@tactful-kind-daedra answered your ask “Lady Daedra," Saizo VI sighed, knocking on the door. "Erm... I hate...”
Goodness… Daedra was unsure what the reasoning, but the gods seemed to have deemed this quite the eventful day. Hearing Caeldori’s retainer at her door, the Queen rushed from her seat to answer his call. Saizo rarely addressed her unless she prompted the exchange, which meant if he was coming first…
Opening the door, Daedra glanced outside to see him standing alone, looking rather dreadful. True, his expression said little through the normal mask he wore, but to her, something seemed… off.
“Saizo, what’s wrong?” she asked in worry, deciding to get right to the meat of things. “What’s the trouble?”
“Thank you, Queen Daedra...” Saizo sighed, heart gripped with anxiety. It was so difficult to say the prepared statement he had made, but... He didn’t know what might happen to him if he didn’t voice his concerns now.
To his liege. To Mitama.
He was doing this for all of them. For Hoshido’s future. If he didn’t speak up now, he’d... surely snap in the coming months. He clutched his hands together to try to ground himself as he continued.
“This is about the living arrangements of Milady, Mitama, and I. I know you have tried your utmost to provide for all of our well being, but... Simply put, it’s not working. A cage with gilded tassels is still just that. A cage. A prison.”
He clenched his hand to his chest, trying to stave off the worst of what he was certain was a panic attack. “Every day it seems we are beset with new and varied challenges. Guards getting bold and handling Mitama like a piece of meat. Baseless gossip about milady that we constantly have to run around and stamp out before it gets out of hand. Taunts about my father -- the losses Hoshido suffered in the war... It... It’s getting to be too much.”
He shook his head. “We are all exhausted and at our last wire -- or at least I am. We’ve all been pulled away from our home and placed into hostile territory where the vast majority of the people surrounding us either do not care about it or think that it’s humorous to try to cause us grief. To be clear, I know this is no fault of yours -- you didn’t create these problems... But you can’t prevent them, either. It’s just going to get worse and worse as time goes on.”
He took a deep breath. Finally, they came at the conclusion of his long winded speech. His nerves were still as jittery as always. “So... That’s why I... Wanted to suggest the possibility of... erm...”
Out with it, Saizo. Stand proud and tall! SAY IT. “I think we should go back to Hoshido!” he blurted at last, still scared out of his wits but prepared to face the consequences of his actions.
“After the war, Hoshido and Nohr were said to be allies -- equals that would help each other rebuild. And yet the Princess of Hoshido has been spirited away against her wishes to a land she does not love, surrounded by people who wish her ill, and supported only by her two retainers -- with help from you, of course. Why should she be the only one who has to bear the burden of uniting the two countries away from all the comforts she can expect, being surrounded by people who love her? Why is your son the only one who gets to enjoy that luxury, save for a few short visits a year? I ask you!”
“If the two countries are truly allies of equal standing, prove it with action. Siegbert should be sent to grow accustomed to our customs and our home country instead of Caeldori constantly being told that she has to throw out HER traditions to please the court of Nohr. Let it be a true unity of nations instead of a forced indoctrination.”
"Rose, look! It's Saizo; he's Caeldori's friend. You like Caeldori very much, don't you? Why not say hello to him~" [[please enjoy daedra overboiling the scary ninja boy's emotional stew]]
@tactful-kind-daedra
“Madam, please... I’m not terribly... er... suited to dealing with small children. Please.”
Saizo didn’t even look at the tiny bundle, afraid that he’d accidentally cause her to cry by affixing his trademark glare at her -- by accident, of course, but it still bore cause to worry.
“In any case, I don’t think she’s quite old enough to speak yet...”
Daedra had been asleep, curled under enough blankets that she could barely be seen. All that hinted of her presence was a splash a red against the pillows. She’d taken to the habit of clutching the blankets to her with a surprising vice grip. Should they be moved of pulled in any fashion - she was up immediately.
It was the only think that alerted her these days, as she was not keen of nightly surprises. Unfortunately, that is exactly what she was graced with.
The hiss in his voice practically tickled the inside of her ear like a darting snake tongue. Daedra was awake in an instant, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the blankets with renewed force.
Shooting up, she flew off the bed, dragging her sheets with her to keep wrapped around herself like protection. Daedra backed against the way, glaring out into the dark room to where she knew his voice to come from.
She did not reply back. She only stared with burning hatred.
Valter chuckled softly. He could hear her heart racing as she tried to put distance between them. Part of him felt like the whole headache he’d had to endure to obtain her would all be worth it, if only for this one, singular moment.
“Calm down, my dear...” he murmured softly, moving towards her with an almost unnatural sort of smoothness. It was as if he was being rolled forward on a well-oiled wagon than walking with his feet.
@tactful-kind-daedra mentioned you in a post “You sent for me, milady?” Saizo VI asked, expression carefully...”
Daedra paused and turned when she heard the familiar voice. Needless to say she was a bit surprised at how quickly he arrived, but still offered him her usual smile in greeting.
“Oh, Saizo, you’re here,” she chirped before turning back to the maid she was helping sort the room with. “That will be all for now. Thank you for your help!”
The maid curtsied and hurried out of the room, easily picking up on the polite request that the Queen wished to see to her guest in private. Once the door was shut and it was simply the two of them in the finely furnished room, Daedra approached the ninja.
“Thank you for coming so promptly, though you didn’t have to rush yourself. I was hoping we could have another moment to talk again, like prior,” she said, getting right to the point for him.
“I just wanted to check in on you- see how you’re feeling since the last time. I… noticed you jumped right into your duties and such right after.”
“Your concern, while... appreciated, of course, is not needed, milady,” Saizo VI replied, fighting every urge in his body to hastily retreat as she drew closer. He paused a bit before continuing.
“I wanted to thank you for moving our rooms closer to milady. And... offer apologies again for... before. I was not feeling myself. It seems... every new day spent in this dull, dark, bleak castle... I feel the remnants of my sanity being chipped away.”
He shook his head, fingers massaging his temples. “It’s... exhausting. Weathering all the looks of pity or contempt... staying on your highest alert because you feel as though you can barely trust your own shadow... Being the only safeguard between your lady and death. Father was a much stronger person than I. I’m sure he could weather it without any problem, but I... am not him. I... miss my homeland.”
"Ah~ You must be the bodyguard that Caeldori's Mother and Father sent to keep on eye on her! She'd spoken of you a number of times, but I found I could never seem to find you when I wished to properly offer you a welcomed greeting!" [[More Daedra and her bad life decisions in Conquest Land]]
Asugi glowered at her from behind his mask, retreating a few steps as soon as she tried to come close. “Hmpf. Kindly keep your distance, Miss. I’m only here to serve Milady. I’m not here to make friends.”
Especially with the likes of you, he added in his mind.
"I hear it's someone's birthday very soon~ Is there a big party for the birthday boy?"
“Wh--Ma?!” Asugi squeaked out. “Who told you??? Couldn’t have been Pops... Wait -- don’t tell me. It was Champ, wasn’t it! Or Meathead? Ojisan???”
He shook his head with a sigh. “Well... Whoever it was doesn’t matter. I don’t really, like... Celebrate it, yanno? It’s the start of a New Year, after all. There’s tons of things going on that’s more important than me...”
