Jiinora

Sora watched as Kairi's face fell, and he stepped forward, gingerly placing a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay. We've all got stuff we need to do," He smiled softly, hoping to cheer her up. "I doubt it'll take much twisting of Riku's arm for him to arrange for us all to get together. Maybe we can sneak out into the town square like we used to, do some shopping and stuff. I need some new armor accessories anyways!" He mused, twiddling with his Slayer Earring as he thought about it. "Absolutely, of course!" Naminé nodded her head vigorously, noting the sun gradually getting lower. "Ah, I figure I should let you know, I have a client in town tonight looking to have a treatment done. I, uh... I asked Roxas to escort me."

Sora nodded in understanding. "He's fine. He has to be a little more strict with me cause I'm his apprentice now and whatnot, but aside from that, nothing's different. Uh," He glanced down at his feet, hoping to find something to talk about. "Oh, how's Naminé? She's usually escorting you so I don't get to see her as often either. I miss you guys, both me and Riku!" Naminé nodded in agreement, smiling. "I'm sure it's rough while in training, but that's a good trait for him to have. He's fast, and it'll be difficult for anyone to catch him. And with the special training he's received from Master Aqua, he's a valuable knight on and off the battlefield. He's really going to be great, Riku." She smiled, meaning every word, but also still harboring reservations about her dear friend going anywhere near a battlefield.

As soon as she spoke, he stood, but still standing straightly at attention. "I know, it's just a bit of an integrity thing I've been trying to work on," he explained, nodding to himself. If he wanted to be as strong as a knight, he knew he had to also be as noble as one. "It's great to see you though, Kairi. How have your lessons been?" Naminé smiled to herself, hearing the two greet each other. "Well, that certainly makes me feel better," she said, walking back over to Riku. "How have you been? I'm sure your new student/teacher relationship with Sora must be... Interesting," she pondered, speaking lowly so that Roxas would not hear her as he left.

"Just handling things for you, Your Highness!" She smiled, walking towards the direction that Sora would be coming from, to give them a moment alone. As she passed him, Sora shook his head, realizing that wherever Naminé was, Kairi was not far behind. Dashing around the corner, he beamed as she came into view. "Kairi, hey! What're you doing?" He kneeled, trying not to forget his formalities. "Uh, I mean Your Highness."

Naminé put her hand over her mouth to stifle laughter, quickly and quietly dashing back over to Kairi with a smile on her face. "Your Highness," she curtsied, then resumed standing in position. Sora blinked vapidly at his summoning, then shook his head. "Uh, I forgot I just stepped out on training. Let's talk again soon!" He grinned at Roxas, waving as he dashed over to where Riku had called him from. "What's up?"

The Lady smiled at the tall young man, not having been able to talk to him recently either. "Hello, Riku, it's nice to see you again! We need your help," She gestured towards where she left Kairi. "Her Highness desires an audience with Sora," She smirked then cleared her throat, keeping with formalities. "But, as you'd know, she is too polite to interrupt his current engagement." "Ah, it's not as great as it seems from the outside. Practically every day of your life has a strict schedule if you wanna be a nobleman. And it also means no adventuring. That's why I decided to become a Knight! That, and I can use a Keyblade, so, y'know." He grinned, shamelessly humble-bragging.

Naminé had to admit it was true, it would look bad if the Princess interrupted a conversation. Manners and charms and all. However, she knew the layout of the garden well, and that she could walk around and catch Riku's attention without being seen by Sora and, god forbid, Roxas. "Wait here," she whispered, walking around the hedge surrounding the fountain to where Riku was. "Hey... Riku!" She hissed, getting his attention and trying to wave him over. "Ah, I gotcha," he nodded, sitting on the edge of the fountain. "Well, Riku, Naminé, and Kai- er, the Princess and I have all been friends since we were young. All our parents are part of the King's Court, so we all grew up here."

"Really? That's awesome! That's really great!" He grinned, clapping his hands together, happy for his new friend. "I'll have to listen sometime!" Glancing towards the hedge where Naminé's head had been previously, he gave a sly little smile. "So, uh... How do you know Lady Naminé?" Naminé sighed, making an exasperated face. "Come on, Kairi! You have to! I'm your friend first, your Lady in Waiting second! And you can't hide anything from me as both of them. It's time!"

"Kairi... You should go talk to him! You haven't spoken in a few weeks!" She encouraged, smiling and nodding. "Wait for him to finish with Roxas, then make a move!" She peered around the corner at the boys, noticing Riku had arrived as well. She got along rather well with Riku, as they had all spent a great deal of time together before when they were younger. "I'd been meaning to introduce myself, I've seen you around a couple times. What brings you to the castle?" He grinned, genuinely interested in Roxas. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Naminé watching from behind the bush, and he gave her a friendly wink as she darted back behind the corner, giggling to herself.

Naminé picked up on the voice as well, smiling coyly to herself. Maybe she would wait her for Sora to come around and speak to Kairi? They hadn't been able to have a genuine conversation in a while, due to Kairi taking on more responsibilities as her status grew. This was a grand opportunity! Sora grinned ear to ear. "That's great! I'm Sora, nice to meetcha!" He held out his hand, bright and eager as ever. He just had to be friends with everyone he met.

Sora grinned to himself, realizing that Roxas had just scored some sort of date. Naminé nodded again with a sweet smile, taking Kairi's arm. "Thank you again, Roxas. I'll see you soon. We should get going, Kairi. You have your lesson to get to!" She tugged Kairi along, knowing full well that Kairi had finished her lessons for the day. She just needed an excuse to get out before she collapsed under her shyness. As they turned the corner, the Lady let out a great sigh of relief, clenching Kairi's hand. Stepping out from behind the hedge, Sora clapped a hand on Roxas' shoulder. "Way to go, guy! You just scored an outing with Lady Naminé, huh?"

Sora knew that practice was important. But practice could come tomorrow, and this conversation could end in seconds. He was a nosy young man, and felt no shame as he leaped off the wall and down into the garden, his Keyblade dematerializing into thin air as he crept closer behind a hedge to listen in. Plus, he could talk to Kairi after she finished. Naminé beamed at the dirty blonde young man, curtsying again. "Thank you, Roxas! I'd be happy to meet you here at dusk, if that's alright with you."

Sora watched the exchange, trying his hardest to tell what exactly they were talking about, but with the fountain, it difficult to hear exact words. "It's the new guy! I keep wanting to say hi but I get caught up every time. What d you think they're talking about, Riku?" Naminé nodded as Kairi explained. "I'd need to leave just before sundown," She continued, which happened to be in a little over an hour. "I would... greatly appreciate your assistance." She bowed her head slightly.

As they clashed, Sora picked up the sound of nearby music changing to voices. "Wait wait wait... Riku, I think I hear the girls talking to someone!" He smirked, jumping away and vaulting up the nearby wall to peek over into the garden. "Come look!" The Lady smiled, giving a small curtsy. "It's no problem. I, ah... Was hoping to ask you something. A request," She did her best not to shuffle, glancing back over her shoulder at Kairi. Hopefully she could help her as a wingman.

Sora struck his blade down on Riku's defense stance, the blades making solid contact. "C'mon Riku, I need to get better! I need to be able to protect my friends!" He jumped back, standing in a slightly open stance to encourage Riku to spar. Gently, Naminé tread forward, lulled by Roxas' music. When she stood on the opposite side of the fountain, she cleared her throat loudly so he might hear her over the guitar and the waters of the fountain. "Roxas? Might I bother you for a moment?"

Sora tried and failed to hide his embarrassment at Riku's jab, furrowing his brow. "Well... maybe I will! Only one way to find out, though!" He retaliated, running forward and raising his blade to prepare an attack. Naminé picked up the faint music notes as well, smiling to herself. "Kairi... I think he's over in the alcove by the starflowers. I've seen him there before." She leaned over, looking around the corner of a hedge in the direction of the music.

"Alright!" With a flash of light, Sora's Kingdom Key appeared in his hand, which he spun around with ease. "Who knows, maybe if we train hard enough, I can have my own Mark of Mastery exam before the month is over!" The Lady blushed, fiddling with the sleeve of her dress. "Oh... Of course!" She hurried forward, opening the door leading from the corridor to the garden. Sunlight flooded the corridor, and the scent of flowers lilted along the breeze, bringing a smile to her face.

The young man laughed again, cautiously walking down the wall until he was planted firmly on the ground once again. "Alright, Teach - what're we gonna do today?" He continued to stretch, adjusting his arm bracers around his elbows. "Speaking of which," Naminé closed her satchel and patted it. "There was a man whom I was supposed to meet later this evening. He came a decent way to make an appointment with me. He said he'd been plagued by headaches and nightmares and was looking to relieve the pain. I don't have anyone to escort me... Maybe I should ask Roxas?"

(I had Wisdom Form in mind with this) After nearing the opposite wall, Sora screeched to a halt, turning heel and sprinting in the direction he came from, trying to recall the trick that Master Aqua had taught him that he referred to as Air Surfing - just gliding right above the ground. With a pep in his step, he hopped up and surfed across the courtyard, planting his feet on the wall and sticking there. For a moment he stared, then laughed at his predicament. The Lady hugged her sketchbook to her chest, then placed it back in her satchel. "I hope he hasn't heard any poor rumors about me and my...hobbies." She looked out the windows and down at the garden wall. Some people of the Court found her magical practices unsavory, due to their uncommon nature, dealing with the psyche.

Sora smirked, bending over as if to touch his toes. "Alright, if you say so... ReadysetGO!" He shouted, taking off in a full sprint across the training grounds, quite pleased with himself. If he wanted to win the race that didn't exist, he knew he needed a head start. He was quite short and needed an advantage. "One could say that," She smiled, pulling a small notebook from a satchel on her hip as they walked down the corridor. Flipping it open, she looked at a page in which she had roughly sketched an image of a small lute, with geometric designs winding up the neck of the instrument. "I thought I might find him a new instrument, to welcome him to the castle. He has come a long way to join the Court."

Sora smiled to himself at the thought of Kairi. He had certainly missed her since she had to step up and perform her royal duties as the next in line, but he knew they couldn't just play in the gardens like he, Riku, and Kairi had once done. They were adults now! He cleared his throat, nodding. "Of course! You think I wasn't ready? We've always protected her from the smaller things. As the threats grow, so do I!" He grinned again, stretching his arms over his head and beginning to limber up. "Let's warm up!" Naminé nodded and straightened, moving to open the door. "You... aren't wrong. He is stern, but just. I hope he isn't pushing you too hard, though," She frowned as she held the door for Kairi. "I would be at a loss if you got ill." She may have been Kairi's Lady in Waiting, but she was also her oldest and best friend, and they were hardly ever apart. "Your Highness, have you seen the new bard around lately? He is... Interesting." She looked down at her feet, giving a smile smile to her slippers as she thought about him.

Sora, who had arrived to practice early, jumped to attention as Riku entered the training grounds, saluting for a moment before relaxing. "Hey, Riku! I'm gonna say it again - I am so proud of you! You've done so great the past few weeks!" He grinned with an aura that emanated like sunshine, walking up and clapping his hands onto his friend's shoulders. "Can't wait to be your trainee!" Naminé smiled sweetly, going into the Princesses's closet and returning with her shawl. "Here, in case it rains. Master Aqua would kill me if you caught a cold on my watch," She mumbled, wrapping it around Kairi's shoulders and pinning it with a pearl brooch. "The gardens are in full bloom, I'm sure it'd be lovely."

Naminé sighed wistfully, looking out the window as a cool breeze flowed in through the window, filling the Princesses's room with the scent of late spring. The flower box in the windowsill was in bloom, and the Lady in Waiting smiled at a ladybug as it rested on a bright yellow blossom. "Would you like to go on a walk today, Your Highness? It's a beautiful day." She turned to the Princess, holding her hands in a prayer-like fashion. Her idea had an ulterior motive - she knew the sweet minstrel boy, Roxas, liked to practice in the gardens on sunny days, and today really was a lovely day. She'd heard his voice before drifting through the topiary a few weeks before, and had been curious of him ever since, trying to pluck up the courage to speak to him. There was something good about today, Sora thought. Maybe it was because it was the first sunny day in a week, and he didn't have to worry about keeping his training greaves free of mud. Maybe it was because his best friend had just become a Master and he was as proud as can be. Or maybe it was because he could now train under said best friend, and not the strict-yet-motherly Master Aqua. Any way, it was a great day, and Sora was more than happy to pull on his training gear and head to sparring practice.