Induction (Atem)

The last of the "treasure" found by the two ninja the princess had never expected to succeed was finally evaluated and stored away, the royal vaults becoming fuller than they had been in near a century leaving Princess Tehniyat Bukhari-Star with a satisfied smile curling on her glossed pink lips. Despite the fact that the news of newfound income had faded to the background with the news of the scandal her uncle had been associated with - apparently Good Uncle Mervyn had taken it into his hands to kill a couple of promising young girls as part of his religious obligations to the High Lady - the blonde princess didn't mind. She preferred her job as the treasurer of the royal account and she had always known it came with little glamour and a lot of seedy negotiations. She had always valued discretion as part of her arsenal and now, it seemed she had found someone else who had done the same.

Young Atem, or not so young, she hadn't paid attention to his age in particular, seemed to excel at discretion to the point of having impressed even her, which was the reason she had summoned him to the royal palaces today. Taking her customary seat in the library now that Lord Denkiteki finally had his own office to work out of, Tehniyat felt more at home then she had in a while. The books had always called to her, account books to be specific. Idly the princess reflected on how much she would miss this once the time for her journey to Bird Country finally came.

But until then, she would await the ninja who would be escorted by Shina into the library. Dressed in a light green gown with lace finishing, the princess portrayed no signs of suffering from the intense heat that showered the rest of the city today. The sun high in the sky with no clouds for shade. All windows of the library lay open today, tempting in a non existent breeze but Princess Tehniyat was as comfortable as she could be in her high backed chair, the impressive wooden desk in front of her acting as a barrier that separated her from the rest of the world.

Things were finally looking up.

As Atem entered the library, taking the seat opposite the princess's desk, it was clear to see he had been raised as far away from court life as it was possible to be. Growing up, Tehniyat had always thought the Hoshigakure palaces were the biggest thing in the world. Now she knew better. Not just the palaces but even her country, the beautiful Haven lands, were nothing but a small spec in the grand scheme of things. the arrival of ninja from all over the world had made hers seem even smaller.

Shina, raised into palace etiquette by now, give a curtsy. "Will there be anything else, Your Grace?" the kunoichi asked, only for the blonde to wave a slight hand, indicating that Shina may leave. The female jounin did so wordlessly. Once she was sure Shina was gone - no one ever heard a shinobi leave, at best you had to assume and being a creature of mathematics, Tehniyat hated few things more than assumptions - she turned her attention to the ninja in front of her.

"I mus first begin by congratulating you I suppose," she spoke up, green eyes appraising the young man opposite her, taking in his posture and his carefree mannerism all of which suggested this was a bad idea. But his eyes, they spoke of needing a purpose, and that much Tehniyat could provide. "You and your partner discovered a significant addition to our vaults, and all without anyone knowing. Unmarked, nontaxable and shadow income is hard to get by but you two managed such a feat... So you have my gratitude." It had taken a lot for her to say the words, Princess Tehniyat was of the opinion that royalty owed no emotional costs to anyone, but a lot of things had changed in the past year, now they owed their security to Lord Denkiteki and Lady Akihana's ninja forces, of which Atem Chasseur was a part.

"Of course I need not tell you that despite the mission being concluded, it must still remain a secret. Should it be knows, we will lose all possible advantage we gained momentarily from its discovery."

As the young ninja explained that their success at the mission she had set them was inevitable, Tehniyat wondered where all the confidence stemmed from. Confidence was a valuable virtue to possess but its value lay in how well it was balanced. It remained to be seen if Atem was confident to the extent of being foolish or simply believed in his own abilities. "No, your friend Lucien will not be joining us today," the blonde admitted, green eyes taking in the male curiously.

"I did not summon you here to offer you money, so that's all well and good," she cut him off, clearly the boy would require a lot of polishing should he be employed to be around court life. The first lessons of many would be to learn to speak less, and use more measured words. But he was young yet. "Money is something I have no wish to part with Call it cliche but the security in golds and bonds is what keeps our country going. Hoshi has had many problems over the last twenty years but do you know what has not been one of them? We are not indebted monetarily to any other nation. I managed to save enough to tide us over even through the rogue attacks these last ten years." It felt good to admit it, Tehniyat had never told anyone this before. There as never a need to until now.

"You claim to want a spot on my royal guard, yet what do you know of Haven's royalty? Let's test your knowledge. What makes a Queen, Ser Chasseur?"

"A charming answer," Tehniyat admitted, the ghost of a smile touching her face. Charm could get a person into most places. Lady Akihana had it in spades and was completely unaware of it, Lord Denkiteki possessed some but was rather ill placed in using it, and this boy... Tehniyat couldn't make up her mind about an unpolished investment. He could certainly be both useful and dangerous, but only when properly trained and educated.

And that was apparently her job now.

"But an incorrect one, at least as far as Hoshi is concerned." the blonde princess corrected gently, vibrant green gaze glittering with the challenge at hand. "Birth makes a Queen. You can educate with and bestow upon any woman words, elegance, charisma, silver speech and adorn her with fine gowns and jewels, but she would still be a well dressed, well spoken commoner, not a Queen." The princess paused for a moment to let it sink in.

"I was born in Forest Country, a daughter to the Queen's male cousin. I grew up with no notions of being Queen someday for my claim to the throne of Haven is perhaps stronger than only Princess Kanzaki's. But she was born right here in this palace, so some might feel that despite her mixed blood, she has a better claim to the throne." Despite rarely leaving her books, Tehniyat was well aware of court gossip, having made just enough friends to know which way the court and public consensus swung. The art had gotten her out of tough situations more than once.

"As you must have heard, our Queen, my Aunt Shiera, is counting her last breath. After she departs this world to join the stars that look down us at night, there will be chaos. Her daughter, the rightful heir to her throne has long been dead, Prince Arthur's fiance too has left us, bringing us the conflict we now face at bird country which will only be resolved with my marriage to their prince. At best we will have a divided people with some supporting Princess Kanzaki's claims and some mine. Do you understand what any of this might mean for you? Will you be willing to guard a doomed princess?"

Tehniyat fell silent, letting the question ring through the library as Atem contemplated his response.

Her royal highness found herself giving pause at his question of where royalty originated from. She hadn't expected the question from someone like him but it seemed he truly wanted to know the history of the country, not just the parts that would be relevant to him today. "Well," she began, lacing her fingers above the desk and as she relayed the history as best as she could. "Anyone in Hoshi would tell you it was the Gods who picked the first Queen, mayshe shine on forevermore. Before the days of organised monarchy, a group of priests decided declared unto a woman with hair of gold the title of Queen. They said her yellow her among their own blacks and browns and reds stood out as clear sign from the Gods. But if you would indulge me an opinion, Ser."

Looking at him to see if he understood, she continued. "We often credit the Gods with ideas we come up with on our own. Should the Gods will me to pick up a pen and write a letter, I would do so. But was the action done because I wanted it or because the Gods did? Or did They want me to want to do it? The paradox is as fascinating as it is confusing so I would tentatively answer your question with... Gods may make the Queen, but it is the people who truly make her. Which is why the coming contest for the throne is so important. Because it will be up to the people to decide whether dear cousin Kanzaki is worthy of being their new Queen or I am."

A steely green gaze collided with the boy's own as he called the people of the city ignorant. Princess Tehniyat allowed him to finish his sentence but it was clear from her slightly hardened features that she did not appreciate her people being looked down upon. "I did not tell you all this so you may rain judgement down upon the good citizens of Hoshigakure. They have very strong beliefs and those beliefs were the only thing that held them firm through the last decade when our city was pillaged by rogues and entire country taken over by missing ninja. Do these beliefs align with yours? Perhaps not but that is no reason to refer to them as ignorant."

If he would respond, she would listen before she continued.

"At any rate, it doesn't matter if their beliefs are valid, they just are, and they will play a key role in deciding who the next Queen will be. We cannot change their mind, nor can be change the past. When all is said and done, I am still the outsider from Forest Country while Princess Kanzaki is the trueborn princess of Hoshigakure. She is however, only a child. She has much to learn before she can rule our Queendom effectively whereas I have had some experience in court, and I already manage the royal treasury as you well know." Truth be told, Tehniyat was rather fond of her young cousin despite her halfblood status. She had been a child herself when Kanzaki was born and she had been fascinated with babies. As Kanzaki grew, she continued to fascinate Tehniyat with her use of chakra and her wish to fulfill her father's dreams of uniting shinobi and civilians alike.