Character Details
A pair of siblings have inherited the Kamisato Clan, one of the three most respected and prestigious clans in Inazuma City.
The elder brother, Ayato, is the head of the clan and is in charge of government affairs. While his younger sister, Ayaka, known by all as the Princess, takes care of the clan's internal and external affairs.
Ayaka often appears at social occasions and has more interactions with the common folk. As such, she is better known by the people and has gained a higher reputation than her elder brother. This has earned her the elegant title of Shirasagi Himegimi.
As is known to all, Ayaka, the daughter of the Kamisato family, is a figure greatly admired by the people for her beauty, dignified demeanor, and noble character.

Character Story 1
Across Inazuma, all affairs of state that do not go up to the Raiden Shogun are largely handled by the Triarchal Council.
The Council's executive powers are, in turn, divided amongst three groups known as the Tri-Commission: the Yashiro Commission, the Tenryou Commission, and the Kanjou Commission.
The three clans that hold power over these Commissions are as follows: Kamisato, Kujou, and Hiiragi. These three great clans are known throughout Inazuma.
Kamisato Ayaka is the young lady of the Yashiro Commission's Kamisato Clan, known far and wide as the Shirasagi Himegimi.
When asked the whys and wherefores of such a nickname, many Inazumans have their own explanations...
"Lady Ayaka is as graceful and pure as an egret. And just look at her elegance, her clever yet proper speech — why should she not be named a Princess?"
"Lady Ayaka may be of noble birth, but she is gentle and polite to us. She is kind, loyal, and is willing to help others. She even went against the opinions of others and took in that commoner, Thoma."
There are as many opinions concerning this as there are people, but none can say where the "Shirasagi Himegimi" nickname actually originated.
Still, Ayaka's popularity amongst the people is quite plain to see.

Character Story 2
As the daughter of the Yashiro Commission's Kamisato Clan, Ayaka always has to remain alert to the jostling for power between noble families.
Being young, yet already famed throughout the land, she has been the inevitable target of provocation on the part of other noble scions who have grown jealous of the Kamisato siblings.
The creation and maintenance of a public image may be a formality, but for a house of standing like the Kamisato Clan, even meaningless routine has social significance.
Failing to take part in the tangled web of Inazuman political relations risks their position as head of the Yashiro Commission. As such, the two siblings came to an accord.
The elder brother, Ayato, preferring not to show his face too often, would busy himself with government affairs, while the act of maintaining the clan's image would be the responsibility of the elegant, socially-adroit younger sister, Ayaka.
Through her dignified, demure and polite posture, Ayaka has very much secured a place for herself in the social arena. Whether she is negotiating with potential partners or dealing with difficult nobles, her actions are all well-founded and beyond reproach.
The internal clan affairs are also in her care. Indeed, their estates may have descended into chaos already, if not for her.

Character Story 3
One autumn afternoon, Ayaka was on her way home from completing certain minor affairs when she happened to hear an old voice singing from within an old house.
Within was an old woman, blind in both eyes, whose stick-thin fingers produced music like flowing water as they plucked at her instrument's strings.
Perhaps it was due to her sharp ears, but the old lady heard Ayaka's footsteps and inquired as to who was outside. Not wishing to trouble the old lady, Ayaka replied that she was a nearby resident who had gotten lost and entered this place.
As a member of the Yashiro Commission, Ayaka was well-acquainted with the peoples' lives and quickly recognized this solitary old lady as the very same person who busked in the city streets when the weather was good.
The tune was outdated, and so was the song. As one who could not see, this lady had long fallen out of step with the times. Even in the nation that pursues eternity, some still endured such hard lives.
Out of the goodness of her heart, Ayaka, thusly incognito, spent a long time chatting with the old lady. Taking Ayaka for an ordinary maiden, the old lady spoke of the method of making and playing the koto, and even gave her some tea leaves that she had kept stored up.
Compared to the exquisite leaves that the Kamisato Clan had in stock, these rough leaves may as well have been grass, but Ayaka accepted them while profusely thanking her.
That day, she thought of her parents many times. Had they been around, would they not have grown this old someday?
Returning home, she spoke of her encounter with her brother, and the two siblings shared the rustic tea gifted to her by the old lady.
Afterward, Ayaka would come to see that old lady again every few days, each time posing as a person living nearby, and each time bringing with her some daily necessities that were well-loved by the common folk.
"The sakura trees in the streets have bloomed again," Ayaka said to the old lady with a smile, "and they are as lovely as your music."

Character Story 4
In people's imagination, the nobility's living expenses are orders of magnitude above the common folk. So for someone as noble as Kamisato Ayaka, surely she too must lead a life of wanton luxury.
This statement is only half right, however.
Ayaka does ostensibly live in a much more particular manner than the ordinary citizen.
The costs of studying flower arrangement and tea ceremony, sampling fine teas, and enjoying exotic flowers daily are also by no means small. However, these are all skills that she must master as a young lady of a noble house — such commitments can hardly be called "wanton."
The things that can truly make Ayaka smile are, in fact, ordinary things that even the common folk can enjoy.
The making of snacks, fishing for goldfish by the ponds, squirreling herself away to read the latest novels from Yae Publishing House... Each one of these is but a tiny matter.
At such times, she is not the adored Shirasagi Himegimi, or Lady Ayaka, mistress of the great Kamisato estates. She is just "Ayaka," an ordinary girl like any other.
Here, she sets her dignified externalized persona aside and sets her true, casual self free. Only as "Ayaka" can she lay down her heavy burdens and do the things that ordinary girls can do.
When hungry at night, she sneaks past the servants into the kitchen and makes herself some chazuke while humming a little tune. During tea ceremony classes, she might surreptitiously try to use the tea leaves to indulge in some romance-related astrology... The list of her little escapades goes on.
Though she has never told anyone this, Ayaka treasures her time as an ordinary girl above all else, for these moments of freedom are things she rarely ever has.

Character Story 5
The tutors who guide Ayaka in her various arts once used to say: whether in tea ceremony, chess, the art of the sword, or all other affairs of elegance, Ayaka is already a master.
She is clearly already a noble lady of superb bearing, skilled with both the pen and the sword. To be able to teach such a pupil is a teacher's pride and joy.
Still, Ayaka thinks quietly to herself, does she truly have no regrets?
The essence of tea is peace and quiet.
The heart of the sword is the keenest edge.
The soul of chess is the wisdom to grasp the bigger picture.
These three she has grasped indeed, and the spirit of true friendship also.
And yet, Ayaka is still waiting for a friend to emerge who can walk alongside her on equal footing and stand by her side.
That person cannot see her as a member of the Yashiro Commission, or as the Shirasagi Himegimi, nor will their conduct towards her be bound by decorum or status. And if possible, they might also be well-versed in a great many fields of study, and have witnessed all manner of interesting things... and perhaps they might even be able to tell her a story in a pinch.
Only such a person might become Ayaka's bosom friend.
"Surely, this is not too much to ask... But where might I find such a person?"

Moriwakamaru
"Come, come, come,"
"Let's play Temari!"
"1, 2, 1, 2, 3,"
"The Temari goes up the Sacred Sakura Tree."
"4, 5, 4, 5, 6,"
"Woosh, and over Mt. Yougou it flicks!"
"7, 8, 7, 8, 9,"
"The Temari returns into these hands of mine."
"Yes, into little~ Ayaka's~ hands~!"
This was Ayaka's favorite nursery rhyme back in the day.
Back then, she gave her favorite Temari the name "Moriwakamaru," and she would dribble the multi-colored Moriwakamaru about while humming this very song.
Hearing her song, her parents and brother would be unable to stop themselves from smiling. Indeed, they would often join in the fun, tossing the Temari between them as a family.
But that was a long time ago, and Ayaka no longer plays games of Temari.
She has become an independent, powerful figure in her own right — and Moriwakamaru, the symbol of her childhood and the bearer of her precious memories, has also been stored away within Ayaka's cabinet.

Vision
Some years ago, the Clan underwent a huge change, and a heavy burden fell upon Ayato's shoulders. At that time, Ayaka was not yet the mature and capable person she is now.
She was originally a playful child, one who knew nothing of the clan's duties, and thus lacked the skill and experience needed for dealing with various kinds of people altogether.
But seeing her mother on her sickbed and her brother hard at work, Ayaka sensed that she too had to grow up.
So she decided to take up her long-disused sword arts and poetry, both staples of nobility. If she could master these two, she could at least pass for a decent lady of the Kamisato Clan, and thus help her brother show up at some festivals, alleviating his burden.
Truth be told, Ayaka was not preternaturally gifted and would spend much time being troubled by her inability to memorize poetry, write elegantly, or brandish her sword.
Yet she did not waver — a poem she failed to memorize once would be memorized fifty times, a poorly-written word would be written fifty times over, and a sword technique that failed would be swung fifty times more.
"None may deflect a swing that has been practiced a thousand times." — This was something her mother told her.
When her mother left this world, Ayaka was no longer "Little Ayaka." She was now Kamisato Ayaka, the young lady of the Kamisato Clan, one of the Shogun's three great clans.
Sword art training thus became part of her daily life and has remained so to this day without pause.
On one particular day, Ayaka, at last, defeated an opponent in a single strike. In that instant, as she stood in the middle of the dojo, icy flowers condensed all about her. And there, upon the tip of her sword, now hung a Vision, icy and bright.
"None may deflect a swing that has been practiced a thousand times" indeed — and even the gods may thus be moved."