Month o' Prompts - [oo7]
[oo7] Wednesday: By the Numbers: 7 Virtues
((The following work is AU. Quite possibly less AU than its predecessor, but nothing's being set in stone here.))
Seven Steps Toward an Ideal Future...
Industria
The Dashing Prince is nothing like his father.
Naturally, the King's the only one who doesn't realize this. Whenever he praises his son, he always claims that the Prince 'reminds Us of Ourselves at his age, only much smaller.' That always makes Ichigo laugh -- that, and the way the Queen always smiles in that same secretive fashion whenever she hears her husband go on and on about the so-called similarities.
The Prince remains one of their best rollers; if anyone's mastered the art, it's him. Not only has he learned how to precisely control his katamari, regardless of its size or the weather or whatever other conditions before him, he's passed on many of those secrets to his cousins. It's common for him to turn any everyday request into a lesson, taking one of his less-skilled cousins along to roll together. He never worries about their skill (or lack thereof) dragging him down; he lets them set the pace, quietly encouraging and supporting them.
Under his care, they are all improving. The cosmos grow and flourish, stars shining brighter with every passing day.
|~~~~~|
Humanitas
It isn't that requests are getting easier; it's that they've all gotten so much better.
Even the trickiest jobs give them less problems. Ichigo doesn't have to balk at assignments forcing her to roll underwater: once the Prince figured out that was her greatest weakness, he started finding ways around that, making sure those missions are directed toward others with more confidence around water, like Shy, Marny or June. There's no reason to make somebody do something she doesn't like; they're all here to help each other, and enjoy a good day's rolling.
And he makes certain they fill all those requests, no matter how big or small. Whether it's catching a comet that's about to smash into Earth, tidying up a child's room, or just showing somebody the Royal Rainbow, the Prince ensures they get everything done.
When their fans smile and laugh and cheer, he smiles back, shyly.
|~~~~~|
Frenum
He works and works and works and expects so little in return.
Some of the humans offer more than simple presents. Ichigo knows this because some of those gifts have been offered to her. It's not a matter of fans sending her, say, a box of chocolates or a pretty pink dress meant just for their favorite little strawberry; it's things like jewelry and money. Things called 'contracts', that she reads and doesn't really understand and sends back.
They roll for everyone; it's strange that some of their fans don't seem to comprehend that. Want them to make deals, to sign things saying that they'll roll in one part of the world and ignore another. Put their requests ahead of others.
She knows that the Royal Family must get these sort of strange not-gifts, too, but she never hears anything about them. Not until she visits the Prince on his planet one day and sees him rolling up a bunch of crumpled papers, frowning and actually looking angry for once.
She catches his eye, and he freezes, caught. She smiles, to show she understands, and joins him. They roll and roll and talk and talk, and she ends that visit feeling much better for reasons she can't fully name.
|~~~~~|
Liberalitas
Sometimes, she worries that he works too much.
The Prince doesn't like asking for help, and she thinks she knows why. For all his life, the King of All Cosmos has relied on his son, leaning heavily on his developing skills, expecting so much for so little praise, so little encouragement. The Prince loves his father, she knows, but she also knows he fears him -- fears continuing the cycle when he takes the crown.
So he works and works and works and doesn't ask for the help he needs... so his cousins give without being asked. And when he thanks them, the relief and gratitude shining in his eyes makes clear what he has trouble putting into words.
|~~~~~|
Patientia
One day, Earth starts a war.
Ichigo's one of the only cousins who even halfway understands what's happening. For most of her family, 'war' is a foreign concept, something that makes less than no sense. They haven't picked up on the underlying tension between different parts of Earth; they don't know what makes people argue and declare that whoever doesn't agree with them doesn't deserve to live.
For Ichigo, she suspected something was coming when the tone of the 'contracts' changed. When the written requests became less so, when there were thinly veiled threats between the lines she left blank.
It doesn't last long. Soon after the first shots are fired, the Prince is on the front line, rolling and rolling and rolling everyone and everything up. The braver cousins follow, and others go despite their fear, despite confusion and shock and just not comprehending the danger.
When everything's been rolled up, the Dashing Prince gathers everyone together and makes matters clear: there will be no more fighting. No more weapons. No more threats -- and no more letters asking any of them to favor one side over another. Some of their fans still argue, shout insults and scream, but the Prince stands firm, even after June bursts into tears, even while Kuro clenches his fists and Ichigo fights the urge to shout back.
The Prince just lets them speak, then replies, quiet, but with a firmness in his voice she's never heard before today. They will stop fighting, the war ends today -- they can just deal with their disagreements without all their deadly little toys and tricks.
The King and Queen watch, oddly quiet for once, while their son handles matters once again. Out of the corner of her eye, Ichigo sees the way her aunt squeezes her uncle's hand, and wonders.
|~~~~~|
Castitas
When the King of All Cosmos hands down his crown, nothing really changes.
The Dashing King's first act is to officially establish a council, acknowledging all of his cousins as his colleagues, his support network -- his equals in all but name. Ichigo isn't really surprised; after all, they've gotten this far by all working together and supporting each other, this was the next logical step. If anything, she hopes the people of Earth will take this as a cue.
Though it doesn't matter if they don't quite follow suit. There are no weapons left on Earth. The Prince's promise still holds, all the stronger now that he's taken the throne.
At their first meeting, he asks for help -- how do we keep Earth peaceful? How do we ensure everyone's safety? Where do we go from here?
They talk for hours and hours, discussing the future -- and maybe they don't have everything perfectly resolved when they finally end that first session, but Ichigo leaves feeling more confident than she has since the people of Earth made their little mistake. When she goes to sleep that night, she's finally certain -- there will never be another war.
|~~~~~|
Humilitas
The day she officially presents Cheri to her Royal Cousins could have gone better.
Her daughter takes one look at the Kindhearted Prince and promptly sticks out her tongue, razzing him and loudly claiming purple's a dumb color. For the first time in a long while, Ichigo feels her face turn redder than her gown -- and Dipp's laughter doesn't help. Already she can see Velvet smirking, Opeo hiding his face in his hands, so many of her cousins struggling to hide their smiles and giggles...
The Dashing King of All Cosmos just smiles, and kneels to address Cheri. His voice has grown deeper over the years, but has never lost its softness. Cheri's stubborn glare gradually fades, and she finally mumbles an apology -- not the best one she's ever heard, but Ichigo can discuss that with her later.
For now, she watches as the Kindhearted Prince smiles and nods, asking his new cousin if she can come play. While they scurry off, the Dashing King straightens, watching them go before turning to her.
"She reminds me of someone..." he trails off, grinning when she cuffs his arm -- and smacks Dipp for good measure before they stride toward their waiting cousins, arm in arm.
((The following work is AU. Quite possibly less AU than its predecessor, but nothing's being set in stone here.))
Seven Steps Toward an Ideal Future...
Industria
The Dashing Prince is nothing like his father.
Naturally, the King's the only one who doesn't realize this. Whenever he praises his son, he always claims that the Prince 'reminds Us of Ourselves at his age, only much smaller.' That always makes Ichigo laugh -- that, and the way the Queen always smiles in that same secretive fashion whenever she hears her husband go on and on about the so-called similarities.
The Prince remains one of their best rollers; if anyone's mastered the art, it's him. Not only has he learned how to precisely control his katamari, regardless of its size or the weather or whatever other conditions before him, he's passed on many of those secrets to his cousins. It's common for him to turn any everyday request into a lesson, taking one of his less-skilled cousins along to roll together. He never worries about their skill (or lack thereof) dragging him down; he lets them set the pace, quietly encouraging and supporting them.
Under his care, they are all improving. The cosmos grow and flourish, stars shining brighter with every passing day.
|~~~~~|
Humanitas
It isn't that requests are getting easier; it's that they've all gotten so much better.
Even the trickiest jobs give them less problems. Ichigo doesn't have to balk at assignments forcing her to roll underwater: once the Prince figured out that was her greatest weakness, he started finding ways around that, making sure those missions are directed toward others with more confidence around water, like Shy, Marny or June. There's no reason to make somebody do something she doesn't like; they're all here to help each other, and enjoy a good day's rolling.
And he makes certain they fill all those requests, no matter how big or small. Whether it's catching a comet that's about to smash into Earth, tidying up a child's room, or just showing somebody the Royal Rainbow, the Prince ensures they get everything done.
When their fans smile and laugh and cheer, he smiles back, shyly.
|~~~~~|
Frenum
He works and works and works and expects so little in return.
Some of the humans offer more than simple presents. Ichigo knows this because some of those gifts have been offered to her. It's not a matter of fans sending her, say, a box of chocolates or a pretty pink dress meant just for their favorite little strawberry; it's things like jewelry and money. Things called 'contracts', that she reads and doesn't really understand and sends back.
They roll for everyone; it's strange that some of their fans don't seem to comprehend that. Want them to make deals, to sign things saying that they'll roll in one part of the world and ignore another. Put their requests ahead of others.
She knows that the Royal Family must get these sort of strange not-gifts, too, but she never hears anything about them. Not until she visits the Prince on his planet one day and sees him rolling up a bunch of crumpled papers, frowning and actually looking angry for once.
She catches his eye, and he freezes, caught. She smiles, to show she understands, and joins him. They roll and roll and talk and talk, and she ends that visit feeling much better for reasons she can't fully name.
|~~~~~|
Liberalitas
Sometimes, she worries that he works too much.
The Prince doesn't like asking for help, and she thinks she knows why. For all his life, the King of All Cosmos has relied on his son, leaning heavily on his developing skills, expecting so much for so little praise, so little encouragement. The Prince loves his father, she knows, but she also knows he fears him -- fears continuing the cycle when he takes the crown.
So he works and works and works and doesn't ask for the help he needs... so his cousins give without being asked. And when he thanks them, the relief and gratitude shining in his eyes makes clear what he has trouble putting into words.
|~~~~~|
Patientia
One day, Earth starts a war.
Ichigo's one of the only cousins who even halfway understands what's happening. For most of her family, 'war' is a foreign concept, something that makes less than no sense. They haven't picked up on the underlying tension between different parts of Earth; they don't know what makes people argue and declare that whoever doesn't agree with them doesn't deserve to live.
For Ichigo, she suspected something was coming when the tone of the 'contracts' changed. When the written requests became less so, when there were thinly veiled threats between the lines she left blank.
It doesn't last long. Soon after the first shots are fired, the Prince is on the front line, rolling and rolling and rolling everyone and everything up. The braver cousins follow, and others go despite their fear, despite confusion and shock and just not comprehending the danger.
When everything's been rolled up, the Dashing Prince gathers everyone together and makes matters clear: there will be no more fighting. No more weapons. No more threats -- and no more letters asking any of them to favor one side over another. Some of their fans still argue, shout insults and scream, but the Prince stands firm, even after June bursts into tears, even while Kuro clenches his fists and Ichigo fights the urge to shout back.
The Prince just lets them speak, then replies, quiet, but with a firmness in his voice she's never heard before today. They will stop fighting, the war ends today -- they can just deal with their disagreements without all their deadly little toys and tricks.
The King and Queen watch, oddly quiet for once, while their son handles matters once again. Out of the corner of her eye, Ichigo sees the way her aunt squeezes her uncle's hand, and wonders.
|~~~~~|
Castitas
When the King of All Cosmos hands down his crown, nothing really changes.
The Dashing King's first act is to officially establish a council, acknowledging all of his cousins as his colleagues, his support network -- his equals in all but name. Ichigo isn't really surprised; after all, they've gotten this far by all working together and supporting each other, this was the next logical step. If anything, she hopes the people of Earth will take this as a cue.
Though it doesn't matter if they don't quite follow suit. There are no weapons left on Earth. The Prince's promise still holds, all the stronger now that he's taken the throne.
At their first meeting, he asks for help -- how do we keep Earth peaceful? How do we ensure everyone's safety? Where do we go from here?
They talk for hours and hours, discussing the future -- and maybe they don't have everything perfectly resolved when they finally end that first session, but Ichigo leaves feeling more confident than she has since the people of Earth made their little mistake. When she goes to sleep that night, she's finally certain -- there will never be another war.
|~~~~~|
Humilitas
The day she officially presents Cheri to her Royal Cousins could have gone better.
Her daughter takes one look at the Kindhearted Prince and promptly sticks out her tongue, razzing him and loudly claiming purple's a dumb color. For the first time in a long while, Ichigo feels her face turn redder than her gown -- and Dipp's laughter doesn't help. Already she can see Velvet smirking, Opeo hiding his face in his hands, so many of her cousins struggling to hide their smiles and giggles...
The Dashing King of All Cosmos just smiles, and kneels to address Cheri. His voice has grown deeper over the years, but has never lost its softness. Cheri's stubborn glare gradually fades, and she finally mumbles an apology -- not the best one she's ever heard, but Ichigo can discuss that with her later.
For now, she watches as the Kindhearted Prince smiles and nods, asking his new cousin if she can come play. While they scurry off, the Dashing King straightens, watching them go before turning to her.
"She reminds me of someone..." he trails off, grinning when she cuffs his arm -- and smacks Dipp for good measure before they stride toward their waiting cousins, arm in arm.