Chiaki of the Eastern Courts

The girl was young, that was obvious to the eyes of the audience. She was also wealthy as well because of cut of her clothing told them that.

The Eastern Court would have been better labeled the subtle court. Just by looking at her appearance, they knew several things.

From the way her hair was styled, they knew she was not married. From the pale pink rouge applied to her lips, they knew she was a woman and from the single jade bracelet on her wrist, they knew she was the second child.

From the way she walked, they knew other things as well.

Her proud bearing belayed that she was of important rank. Her silent footsteps, that her trainer had been a wise and gifted man. From the slight glance of her eyes they knew she was no one to be messed with, and from the slight curve of the lips, that she was a woman.

A woman who had importance, in her clan.

From they way she bowed, they knew everything else.

The fact that she bowed to the prince, they knew who she was.

She was Chiaki, the loved one of the Crown Prince.

Ah, so this was the lady the Dowager empress was so jealous over. The crown prince was her only son after all, and she was loathe to lose him at such a young age. A odd trait, in the imperial family but no one would dare say it out loud.

They didn’t need to, when they could communicate with the eyes.

What was going to be done to her this time?

The halls were silent as they listened to her verdict, as the young, pretty woman was told that she was to leave the eastern courts and head for the western courts. The words were gentle, almost kind but the ears of this court had long since been in tune to the more subtle workings. They saw the gleam of triumph in the empress dowager’s eyes, and saw the paling of the cheek belonging to the young woman.

They saw everything, in the end, even the way the crown prince stilled, staring at his mother with mute rage and frustration.

They weren’t going to miss anything, in this court.

Chiaki bowed her head. “Yes, Your Imperial Highness.” She whispered the words and showed such submission in the line of her back that no one doubted what she was saying. She was obeying the Silver Queen, the Matriarch of the Silver courts as she was supposed to. What else was there for her to do? She was the second oldest daughter of the Sparrow Clouds, and she was by right a pretty respected young girl.

But she was never anything more than the queen’s servant. None of them, were anything more then that.

She was supposed to head to the Golden Courts, the same way her brother Kiati had done and she was to go with an entourage, but no family. The queen had enough pride not to send her by herself, but she knew why she was leaving.

Because the Imperial Prince loved her, and she loved him and the queen did not approve of her.

“I don’t think it’s right that she’s sending you off like that.” Her maid, Kika proclaimed this as if she ruled the world with a sniff.

Chiaki looked up from where she had been packing her bags, and smiled a gentle little smile. “That is because you have to go with me, and you do not want to go either.” She said softly.

Kika blinked, and grinned. They were comfortable, because Chiaki and Kika had been together since they were children. In the Eastern Courts, a personal maid was a high position—rather like your best man. “That too.” She admitted. “But really… it’s so romantic, seeing you and your Prince…”

“He is nobodies prince.” She reprimanded the young girl gently, and Kika blushed.

“I know.” She started. Chiaki knew everything about the courts, which was why Kika believed she would make a good queen in the first place- unfortunately, the Queen, for what ever reason did not agree with the people. “It’s just that…”

“Chiaki.” Kika promptly stopped talked, and Chiaki stilled when she heard that soft, gentle voice at the doorway. Looking up to see the Prince watching her with heavy eyes, she tried to erase any of the hurt she felt inside.

The truth was she loved this man, and while she knew that the queen ruled the courts… she felt as if, somehow he should have managed to keep her here. It was the illogical pain a girl could feel when she loved a boy, and while she understood at some level, that it was illogical… she could not quite stop herself.

“Your Highness.” She stopped what she was doing and was about to dip down into an obeisance  when he reached out for her.

“Chiaki, don’t.” his tone was gentle.

“Your Highness.” She blinked away any emotion that was too strong for her to feel, and smiled. “I have to pack, Rei.” She said.

He nodded. “I know you do.” He paused. “I want you to know…” he said softly. “I did try.”

Chiaki felt a bit warmed by the words. Growing up in an Eastern Court meant that even before a woman became a woman, mentally she had already reached the maturity. That part of her understood that once the queen made up her mind, even the crown prince could not gainsay her… and it was that part of her mind that smiled at him.

“I know.” She whispered, and leaned into him, as if somehow they could be absorbed into one another. “I’ll miss you.”

“I’m going to try to have them bring you back home quickly.” He whispered, his voice rough. “You hear me?”

She smiled, but she looked away.

The prince was her age, and the queen. Who knew how many beautiful distractions she would place in front of her son, and who knew if he would ultimately secede to the distractions, forgetting her? She had already somehow, acknowledged this and yet when she smiled, it was the smile of a young girl.

“Okay.” It was one word but it said everything.

That memory of hers, one she had clung to for so long, had happened exactly three months ago. She had not heard from her Prince in those three months and yet she had refused to bow down. Not because she was still waiting for him, but because she wanted to be strong.

“Miss, Chiaki.” Kika’s gentle tone drifted into her mind. “They are all ready to leave now.

When she had met the courtier named Velvet, she had known that something in the course of her life had changed. She had been the one bearing the news of the reach to the other worlds, but she herself had not followed Velvet. She had stayed back, because…

She was of the Eastern courts, and while others called it magic, they called it intuition.

Intuition had told her that more was to come.

And it had.

It came in the form of other companions who wanted to join the silky Courtier, and so she was their guide, to take them into the other world and everything that waited for them.

Unlike those of the Western Court she had known what to expect. She knew about dragons, about search riders and she herself had been searched on a diplomatic mission to the Vella Crean. Yet nothing had really prepared for this, for the moment of standing in front of the group of riders and seeing the smile touch their faces.

“Talk about good timing.” She heard one of the search riders whisper.

“The dams will like seeing them…”

Chiaki did not know exactly, how it happened.

She had planned on being in control, on leading this small group and seeing what happened.

It was just that, somehow, along the lines she found herself…

A candidate.

Chiaki could remember quite vividly the first day she had met Velvet, the silk courtier. She had been lost, unable to find her bearings and yet that slightly amused, slightly nostalgic smile had never left her lips. She was a gentle, submissive soul and while everyone could sense that about her, very few could see that slight gleam of knowledge in her eyes.

“Has no one claimed you for their own, yet?” a youth crooned, except he was older then her in physical years. She had stared up at those bright blue eyes, so unusual in her own court.

“I do not think.” She had said very carefully. “Anyone wants to claim an Eastern woman.”

“Not claim her?” he looked shocked by the very idea, and his eyes were dancing as he sat next to her. “Eastern women are all the rage these days, you and your exotic looks.” He was teasing her, she knew this much and she was so… startled by such boldness, she had not known how to react. “My name is Velvet.”

“Is that really your name?”

She remembered him, and she did not quite know why. He had not been the most foreword, the most friendly and yet he had his bright blue eyes had stuck in her mind. Which was why she had offered to bring his sister over as well.

She was a friend with the sister now, an odd thing really. She had never thought to actually befriend these Westerners. Perhaps it was rude to say so, but she had grown up in such a secluded society… all the courtiers seemed to think that they had such a hard life appearing to be so happy, to be birds dancing to some hidden music and yet the eastern court was far worse. It added to the mystery, the fact that no courtier, no western diplomat had every successfully managed to visit the eastern courts. They seemed to think that it was on purpose—but it was not.

The eastern court did not value… strangers, and for the current moment, they were strong enough to keep strangers away.

“Chiaki?” the search rider asked, and Chiaki looked up.

“Yes, search rider?” she said demurely, calling him by his title and the man seemed so…disoriented by it, she almost felt pity.

Except, she was too petty. She was jealous of the freedom he had, the way he seemed to suit the summit dragons and they were always flying.

They said that the Eastern court was known for its beauty, but there was no freedom.

She looked out the window, already forgetting the search rider who was standing there, and thinking about a pair of gentle blue eyes who had promised her everything, and had never kept that promised. She felt no anger towards him, no jealousy, nothing but a sense of very gentle regret, and sadness.

She wondered where he was, what he was doing right this moment?

 “A trainee?”

The search rider nodded as he brought the young girl into the room. She seemed frail, lifeless but he had seen something in her eyes, and most of all, his bonded knew better than to bring in the wrong girl. “From that weird world.” He was grinning as he said this. “Have you seen the onslaught of trainees we’ve been receiving?”

The woman chuckled. “As if some one has decided to fill our ranks with riders…”

“Or their own.” The search rider said thoughtfully, and shrugged.

The woman smiled. “It does not matter… where is she staying?”

“Fylaris.” He said simply, and she arched a brow with question.

“Very well then.” Muttering something about this batch being spread over all the locales, she marked it down. “Thank you.”