A Castle in the Trees (Saiouma Fantasy AU) (HIATUS)

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classic fantasy romance setup lmao anyways first chapter

 Shuichi threw open the faded and splinter-covered wooden door, scurrying down the stairs and into the basement of the castle. It was one of the only parts of the gorgeous palace he was born and worked at every day that he got to see. 

He slept and ate down there in the darkness of the basement -meals were some of the only downtime he got- and spent the majority of his time being as productive as possible.

Shuichi Saihara was a tall, skinny boy with dark blue hair and olive-colored eyes, dressed in scuffed and simple clothing that he often went days without changing. His skin remained porcelain pale and fine regardless of how much heavy labor he did around the castle. 

He was a hard worker, determined, and a quiet and logical boy that had been taught to do as he was told, especially from the more fortunate around him. Behaving otherwise was out of the question, and would likely get him in trouble. 

Through his days of hurrying from job to job, caught a glance at the royal children every now and then. Celestia, a pretty fair-skinned girl with long shiny black hair often piled into complicated hairdos atop her head and decked in lacy dresses with more layers and complexities than he could count, loved to take casual walks in the garden and around the grounds. She could usually be seen in the gardens and around the river that ran out of the nearby forest and through the garden, sometimes picking wildflowers and fruits to bring back to her home.

She sometimes even went with her brother into the forest to explore and run around and be rowdy like a normal kid, one that wasn't expected to be a proper lady at all times. She was only 14 at the time, after all, just like himself and Kokichi. He found it unfair that there were such high standards held to her, but her image was flawless, the very definition of a princess.

Kokichi was small for his age, something he recieved his fair amount of criticism for from his family and those around him. He had long and unruly dark hair that was difficult to tame. No matter how much his hairdresser fussed, she could never keep it slicked down.

The last thing you would think when you saw him was that he was the son of the king and the heir of the most powerful kingdom to ever exist. He appeared to be an ordinary boy, and a mischievous one at that. Placing your trust in him was a bad move, one that could get you in a lot of trouble. He typically meant no true harm, but was far from royal. The only way you could tell his status was by his fancy clothing, which he just so happened to despise with all of his heart.

He snuck out whenever he could, running around the property and doing whatever he felt like. He often played pranks around the castle and, although somewhat annoying and messy, they were mostly harmless. It didn't make Shuichi being the one to have to pick up after them any less annoying, but it made his days slightly less stagnant, so for that he was grateful.

He wished he could run around like that. And although he knew of the overwhelmingly negative reaction he would receive if anyone caught wind of it, he wanted to be their friend. He wanted to laugh and smile with them and not have to worry about not showing his emotions and being nothing more than a robot, there to do the work so they could live, neither of them knowing he existed.

"Thank you, Shuichi." Kirumi, one of the unspoken ringleaders of the workers in the castle, told him as he handed her a basket of freshly-picked walnuts. She smiled warmly at him. "These are wonderful. I appreciate it very much."

She was currently making a tart, folding the buttery dough meticulously, her fingers carefully working over the ingredients. She was only a few years older than him, but she was one of the most adept at what she did out of all of them. She was the closest to him in age out of everyone else, and he thought of her as an older sister- she took care of him and they often worked together. She was one of the most positive things he had in his life. While strict, and a stickler for the rules, she truly cared about him.