Princess Without Limits

Chapter Sixteen

(Gion)

Childish. That's all I could think about as I flew down the corridor in a fit of anger. I was turning into the sort of child Nonno thought me to be. It was plain childish to run away from what annoyed me. Livio was swift in following me. I flung open the door to our dorm and stormed in angrily. Livio closed the door behind me, but it opened again a while later to reveal Shintarou. I gave both of them a casual glance.

"Your Highness..." Livio started, but did not continue.

"I'm going to my room," I stated simply, and sauntered into my room.

The door slammed shut behind me immediately once I entered. Oh, well, here we go again. Anu sat on one of the corners of my bed, as expected, casually watching a music video in my playlist without sound. Upon hearing my entrance, he turned to me, putting on a pleasant, innocent smile. I tried to put on a nonchalant face. Anu always knew when to arrive at the wrong time.

"Hello Anu, how are you?" I said, walking to my study desk. I concentrated on arranging the papers on my desk while Anu spoke.

"Hi, big brother. It's been a while. It was a challenge trying to sneak in, but I'm here now. Oh yes! I've been well, don't you worry," Anu replied. I quietly continued with my task. The room was silent for quite awhile, except for the occasional shuffling sound of paper. I refused to look up to meet Anu's eyes. However, after a long while of painstaking stillness, I sighed. Raising my head to look at Anu, I see him tilt his head, studying me intently.

"You seemed displeased." It wasn't a question, so I didn't answer. With his silent grace and smooth speech, one would have thought he was an assassin. Anu was far from it, in fact. He was a prince of Egypt who had abandoned his position as the next king, leaving all the ministers back in his country struggling to cope with the country's matters in the king's absence. I knew he hated his father because of how his father killed his older brother years ago. Anu only called me 'big brother' because according to him, I had a striking resemblance to his older brother. I thought it'd be more useful if he became king and allied with Italy, I chose not to comment on his choices. Anu was useful in many other ways too.

"What's been bothering you?" Anu asked. "Prince Ciel," I responded, because that was the simplest and most self-explanatory answer. Anu pursed his lips in deep thought. "I can deal with him, if you want," he offered. I shook my head.

"I'd prefer if I could do it myself, but there's been so much going on. Plus, he's close to my sister. I don't want to ruin our relationship anymore," I added.

"Sounds complicated," Anu remarked.

"I suppose," I agreed, not knowing what else to say. Anu switched off the television and leapt off my bed. He put his hands behind his back in a professional way. He inched closer.

"Well, you can hire me..." Anu suggested, trailing off.

"Or, we can work together. But I don't want to be involved, so I'll hire you to deal with both Ciel and Leon. Don't tell me your plans, though, the less I know, the less involved I'll be," I proposed. It was rare for me to ask someone else to deal with my messes, but when my relationship with Gina is hanging on a very, very narrow tightrope, I had no choice. I loved my little sister as much as she loved me, however, I knew her trust for me had worn thin over the years of my scheming.

Anu smirked. "Sure," he accepted readily. Suddenly, a knock sounded on the door. "Your Highness? Her Highness is here," Livio said, opening the door. He froze for a moment seeing Anu, but recovered swiftly.

"Ah, Prince Anu. It's a pleasure to see you again." Livio bowed to him respectfully.

Anu waved him off, clearly uncomfortable at being addressed as a prince. "Should I ask Princess Gina to come another day? Or do you wish to see her?" Livio questioned, turning his attention to me. "I'll see her," I answered.

"Stay here," I commanded Anu. He gave a little salute, in a mood for playing around again. I would've smiled if I didn't see Gina sitting on the sofa in the living room, looking down at her fidgeting hands. "What's wrong?" I inquired, concerned. Gina looked up, surprised to see me, and stood up instantly.

She glanced at me sheepishly as she twirled her hair around with her finger.

"The others will probably kill me for saying this. I know you hate surprises though, so I'm here to tell you that we are having a surprise birthday party for you and Lena tomorrow," she informed.

I raised my eyebrows suspiciously. "When's Lena's birthday?"

"You don't remember!" Gina made an exaggerated gasp that melted into a frown.

"Am I supposed to?"

Gina shoved me playfully and crossed her arms. "Gion Zecchino, I can't believe you!" she chided, "Lena used to have joint birthday parties with you! Her birthday is six days after yours." "Oh really? I can't seem to recall," I commented, searching through my memories.

"Don't tell me you can't remember anything from when you were eleven." Gina's face was a picture of an exasperated mother. "Well, there seemed to be, hm, Livio returning..." I recalled. "That was when you were twelve! Try again!" she scolded. I raised my hands in surrender. She smiled for a bit, and continued, "I'm just telling you so that maybe you can get a present for Lena. I'm not sure whether the other princes will come though, since it's kind of your birthday party too. But, on the bright side, it can be like when we were kids." Gina was practically beaming by now.

"Okay, okay, I'll think about it. What will Lena want?" I asked, because truth be told I wasn't really updated about Lena these days. I supposed it was pure luck that her favourite food had never changed.

"Notebooks. She's going through her obsession-with-notebooks phrase," Gina said simply, "I guess it is just for her to vent about all the things that have been going through in her life." She mumbled something under her breath that sounded horribly like 'inconsiderate brother'. "Come again?" I questioned.

"Nothing," Gina replied swiftly, "That's all. See you tomorrow." She skipped out of the dorm without waiting for my dismissal.

I sighed, returning to my room where Livio and Anu were having a light conversation. Livio excused himself immediately upon seeing me. I sat on my bed for a little while, flipping senselessly through channels. Anu was hunched over what seemed like a planning sheet. I ignored him. However, after twenty minutes into a new episode of my favourite crime drama - which Nonno hated me watching, but it wasn't like he was here to stop me or urge me to do some paperwork - Anu turned to me. "Text Lena and tell her you have something for her to pick up, big brother," he commanded.

"Are you instructing me?"

"Yes, please do so."

Insolent brat. "Keep Lena out of this."

"Why?" Anu stared at me questioningly, "Have you grown a soft spot for someone else?"

"Just keep her out of it," I snapped.

"She plays a vital role, though. But I can promise you that no harm will come to her, mentally or physically," Anu swore. "Good," I approved, sending Gina her quick message to ask Lena to pick up something from the dorm. Gina responded quickly. "Lena said she will be practising violin tonight. Maybe another time?" I read out. Anu frowned and returned to his work. I typed a reply to inform her it was fine, and that Lena need not come anymore.

After watching the new episode, I started feeling drowsy. "Anu."

"Yes, big brother?"

"I'm going to sleep, it's late."

"Well, then I am too." He took out a foldable mattress from one of my closets and placed it beside my bed. "Good night, big brother," he said, storing the plan sheet away neatly. I wasn't very fond of saying 'good night', but I made an exception. "Good night, Anu," I answered. Before I fell asleep, I thought of how Anu promised that Lena wouldn't be hurt in any way. But if Anu went back on his word, how far would I go to protect her? And why was I suddenly so protective towards her?

Those two questions would haunt me later on.

Author's note: The next time I'll be posting will be on Lena's birthday, 17 November. In advance, I wish Gion a happy birthday (his birthday is on 11 November). See you guys soon, and tysm for the support <3