Galar's Leader in Bugs and Fashion!

    “No, no, it’s nothing to do with any arrangements! I just…” Sensing she wanted the conversation to be over as quickly as possible, Hisahide stepped forward, grabbing the half-open door. 

    “I wanted to see if you’d like to step out for a while is all. It’s such a lovely day, and I wanted to spend it meeting you - I’d like to get to know you better.” Almost painfully he managed a smile, looking more like he’d just stepped on something sharp in bare feet. “Please?”

When Hisahide grabbed the door, Hanae took a step back as she leaned away from the door. If her arm hadn’t been occupied her surprise at his action may have manifested differently. Having stepped back though, the swaddled bundle in her arms was now clearly visible to her uninvited guest.

Hanae turned to the bundle with a soft smile, “There, there Sumire, did that surprise you?”  The face peeking through the layers of swaddling cloth was that of Hanae’s beloved link, her Metapod. She bounced the little one before forcing herself to turn back to Hisahide’s look of utter constipation.

Despite being shorter, she seemed to stare down at him in silence for several moments before finally speaking.

“My, if that’s the rumor then I’d be more than happy to clear it up. You see the truth is he was quite old, and already showing signs of senility. He was truly a distressing sight, and the thought that I would need to care for him all on my own as he grew older? My heart couldn’t bear it!”

Mentor/Disciple

@fashicnbug​

    His parents had told him to leave well enough alone; discussions about the engagement were nearly done, and until the day of the wedding, all Hisahide had to do was wait. 

     But he’d never been good at leaving anything alone.

    Hanae was bound to be a woman with high expectations, and someone like her needed to be impressed first. And by the gods, he was ready to woo her. Knocking on the door, he called inside.

    “Lady Hanae! Are you there?“

Rustling could be heard immediately after his knock though it quickly quieted. After a few moments of silence the door finally opened only wide enough to show half of the young woman’s body.

“Why if it isn’t Lord Hisahide. I’m afraid I was unaware of any arrangements my parents may have made on my behalf, so I’m hardly in any state to greet you properly.” So if you could kindly leave so I don’t have to that would be appreciated.

Was it too late to feign ignorance? Considering the growing look of concern on his face, probably. 

“I wasn’t there when it happened, but I’ve heard it from a couple different people….” How much context did any of this need? On the surface it was bad enough, but the layers and layers underneath stunk all the more. 

“All of Ransei was united for a time-warlord of Aurora reigned it all in…but all that’s been in the news, I’m sure. There was an, uh, incident. The empress disappeared, the warlord of Dragnor was named regent, and, well….” A lot of people made the biggest mistakes of their life.

Better to just say it, “From what I gathered, Hisahide–the warlord’s….I don’t know what he was honestly, but he blew half the capital of Chrysalia. Or burned it. Whatever it was, whole place was on fire for a awhile.” A beat. “Don’t know where your people were, but…I’m sorry.”

Well... Undoubtedly the Empress disappearing would cause quite a stir. And though Dragnor was certainly one of the powerhouses of the war, that also made them more than a few enemies.

But...

“...Hisahide Matsunaga? He burned... Chrysalia...” She recalled one of her brother’s messages detailing the heavy grudge he bore towards Dragnor’s warlord, but was he really so petty to destroy everything in a fit of spite? Oh, of course he was.

“That...

Eh?

Shige took a step back as she approached, almost jerking the weapon from his pocket, but it didn’t seem like she was planning on being a threat if he wasn’t. The mainland must have dulled the inherit ‘stab first ask questions later’ nature the island so carefully cultivates in it’s people. He let the knife go, taking his hand out of his pocket to instead cross over his chest in a display of peace. 

“Twen’y years, huh?” By Arceus, could he even wrap his head around the difference? “Not sure you wanna know, to be honest. Depends on where you hailed from.”

He gave her a once over. “Chrysalia?”

“Oh my what a keen eye, you’ve deduced my identity!” Though she responded with a laugh, Hanae’s eyes narrowed somewhat at the man. She’d heard that the fighting had somewhat settled down, technically the war was over but it wouldn’t be so easy for the fighting to just come to an end like that. War is a hard habit to break.

Not to mention, news on the individual kingdoms conditions wasn’t easy to come by. Not all of them were equally equipped for supporting long-term campaigns, so there were sure to be those that came out worse for wear. Chrysalia’s conditions weren’t too bad, but... well, other kingdoms could hold serious grudges.

She knocks the blow back with an outward swing before adjusting her grip on her own wooden blade.

@fashicnbug​

    “I’m sorry we can’t give you a better welcome, but…I’m afraid we’re not really in the best position for visitors right now.”

    Why this. Why now. Construction was finally getting under way to restore the farms and homes lost to the fire, but there was still no hiding what the kingdom had been through; so much of the once-green land was charred, sparse and lifeless. If this woman was from here, it had to be one hell of an unpleasant homecoming.

    “My retainers told me you’ve come here from the mainland?”

Hanae slowly took in the sight of Chrysalia with a carefully neutral mask. She vaguely recalled having nightmares of some disaster or another striking her kingdom as a child, she didn’t think it particularly uncommon given the circumstances, but to see it realized...

@fashicnbug​

There was one benefit to having his links shattered one by one. The constant tears on his soul made it reach out, desperate for anything that it used to hold. While it’d only clung to Buddy, it did keep him on edge, constantly searching, sensing, aware. 

And when it mingled with another warrior, panic always struck. 

“You’re from Ransei, aren’t you?”

He tucked his hand into his pocket, gripping the pocket knife within just in case. 

Hanae paused as his words seemed to click in to place.

“My...My, my! Now that’s something I haven’t heard in years!” In only a few steps, she quickly closed the distance between them, eyes locked on his. She leaned in to speak gently, “But you see this isn’t Ransei, and I’m certain they wouldn’t appreciate us bringing out our toys in public. So instead...”