Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

               Long ago, a single drop of sunlight fell from the heavens and from this small drop of sun, grew a magic, golden flower.

               Centuries passed, and a kingdom grew. The kingdom was ruled by its beloved King and Queen.

               The Queen had been expecting a child, until she had grown ill. Soon, she was beginning to run out of time, and that was when the people started to look for a miracle — or in this case, a magic golden flower.

               But, unbeknownst to the people, an old man had tried to hoard the sun’s gift and use it to gain immortality. All he had to do was sing a simple song.

               “Flower, gleam and glow,” the man had sung to it, “Let your power shine. Make the clock reverse. Bring back what once was mine… what once was mine.”

               Upon hearing footsteps, the man had hidden and watched as a group of guards pulled the flower up from the ground.

               “We found it!” the guards had cried out, before taking it back to the castle and placing it inside of a bowl of water, where it had dissolved into a golden liquid.

               The liquid had been fed to the Queen, and soon enough, she had been healed.

               A healthy baby girl was born, with hair as black as the night. And to celebrate the birth of their newborn child, the King and Queen had launched a lantern into the sky. For that one moment, everything was perfect.

               And then that moment of happiness was gone. The man who had tried to hoard the flower had climbed the castle walls and snuck into the bedchambers, where the child’s crib had been placed.

               He had hovered over the baby, before touching her hair. Within those seconds, he felt more years added to his lifespan. However, when he removed his hand, he felt his life slowly slip from his grasp. Realizing that the newborn was his only chance at gaining immortality, he took the child, and soon, he was gone.

               When morning came, the King and Queen had sent out guards to search for the child, but no one could find her. For deep within the forest, in a tower, the man had raised the child as his own.

               Sariatu was sitting on a stool near the fireplace, while Tsuki was brushing her hair. “Save what has been lost,” the five year-old sang, “Bring back what once was mine…what once was mine.”

               Tsuki breathed in, before exhaling. He smiled, knowing that he had found a new magic flower, but this time, it would be hidden more carefully.

               “Why can’t I go outside?” Sariatu asked as she looked back at Tsuki.

               Tsuki shook his head as he continued to brush the girl’s hair. “The outside world is a hazardous place,” he responded. “It is filled with vile, inconsiderate people. That is why you must stay here, where you are safe. Do you understand, Sariatu?”

               Sariatu nodded. “Yes, Father,” she said, before looking back at the fire.

               The walls of the tower could not hide everything. Each year on the girl’s birthday, the King and Queen released thousands of lanterns into the sky, in hopes that one day, the lost princess would return.

               Sariatu crept down the stairs, with her hair trailing behind her as she tried to not to make any noise. She looked at her ‘father’s’ bedroom, making sure he was fast asleep before going towards the window. She opened its small doors and looked outside. She smiled and watched as thousands of lanterns floated in the sky.

Chapter Text

               A small paper figure squeezed itself out from beneath the window’s doors. It smoothed out its limbs and body before quickly hiding behind a flower pot.

               “Ha!” Sariatu, who was now a fine, grown woman, shouted as she opened the window, only to find nothing. “Hmm…well, I guess I should go since Little Hanzo’s not hiding out here,” she drawled, smirking a little as she began to walk away.

               The paper figure moved a little, watching as the woman walked away. But soon, he found himself wrapped up in a strand of black hair.

               Sariatu chuckled as she watched the paper figure flail his arms, “You know, for someone your size, I thought you’d be a better hider.” She placed Little Hanzo down on the windowsill. “How about another round?” she asked.

               Little Hanzo shook his head and put his foot down.

               Sariatu sat on the windowsill. “Then what do you want to do?” she asked.

               The paper figure immediately pointed to the outside world — what was visible for the two, at least.

               “No, Little Hanzo,” Sariatu said, rolling her eyes. “You know I can’t go out there.” She picked up Little Hanzo and placed him on her lap. “And I like it in here, and I know you do, too.”

               The paper figure put his foot down again.

               “Oh, come on… it’s not so bad in there,” Sariatu said as she went back into the tower, taking the paper figure with her. “There’s plenty of things to do around here — like painting!”

               Little Hanzo poked Sariatu’s hand with his sword. As soon as he got her attention, he pointed to the walls, which were covered in paintings of the sun, kings and queens, birds, and the constellations Sariatu would see every night on her birthday. There wasn’t any room left for a new painting.

               “Oh… there isn’t any room left,” Sariatu murmured, before looking back at Little Hanzo. “But still, there are some chores to do—”

               Little Hanzo grabbed her index finger and pointed it towards the floor, the laundry, and the dishes — all of which were clean and glistening in the light.

               “Okay, so the first two activities have already been done.” Sariatu’s brow furrowed as she put Little Hanzo down on the ground. She went up to the bookshelf and grabbed a hard, red book. “We’ve still got some time to spare.”

               She sat down in a chair as she opened the book. Little Hanzo climbed up and sat on top of the chair’s armrest, watching as his friend flipped through the book’s pages before stopping at one of the pages in the middle. “Aha! Here’s where we left off,” she said.

               But as she read through the book, Sariatu couldn’t help but wonder if her life would ever start. After all, she’d done all of her chores, played every song she could memorize on her shamisen, baked most of the recipes in her father’s cookbook, covered the walls in paintings, sewn clothing — she’d even played (and won) most of the games. She’d done nearly everything she could inside of the tower. There was hardly anything that she hadn’t done, besides finishing her books.

               Still, she wondered when her life would begin, since tomorrow night, the floating lights would appear. She wondered what it was like out there — outside of the tower’s walls, where the lights glowed.

               Perhaps this year, her father would let her go — after all, she wasn’t a child anymore. Tomorrow, she’d turn thirty years old — and she was old enough to take care of herself, anyway. Surely, he’d listen to her and understand.

               The life of a member of the royal guard wasn’t an easy life, nor was it fun. The job was a serious one, and it required a lot of training — bravery was required, too, for in most cases, a guard would have to lay down their life in order to protect the Royal Family.

               “Hey!” a gruff voice called out, snapping Hanzo out of his thoughts. He turned as a guard approached him. “The King has requested that you come to the throne room,” the guard said, taking him by the arm as he began to escort him. “He wants to speak with you.”

               “But why?” Hanzo asked, confused as to why the King would ever wish to speak to him. After all, he hadn’t been as close with the King as the other guards had been, since he was merely just a new recruit. He’d been appointed to guard the cells, which wasn’t nearly as important compared to guarding the lost princess’ crown.

               “It’s a matter of urgency,” the guard responded. He let go of Hanzo’s arm as the two stopped at the doors. He patted his back before he opened the door, allowing the other guard to walk in before closing it.

               Hanzo turned to the King, bowing as he slowly approached the throne. “Your Majesty,” he said.

               “Rise,” the King said. “You’ve been called here for a reason…” The King stood up from his throne and went over to a case, which was covered by a cloth. He lifted up the cloth, revealing that inside of the case was the princess’ crown. He carefully took the crown from the case and held it in front of Hanzo. “…to find the lost princess and bring her back,” he said, putting the crown in the guard’s hands.

               “Wh-what?” Hanzo stammered as he looked at the crown, then back at the King. “You want me to find your daughter and…?” he trailed off as he watched the King nod. “But Your Majesty, I can’t—”

               “I’ve seen you train before,” the King interrupted. “You’ve proven to be strong and capable of taking care of a mission.” He placed a hand on his shoulder. “I trust that you will be able to find her.”

               Hanzo gulped and nodded. “I’ll – I’ll do my best, Your Majesty,” he promised, bowing once more.