Chapter 2
Rhaenyra Targaryen was not born to rule, nor was she educated as one.
The King lacked a son, and he loved the child he had with his first wife, more than he ever will of those of another marriage he will have
Rhaenyra was named heir, but Viserys greatest trait it seems was to be foolish. Of stacking mistake after mistake, with vulnerable foundations like his so-loved and well-maintained models of old Valyria.
He named his eldest daughter heir and it would doom them all, for the decision he made without pronouncing his daughter a ruler is not all about ordering sworn houses to fight her war, or having an encompassing number of lemon cakes she can indulge in. It was even harder when she was born with a different flesh between her legs. Where she was meant to wear bejewelled skirts and to give birth was her greatest atonement in life, not like a man who goes gallivanting the land and everyone would think him gallant, and a man filled with wisdom for the knowledge he brought when she can do more without needing keel with a well-meaning jab in her crotch.
She can be more, but she was perhaps born in the false era of beliefs but a timely delight to her parents, even if she wasn't her father's much-desired son. But she existed and she knew she was loved.
Then she meets Alicent, and everything goes right and wrong.
It was a peak season in Konoha, where the heat didn't so much burn in the usual passionate intensity, that can scab anyone's skin at the slightest unnecessary exposure.
Sayuri twirls several rings on her fingers as she waits for her mother to finish haggling good from a man with a poorly maintained bush of hair.
"Now Satou-san spices like these have lowered their prices because the markets were well stuck on them these days, how come yours were still the same" Sayuri blinks and listens closely as she watches the complicated expression flashes through the merchant's face. Frowning at why her mother needed to argue her right for lowering the price of spices she will be using for their food in the evening, shouldn't the mere commoner give in to her mother's wishes?
"Haruno-san! You know these are hard times, I can't possibly do what you're asking me. One hundred Ryo was all I can offer you" The woman shakes her head
"Ninety and I will be buying your other goods"
"N-ninety-five I-I can't possibly go more than that" His voice trembling slightly showing his blatant hesitation on the matter, Mebuki beams happily clapping both of her hands as she dished the money from her wallet.
"I apologise for having you feel troubled Satou-san, I promise to buy mainly from you the next time I lack anything" The man Satou-san sighed and slacked his shoulders in relief, and Mebuki pointed out more things she wanted to purchase.
They entered a small store next to where rows of hung clothing filled Sayuri's vision, and she sat on a pillow-forted chair while her mother flitted to every corner of the store.
"Sa-chan come closer for a bit" The hands twirling the many rings on her fingers stills, as Sayuri looks up to her mother who was holding purple-coloured clothing. She stalked nearer obediently as her Mebuki fitted her with it, then nodded approvingly.
They left little Visenya home with a woman, Kana-san to watch over her as Mebuki and Sayuri splurge the money her father gave them for the next several months of his absence. She heard something about dealing with sharks in Kiri which he grumbled before leaving.
She misses him. Terribly
Withholding her tears as she sniffled slightly, she glanced at her mother still talking to a man while carrying the piece of clothing she had Sayuri tried on, and jumped down from her seat with a huff and walked to the direction of the door.
She hadn't meant to get lost. She only wanted to see the outside for a moment, but when she opened the door a crowd had pervaded her, some grabbed her forcefully and they wouldn't budge no matter how much she shouted for them to release her. So she did something unthinkable that someone from her station shouldn't have done and bites, drawing blood on the hand that holds her in a formidable grasp and running as if her life depended on it.
Her uncle would be proud of her.
She runs never stopping even if breathing became painful and only stops to hide in a hollow space on the base of a tree
Her hands and legs were still trembling when a voice sounded beside her
"This is already someone else's hiding place you know"
Sayuri screams and wordlessly fisted her hands and hits the shadowed form causing him to yelp
"Hey! That- ouch! Is not how to properly - greet someone!" Sayuri stills for a moment as the boy she recognised with his voice moved away from her as light filtered through the hollowed enclosure, she sees long auburn strands and eyes the purest molten gold she had ever seen.
She then recovered shortly and grabbed the nearest thing in her vicinity and chucked it in the direction of the startled boy, hitting him squarely in the head.
Sayuri hesitantly goes near the boy and with a fainting horror sees his forehead bleeding where the stone left its mark on him, not knowing what to do she shakes his shoulder lightly her eyes stinging with tears when he was still immobile.
Sniffles became full-blown cries when the realisation hits her, she killed an innocent boy
She wailed entirely not noticing the stirring boy opening her right eye to take a glimpse at the crying girl on his side, the wailing became sniffles as Sayuri looks at him closely again before squaring her shoulder and taking a stronghold of the boy's thin shoulders, and drags him outside of the tree hole.
"Oi! - stop it oww! Damn, it brat, Im still fucking alive!" he shouted and Sayuri released him not too gently his head hitting a stone that with a miracle didn't break it.
"You! - alive!" Sayuri could only stand in astonishment, he shouldn't survive such an Injury. She saw it! His head was bleeding. Perhaps this boy was like tales of old that can't break easily? Or perhaps healed at a speed not known to man.
"Yeah, yeah your bloody rude little shit you know. Interrupting someone then had the guts to throw that thing at me" he grumbles gently holding the back of his head, his hair spraying like a curtain to both sides of his face that sported one of annoyance. "Unmannered brat" He acts like someone only disturbed from a nap and not a boy nearing death's embrace as she thought.
"You haven't lost consciousness are you?" She asked with frowning brows and the auburn-haired boy look at her introduced "Of course I won't, that throw was like being poked on, I almost fell asleep, you got good aim though, maybe you can pack strength into those noodles arms yet-"
Her guilt diminishing as time passes by, replaced by a boiling temper at being lied to, Sayuri stomps her foot to the boy's legs which causes him to yelp in pain "You deserve it!" she shouted in his face and with a huff turned her back then looking at her environment of green canopies and abundant trees with vein cloying in their trunks like an intimate lover.
Her thoughts halted, and the birds chirped songs only their kind can understand
"Ohoh a princess lost her way from her castle?" A taunting childish tone sounded behind her, but Sayuri ignores him in favour of looking in the direction of where she previously got to find this place. She noticed her faint footsteps and with a determined gaze started following them while ignoring the presence on her back not putting askance in her mind, why his footsteps lacked sound
"I could help you, you know. It just needs some lowering of the knees and a sorry. And we'll part on our way! Isn't that a good deal? Oi brat!"
"Come on it wouldn't be that hard"
"Woi! Are you listenin'"
Feeling her blood boil at the incessant chatter of the boy, she settled on repeating words of 'I am a dragon, I wouldn't lower myself to give a speck of attention to an ill-breed peasant with foolhardy dreams'
"You don't believe me, don't you? I ain't lying you know, 'grew up on this damn place I know every shitty corner of it"
"Taking up silent treatment I see, well can't blame but I don't look that creepy to receive that treatment you know, how about a question then? Why'd you drag me outside huh? Planning to hide the evidence, if you got that in mind if it would be successful next time. Remember to have my grave to something sunny don't you"
Sayuri only frowns at his words
"Oi! Don't be boring maybe I'll give pointers if you'd talk up a bit, again-" Feeling goaded already Sayuri released an irritated scream "Shut up you rude, lying ill-breed cretin! Just go away and leave me alone!"She then proceeded on stomping away with raging eyes, to no avail he still follows her and she noticed with the growing weariness of the sky already starting to darken
"You still didn't answer my question! Why did you drag me outside of the tree!"
"You are in no position to demand answers from me!" Sayuri snaps with a frustrated shout and fastens her short legs to move
" You are in no position to demand answers from me! " he mimicked with high pitched voice "You like it your words fancy aren't ya!" he said without an ounce of effort easily following her
"What's your name by that way? So I wouldn't be too rude to just call you anything. For your peace of mind, I was taught manners, Hime "
"Go drown the flames of whatever seven hells you'd fall into!" Sayuri cursed him with vehemence she never showed anyone and she nearly screamed again in frustration when he remain undisturbed and only asked again enthusiastically
"Seven hells, what's that?"
"Some place that would welcome you with open arms, as do many other irritating sheep" Her legs burned from exertion but she couldn't stop, especially never on the case of a particularly loud shadow
"Welcome me with open arms huh" he mused thoughtfully and grinned "Must be a nice place"
His voice was gentler and wistful and Sayuri stops her tracks and turned to face heaving and face flushed, while the boy looks the same without even a sweat to show, unlike Sayuri's messy appearance
"Why would you-" She inhaled a lungful of air, "say those - mindlessly-" The boy on grins like those of taunting a devil, when Sayuri fully meets his gaze "Even fools know what hell meant to be"
He pursed his lips and those bright bright eyes glimmered with fallen stars while insulated with the shadows "Well Hime… Fools don't even know what true hell is like. If they did-" Sayuri shudders slightly with something creeping cold on her back "they would wish for the hell you described to fall into" His voice was still those of a boy, that looks the same age as her. But why is it that the spoke like someone else entirely, his words held threats and promises strung on skewed lanterns.
"But anyway! Why'd you drag me out of the tree? I like it there you know, cool and quiet and all the nice stuff" Sayuri broke a sweat with his change, she can feel something nagging from the back of her mind but ignored it to focus on the again cheerful boy in front of her
"My mama-" Hesitation feels every fibre of her being and the auburn-haired boy showed an act of straining his ears
"Huh, what's that? I know I am not in a position to demand answers from you" Sayuri's brow ticked and he laughed good-naturedly "but please do speak more loudly, it would be a shame to not hear every syllable of the words you spoke" he breezed through a minor conduct of a young lord
Sayuri had half a mind to not talk at all but settled to doing otherwise it would only make her more irritated if he will continue his chatter, another was she have no dragon nearby to feed him into
"Ma- my mother could heal you if by chance you got hurt badly- " wincing slightly she inwardly sighed to gather more patience "like she had done so several times, but do not misunderstand, you shan't deserve every single instant of her graciously given kindness"
He only pouted and then scratched the back of his head " Too bad you didn't hit hard then, she sounded like such a nice lady" She preened at the outspoken praise on her mother but then frowned again
"It won't be the next time" she promises, perhaps she could convince her father to have someone teach her how to use a bow, as Visenya would have her sword lessons in the future, it wouldn't be a bad thought to have something on her sleeves with dealing insufferable situations and people as she has now.
"Oi! Did you lose in thought again? If I'm your enemy you'd be dead by now" He waved an irritating hand in front of her face and Sayuri's crumpled with disgust
"Your no worthy foe of mine, now lead me to the direction of the market, I might forgive your acts of delinquencies for it" She sniffed and with a commanding expression crossed her arms and waited for the boy to follow her demands
He did with a tired sigh and a grumble "Yeah, yeah follow me I guess, but-" he was about to turn his back when he abruptly faced Sayuri again, to her surprise that she gave him a menacing glare, which he only returned with a grin "I asked your name, I know a shortcut to get to the market by just - a flash"
Sayuri hesitated for the umpteenth time, and she blames tauburnurn haired boy for every single one of her frayed dignity "I-"
"Yeah-" she glared venomously at him for his impudence, which seems to only entertain him more "My given name-" she raised her chin and with a clenched fist "Is not some presumptuous vermin's commodity" she finished with a flare, and he laughs, and laughs. Sayuri's proud stance falters uncertainty flashes through her expression, and plain pure mirth painted the boy's young face.
His laughter finished at last with a few choking coughs and Sayuri glowered at him.
"Mine's Fuu by the way," he said casually and Sayuri arched a delicate brow at him "Yeah, yeah I'll take you to the market come on this way" He then languidly walked in the opposite direction where Sayuri made her way previously.