Little Flower |Scaramouche| ✓

◤Prologue​ |I Couldn't Protect You​|

"Kuni! Why are you sad?" Her sweet voice came up so suddenly beside him causing the boy to jump. Raijin held worry in her (e/c) eyes as she crouched down beside him in the grassy area of the Tenshukaku gardens. Kunikuzushi let out a sigh and hugged his knees to his chest, rocking back and forth.

"I'm not sad. I'm just...thinking about the future is all. One day when I grow older, I want to feel more complete...maybe getting married and starting a family," he finally said. At the mention of marriage and family, the little heir's eyes seemed to sparkle and she leaned in closer to her bodyguard.

"Who would you want to marry, Kuni?" Raijin's head tilted to the side in a curious manner. He simply shrugged his shoulders as a way to say he didn't know, but that didn't satisfy her as she asked him once more.

"Probably my soulmate who I'll meet in the future." His gaze turned up towards the sky and before he knew it, Kunikuzushi heard sniffles coming from Raijin's direction. Alerted by this, he worridley glanced over at her only to see tears pricking her eyes. "R-Raijin?!" Without warning, she latched onto his arm and buried her face in his shoulder.

"D-Don't leave me!!!" she cried and wailed. Her cries began getting louder and in a panic, Kunikuzushi desperately shushed her so that nearby shogunate on patrol wouldn't be alerted to the upset heir.

"H-Hey...I promise I'll stay by your side when we get older...okay? Until the day we die no matter what happens, I'll stay by your side for eternity...." he whispered quietly while running his hands through her (h/c) locks.

"Pinky promise...?" Raijin sniffled and held out her smallest finger. Kunikuzushi smiled at this and intertwined their pinkies together, sealing the childish pinky promise. She ceased her crying and wrapped her arms around the eight year old boy. "When we're older...I wanna marry you so that we'll never be alone."

It took a few seconds for the words to register before he let out a chuckle. He ruffled her hair and thought nothing of her words and took nothing to heart. He felt nothing after all, nothing except for the drive and desire to protect Raijin and keep her safe. Kunikuzushi cared a lot for her and would sacrifice his life to keep her safe. The Raiden Shogun had given him a new life. He would honour his promises.

"Kunikuzushi! Raijin!" Ei's voice called from one of the many doors leading into Tenshukaku causing the two children to change their attention to the queen. "It is time for Raijin to prepare for tonight. See to it that she is ready for tonight's dinner," she said simply and turned her back on them, disappearing into the palace.

"You're going to be six, Rai," Kunikuzushi teasingly booped the little girl's nose as she giggled. Raijin stood up and grabbed the boy's hand before dragging him with her inside the palace. The energy she exerted was enough to trigger a faint feeling of happiness and excitement inside Kunikuzushi.

********

"Blow out the candles, Raijin. Wish for anything you'd like," Ei gently pushed a large cake decorated in dango balls and various other sweets that were the girl's favourites. Her (e/c) shined and sparkled as her mouth was open in awe at the cake. In (f/c) frosting a message that said 'Happy Birthday Rai' along with a large number six written messily in Kunikuzushi's unmistakable handwriting.

"I wish for—"

"Silly, if you say your wish out loud it won't come true," he quickly cut her off with a smile. Ei nodded her head to what the protector had said and gestured for her adopted daughter to hurry up and blow the candles. The almighty Raiden Shogun had been eyeing the dango balls the entire time, but restrained herself for fear of breaking out of her persona.

Raijin looked at her mother and then at her bestest friend and bodyguard before closing her eyes in thought. After her wish had been made, she opened her eyes again and with a great huff and puff, blew out the six candles that had once been lit. Claps from Ei and Kunikuzushi made the girl smile as she plucked a pink dango ball from the cake and plopped it in her mouth.