PENUMBRA // Tamaki Amajiki x Reader Royal AU

Chapter 4

Never had I had such a good night's sleep until I slept in my new bed for the first time. I always thought sleeping on the hardwood floor would bring me comfort due to its solidity, grounding me, but I never felt safer than sleeping on a cloud. If I did not have the willpower of a bull, I would have struggled to even wake up.

Scanning the endlessly bright room, I noticed the crimson dress I neatly left on the dresser had been replaced with a similar royal blue one, minus the nice satin. If that did not suffice as a sign of life, the curtains were wide open, someone had been in my room. Clutching the blanket closer to me, I felt uneasy; being watched in my sleep, now that I was used to, I shared a room for a large proportion of my childhood, however knowing that someone whose opinion I might have actually cared about, seeing my bedhead does, in fact, fill me somewhat with discomfort.

I climbed out of bed and reached for the dress, less beautiful than the one I wore previously but more elegant than anything I owned so I was still grateful to look like I fit in. With a simple spell, my pajamas were in my hands and swathes of royal blue grabbed at my body. The dress felt off which gave me the feeling that it did not suit me very well so I thought it best to ignore the mirror for now.

In the corner of my eye, I noticed a tray sat at the foot of the door, turning my head I saw the tray was full of food: a bowl of porridge topped with berries and syrup and a cup full of orange juice. Like I said, I had the willpower of a bull but it took everything in me to not start drooling at the mouth and leap for the tray. I thought I ought to get used to living the 'proper' way if I were to be spending lots of my time in castles, despite there not being anyone around, I gracefully made my way across the room and picked up the tray then sat by the windowsill in the height of the morning sun which I loved so dearly. 

Upon eating just a lick of porridge, however, made the sunlight much more bearable. I knew the water to oat ratio was generous just by analyzing how thick it was but something about the meal gave off an extraordinarily flavorful taste. Then it clicked. The porridge was cooked with milk instead of water. An unfamiliar feeling warmed me from the inside. In the canteen back home breakfast was always the same gruel everyday except for holidays when we had the privilege of eating stale bread and cheese, in my experience I was allowed ham as well due to my exceptional performance in class. If you were lucky, or incredibly skilled as I was, sometimes the seniors would invite you to eat with them, one of the most honorable things that could happen to a student, but even then the gruel would just be thicker and the bread would be less stale, though sometimes we'd be permitted a drop of wine or coffee which the seniors and most students seemed to love however I found both to be quite bitter and distasteful, I still drank it though, I would not dream of turning down a gift from a superior. 

Not wanting this food to go to waste, I ate every spoonful and drank every drop even after I felt full. I deserved this. After years of hard work I had finally earned a decent meal, more than decent, I thought to myself that this was how life was going to be from now on, and it would only get better. 

Finishing the meal, I finally looked in the mirror and pondered over my hair for a moment before swishing my hand and my hair was neater and had a small braid run over the top. Now I needed to find a washroom of some sort, if the staff would permit it. 

Plastering on a smile, I left my bedchambers and peered down the hallway for any sign of life, but no one was there. I headed in the opposite direction I tried to head the previous night in hopes that maybe I would not be turned away so suddenly. My trip through the halls allowed my to reflect on my change of attitude. While last night I was thoroughly annoyed with such a feeble request, a good night's sleep helped me see that this was not all bad and I should enjoy getting to live an easy life for a little while, even if I hoped to be out of there soon and out slaying beasts. 

"It is against the king's wishes to be out of your bedchambers now." a servant appeared behind me which was unusual since I was generally hyperaware of my surroundings, "I will escort you back now." The servant lightly grabbed my elbow though it felt like he would not hesitate to be rougher if I failed to comply. "My apologies but I was hoping you could take me to a washroom, I would like to freshen up if you will allow it." 

The servant showed no emotion and begun to walk in the direction I was headed, "As you wish. I shall escort you to the washroom then straight back to your room until a member of staff collects you." He released his grasp on my arm and paced through the halls. "Collects me? To see the prince?" I nearly fell over after trying to face the servant while speed walking. "I am not permitted to disclose any more information." 

We stopped at a door identical to the rest, "You may enter." The servant stood adjacent to the door, very still. "Thank you, sir." Entering  the room, I sighed; the people here were not very friendly. I teleported my toothbrush and such into the room and got on with everything, trying to be quick as to not take the servant away from his duties. Nothing from outside the room could be heard as I did not realize the man standing outside the door had changed until I left the washroom. 

"Oh, you are not the same gentleman who was standing here when I entered the washroom," he did however, act and stand all the same. "It is at King Amijiki's request that you make your way to Prince Amijiki's quarters, follow me." The new servant turned on his heels in the direction of my room, though I would assume we would go past it. "I am completely looking forward to meeting him but on another note, there is an empty tray which held my breakfast on the windowsill in my bedchambers, would it be too much to ask for someone to deliver it back to the kitchen?"  I had not the faintest idea if we had passed my room or not for each door appeared identical to the last, there really were no landmarks at all, nothing differentiated one part of the hallway to the next and it was starting to get to me.

"A maid has already visited your room today and taken the tray back." I could not see the servant's face but I assumed he was apathetic like the rest of them, all I could muster was a faint, "ah". 

The seemingly never ending hallway does, in fact, have an end: a plain brick wall with a small wooden door just off-centered. "Prince Amijiki's quarters are at the top of the tower, you must climb the stairwell." he took a stationary position as if he were going to be waiting there. "Are you not escorting me to the prince?" The servant simply stared ahead. "It is against the king's wishes for me to accompany you, his royal highness also stated that you may leave when you are done but be finished before the day's end so I can escort you to the king's office where you will discuss your progress." 

"Does the king not expect me to fulfill his request by day's end?" Frankly I was annoyed by the king's lack of belief in me, looks can be deceiving, a king should know that, just because I was young did not mean I was not capable. "No." These staff really had no filter, but who was I to complain, I had dealt with worse. 

I stepped into the tower and instantly felt a change in atmosphere. This place was colder and did not just look darker but felt darker. It felt more like home but that was not necessarily a good sign. Then I peered up and I let out a groan which I was pretty sure that servant could hear. Akin to the hallways, the spiral stairwell appeared to go on forever. I had enough of this repetitive stuff and since no one seemed to care about this prince, I did not need to either. Who cared if my sorcery frightened him? With a click I was at the top of the stairwell, parallel to a small door similar to the one at the bottom of the tower. This door too, was slightly off-center. 

Knocking at the door earned no response. I knocked again, "Your highness, I am Y/N L/N. I am sure your father has told you about my arrival." I knocked a few more times. "I have been told not to leave until I have made progress with you so if you would please cooperate." Sighing I rested my head against the door, desperately hoping someone was actually in there and I was not making a fool of myself. 

"The door's unlocked." 

It was very faint but I could just make out the meek voice of a young man from the end of the room on the other side of the door. I turned the doorknob and it swung open revealing the room that held prince Amijiki. He was unlike anyone you had seen before. There was a dark energy that encompassed him, repelling the average eye, but to those who tried to veer their line of sight his way, his ears resembled that of fae, pointed tips under glowing skin: a ghostly ivory color that contrasted his hair. Bunches of midnight sky collected behind his head and fell across his face, often impairing the view of his equally-coloured eyes.