Summary: The new ruler of Kou, the Hope-King, has been established. Eighty years after the previous king died, the kingdom is returning to something resembling prosperity. Until bad luck once again strikes a ruler of Kou.

Warning: Nothing.

Disclaimer: I own plot, original characters, etc. Everything else isn't mine.

This is probably going to be a short story, just something I had in my head after reading the novels and watching the anime. Not meant to be really political, just a fun thing to read. I hope I got the characters' personalities right. Enjoy!

"Kouki, haven't the advisors reached a decision yet in regards to this matter?" the Hope-King of Kou demanded, tossing a file onto the desk in front of her in disgust. Her kirin, who had turned out to be a rare white kirin with long, blindingly-white hair, shook his head.

"No, your majesty. I'm afraid they're waiting for you to say something on the matter," he replied, making a face at the idea. He had found the new ruler of Kou after fifty years of strife had passed, bringing the new ruler to power in a rush of pomp and law. The daughter of a merchant situated in Sai, but born in Kou herself twenty years ago, the new king had quickly adapted to what she viewed as a grander version of mercantilism, much to the country's relief. Now, after thirty more years, the country had slowly begun to adapt and repair the damage that had been done.

"Of course they are. After I already told them to decide amongst themselves," Hisayo - having been named for the change she would hopefully bring - sighed, shaking her head. Her hair, a rich auburn color, was done in a simple braid at the moment, while her deep violet eyes were tired and slightly puffy. "Honestly, can't they choose who should be the next governor of the province themselves?"

"Your majesty ought to have some say in the matter," Kouki insisted, appearing in his early twenties, silver eyes striking against his skin, which was - surprisingly enough - a normal tone for a white kirin. "Just because you appointed all the ministers doesn't mean they should have free rein on these matters."

"I know that! I just want to make sure the fools can actually do something on their own for once," Hisayo grumbled, having meticulously attacked the business of ruling for the entirety of her reign. She had been lucky in the fact that no ministers had survived the previous king's fall, and so was able to handpick her advisors and ministers with Kouki's aid. She rested her chin in her hand with another sigh.

"Is there a message I can give to the ministers?" her kirin finally asked, after several long moments of silence had passed. Hisayo nodded, looking suddenly cheerful - a look that always made the kirin worry.

"Yes. You can inform them that I believe that Daichi would be an excellent choice for the governor of Ki province," she began, getting to her feet and moving to stand at the window, gazing at the sea of clouds beneath them. "You may also inform them that I am going to visit En-ou for a bit to receive more lessons in the business of kingship," she continued, smiling over her shoulder at Kouki. "It's only for a few days, so stop looking so depressed."

"But, your majesty," Kouki began to protest, but sighed when she moved to pat him on the shoulder, having to stand on her toes to do so. She wasn't very short - 5'5" - but the kirin had matured to slightly over six feet tall. "I just don't think it's a good idea," he finally said.

"It's a fine idea. I need a break and the ministers need to learn how to walk. Just supervise them and I'm sure it will turn out perfectly fine," she assured the kirin, turning away again after another pat. "Have my sekifuu readied for the trip," she added, retreating into a side chamber to change into traveling clothes. She knew En-ou didn't like fancy outfits and that was fine with her, as she didn't either.

"Genei Palace always looks so impressive," Hisayo thought out-loud with a sigh, patting the sekifuu's neck absently, her hair tied into a high ponytail as Shouryuu and Sekishi were apt to do. She wore a short indigo gown over black pants and shoes, having a change of clothes in the pack slung on her saddle - in case of a kingly emergency, so said her sarcastic kirin.

"Kouki told me you were coming," the Saiho of En greeted her dryly, hands on his hips as she landed on the balcony. "You could have asked first, you know," he informed her, glaring at her as she got to her feet and handed the reins to a servant.

"Oh please, you know Shouryuu never minds me coming," Hisayo replied with a laugh, having grown used to the disrespectful kirin after a few meetings. "Besides, Kouki needed a vacation from his overbearing ruler."

"I'll bet," Enki muttered, following her into the palace before catching up and moving to her side. "You know you keep giving him excuses to slack off. He's already cancelled all of today's meetings," he continued, lecturing the woman relentlessly. "And some of them were important!"

"Stop nagging, Rokuta," the king of En laughed, meeting the two halfway down the huge hall. He grinned at the woman, rolling his eyes as his kirin seethed. "I'm sure Hisayo has heard enough from Kouki to last her a few days here, am I right?" he asked, turning to the other king with a wink. She responded with a laugh of her own.

"I'm afraid you're right. But Kouki agrees with me - those ministers need to learn that I'm not going to oversee every single detail anymore. Nothing will ever get done if I don't start delegating the work," she said with a sigh, falling into step with Shouryuu and Enki.

"I think I told you something like that twenty years ago," the man remarked dryly, cocking an eyebrow down at the woman. "But you're so damn picky…"

"I know, I know. I should've let them have more rein after I was established. But everything was bad," she fretted. "I couldn't help it! We're still trying to pay off the debt Kou owes to En for all the reconstruction, after all," she reminded them.

"Pfft. It was a friendly gesture of goodwill," Shouryuu replied with a dismissive wave, but Enki snorted.

"You idiot. If she lets the debt continue to grow, people are going to start asking what kind of ruler accepts handouts from others?" he informed the man with a frustrated sigh. "And that'll just lead to rebellion."

"Hey, no rebellions if we're doing our jobs right," the king replied with a cheerful laugh, but his kirin only growled in further frustration.

"It's okay, Enki, I fully intend to pay it all off, with interest," Hisayo assured him, clasping her hands behind her back as they entered one of the many rooms the king of En used to entertain guests.

"I won't be holding my breath," he grumbled.

"Ahh…nothing like getting to sleep late for once," Hisayo muttered, stretching luxuriously in her huge bed, canopies concealing her from any servants coming and going. She glanced out the small window and smiled as she saw the sea of clouds beneath her.

Extracting herself from the voluminous bed sheets, she wrapped a thin robe around herself, wearing a light gown, before entering the main room. A serving woman was already there, having prepared a meal for the king.

"I assume En-ou informed you of the time I like to sleep till?" Hisayo asked wryly, smiling at the woman. She only nodded her head and backed out of the room, however, and the woman sighed. "Oh well. I think I'll bathe before starting the day," she mused, gazing out the window as she ate the food. Ringing for another woman, she nodded back at the bow.

"Is there anything you need, Kou-ou?" the woman asked.

"Yes. I'd like to use the private baths outside today, it's such a pretty day," the king informed the woman with a smile. "If that can be arranged."

"Of course, Kou-ou. I will return when it is all ready for you." With that, the woman left the room, leaving Hisayo alone with her thoughts once more.

"It's so nice to take a break. I haven't had one for ten years," she thought with an audible sigh. The last time she had seen the king of En was on an official visit and wasn't fun at all. He had snuck to her palace the last unofficial 'visit', so she had considered it high time to pay him back.

"Poor Kouki, I'm sure he's having a hard time. I'll have to make it up to him when I get back," she mused, chin in her palm as she thought of her poor kirin. He had only scared her half to death when he had appeared at their house, asking politely to see everyone who lived there. And then when he bowed to her! Insanity broke loose at that declaration, several nobles arguing the fact that Kouki had decided to remain in kirin form on her return, after the debacle of Jo Ei and Keiki.

It had all been sorted out soon enough, but was a rocky start to her reign. It must have gotten everything out of the way, however, as she reflected on how easy it had been to manage Kou. "Easy," she though with a snort, considering the word relative. "Well, compared to what Sekishi had to go through, I did have it easy after all," she had to admit to herself. Her thoughts were interrupted by the return of the serving woman, and she looked up as the woman approached.

"If your majesty would please follow me, I will escort you to the baths," the woman firmly suggested. Hisayo nodded, wrapping her robe firmly around and stepping after the woman. They passed Enki, who paused and doubled back after a moment.

"And what are you doing at this hour? Shouryuu was looking for you earlier," he informed her.

"I can't see why, he knows I like to sleep late. What's the matter?" she asked, as he fell into step with her, the woman having a short lead on them.

"He wants you to attend a banquet with him this evening. There are a lot of officials and nobles attending and I couldn't cancel that too," the kirin explained, sounding as if he had been made to try. "He figures as long as you're here."

"You wouldn't have happened to mention this to Kouki, did you?" Hisayo asked suspiciously, her thoughts turning to the change of clothes he had forced on her. Enki shook his head, however.

"Nope, I didn't know you were coming until afterwards. So?" he asked impatiently.

"All right. Let me go bathe and I'll meet Shouryuu afterwards for more information," she agreed, smiling at the kirin. Despite his attitude, she couldn't help liking him - Kouki was a bit like a mellow Enki, now that she thought about it. She shuddered at the idea of having her own personal Enki to torment her, but the kirin ignored her.

"Fine, I'll go tell him," he muttered, mumbling something about royalty under his breath as he stalked down the hall away from them. Hisayo shook her head in amusement, catching back up to the woman when she realized the servant had gained quite a lead on her.

"Here we are, your majesty," the woman told her, opening the door for the king. Hisayo smiled at the sight; flowering trees stretched out over the bathing pond, high screens shielding the section of the gardens from the sight of others.

"Thank you so much. I'd like some privacy, I'll ring for someone when I'm ready," Hisayo told the woman, gesturing slightly to the bell that would summon a woman when the king was done. The woman bowed, apparently unsure whether it was proper to leave the king alone.

"As you wish, your majesty," she finally said, shutting the door firmly behind her. Hisayo could have sworn she heard the woman lock it and smiled at the idea.

"As if anyone would try to walk in on a king bathing. That would go very badly," she thought, chuckling as she recalled the single time one of the sankou had accidently walked in on her bathing, not realizing they were interrupting. "Kouki went absolutely berserk. I thought he was going to have a conniption." The Hope-King laughed aloud at the memory before slipping out of her robe and gown, folding them on the back of a nearby chair.

Stepping into the warm water, she sighed in relief as her muscles began to finally relax. Knotting her hair up loosely, Hisayo closed her eyes and sat back, taking advantage of the opportunity of the luxury of having time to soak. The stress and worries seemed to melt away into the water; she was unsure how long she was soaking when a strange wind suddenly roused her from her doze.

"What's that?" she wondered, opening her eyes. She gasped at the sky above her, which had grown dark and twisted. The wind whipped around her, sending thousands of tiny petals into the pond around the king. Scrambling out of the pond, Hisayo braced herself against a tree as another strong gust threatened to knock her to the ground. Her hair came loose and knotted itself around her knees, having grown down to her calves.

The light faded as the sky grew even darker, the wind stronger. Hisayo made a desperate lunge for the door and ended up on her knees, gripping the trunk of a sapling to keep from being blown away. "I have to get inside! This is a shoku!" she realized in fright, wishing Kouki was there.

"Hisayo!" a voice shouted. Looking up, she realized Shouryuu and Enki were in the doorway, holding on for their own lives in the twisting wind. With no regard for modesty, Hisayo tried to reach an arm out to grab the king's outstretched hand.

"Just a little more!" Enki urged her, fearing being blown as Taiki had been.

"I'm trying!" she yelled back, gritting her teeth and stretching her arm so far she felt her muscles protest. "I can't reach! Shouryuu, help!" she pleaded, trying to force her body to extend in order to grip his fingers. They seemed so close and so far away at the same time, frustrating them both to no end.

"Look out! Get back, Shouryuu!" Enki shouted, pulling his king back as the shoku suddenly erupted into a violent storm. Hisayo shrieked in protest as her fingers were pried from the sapling, her body dragged into the clouds before anything could be done to save her.

The sky lightened in seconds, all signs of the shoku erased except for the destruction to the garden - and the stolen king. Shouryuu and Enki stood still, jaws hanging open in disbelief, before the kirin turned to the man.

"It figures these things would happen to you," he remarked. The Ever-King could only groan and slap a hand over his face.