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Published:
2018-02-23
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2018-03-08
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7/?
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And Then There Was You

Summary:

She was not supposed to fall in love with the colonizer but then T'Challa was not supposed to almost die and Wakanda was not supposed to have an outsider King for a time but you know what they say about the best laid plans....

Notes:

UPDATE 2/23/18
Wow, I started a big controversy over Shuri’s age! In regards to this fic obviously I bumped her age up to 18. I am not a paedophile, and resent the implication I would ever support such a thing. Since I need to spell it out though, WARNING SHURI IS 18 and with Everette Ross whom I imagine to be in his early 40’s, If this is unappealing to you DONT READ IT THEN!

I’m a big fan of this pairing and NOONE is forcing you to read my creations. If you have an issue with the May/December aspect WHICH IS TAGGED, then don’t read it ok?!

Otherwise Sheverette shippers go!
Thanks for all the support from the fans saying don’t ship shame because it is a huge problem!

I of course would NEVER ENDORSE ANYTHING BETWEEN MINORS AND ADULTS IN REAL LIFE WHO DO NOT MEET THE AGE OF CONSENT.

 

So with that in mind thanks for the reminder folks!

 

THE AGE OF CONSENT IN THIS FIC IS 16 AS IT IS IN MANY AFRICAN COUNTRIES.
 

This is not mine, if it was it would have still been this lit but with more Shuri/Everett love! Also I screamed with a whole bunch of girls when we saw Bucky!

Also as I wrote this Shuri informed me this was an A/O/B fic and I best play along!

Chapter 1: How Everett Feels

Chapter Text

Everett Ross was in trouble, capital T size trouble, and she was a 5"3', dark skinned African omega princess. Everett had made peace with the fact that he would not mate with an omega in his life. He had dedicated his life to the Air Force and then to the CIA knowing he would give up having a home and a family.

 

He had made that sacrifice knowing it was the kindest one he could make. Sure, he saw other career Alphas who said, “they had it all;” work and a family but all Everett could ever see were miserable or cheating spouses, children who barely recognized their parents, and too much dysfunction to yearn for both.

 

So, when he had put himself in front of Nakia during the safe house bust and received a bullet for his trouble his last thought was, “all in a day’s work” because he knew the omega had the heart of the King. Who was he to live when he could save a Queen?

 

Waking up had been a surprise, being able to move more so, but the beautiful, young woman who had saved him; a one, two punch in the face. She smelled of everything that reminded him of his Nan, the woman who had raised him. She smelled of life, and she smelled of every dream he had given up the day he signed his soul to Uncle Sam.

 

She reminded him of a bunny; all grace and smarts with a little sass to boot. Her hair, in what she would later tell him were called micro braids, trailed regally down as she typed, her feet moving along to an unheard melody. And when he had startled her and she dared to call him colonizer, his alpha side had stood up and taken notice.

 

The more he noticed the more entranced he became; she was smart, brave, inventive, driven to save people, and loyal to her brother; and not just because they were related but because she respected her brother as a man, protector, super hero, and King. She was the brain to T’Challa’s brawn, a bit of a rebel, and a flouter of tradition in ways that even at her age got her ears boxed.

 

He wanted her, not just in the bedroom, but in the throne room, the international stage, and the science arena where she loved going head to head against Tony Stark and Peter Parker. Shuri was confident in her status as an African woman and took no prisoners when someone tried to bring her down in anger or jealousy.

 

She was a joker, a teacher, a leader in her own right, and more importantly she was a healer. She had healed him in more ways than he could ever articulate or repay. She had given him hope. But she could not be his; for one he was white, for another he was American. She was a princess, and he was just a nobody. They were friends, and he respected T’Challa more than he could ever voice, so he could never give into the demands his alpha side made to make her his.

Chapter 2: Where We Find Out How Shuri Plans to Get Her Man

Notes:

Shuri is 18 in this story and during the events of the Black Panther movie. Everett Ross is 40. THIS IS A MAY/DECEMBER story, please do not read if you are NOT ok with this age difference.

Chapter Text

Shuri had an itch; one she was going to scratch regardless of what her mother or brother said. Shuri was in love. It was all hearts, flowers, and Wakandan birds singing when she walked anywhere above the ground. She was a princess, a protector of Wakanda, a future Black Panther, and ruler if it was ever called for, and she would have the alpha she wanted. Nothing and no one was going to get in her way.

She understood he was older than her, the salt and pepper hair totally gave it away, and sure he was American and CIA to boot, and yes, he was a colonizer or at least his ancestors had been, but she wanted him. It was 2018 and Wakanda was finally coming out. Her STEM Initiative was going great, even the “Great Tony Stark” had noticed; not that she cared.

So, if they were to be the first intercontinental couple of her great nation so be it, she was always flouting tradition much to her mother’s chagrin. Her brother would not make her mating choice for her, and she knew her mother would forgive her. Everett Ross was, all things considered, a good man, a kind man, and a brave man. He had been willing to help her brother when it seemed all was lost.

He had saved the world and won her heart in his daring act to take out the planes before they could leave Wakandan airspace and destroy the world. He had stood by her brother when he needed it most, been kind to her grieving mother when they had trekked through ice and cold, lonely, and hearts heavy. He was a honorable man, a daring man, a man not afraid of her intelligence, her loyalty to her family, her snark, or her need to serve her people.

She wanted him; she was going to have him. She was excited at the idea of finally being mated. T’Challa might not want to settle down but she was ready, and she wouldn’t take no for an answer; not when she saw how Everett looked at her. She could see all the reasons, miles and miles of them for sure, about why they shouldn’t be together, and she had the three important reasons they should. He loved her, he respected her, and he respected her brother.

How could she not love the man when he really respected her people and her traditions? He would never make a move on her. She was too young, she was a Princess, excuse after excuse would fall from his lips. She had to be crafty, smart, bold, yet determined. Technically she could marry him and still rule if something happened to T’Challa; he would always be a prince consort and it would mean her children could not marry anyone not of Wakanda, but she could also not have children.

That was a worry for another day, if they weren’t together, it would be a moot point. Shuri was young, she knew this, but her heart was too wrapped up in what she could give to Wakanda to have ever really noticed a man. The fact that Everett Ross had caught her eye, her mind, and her body was all she needed to know; this man was the one. Maybe not the man forever, thought she hoped he would be, but the man for this time and place.

Shuri was no fortuneteller, but she could see the scandal it would create, she herself called the man colonizer, but she also called him brave, strong, reliable, and trustworthy. T’Challa had always told her to follow her heart; to do what she knew to be right no matter what the cost. She could do no less now; her heart wanted Everett Ross and she was going to have him.

Chapter 3: Author Note

Summary:

Notes on the battle being waged in the comments.

Notes:

THANK YOU TO ALL MY SUPPORTERS! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING FOR TAKING UP THE FLAG AND FIGHTING THIS BATTLE WITH ME!

TO EVERYONE ELSE, GET A BLOODY GRIP!

SPECIAL SHOUT OUT TO ANGIEBEE, THANK YOU FOR THE REMINDER.

In my story the LEGAL AGE OF CONSENT IS 16, FIGHT ME!

Chapter Text

FOR EVERYONE DEFENDING THIS SHIP AND ME, THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!

So, I did a little research did you know in Africa alone the countries with ages of consent for women at the age of 14 WITHOUT EXPLOTATION (WHICH THIS FIC DOES NOT HAVE, *cough Shuri does most of the pursuing cough*) are ten.

The number of countries in Africa alone with lower ages of consent are six, the number of countries in Africa with fifteen or sixteen (which is her age in the movie, which I bumped up by two years) total 30. 26 countries have it at 18 years of age. So, most of the countries in Africa have an age of consent that is 16 years of age or less.
Why do I bring this up you wonder? Because even if Shuri was 16 in my fic she would still be LEGALLY ABLE to be pursued by Everette in Wakanda, because Wakanda is in AFRICA NOT AMERICA!

But let’s look at America ok, in America IN 31 STATES the age of consent is 16 and over 60% of Americans live in states where the legal age of consent is either 16 or 17. Washington DC and All US Territories except for the US Virgin Islands have ages of consent of 16. And in America in most states if you have your parent’s permission you can marry at 12!

SO, TO ALL YOU COMPLAINERS YOU WANT TO ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING TO FIGHT PEDOPHILIA, HEBEPHILIA, AND EPHEBOPHILIA (Which, if you wanted to be technical, is actually what you would call this if it were illegal) why don’t you start by fighting the legalization of child brides in this country!

Look it’s simple if you don’t like it, don’t read it! And don’t pretend to be worried about ephebophilia when it means all you do is harass myself and the sweet people who took the time out of their day to read my work and fight you in the comments! JUST LEAVE AND DON’T LET THE DOOR HIT WHERE THE GOOD LORD SPLIT YOU OK!

Once again to my readers thank you guys so much for your encouragement and battle cry.

#NOSHIPSHAMINGIN2018
#FANDOMISBETTERTHANTHIS
#FANDOMISMYLIFE
#SORRYNOTSORRY
#INWAKANDATHELEGALAGEOFCONSENTIS16

Chapter 4: Shuri Sets the Scene

Notes:

Thanks for sticking with me you guys!

Chapter Text

Shuri was torn, scared. It was time to have the conversation with T’Challa about courting Ross. If her brother told her no, she wasn’t sure what she would do. To deny a member of the royal family courting rights, was well the quickest way to war.

The reason her family’s clan currently was the ruling clan was due to the Jabari clan and the Obodo Agha clan, two of the eighteen clans fighting each other and destroying one another in ritual combat over this issue. Shuri’s great-great grandfather, she had been taught by her father, saw an opportunity and defeated the two fighting for the throne and had secured their ruling legacy.

Technically as a Wakandan citizen T’Challa could only refuse his blessing, but Shuri knew it would kill her if her brother disapproved. She need T’Challa behind her, especially since she was breaking tradition in a way that had never been done before in Wakanda. Every Wakandan who stayed in Wakandan married a Wakandan.

What she was proposing was blasphemous. To be with an outsider and a white outsider, a colonizer was...it was not done and if her father T’Chaka had still been living Shuri would never have been able to stay in Wakanda. She would have had to leave if she had even then stumbled onto this path. The thought was a chilling one. She missed her father, loved her father, but she also knew she and Ross could do great things together for Wakanda and for the world. Tradition was not always the right answer.

Shuri nibbled on her lip as she stared at herself in the mirror. Her microbraids were done in her two buns and she had on a simple white Wakandan dress; much like the lava lava of Polynesia it was a fabric that draped around on one shoulder and trailed down to the floor behind her. She had on traditional face paint and earring befitting her status as a princess. Her attire would be her brothers first clue they had something serious to talk about. She wore no shoes and had wrapped white beads around her forehead.

She had planned the dinner down to the drinks, she would need all her courage for the conversation ahead. She glanced at the time and locked up her lab, P.R.I.D.E. would have to run without one of its leaders for the next couple hours.
*********************************************
Shuri sighed as she watched her brother rush into the garden; he was late. It was fine, she wasn’t in any rush to do the talk so the extra time had helped shore up her courage. This was her life, and Everett Ross was her man, and no one, not even T’Challa could take that from her, she had to remember that.

“Shuri, forgive me for being late.” T’Challa flopped down on the grass as he grinned at her.

“It’s fine, did Okoye kick your butt or?” Shuri couldn’t help teasing her brother.

He often trained with the head of his personal guard and it amused her to no end to think of Okoye putting her brother on his ass. People never realized it but her brother was really goofy.

“It was Nakia, and she sends her love.” T’Challa took in his sister as he watched her relax in their banter.

He had a pretty good idea what Shuri wanted to tell him and as angry as he was he would also give his sister the respect of allowing her to plead her case. Shuri was stubborn, so strong, so smart, and a little full of herself, not in a bad way, but in a way, that could potentially mean trouble at any given moment. Her inventions were more than the world would ever know and that wasn’t even with half of her true potential.

The idea of her being ready to court someone, to settle down was too alarming for the King who had always respected the autonomy given to all Wakandan women. He had always envisioned his father having this conversation which would lead to a war with Shuri, never himself. And now he had to advocate for Wakanda without breaking his sisters heart and he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to do it.

He had watched Shuri arrive knowing something big was happening for her to ask him to come in the traditional style of their people with just her. It hadn’t taken him long to guess what she wanted to say. Courting in Wakanda was a rite of passage, a nod to the ancestors, and a prayer to the Gods. There was no levity to be found in courting, it was as Wakandan as vibranium.

“Little sister stop teasing me and let’s eat!” T’Challa would give her and himself a little more time before things became difficult.

He still did not know what he would do when she uttered the words that would make or break them, but he knew looking at her they would find a way. Shuri did so much, had always done so much, and never asked for a thing in return, only to be loved. She had always been brilliant and P.R.I.D.E had taken her in at the age of ten against the Queen Mother’s advice. That had been a stormy time in the palace until the Ramonda saw just how much Shuri needed an outlet to challenge her mind.

Shuri asked for nothing and did everything she could, T’Challa sighed as he watched his baby sister make their plates. He would give her the world, and in doing so had to wonder what price would Wakanda pay.

Chapter 5: The One Where T'Challa Done Messed Up like AA RON

Notes:

T'Challa and Shuri are probably going to be a OOC. I swear I'm working on it and I will rewrite this scene after I see the movie again! Be patient with me!

Chapter Text

“I wish to court my King,” Shuri blurted out the words half way through dinner.

As soon as she did she slapped her hand over her mouth and looked down. It was not like her at all to have word vomit but she knew now that they were out there was no going back. Dinner had been going well until her untimely confession. Shuri took a deep breath and looked up determined. She would endure whatever sentence beheld her.

The anger wasn’t surprising, the fear a little, and the resignation a little painful. T’Challa was her brother, the person she had always looked up to. He was her brother, her teacher, her king, and it was her honor and privilege to work to keep him safe and in the best tech the world would rarely see.

“Who is this man? Who is this woman you wish to court?” T’Challa didn’t mean to hiss the question out but this was his sister and there would be no person on this Earth worthy enough to have her hand in marriage or anything else.

She was a jewel of Wakanda and while she ultimately had the decision in whom she made prince consort T’Challa could not let this happen without her knowing his displeasure. She was too precious and to hear she had fallen for an outsider hurt in ways he hadn’t known it would when she said the words that trapped them both.

Shuri swallowed before staring T’Challa straight in the eyes and saying, “Everett Ross, I wish to acknowledge him as my alpha.”

Shuri didn’t flinch when T’Challa snarled but it was a near thing. T’Challa didn’t often get angry but when he did he was as fierce as his alter ego. He stood and began to pace.

“Has he touched you?” T’Challa’s growl surprised Shuri and then angered her.

“What if he has? Have I suddenly lost all rights to my body? Would you ask this of Nakia?”

Shuri shut her mouth and tried to stem the angry words. “I love him and what’s more my omega spirit recognizes him as alpha.”

“No, absolutely not…” T’Challa never finished his sentence as Shuri stood up with a snarl and ran away the tears not falling until she was far away from any eyes except those of the Dora Milaje.

Chapter 6: A Bump in the Way

Notes:

THANK YOU FOR ALL WHO HAVE BEEN SUPPORTING ME IN DEED OR WORDS, YOU GUYS ROCK!

Everyone who has left a positive or encouraging message, thank you so much! This chapter is dedicated to you all.

Disclaimer: I own nothing and have no beta, all mistakes are my own.
I am looking for a beta though!

Chapter Text

Shuri ran, not very fast considering her dress but she tried. She needed to get away before she said something she could not take back. T’Challa, she knew, was worried, frightened, and concerned. He had not meant the question he asked and he would apologize; of this Shuri was sure, because if her brother didn’t he would be sorry.

To ask a woman of Wakanda if she was touched was a great faux pas. Women had more rights in Wakanda than any other country in the world. If you were Wakandan then you were trusted to know what was best for you. Two of the five ruling clans were lead exclusively by woman.

T’Challa as King could be punished for his slight against his sister. Shuri shook her head as she slowed her running and wiped at her tears. She would talk to Okoye and make sure she said nothing. It wouldn’t do to have the council in her business right now, and certainly not about the breaking of tradition.

M’Baku wasn’t alone in thinking she was wrong to go against the traditions of their country and many were very vocal about what they believed Shuri should and should not be doing. Shuri knew she was lucky, her father and her brother had never pressured her to be anyone other than who she was; it was for this very reason she would not, could not give into her brother or the country. This was too important; Everett was too important.

Shuri was aware she was sheltered and spoiled. She had only ever known love and the best of everything as princess. When she was ten and she had realized this, she had decided that with that great power came an even greater responsibility and she’d worked hard to find her niche. Defending her country through her father and now her brother had given her a sense of purpose she hadn’t known she could have.

Now she had to figure out how to keep the feud T’Challa had started from being taken to the council. W’Kabi was still smarting from his punishment after betraying the King; if he got wind of what was going on between T’Challa and Shuri she knew he would use it to his own ends. T’Challa had not forgiven his best friend instead seeking comfort and guidance in Nakia. To give W'Kabi any ammunition was to bring about more destruction and they were just starting to heal from Erik.

Shuri was lost in her head; not paying attention at all. So when she bumped into something or other someone she lashed out before she could stop herself. Her hand swung out as arms wrapped around her and stopped her momentum.

“Whoa there, please don’t hurt me princess.” Shuri blinked as her body went lax, it was just Everett.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you there colonizer.” Shuri have a small smil as she gazed up at Everett, she was, as always happy to see him. Now more than ever when she could use the reminder of who she was fighting for against all odds.

Everett smiled back as he took her in and then his fingers reached for her face wiping away tears as he asked, “You’ve been crying, what happened?”

Even as he took care with her tears his body was hardening and his eyes turned to ice. Shuri couldn’t help the shiver that went through her. He was such a gentleman; ready to defend her honor without even knowing the full story. It was one of the many things she loved about him. He would always put her first; always be ready to go to battle for her just as he had when her cousin had tried to destroy the world.

She was of the panther tribe, and shared many traits with her animal avatar including the need for a strong mate. While Shuri was learning to fight with just her body she knew she would never be a warrior at heart the way Okoye and Nakia were; she was a technology girl and wanted her people and the world to flourish through words not violence.

For her it was imperative to have a mate who could protect her and their children in the event T’Challa lost the throne again. They had been too complacent; so sure of their place. T’Challa’s fall from grace had been a wakeup call. Shuri now had backup plans and fail safes to keep her work out of the wrong hands, and she even had some heart shaped herbs she had stolen hidden away.

She would never allow herself or her mother to feel as powerless as they had that day at the waterfall. Everett had been a huge part of the day they had taken back the thrown. He had been a huge part of keeping her brother safe and he had been a huge part of her new awareness about the world.

“I am fine colonizer, just a tiff with T’Challa but he’d better watch out because I know where he sleeps at night.” Shuri tried her best to smile; this was too big but she could not let on.

Everett’s hands continued to stroke her cheek as he said, “You don’t have to lie to me. I have a younger sister, this is more than just a little fight. He’s hurt you.”

Shuri sighed, trust her alpha to see right through her. “If your sister told you she wanted to mate with a man many years her senior, you would be mad no? Tell her you would not allow it?”

Shuri watched Everett, curious about how he would answer, “Shuri did you…” Everett shook his head as he connected the dots.

“You didn’t; please tell me you didn’t.” Everett wiped his face with his hands letting go of Shuri. They were both instantly cold but Everett ignored the throbbing in his soul as he said, “Shuri, your brother is going to kill me. What did you say to him?”

Shuri frowned, “I told him the truth, answer me please, what would you say?”

Everett stared into Shuri’s eyes as he answered, “I would be upset. What could a man that age offer her when she’s so young and just starting out? What is he looking for that she’s what caught his eye?”

“Why could they not be two souls who complete one another? Why must it be something tawdry or unnatural?” Shuri stared into his eyes, she knew she'd have a fight on two fronts, but she had not imagined she would be battling both today.

“Any man would be found wanting by me, that’s how much I love Adelaide. And any man who could ever think they were good enough for you would have to be a mad man. Shuri, your brother….” Everett growled as he gave his answer.

“Is wrong!” Shuri interrupted not intimidated, “Any man I consider worth my time and my heart, is worthy! In Wakanda any person who intimates that a woman cannot decided for herself is wrong! I know in America you have issues with women but in Wakanda only women can guard the King. There is a reason it is women only.”

Shuri paced as she turned and stared out at the setting sun, “In Wakanda women can do anything, be anything. If I wanted to I could challenge my brother and if I won become Queen in my own right. That is how much power woman have here; there is nothing, nothing I can't do because of my gender! For you or T’Challa to use my gender or my age to try and restrict what I want goes against everything my ancestors fought to gift this country!

Shuri turned to Everett, “If you don’t want me, say it but do not use our ages as an excuse, not when I know you feel it. I’ve felt it since you first landed in my lab. Tell me you don’t feel it, tell me you don’t want this too, and I will walk away.”

Shuri glared at Everett; daring him to break their hearts and deny what was humming; bright and vibrant between them. If he did she would walk away; she’d be heartbroken, but she’d walk away.

Everett stared at Shuri shocked and a little impressed with how she was standing up to him. Most women would have whimpered and clung to him after the use of his alpha voice but not Shuri. No, she was in his face, setting him straight, and shaming him a little. She was right, while he wouldn’t be happy with Adelaide he also trusted her; who was he to say she shouldn’t do what she felt was best for herself even if it made him uncomfortable.

“I can’t,” Ross admitted as he walked up behind Shuri and wrapped her up in a hug, his nose finding her neck to breath in her scent. “You know I can’t.”

Everett felt the surrender, the shudder, and the sob that fell from Shuri’s lips. He turned her around and held her as she sobbed. He glanced over her shoulder not surprised to see Okoye staring at him, and she gave a short nod, and a faint tap of her spear. She and the other Dora Milaje faded into the background trusting the future Prince Consort to comfort their princess.

Okoye pursed her lips as she watched her Princess cry; first her lover and now her Prince, she wasn’t sure where the men in her life were getting their ideas lately about women but she knew it was time to stop it; she could and would not interfere if Shuri declared rights of courtship. Okoye used her kimoyo beads to call for Nakia. She and the Princess were going to need back up.

Chapter 7: The One Where Shuri Get's Her Confidence Back

Notes:

As usual I own nothing, Shuri is 18, and the age of consent is 16 in the glorious place we call Wakanda!

As always all your encouragement gives me hope, strength, and endurance and this chapter is dedicated to all of you who have commented! You guys are THE BEST! Thank you for hanging in there with me!

Also no beta so all the mistakes are mine and I will edit as I find them.

Chapter Text

Shuri wasn’t prepared for how it would feel to be in Everett's arms. Sure, she’d fantasized about, usually they were wearing less clothes and she wasn’t ready to blast T’Challa into space, but it still didn’t compare to the reality. It wasn’t the butterflies taking flight in her stomach feeling nor was it the hot clench of heat she had always assumed would be there, rather it was the feeling of comfort, of safety.

It was growing up knowing her place in the world when she began working with P.R.I.D.E. It was knowing Wakanda was safe and her people at peace. It was what she wanted to feel every day for the rest of her life.

Shuri smiled crookedly at Everett as she wiped her eyes and breathed in his scent. It was calming to her and she knew she would always crave it; the new smell of home; the one that had been missing since her father's death. As he stared into her eyes she saw the decision; their path was set.

She could feel in her heart, her feline purring and ready to be bested. She knew it in her soul where she could hear the beat of the drum her ancestors played was just for her, and she could see it in the eyes she was not supposed to love. She knew her history and she could read in Everett’s eyes the history of a ruthless and crooked people; a lost people who had wandered the Earth conquering and destroying in their need to understand and best everything.

She was going to cause a ruckus; the first princess to marry an outsider, and not only that but a colonizer. She would not abdicate the throne either; she needed to be there in the event her brother faulted and she needed to step up. But how to do it was the question; how did she secure her future and the future of her people without losing either in the process.

“It will not be easy, T’Challa is being a boar but he is a powerful boar.” Shuri smirked as she saw the laugh reach Everett’s eyes before retreating.

“Can he stop us from being together?” The question was said with the knowledge that he could not disrespect Shuri’s autonomy lest he receive another scolding from her.

“No, but he can disavow our courtship and make me choose between you and the royal title.” Shuri didn’t sugar coat the truth knowing Everett wanted to know what they were up against.

“I will not abdicate, I will stay Princess Shuri. If it comes down to it T’Challa and I will fight in ritual combat.” Shuri said this calmly but on the inside, she was screaming.

She had no idea how she would fight her brother after seeing him nearly killed, she wasn’t sure she could do it so soon. She loved her brother and she hoped he would repent. She knew she had blurted out what she wanted with no finesse; there was some sympathy to be had for T’Challa but not much because his callous question. Questioning her about her body was sacrilege.

“No woman in Wakanda can let such a crime to go unpunished. T’Challa, he forgets that I am smart, I am strong, and I am of the panther clan. There is no man who could ever touch me without my permission and live to tell the tale.”

Shuri leaned back and stared into Ross’s eyes, “Do you understand that if we have children they will always be in control of their body and if we have girls, they will be Wakandan first. The freedom and respect that afford them is unlike anywhere else on this planet.”

Shuri glanced out at the sun set, “Can you understand that? Can you respect that? Live by that? It’s a lot, for a man, for a white man, for an American.”

Shuri knew she wasn’t being fair but she had seen more than enough of other countries to know that while her panther had decided and her heart had as well, she could not if his mind could not accept what it would mean to raise Wakandan children. They would be of Wakanda, they could never appear to be anything else, they could never believe they were anything less. To be divided had almost brought the world to ruin; if they did this, walked this path, there could only be one way to walk it.

“Wakanda first, Wakanda forever, there is only that in my mind, in my heart, you have to be able to share. To be willing to fight as we must for our place.” She stepped away from Ross.

“Why did you step in front of Nakia? How could you in all that chaos know she was what needed shielding?” Shuri needed to know what he had been thinking when he had set them down this path.

“She needed to be kept safe. It was obvious the Prince cared about her, she was the one who knew something was wrong, and in trying to warn us she put herself in the center of danger. Have admire a woman who could sense that when no one else could.”

Shuri smiled, Nakia was the future Queen of Wakanda and her mother had been grooming her for years for the role. As the only daughter of the River Tribe it would set a great alliance in stone when her brother worked up the courage to ask for Nakia’s hand.

“You saved our future Queen and you set us on this path, you know that right? There can be no you without me and no me without you. The red string of fate ties together.” Shuri watched as she revealed something sacred to her own intended.

Everett’s eyes narrowed as he watched Shuri watch him; she had just revealed something to him and he needed to figure out what it was; she was an enigma, all movement, and joy, and happiness wrapped in code. He would spend his life unraveling her; finding all her secrets, and he knew it still wouldn’t be enough.

Everett blinked as he repeated, “The red string of fate? That’s a myth.”

Shuri smirked again at his ignorance, “Just like soulmates and herbs that give humans super strength?” She shook her head, “You have so much to learn, so much for us to discover together.”

She sighed and squared her shoulders; it was time to go back to the palace; she needed to talk with her mother before T’Challa did and explain what was going on. “Come with me colonizer, it’s time you met The Queen Mother of Wakanda. She will want to meet you before my brother turns her against us.” Shuri winked as she said this so he would know she was joking.

When it came to the act of courting her mother could not take sides; she could only act as a mediator and advisor to her daughter. While men usually became king in Wakanda, it was still very much a matriarchal society. The children most favored were girls as they continued the country’s population and were the only trusted gender to protect the King.

Girls when they became women at the age of sixteen were given a gift from one of their forbearers as a reminder of all Wakandan woman could and did endure for their country. Shuri could not deny that if they had children she wished them all to be girls or twice blessed with the spirit of all the genders that Wakanda recognized.

She knew T’Challa would have Nakia give him nothing but boys because his panther was finicky and she would have to provide the stability of mind and heart in the family with her own children. She wanted the future she could see unveiling itself before her eyes; she wanted Everett and her children, her country and her people and she would fight for it because she was a Princess and because she was smart.

What she wanted she made possible with her own two hands; it was after all why she made most of the technology in Wakanda; because she was the only one with the balls to do so and succeed.

“You’re scaring me Princess,” Everett gave her a look out of the corner of her eye and Shuri laughed as she realized he was giving her the side eye.

“Come colonizer mother will just be finishing dinner, we can scandalize her over tea.” Shuri pulled him away from the lake she sometimes visited when she needed perspective and began the trek to the palace.

She had no fear with Okoye around her and the Wakandan sun at her back, she would see her courtship done one or another and if it was another T’Challa would be in for a world of hurt. Shuri wasn’t brawn but she was brain and her brain would always win against brawn every time.