Things felt strange for the white wolf.
Recently, there had been more chatter of Donovan. Evidently the beast had banded together a small army worth of wolves to take a territory. Taikon hadn't yet heard the tale that @Dawn had recounted to Artyom, nor had he seen or heard from Aphrodite for several days. The pack territory felt uneasy and unwell, as though the stream was swelling to deal with the thick emotions running through the air. Something didn't feel right, and Taikon wasn't sure what to do with that.
Taikon was lying about under a few birch trees, enjoying the shade in the afternoon heat. He had woken not long ago, and was once again surprised that it wasn't Aphrodite waking him to send him off on some other plant-hunting adventure. Part of him was glad to have relief from her incessent badgering, but mostly he felt an emptiness without her presence. With the talk of the Saints, he was starting to feel worried.
He stood up, feeling antsy, needing to move around. He moved closer to the stream from the birch forest, hoping that the waters would help cool his fur and his growing anxiety. Perhaps @Juniper would also be about.

It was a small floof of a boy that found him at the water's edge, a bit smaller than Juniper and her siblings, but not by much. Though Taikon was never exactly sure how to interact with children, this one was wordless at first, showing the curiosity of a hunter. The white wolf offered a small smile to the pup. 'lo there, he gave a small bow of his head, as if speaking to an adult respectfully. Where'd you come from?
Taikon looked past the boy toward where he'd ventured out, but saw no sign of his guardians. They were deep enough within pack territory that he wasn't particularly concerned, although he had not rallied with everyone in the pack just yet and was mildly worried what his parents would think of a stranger looking after their boy. I'm Taikon. I'm new, he explained.

The boy was far less bouncy than the firey Juniper, which both surprised and relieved Taikon. He'd quickly grown rather fond of the little beast, but she could be a handful even on her best days. Normally, Aphrodite would have been taking her out for some herbal excursion; he hoped that that's where the girls were today. Any other thoughts worried him greatly.
He was surprised at the youngster's question. He was pretty sure he was unfamiliar with the concept of a last name until he was at least five months old, but then, he didn't really remember much of childhood to begin with. The prince had gotten used to introducing himself with only his first name. Of course not, he said, as though he was sure everyone had a surname. The boy was Kiyoshi Draconid; it sounded very regal indeed. Taikon Yokoya Tse, he said in full, nodding respectfully once more in return. Your parents have taught you excellent manners, Kiyoshi, said Taikon, amazed at this calm boy.

The boy tested the syllables of Taikon's name on with a youthful, calm speaking tone. His name was said inverted, but this was something Taikon knew that others did intentionally, and so made no effort to correct it. Tse was the name of his father's family, and it was nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, he felt lucky not to have taken his mother's name. Though he knew that his father had been equally cruel, it was easier to remember from a person who had been alive when the prince was ousted.
Manners. Taikon nodded firmly, submitting to the fact that it indeed had been his mother that had taught him this. He made no active show of distaste, but his body tensed slightly. She did, he said. My mother was a queen, and she thought manners were very important, he explained briefly, giving no nod to the fact that it was common among the Farukans to publicly injure those who went against strict regulations of "respectful" conduct.

As the boy drew nearer, Taikon sat as well, breathing out a lengthy sigh as though to prepare for battle. The white prince rarely spoke of his mother, but children were so open themselves that it made it easier for him to share. He supposed he could avoid talking about his mother entirely by simply explaining what exactly a queen was. He realized as he thought it that was probably what the boy was after.
Queens are.. Oh. How do you explain politics to a child? Well there's this thing called a monarchy, he started, and made a face, cutting himself off. They're the top woman of the pack, he finally explained. There's the king, the guy, and the queen, the lady, and together they rule the pack all by themselves. They make all the decisions and make other people do the hard stuff, like hunting. He nodded, like he was agreeing with himself. That seemed like a reasonable explanation.
There are all kinds of rules about like who can be a queen or king, but they are different everywhere, he followed. Over time, he had learned a fair amount about various styles of monarchies.

Kiyoshi was a hard little man to read. He looked up quite seriously at his elder packmate, but Taikon wasn't sure if he had understood what he said. He seemed so... still. Taikon nodded at the boy's assessment in agreement. He seemed to understand the basics at least. Pack leaders were indeed important people that needed protection at all costs. The prince knew that all pack members should really be valued equally, but in practice this simply wasn't the case.
At the question, a twinge of a smile flashed across his lips. He shook his head. No, but I probably would have been if I didn't leave my birth pack. The queen and king's son is called a "prince," and he's the only person who becomes King one day, he explained. If Artyom and Dawn had been considered royalty, Taikon never would have agreed to join the Whitebarks in the first place. He stayed because the pack was tight-knit and small. He stayed because the leaders were not all-powerful. He stayed out of some semblance of... love.
The smile returned, small as it was. He was happy that Kiyoshi wouldn't need to grow up in such a broken system.

Taikon appreciated the boy's quiet. Though he was missing the company of Juniper, in some ways not being around a bouncy puppy was a mild reprieve; he still hoped she would return to her usual self shortly.
Once again, Kiyoshi asked a question that gave the prince pause. What might have happened if he had never met Celle? Certainly he would have been married to a woman from a neighbouring pack for diplomacy. He would have taken over as "King" whilst really his mother ran the show from behind the scenes. Ever her puppet, Taikon would have put forth his pretty face on policies that she had designed to keep plebeians in their place. He'd likely have gone along with it all. The royal life was a privileged one. He would never have known true hunger, for neither food nor anything else he desired.
He took a breath. He would have been an asshole. No, I didn't want to be that important, he said. He couldn't tell the truth. It wasn't child-appropriate. Taikon elaborated. My mother, the Queen, she thought manners were important, but she also was mean to other people. I didn't like it, he offered to the boy, hoping that maybe it would help him understand.
How exactly did people raise children to not be assholes, anyway?

You are not mean, though, said Kiyoshi. Taikon blinked. He had always feared that had he not fallen in love with the wrong person, he may very well have been mean. Perhaps even now he was mean, and just didn't have the chance for this character trait to show because he had no power. Under Artyom and Dawn, things were relatively calm except for the onslaught of exterior factors affecting the pack. Their leaders were hardly the power-hungry type, however.
Thanks, he answered in earnest. He hoped that Kiyoshi would grow with the same nature he carried now. One day, he would make a strong leader.
Uuh, his voice rose in pitch like a teenager thinking about whether they liked something or not. There were things that were good, like having other people to hunt for you instead of doing that yourself. But no, for the most part it was no good, he explained. He felt odd giving all this information to the boy, but, hey, he had asked. Whitebark is much better, he followed.

The question was something he had to think about. Taikon became noticeably uncomfortable when the boy questioned him. He looked over the the east, an area which held, as far as he was concerned anyway, nothing. Taikon thought during this space, wondering what he could possibly say.
How do they contribute, hmm, he followed, watching the boy. Kiyoshi was sharp. Taikon could see it right away. In my pack, the lower members were kept by force mostly, he said slowly.
He would not get into the details with someone so young. Actually, even if Kiyoshi had been older, it was unlikely that Taikon might have revealed any of it. They knew if they left, they wouldn't survive. Or if they did something wrong it... the prince paused. He thought about Cella. About his exit. Nobody had tried to kill him. He had always wondered why. It wouldn't be good, he finished, staring at the boy seriously.

When Kiyoshi told him that he was a good wolf for leaving, he felt tension claw at his throat and stomach. Taikon realized that he had told Kiyoshi only a half-truth, told him that he had left. That implied his leaving had been voluntary, and at this he bowed his ears. The boy was too young to fully explain. Even if the boy had been a bit older, it wasn't a part of his past he had really ever talked about. Taikon gave a slight nod, but was thankful when Kiyoshi looked back to where his family probably was.
Taikon bowed his head back, as though Kiyoshi and he were on equal ground. To him, they were.
Of course, he said gently, watching the boy leave. When he was out of earshot, the pallid prince of nothing sighed. For the next several hours, his thoughts were plunged back into his past. He thought of his mother, and all of the cruelty he had helped her wreak upon their domain.