The World on the other Side

"Why actually yes there is, thank you for asking, why don't you come have some tea with me I'd very much like to have a word with you. You see my son more than anybody, so I'd like to know how he's been keeping up, and a little bit more about the woman in charge of raising him, as I'm sure you probably have plenty of questions for me as well. I know the Queen can be a bit intimidating sometime, but Iris is with Alibaba so we don't have to worry about her dropping in""he said with his still cheery smile and closed eyes "Shall we go then?"

Hanako would nod her head some, "I suppose if you'd like Milord though I am doing nothing more than make sure he's taken care of and isn't stressing himself out....and also gets fresh air other than training with Jango" she said simply, not wanting to hide anything from the man. "but tea sounds nice...I was just finishing up my chores before meeting up with Jango." she said with a warm smile at him, "the gardens have been nice to enjoy but...with the heat it can be a bit unbearable" she said with a laugh.

"Yes indeed, the heat does make it quite a chore to be out here sometimes"he said as they walked together heading into the castle as he lead her to his private wing as they went and had tea out on the terrace as he took a seat in a soft plush high backed chair, though it was hot outside the veranda was suprisingly cool and refreshing as they sat, or perhaps it was the King's presence himself as his energy seemed to be jubliant and invigorating for anyone who was around him, a rejuvinating ball of energy he seemed to be. "And Jango, how is he doing as of late? He does a tremendous job in making sure our knights are up to par on their customs and trainings."he smiled as he waved his hands as the teapot began to pour itself as sugar and a spoon rose up to mix together in their cups as the stream magically split filling both their cups at the same time before everything returned to the table and he picked up his cup gently "Nothing like fresh tea on a nice day like this one"

The room itself felt nice as she sighed heavily feeling the coolness against her skin before moving over to sit down into another chair across from him, she watched as his own magic lifted the tea pot and mixed the sugar with ease she barely could lift books right now without thinking about it. "He's doing well I suppose....I see him everyday for lunch, though he doesn't always eat but its nice to just see him." she said with a warm smile.

She reached out to pick up the cup as she brought to her lips, the flash back of her and Jango in the bathroom made her cheeks darken a bit as she quickly pushed it back. It had only happened that one time, they had both been to busy to do anything more since. "Thank you for the tea milord...it was really refreshing" she said setting it back down as she looked at him then started to let her eyes wonder around the room.

Keruan raised his eyebrows as her cheeks darkened before he just smiled at her "I am glad you enjoy it. And I am glad you are enjoying Jango's company as well. Many people are scared of him because he doesn't say anything, he uses his fists to deliver his messages"he laughed taking a sip of his tea "Oh I imagine this is the first time you've seen this side of the royal palace, Alibaba doesn't frequent here much anymore. He used to love playing and running through here when he was a baby"he said smiling as his face took on a softer look as nostalgia washed over him "Ali was quite the little ball of energy, speeding off here and zipping there, it was impossible to keep up with him. It's good that he has his Hand Maiden to keep him grounded and focused now."he said "And speaking of that Hand Maiden, how are you finding your stay in the palace thus far? Everything is to your liking? Do you want for anything? As Ali's support the kingdom's resources are at your disposal."he said still smiling "Never be afraid to take what you need."

She would shake her head trying to keep her composure some before speaking "I find Jangos company nice...his silence makes me think over what I should say, but he still does not hide the truth. I respect that...how he cares for people in his own way...the same as how Ali handles things. Both have weakness's both have strengths im just honored to be apart of that.." she said simply.

A soft smile formed n her lips watching his expression soften some as he told how Ali was as a babe, "sounds much like he is now, if I dont let him have his way he sometimes throws a fit." she laughed as she sat there, "I'm still catching grief for my mistake of letting a whisp out" she shook her head laughing more. "As for wanting anything....what is here is enough, I have family thats all one needs."

"You Japanese are so humble in your approaches"he said with a small laugh taking another sip of his tea "And you seem to be quite the pleasent young woman. So perculiar how such dark energy swirls inside of you. It is terrifying, a dark maelstrom of energy waiting to be unleashed, but is held back by the barrier in these lands"he said though his face never changed "The Queen and I were not mistaken in our earlier assumption of feeling that dark mage's power. He is present...he is you."he said as his eyes finally opened, a piercing emerald green gaze locking into hers holding her focus intently "Your energy is of the same wavelength of the Dark Mage Norunde, the wizard the Disciple Barcyl exiled from our realm tens of thousands of years ago"

"Thank you milord we try our best, after all we wouldn't want the wrong things to happen...and well you all have done so much for me already...if I wasn't able to handle the simplest of tasks then I have no right to ask for help." Hanako said simply as she took another drink of tea. Though soon she would feel the pressure in the room change as she looked up at him. Her whole body tensed up at his words as she sat there "da...dark wizard!?" She said a bit startled by that "I'm not anyone milord!! And what happened earlier was an accident I swear I didn't call upon that darkness Ali wouldn't ever forgive me if I did that on purpose!!" She said now a bit terrified.

Dark energies inside her? An exiled disciple? This all couldn't be true she wasn't any of that. "I swear milord I'm not here to do anything! I didn't even know about magic till last year!" Her voice was shaking as he could see she was trying to prove to him she ment no harm. 'Jango....Ali...they'd never forgive me if I did any of that...' She thought to herself. She couldn't lose them they were all she had left...

Keruan closed his eyes again as his smile returned as he refilled her tea "Oh we know. I did not mean to cause you distress by my comment, but your reaction was genuine and sincere. You may not be Norunde, but your magic is definitely of the same caliber as his. The Queen has dubbed you a false incarnate. There are many unexplained circumstances around you, that you may not even be aware of yourself. For example, coming from Japan with the ability to use magic...the chances of the royal family and Alibaba finding you, the dark energy you accidently summoned forth. Norunde's influence is present, we would be fools to ignore that obvious sign, however it does not seem he has full control...or a direct link to connect to you with....perhaps due to the strength of our realm and it's magical protectants. However should the balance be disturbed, I do think our dark friend has many uses for you, what those are, we cannot be sure of."

Her heart was pounding in her chest tlll his eyes closed and he began to refill her tea, slowly she eased back some as she sat there. She was still startled by all this, but listening to him did help out slightly as she would then speak "is.....is there a way to...prevent that? I care about Alibaba..and Jango...everyone here...if the barrier were to be disturbed or something happened that....I was controled...I..." she dug her nails some into the table.

She couldn't think of that, she didn't want to think of the fact that she could be a tool for some dark energy to enter this place. "I don't want anyone to be harmed because of me." she said looking up at the king, "Is there something that can be done milord? that I could do to make sure that I'm not used as a tool or a connection for them to come here...your all doing so much already I'm sure...so if theres something I can do to make sure that doesn't happen...I'll make sure!"

"Well it is good to know we have your passion"Keruan said still smiling as the teapot settled back down on the ground "We are doing everything we can right now, but so far, besides that one incident, everything has remained exactly how it was, which is why we are no longer worried as long as it does not become a reoccuring thing around here all should be fine"he said "Though if something suspicious does happen, we need to know about it immediately. If you hide any information, it could be the matter between life and death across the kingdom. Norunde's magic is that of the wicked sort you see. And if he manages to get his hands on the Queen or Alibaba's magic, even Jango's small amounts of disciple magic is enough so that the consequences could be life altering." he said "Any threat of Norunde's is not to be taken lightly."

She listened to him as she nodded, this Norunde was someone that she could not trust or even allow to enter this kingdom, and it would seem that she was their only way in but she looked back up at the king. "I understand milord." she said sitting there, she had to train harder to make sure she never used the dark magic she had within her and instead focused on the other manas.

Though as she sat there she would soon speak, "would it be concerning that my weapon when drawn...turns into a scythe first? I can will it into anything else but it always is drawn first as a scythe."

Keruan looked at her with a couple of surprised blinks "Oh? Yours dose that too then? Then someone very close to you has passed away and your a part of your soul was pulled into the darkness with them. It's not a bad thing though, the scythe means that you master death. The scythe cleaves the path in front of it. That is why it is associated with death and I believe you Japanese call them Shinigami too no? A shinigami is actually a type of Fairy, which is my domain. Fairies exist through the core fabric of the universe, all cultures see different sorts of fairies associated with different things, gods, spirits, ghosts, those sorts of things. All fairies with a different face"he said taking a sip "A Venus scythe stores a great amount of power. Capable of cleaving a hole through anything it is famed that at true power it can slice through any material, including barriers and energy fields."he said "So the legends say." he followed as his eyes closed again happily taking a sip *Which is what Norunde would need in order to slice through said Barcyl's barrier. Just how deep is your plan Norunde that you take on the Fairy King*he thought to him self "Does the scythe alarm you?"he asked curiously taking another sip

"So....im...a fairy then?" she asked a bit confused though she did understand the shinigami part many of the legends and stories within her culture but she would soon grab up her tea again to take another drink as she shook her head. "No well at first it did...but I talked to Venus about it, and then with the aid of Jango and Ali-sama I've gotten past the alarm state.." she said, but the part of her when he said that someone dear to her, she took a deep breath some and shook her head before glancing up at him again.

"so you said yours turns into a scythe as well...do you have any tips on how to wield it?" she asked simply

"Well the first thing I learned was to not be afraid of it. That is why I asked that question, fear is inhibiting, but death does not fear, death is all encompassing"Keruan said as he refilled his cup as well taking a bite of the cookie on his plate "Venus is the djinn of metal, the neutral djinn. When pushing your energy into her, think of using equal amounts of all the elemental mana once you learn to see past white and black. The results will surprise you. She is the ultimate offense, and the ultimate defense. She is weak to and trumps every single djinn, depending on what mode she is in, meaning what element she is resisting, which also changes which she is weak to in that state. Venus is all about achieving balance."

She nodded listening to him as she sat there, she was going to have to write that down some time and maybe spend some more time talking to the dijin a bit more. Probably before they went to go and deal with the source of this unbearable heat, as she then looked up "I'll have to talk to her about it, even if she is a 'weapon' per say she's still a living creature I spent hours with her once as we just discussed different things....we are a team after all without her I couldn't even defend Ali-sama."

Though her mind soon drifted back to what had happened earlier, how it all started that Ali got in trouble with her magic getting out of control. She shifted as she then soon looked up at Keruan and spoke. "Sire...I know this is probably the last thing you'd ever hear from me....but if....something like earlier happens again and....I'm unable to control it what will happen?" she asked looking up at him, "I....I don't want Ali to ever get hurt by my hands...and if...that being attempts to use me...will you make sure that Ali isn't around..or at least....taken from the area cause I know he might try and do something that would only end up harming himself...."

"Oh yes of course"Keruan said noddding his head "Alibaba's life is the number one priority for everyone in this castle and kingdom. I'm sure after yesterday's little fiasco, Queen Iris has been casting magical seals and barriers all over this castle to prevent anything from happening. You saw how fast we arrived on the scene yesterday the moment the power was sensed. We will continue to monitor you. Again, we aren't completely sure that you are Norunde's pawn, puppet, reincarnate or whatever relation he has to you, others have been known to use magic, accidentally or otherwise, of that same dark caliber...however those people tend to be punish or executed for their transgressions, but you are important to the future of this kingdom, so yours have been decidedly overlooked."he commented "Which is why we are just making sure it doesn't happen again, so the High Council can sweep this incident under the rug. If you think the Queen is scary wait until you have to be in a meeting with them"he said with a small chuckle eating a cookie "You really must try one of these cookies, they are so good."

Hanako nodded listening to him, he had a point they did seem to get the whole endeavor under control and she lifted up her cup to take another sip. Though she wasn't sure what to all take in this, hearing about the others having been executed or punished in some form or another she would soon speak. "How am I important to the future of this kingdom? I'm just Ali-sama's hand maiden of sorts" she stated a bit confused, but she reached out to pick up one of the cookies looking it over she took a small bite of it. It did taste good, "they are good...though I kinda miss the old chocolate chip cookies my mother used to make...sweet and crispy always really good...best with some cold milk."

"Those do sound delightful. And you are important because you are raising the future of this Kingdom. Alibaba may be older than you but he is still a child. He is still growing into a man. The Queen and I are usually indisposed so who is to teach Alibaba how to become a true man and a a great leader? The woman who raised him and cared for him day in and day out."he said with a sad smile "I love Alibaba, and so does his mother, but a Queen's job is not to be a parent, it is to govern, if you understand what I'm saying. Iris had to choose long ago whether she wanted to be a Queen or a Mother, and after so many attempts at making an heir, it has definitely taken it's toll on her. The hand maiden who raised the others, the Queens mother, passed away of old age just before Alibaba was born, so she tried taking on the role of Mother herself but...she's very ill adapted for the position I'm afraid albeit a wonderful Queen. So Alibaba was left to Jango, his only sibling that could perform any magic, and myself whenever I had free time"

"I see..." she stated as she would then smirk a bit, "well I see him as a little brother, and considering I lost mine..I suppose you could say its almost like it was fate that I am now here with all of you." she said looking up at the king. "as for the cookies, I can make some for you some time, they are truly simple and I just need a few things...if you have chocolate that is the main thing I'd need other wise you can't make chocolate chip cookies." she chuckled.

She reached down to take another bite of the cookies enjoying the flavor of them quiet a bit, "as for raising him into a man...well we will see I maybe there to help raise him...but a boy grows into a man on his own at least that is what my father used to say."

"That may be true"Keruan said "However without the proper help, he won't live long enough to get that far and that is where you come in"he said smiling before there was a knock on the door as a knight stood there "Sir, a messanger from Fairy Isle is here to speak with you"he said as Keruan smiled "Well it seems they finally found me. I had been hiding from the servants and the guards all morning. Thank you for indulging in my procastination Hanako, perhaps we shall do it again sometime"he said as he stood up "Feel free to enjoy yourself here for as long as you wish though"he said before walking away

Hanako would nod her head, he had a point Alibaba was still young and needed guidance though she was some what 'sad' that his own parent's couldn't help raise him and choose to rule but this wasn't her world nor her 'family' things were always different for everyone. "Thank you for having me your highness" she stated as she looked to him when he stood up to leave, "Ill be sure to bring those cookies I told you about next time." she said with a smile.

When he left she would slowly push herself up with a sigh, and glanced around till she went to the door allowing the servants to step in and clean up the food and dishes that were used. "I suppose it's time for my own training...but maybe I'll go see if I can check in on Ali..." she was mostly muttering to herself as she began to walk down the hall.

She was still in the royal wing and as such the halls were decorated with what seemed to be paintings of other men and women, all with the shared feature of having blue eyes, probably Alibaba's ancestors as down the hall the presence of magic could be felt and sounds could be heard from where Alibaba was most likely learning the secrets of magic from his mother. Alibaba was considered powerful, but he is just a child, his mother on the other hand is a full grown Disciple with untold magical abilities and had been the reigning Queen for the last 1,000 years

She would look at each portrait taking notice how each one had some sort of feature that Alibaba had himself, a small smirk slid on her face as she looked at them. "Well at least I knw were he gets them." she stated to herself, but as she moved she could sense the strong amount of magic as she turned more. One she new well it was Ali's but the other she didn't know to well but she had a feeling it belonged to the Queen. "I suppose...it couldn't hurt just to peek..." she stated to no one as she kept moving. Walking closer but as she got to the set of doors she paused...if she interrupted this Ali could get into far more trouble than he did as she sighed.

"I'm sure I'll see him tonight for dinner.." she stated and would then turn to leave, moving further down the hallway she did need to find Jango as the two had agreed to meditate together to help better control her mana. "I wonder were Jango is at so we can meditate together..."

"You cower far too quickly"came Jango's voice as he was perched up on a shelf in his cat form his tail wagging back and forth "I know you want to see what the Queen is doing. Ever since I found out you were with Keruan I've been waiting here for you"he said "Plus she knows we're outside, she should have said something a long time ago if she didn't want us present"he said as he moved over to the door nudging it open and sliding inside as hot air suddenly came rushing out of the small crack in the door before closing behind him again