unlock the Light Lock. Hinata's curse will be lifted, and there would be no reason for Sasuke to stay. He knows this, but hearing this toad say it so bluntly irritates him beyond belief.
With long strides, Sasuke leaves. He retrieves Aoda from the royal stables, and they traverse the wild outer fields of the kingdom. The sun melts into his dark skin and exposed face, but he does not care.
...
More staff from the Moonlight Kingdom come. They share the same, foreign features as their prince — almost human, but not quite, with silver hair and awfully pale skin. They work to the silent needs of their prince, but some are positioned by the Ambassador, ready to follow any silly command he barks.
Sasuke does not have the patience to go to the palace often, unless necessary. Being around that toad for too long makes Caduceus rattle with resentment; even his pitchy voice gets on Sasuke's nerves. For the sake of his own sanity, he spends most of his time in the stables or walking the outskirts of the kingdom. With no laboratory, he has no reason to collect specimen, so he just . . . wanders and counts the hours and thinks how, if this is how it's going to be, he should just leave. There is no reason for his being here. Every wasted minute here could be spent tracking Itachi.
"Master," Aoda comes from the pasture, bending his head down to peek into the stables. He knows what Sasuke is thinking. He can taste it in the air. "You will really leave Empress Hinata so soon?"
Strapping his cloak to his shoulders, Sasuke nods. "What reason have I to stay?"
"Well." Aoda pauses. "What if there is something else under the Light Lock?"
Caduceus secured to his side, Sasuke huffs. "I trust their new researchers will have everything under control."
It's hard to keep his bruised ego out of his voice. Sasuke does not meet his companion's eye as he straightens himself, rids his person of any straw of hay, then marches out of the stables. Hopefully, the Empress will have some time for him, even on an unannounced visit. It will be short. I see I am no longer needed, so I am departing. Luck with the curse. And with the marriage. Ah — but he should keep that last part to himself. Their marriage has nothing to do with him.
Up the stairs, through the grand doors. Inside, he immediately hears that insufferable voice. It would do good to avoid the Ambassador, but it echos from the wing where, usually, Empress Hinata can be found at this time of day. Steeling himself, Sasuke continues on.
And there he is: the toad. Shouting at maids again as they try to get through their dusting. They're slow, apparently. Daft at their own job. How can the Empress allow such staff to work in her palace? A shame! The Ambassador's face is bloated and red, fevered with anger. He stands on an armchair, the heels of his black shoes digging into the cream cushion. The maids huddle together, heads bowed, some petrified, others annoyed but unable to speak. Perhaps, if it were just them and the Ambassador, they'd find their tongue; but he is surrounded by four of his alien-esque men, standing around him like bodyguards, so they keep silent.
"Ah, now there's a face I want to see!" The Ambassador gives a crooked grin to Sasuke as he enters the large seating room. "Come, Snake Mage. Show these girls their place. I understand I am not from this kingdom, so they may not take my word as fact? But you were born here, no? In that quaint stable, I hear."
Does he think Sasuke a man born from horses? Is that the sort of impression a toad like him has?
Sasuke bites back a sneer. "My apologies for bothering you. I am on the hunt for the Empress. If you'll excuse me."
"Stay, my boy!" The Ambassador hops off the chair, grabbing Sasuke's shoulder before he can leave. "Just a moment's time. I'm sure a small example would be no impossible feat for a mage such as yourself. Her Ladyship can wait."
Sasuke glares down at him, a rage surfacing on his skin and pooling venom into his teeth. "I will not make Her Highness wait."
As if seeing the mess his words has started, the Ambassador releases Sasuke's shoulder and takes a small step back. His face is flushed.
"Now, now." He coughs. "I meant no ill by my words, and you know that, boy. I only mean to help Her Ladyship by righting the wrongs of these girls here. See? Won't you look?" He waddles around the room, wiping his hand on this surface and that. "Look! Dust everywhere! Now is that appropriate for this grand palace — the very palace, mind you, that will soon be under the rule of my lord, Prince Toneri?"
Sasuke is starting to get tired of that man's name and that damned word — rule.
"A word," Sasuke mutters, "that should be had with the butler, not myself."
One of the maids stirs. "But, sir, we haven't even gotten to cleaning yet—"
"Silence, you!" The Ambassador snaps, wipes at his sweaty face, then peers at Sasuke. "See what I must work with? Have mercy on my patience, boy, and give an example. I am sure that magic of yours can do something worthwhile, can it not?"
Sasuke had started to turn to the door, but this remark catches him in a freeze.
"You suggest," he says, lowly, "that I clean the room myself?"
It's insult enough to be disregarded in regards to the laboratory, and it's insult enough to be viewed as a peasant boy born with the horses in hay and mud — but to be even suggested the idea of using his powerful, dark magic to clean is beyond offensive.
It's a death wish.
Sasuke regards the small, slimy creature before him. He brings out his staff, the twin snakes glaring with magic as they're pulled from the cloak. It makes the Ambassador turn pale, his large mouth snapping shut.
"Try to order me around again," Sasuke dares.
"I meant no insult."
"Then I suggest watching your mouth, Ambassador."
That familiar, ugly red lights up the Ambassador's face. "How dare you! You have no authority to speak to me in such a manner!"
The Ambassador waves for his bodyguards, who stir from their frozen stances. The maids gasp and cover their mouths. Either they are nervous about the unfairness of a 4v1 fight, or they're nervous that the poor fools don't know how little of a chance they have against a Snake Mage.
If it's the latter, they're correct to be scared.
"Apologize!" The Ambassador orders. "Get on your knees and beg for my mercy!"
Sasuke does not move. "I refuse."
Sneering, the Ambassador whips his head to his men. "Whip him until he bleeds! Maybe then, he will learn his place!"
The four men withdraw whips from their belts, uncurling them and lashing them out in preparation. One of the whips hits a vase, shattering it. The maids hide in a corner, screaming. Some manage to slip behind Sasuke, fleeing into the palace. When one of the whips come cracking at him, he blocks with the Caduceus, then allows the twin snakes to come to life, dropping from the staff to slither across the floor. The Ambassador yelps, hopping up on one of the chairs once more, stomping his feet in an attempt to scare them away. A bellow of fire ignites in the back of Sasuke's throat, but if he released it at the men, he would surely burn the whole wing down, if not the entire palace. So, Sasuke blocks another lashing, then flings his cloak into the air. A rush of dark magic flies from its sweep, hitting three of the four men. The magic creeps into their eyes and casts a dark shadow over them, temporarily blinding them. They panic. Two of them knock into each other. The other flails randomly, hitting the wall and furniture with his whip. His sporadic and volatile lashes cause Sasuke to duck and lunge, so focused on the one that he nearly forgets the other, unblinded man until, with a crack, his whip strikes the right side of Sasuke's face. A burning sensation lights up his skin, and blood already blooms from the wound as he falls on his side, sneering and spitting poison. Sasuke is just able to lift his staff to block a second lash, then casts a spell on the rug, making it roll and trip all the men. The blind ones yelp and shout. The maids shiver as a mass of aprons and pinned buns.
Suddenly, the door bursts open.
Hinata rushes inside, with a hysterical Karin behind. Kō and Prince Toneri follow after, with one of the maids that had slipped out trailing awkwardly behind them. Hinata's eye finds Sasuke first. She takes in the wound that stretches from his ear to the corner of his mouth, then looks upon the mess of men on the floor.
The Ambassador hops from the chair. The twin snakes slither out from the cushion, curling around Sasuke's staff with ease.
"Y-Your Highness!" The Ambassador sputters. "Please, if you would —"
A monstrous fury roars behind her eyes — a sight Sasuke has never seen before. Her skirts and hair fling around her as she rotates to Prince Toneri and hisses, sharp and arrowed, "Control your men, Prince."
Toneri's gaze passively acknowledges the mess of the room, the terrified expression on the Ambassador's face. He seems rather unmoved, but he steps around some of the mess to come towering over the slimy, sweating creature.
"M-My Lord!"
Toneri takes his shoulder, sighs, and his touch brings ice to the Ambassador. It creeps and stretches, taking hold of his arm, his torso — up his neck, into his wide, screaming mouth. Soon, the Ambassador is encased in it — a tomb of ice that seems to have no regard to the hot temperatures of summer, for not a bit of it melts in the sunshine streaming through the windows.
With that done, Toneri turns to Hinata.
"My apologies, dearest," he drones. "My mother is fond of him, but I tolerate no disrespect to your staff."
Then, his gaze turns down, for the Empress is on her knees, her hands holding Sasuke's face, careful to not touch his bleeding wound. She does not look at the prince, nor does she hear him.
...
"The Royal Doctor is on her way," Karin says, tapping Hinata's shoulder to make sure she's able to read her lips.
They've settled into another room, far away from the buzz and noise of the palace once word got out that there was a scuffle. The armrest gives balance to Sasuke's back as he settles into it; but, at the same time, it gives him no room to breathe, for Empress Hinata has dragged a chair right up to his, hardly leaving any room between them.
"Have mercy, both of you," he mutters. "A mere scratch will only waste the doctor's time."
"A scratch, he says!" Karin scoffs. "Shall I bring a mirror for you to have a gander? Your face is a mess!"
"Your words are nothing but kind, Karin."
Hinata wipes the oozing blood away with a handkerchief, frowning out how it is so soaked. Even Sasuke is a little surprised. The wound hurts like hell, burning and stinging deep into the muscles and bones of his face, but he didn't imagine so much blood would come from it.
"Allow me, Milady." Karin takes the handkerchief from Hinata's grasp, scowling at the smear of blood left behind on the Empress's fingers. She taps her shoulder again to get her attention. "I will get something to wash and clean both you and the wound. Stay here. Please."
Karin trots off with clicking heels, and Hinata stares at him once more. Her wide eyes are rimmed with fresh anger and worry, almost hauntingly glintful.
She taps his jaw. Are you really okay?
Sasuke sighs lightly. "If you think me so broken by a mere whip, then my pride will be hurt."
She only catches some of the words — enough to get the gist of what he was saying. Her mouth thins, displeased by his lack of answer.
"You will not talk?" he asks. "You spoke to the prince earlier."
The way her eyes flash away tells him she understood him perfectly, and a coil of jealousy winds in his gut. So she can speak to the prince, but not to him? Annoying.
"I had been looking for you," he starts, low and terse. "I had something to say, but the Ambassador . . . distracted me."
Her eyes flash to his mouth, then his wound, then back to his mouth.
Sasuke watches the door, listening for anyone approaching.
Nothing.
So he says, "Since your engagement is soon, I have no reason to stay." And when her eyes thin in confusion, he adds, "I'm leaving."
Her mouth falls slightly, and that anger in her eyes shifts into panic. Leave? Why!? He can practically hear her say it — in that soothing, warm voice of hers, only it would be lightly touched with worry, with a sort of regret. But she still refuses to speak, and that adds irritation to his soul.
"The curse." His hand gestures to the flowers growing from her ears. "I will not be the one to break it. You do not need me."
Hinata shakes her head frantically, expression peeling into hurt. The flowers, rooted into her eardrums, crane at such an angle that hurt her when she moves her head so suddenly. But is that the only reason? Are they the only things that hurt her right now? Is Sasuke so bold to think, perhaps, his words add to that hurt as well?
Her mouth shapes silent words. Do not say that. I need you here.
And her hand lifts and pats his chest, as if to say something, as if to keep him here.
"No, Empress. You do not."
She frowns, then thinks, then lifts a hand and weakly gestures to the window. Outside. Is there something you need out there that you cannot have here?
And . . . there is. Plenty of things. Itachi. Freedom. Quiet. Nothing but trees and the wild to guide him. No rules of the land to follow. A sense of adventure that only a wanderer can possess. But, at the same time, there are things here that Sasuke will never find anywhere else, no matter where he travels. A challenge. The clinical smells of magic in the laboratory. The teasing of Karin's sharp voice and the warm food the cooks prepare for him.
There is no Empress Hinata except for the one right here, in the Kingdom of Konoha.
"I am searching for my brother," he tells her. "Itachi."
Her mouth shapes his brother's name, and she understands.
Her nod is shallow as she leans back, giving him room to breathe. The air is tepid and thick between them.
Then, she gestures to her flowers, mocking scissors with two fingers, pretending to cut them from her ears. She looks at him expectantly, then shifts, moves forward, and pats his chest.
Stay. Until the flowers are gone. Stay.
Which means she wants him to stay for the engagement, for Toneri to offer his magic.
The thought stabs him, but he nods stiffly, and she smiles gratefully, takes his hand, and plants a chaste kiss on his torn and tough palm. The heat of her mouth travels straight to his stomach, and Sasuke swallows his breath and does not release it until Karin returns a minute later.
...
The next day, early that morning, word goes out of the official engagement between Empress Hinata and Prince Toneri. Sasuke thinks he can hear the cheers of the kingdom from his bed in the stable. The palace, however, remains quiet.
That night, in the throne room, they all gather around Hinata. Karin's mouth is thin, but she remains obediently quiet. Priestess Sakura is also present, close by in case the unruly nature of magic backfires and causes great harm to the Empress. And, of course, there is the Snake Mage, dutifully at her immediate side to observe all accounts of magic. He is the one who suspects the workings of a Light Lock, after all; so he must be the one to decide if it's broken or not.
Moonlight Magic dances on the ends of Prince Toneri's fingers in the dim light of the room. It casts a silvery glow on the faces of all around them. It makes Hinata look hollow, like a shell of herself. Sasuke decides not to look away, but the sight makes something prick at his spine.
"Offer the magic to the roots of the flowers," Sakura says from behind. "Sasuke will observe if the Light Lock is broken from there."
So Toneri comes forth, lifts his glowing hand to the side of Hinata's face, and presses his fingertips just enough into the stems to pool his magic down into her ears. The sensation makes her flinch, but she does not coil in pain. Quickly, Toneri retreats back, leaving room for Sasuke to swoop in. His senses expand as he tastes the air. If the Light Lock was broken, the mechanical smell of the curse should come forth, surely enough to overpower the smell of the flowers.
But no such scent comes, and Sasuke likewise sees no reaction from a lock being unlocked. No smoke. No spark. He checks Hinata's face for any reaction that would imply something deep within her ear has happened, but it is blank, almost stony.
"Nothing," he says.
Toneri blinks, surprised. "Check again."
So Sasuke does, going so far as to dig into the stems, but there is nothing. It is all the same.
His hand touches Hinata's shoulder, prompting her to look up at him. "The curse remains, Empress."
Karin's hand cups her mouth, and Sakura sighs deeply into the quiet air.
Toneri takes another step back, perplexed beyond belief. He quietly comes to terms with the revelation, but Sasuke hardly pays him any mind. His focus remains solely on Hinata, on the conflict in her gaze; dread, then relief. A concoction of something so strange and complex, and yet, Sasuke understands entirely — it is exactly what he feels building into himself, and it's not something he can simply ignore any longer.
He's relieved.
He's relieved because this means he has to stay. He will be the one to break the curse, just as he promised.
"Empress Hinata." Toneri bows low, and when he lifts, his face is back to void. "We had an agreement, you and I. If I could break the curse, my marriage would commence. But it seems by magic is of no aid to you, and so, despite the wishes of my mother, The Queen, I must break our engagement."
Her eyes watch the prince's mouth, and she tries to smile in the right way; kind, but not relieved, and not overtly happy.
Toneri bows again. "I had hoped to be of some aid. I regret that this is the outcome."
And with that, he leaves, and Karin collapses to the ground, howling, "Thank the stars and all things holy!"
Sasuke feels, almost, as if he could collapse in the same manner, but the tight grip on his hand from Hinata keeps him stationed and standing as he tries very hard to keep his emotions at bay.