Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away, there lived a handsome man with fiery red locks and a pair of gorgeous jade-colored orbs.
He resided in a chateau, alongside his two step-brothers who treated him cruelly. Upon his father's disappearance, his step-mother started having an affair with a mysterious man and rarely ever came home.
Eyes cloaked with utter wrath, Ayato stared back and forth between his brother and what he was holding in his hand.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" He shouted, throwing the broom in front of the other male present and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.
In within a second, the shorter male slapped his hand away and held his stuffed toy tighter in his grasp. "I'm serious, if that's what you're asking! You were the one to bump into me while I was holding a jar of macarons, it should be your responsibility to clean it up!"
"But it wasn't my fault that you held it with one hand!" The redhead argued, angrily pointing an accusing finger at him. "If you had held it with both, it wouldn't have fucking fallen!"
"Then, where would I put Teddy!?" He screamed even louder, loud enough to urge Ayato to smash the purple-head's face into his favorite cake.
"Fuck you and your Teddy! Just dump him somewhere already, you stupid hysteric!"
"How..." He growled as his body started shivering with rage. "How dare you--!?"
"Stop right there," a deep voice echoed throughout the hallway. Ayato clicked his tongue upon his appearance; he was the only butler willing to work in this house even after their family's wealth had decreased significantly because of their irresponsible mother. There were also rumors saying that the butler had sworn loyalty towards the head of the house.
"Reiji, don't you dare stop me...!" Kanato shouted, pointing an index finger at the butler before somehow summoning a fork in his hand and charged at the redhead.
Only for Reiji to grab his arm in time.
"Please do not dirty this house's utensils with blood anymore, Kanato." He pleaded though his tone was threatening, ruby-colored eyes boring straight into Kanato's amethyst ones.
With a disgruntled pout, the latter released the fork reluctantly and handed it over to Reiji.
"And Ayato," he looked at the redhead next. "Watch where you're going."
"Tch." He merely rolled his eyes, crossing his arms and pouted.
After releasing a sigh, he assured Kanato he'd make more macarons soon and they left somewhere. Reiji's strictness (and sometimes cruel) nature earned him the nickname 'Reiji the Lucifer' for some reasons.
"What's with the long face, Ayato-kun?" Another annoying voice entered his ears, a familiar figure entering his vision next.
"None of your business."
"Aww, so cold~ anyway," he placed a hand over his shoulder. "I need you to do me a little favor."
"No." Ayato immediately slapped his arm and pushed him away. This man always asked him to do silly errands and to be honest, he had more than enough of it.
"Come on, Ayato-kun. We're brothers, aren't we?"
"No." Ayato repeated, this time adding pressure onto his words to completely reject him.
"Oh, is that so?" The brunet retreated from him with a face saying he was disappointed. "Okay, I'll just ask our servant to do this. But," he looked at his brother from the corner of his eye, a smug expression displayed.
"Don't expect to be invited to the ball this weekend."
"Ball?" Ayato repeated with an eyebrow raised. "Who cares about some dumb ball?"
"Nfu," he chuckled. "You will care, Ayato-kun."
— ♦︎ —
The redhead exhaled a long sigh, sitting by the lake with a friend of his as company. He threw a pebble towards the water and due to his poor attempt, it only skipped twice before sinking into the depth.
"I'm so sick of that house," he complained and clicked his tongue, "I'd have left it long ago had it not for the fact that it's my house."
"I know," his company rolled his garnet-colored eyes, "you've told me that countless of times."
The redhead collapsed into the grassy field beneath him and gazed at the orangish red sky floating above him with eyes reflecting only utter annoyance. The color of the evening sky matched the intense emotions clashing in his heart; red represented anger, orange described the annoyance and pink was the unknown longing buried deep in his core.
"I heard there will be a ball held this weekend." The white-haired male started, glancing at his friend with his visible eye. "Are you coming?"
"I don't care about some ball." He shrugged, "and I have told Laito that so I won't take back my words."
A sigh left Subaru's lips, "you're so freaking stubborn."
"As if you're not."
— ♦︎ —
A loud yawn escaped the redhead's throat, wiping away the forming tears as he urged his horse to go faster.
He could feel the sunlight shining upon him, hitting his skin with its warmth and the windy breeze gently blowing through his hair. The morning forest was beautiful – at least, way better than his house.
A growl left his companion's lips, a complaint following afterwards, "why do I have to accompany you hunt?"
"Because oresama said so." A smug smirk decorated his face with its arrogance, looking as if it was asking Subaru to smack it off.
The latter merely rolled his eyes and advanced further into the greens of the forest, red eyes on the look out for preys. That reminded him, what did Ayato want to hunt?
"Oi," he called, cocking his head to the right and questioned, "what do you--"
He narrowed his eyes questioningly at his friend; it was strange to see the fiery redhead so quiet like that, just what was he looking at?
Turning his head to the left, his eyes widened on the sight of a dazzling azure dress sitting on top of a white horse.
He shook his head off the image and approached the redhead, "hey, Ayato--"
"Sshht," he hushed the taller male. "Leave it for later."
"H-Huh!? You forcefully dragged me here and now you're leaving me!?"
Again, his complaint was left unheard.
The red-haired adolescent forsaken by his parent urged his horse to walk steadily towards the girl in blue, watching as she picked an apple from a tree. It didn't take her long to notice his presence, looking at him with wide and curious eyes.
"May I help you?" She inquired, a smile dancing on her lips.
Ayato's jade orbs displayed only a single emotion: nostalgia.
"You are [Y/N]," he suddenly uttered and caused the girl to flinch, "aren't you?"
"H-How do you know?" She questioned further, her genuine smile dissolving into an anxious one.
Ayato wiped his serious look off, his infamous smirk spreading across his face and revealed a pair of fang-like teeth. "It's me, how could you have forgotten?"
The girl fell into silence, admiring his features one by one after hearing his declaration. Jade-colored orbs, fiery red hair and a pair of fangs; he looked awfully familiar.
"May I ask for your name!?" She exclaimed, [E/C] eyes saying she was so close to the answer she'd been seeking.
"It's--"
"Hey, stay away from the Princess!" A deep voice echoed throughout the forest as well as countless of horses' footsteps. Ayato clicked his tongue and prepared to retreat when the girl in blue grabbed onto his hand, "wait!"
"Oi, idiot!" Subaru shouted from behind, "what the hell are you doing? Hurry and escape!"
Upon seeing both the redhead's and his companion's desperate faces, the girl reluctantly let go of his hand. "Let's see each other in the ball."
"Huh?" Ayato shot the girl a questioning gaze, "the ball? But--"
He released a gasp when his horse acted on its own, turning left towards Subaru and escaped the army of guards assigned to the Princess. Leaving her with one last glance, he clenched his teeth and cursed himself for being so stupid.
"Who's she?" Subaru asked as soon as they were far enough from the guards.
"Just a childhood friend of mine."
— ♦︎ —
Descending down the stairs, he could see the two of his brothers plus Reiji well-dressed and ready to head for the ball. Upon realizing the redhead's presence, malice glistened in his eyes and he decided to greet him.
"Hello, brother~ it's such a shame you didn't want to go." He teased, a playful smirk stuck to his lips.
Ayato merely rolled his eyes and went for the kitchen, sitting on the dining table and ate an apple as he listened to their conversation.
"Reiji." Kanato called, "since Ayato will most likely sleep, let's lock the door."
"That's right," the butler agreed, "well then, let's get going."
Ayato let out a silent growl, quietly clenching his fist. They were definitely doing it on purpose. He impatiently waited until the sound of the door closing was heard, followed by a clicking noise saying it was locked. He exited the kitchen and climbed the stairs, back towards his room which was located in the attic.
Upon arriving, he wasted no time slamming his wardrobe open though instead of the usual sight, he was greeted by countless of fabrics flying towards him.
"W-What the heck!?" He exclaimed, pulling back and stared unbelievably at the floor. It was not just ordinary fabrics you would see, it was his clothes torn into pieces.
The confusion in his eyes dissolved into fury; what was he going to wear to the ball? He only had the piece he was wearing then and it was by no means appropriate. He'd only be caught and treated as a suspicious person desperate for the princess.
He left the room with void cloaking his heart, staring upon the pure white moon up above the balcony.
"Damn it." He cursed, slamming his fist on the ceramic railing. Was he going to break his promise with her for the second time?
He spot something white from the corner of his eye, picking up the fallen white rose from the ground. "If only I could use magic." He whispered, plucking its petal one by one until there were none left.
Turning his back from the scenery displayed upon him, he was about to head back to his room when--
"Magic exists within you," a low voice resounded, surprising him. "In the depth of your heart, buried silently inside until you believe."
"W-What--" instead of receiving an answer upon facing the entity possessing the voice, he was faced with another bizarre situation.
"Ayato," the man spoke, lifting off his hood and showed his magnificent white hair and a pair of golden eyes. "What is it that you wish?"
"Uh," he trailed off, swallowing a gulp. "What the fuck?"
The man narrowed his eyes in displeased, clearing his throat, "what is it that you wish from the bottom of your heart?" He questioned once again, his voice a bit more emotional than the previous attempt. "To protect the one you love? To fulfill a promise with your loved one? Or is it only for your own self-satisfication?"
The redhead was utterly confused by the sudden appearance of the man in white but he figured he had to answer for there was someone waiting for him.
"Yeah, it's for my self-satisfication." He finally answered with determination painting his face, jade orbs staring into golden ones. "There was a promise I couldn't fulfill in the past and by answering to it this time, I'd be at ease. Besides, I have to get my idiotic brothers back for making me go through such hurdle."
The mysterious existence merely 'hmph' before closing his eyes and let out a scoff, "you haven't changed at all."
"Huh? You know me?"
"Of course I do," he let out his hand for the male to take. "I'm your fairy godfather, Carla."
"Huh!?" The redhead shouted as his hand connected with the self-proclaimed fairy but it seemed like he did not tell a lie. Ayato's entire body glowed in white, transforming his once ordinary piece of clothings into an extravagant outfit and mask suitable for the masquerade.
Once the glowing stop, he looked at both himself and the fairy godfather in confusion. "What is this bullshit?"
"It's called magic." Carla replied and pushed him, "hurry up, you have a ball to attend."
— ♦︎ —
Ayato felt sick as soon as he exited his carriage. Transforming mere pumpkin into a grand carriage and random mices as its coachmen was cool but riding it felt so strange, as if he was in an another dimension supplied with endless magic.
'Forget it,' he assured himself and sneaked past the lazy guards, earning himself an entry towards the ballroom where the masquerade was held.
He could see multiple chandeliers hanging on the ceilings, shining upon the room and painted it bright. Though he couldn't careless about the design of the room, eyes searching for but a person.
"I wish I could dance with the princess too." The man beside him spoke, "she looks so dazzling in that blue dress."
And then, Ayato's eyes was directed towards the center of the hall, seeing the princess wearing a different shade of blue as her dress. He would've smiled had he not seen her dancing partner, a despicable man holding her in his arms.
He clenched his fist, eyes burning with frustration. "That Laito...!"
As soon as the song ended, the princess in blue released herself from her partner's grasp, bowing before him and tried to disappear into the crowd.
But Ayato wouldn't let her.
"Ah, sorry." An apology left her lips when she bumped into someone, planning to leave without even seeing his face though her hand was held firmly in his own.
"U-Um," she tried breaking free on her own but he was stronger than she'd expected.
"May I have the pleasure of this dance with you?"
The princess' eyes widened though nodded, letting the redhead gently pulled her by the hand towards the center of the hall. The way he placed his arm on her waist felt oddly familiar, as if she had known him for a very long time.
Maybe she did.
"Y-You are..." Her words couldn't help but come in stutters, "do you happen to be--"
"The promise." He cut her words off, "I've come to fulfill the promise I made nine years ago, [Y/N]."
Her eyes widened once again though this time her [E/C] orbs were flooded with tears, smiling as she held his hand tighter. "It's really you, Ayato."
— ♦︎ —
"Hey, is it really okay to sneak insde here?"
"It's okay, it's okay!" The girl exclaimed, forcefully dragging behind her a boy with fiery red hair. "I'm a princess, I can do anything I want."
"Well, sure." He rolled his eyes at her cheeky attitude, passing through one last door.
"We've arrived!" The little girl exclaimed, showing the boy a secret garden in the castle located inside various hidden doors.
"It's pretty!" The redhead shouted, running across the garden. "Woah, what flower is this? I've never seen it."
"I'd like to know too!"
"Uh, this is supposed to be your garden, right?" Ayato sweatdropped, turning around only to face the girl with a smile on her face.
"It's actually my late mother's garden. I've only inherited it." She beamed at him, flashing him her grin with a missing tooth.
He could only chuckle and sat on the grassy ground beneath him, waiting for the princess to finish picking her flower and sat beside him.
"Ayato," she called and made him face her. "Tomorrow, you'll come see me again, right?"
"Of course. I'll come even if you don't ask me to."
The princess chuckled and placed the iris she picked on the top of his palm, "it's a promise."
"Yeah, it's a promise."
— ♦︎ —
The cloud swam the sky, revealing the full moon and let it bestow its shine upon the two sitting beneath it.
"You never came." The princess spoke without lifting her head, fondling the deep red rose in her hand.
"Yeah," the male admitted and took off his mask, "my oldman brought a woman with him and declared right then that she'd be my step-mother. Things got complicated and before I knew it, he disappeared. I became unable to go see you."
"But that doesn't matter, does it? Now that you're here..." One of her hands placed itself on top of his, urging him to hold her back and interweaved their fingers.
"Right." He chuckled, complying to her wish as he stared into the night sky.
"Hey, I know this is selfish of me to ask but I need you to do me a favor, Ayato."
He looked at her, slightly surprised by her sudden change of mood. Her eyes told him that it was serious matter and so he asked, "what is it?"
"Marry me."
"What, no."
She let go of his hand that instant and stood up, a furious expression displayed. "What do you mean no!?"
"Why should I marry you!?" He exclaimed as well, about to stand up but the princess forced him to sit back down.
"My father's been telling me to marry someone and you know the purpose of this ball is for me to find a partner, right? I don't want to marry any man I meet in crowd, I want it to be you."
Ayato was at lost for word for a second. He had no idea why she wanted it to be him, he had no idea of his feeling for the princess either. Was he in love with her? Or was he not?
"Ayato," she held both his hand this time and let the rose fell to the ground. "Do you not like me?"
"It's not that--"
His eyes widened when the clock tower rang, turning his head and saw that it had indeed struck 12 midnight. The princess saw that something was wrong with his reaction and before she could question him, a gasp left her throat as she watched his body glow and his excellent white suit transformed into a hazel-colored shirt and pants.
"A-Ayato?" She questioned, "what's happening?"
"Damn it," he cursed and stood up as well. "It's difficult to explain but it's made from magic."
"Oh," she reluctantly nodded, "magic."
"I'm not crazy." The redhead sweatdropped, "don't look at me like that."
"Hey, who are you!?" A voice echoed from behind, "what are you doing with the princess?"
Ayato cursed once more under his breathe and held the princess' shoulders, "I have to run now, we'll talk about that at a later time."
"Y-Yes, but where--"
"Let go of the princess!" The blond guard exclaimed and swang his sword towards the redhead's direction. He clicked his tongue and evaded his attack, escaping that instant into the night.
"Azusa-kun, chase after him!" The same guard ordered before asking the princess, "are you okay, Princess [Y/N]?"
"I'm fine." She nodded, "more importantly, he is not--"
"Captain Kou! I heard there's an intruder."
"Yes, Azusa-kun's pursuing him." The blond guard replied and sheathed his sword, "please get inside, Princess. We will take care of the intruder."
"Wait, listen--"
"All units, pursue the intruder!" He announced after climbing his horse, following after Azusa's steps and leaving the princess in blue behind.
Face decorated with utter annoyance, she clicked her tongue and kicked the pebble lying in front of her. "Don't tell me father's behind this."
— ♦︎ —
The grand door to the King's throne spread itself open, revealing a certain girl wearing a periwinkle dress and a determined face.
"What is it, my daughter?" The king lifted his face off his book, the sound of it closing echoed as she made her way down the red carpet stuck to the floor.
"Father, I have found myself a perfect partner I'd like to marry." She announced, head held proudly high and it showed him exactly how he raised her.
"Oh? Let me hear that man's name." He shifted into a better position to sit, prussian blue eyes staring deep into his daughter's [E/C] ones to intimidate her.
Instead of the hesitation he expected to see, she showed upon him her conceited smirk. "His name is Ayato. Don't you remember? You were the one to introduce him to me when we were children. I've finally met him again."
The look of ease on the King's face was wiped away that instant, his eyes narrowed dangerously at the princess standing before him. "It's sad but I refuse to have him as my son-in-law."
"Why?" Her smile was still stuck to her face as she inquired further. "He's a good person, I'm sure you know too. He is courageous, bold and is quick on his feet. Sure, he may not be too bright but--"
"[Y/N]," he increased his voice as he called her name, stopping her in the middle of her sentence. "Stop it, I have said no. Please retire to your room right now."
"No." She declined and stood up straight, all the happiness and fun erased off her expression. "Please tell me your reason, father. Why did you not let me see him after his father – Earl Karlheinz's disappearance? Why did you give false information to the royal guards and tell them to capture Ayato yesterday?"
"[Y/N], please understand that I'm doing this for your safety--"
"No!" She shouted, surprising the King. "How can I understand if you've never told me anything? What should I even understand? Just because I'm your second heir and only daughter doesn't mean you should shelter me for the rest of my life. I'm old enough, father. I'm 19 years old."
The King suppressed the urge to sigh. He didn't want to acknowledge it but she was right, he couldn't treat her as his little daughter forever.
"The reason I don't want to let you marry Ayato is simple," he started. "Karl... that man's been sticking his nose into dangerous stuffs all this time. Dark magic and beings that are not apart of our world. I don't want to put you in such a danger, [Y/N]. Not to mention he stole our horse to escape yesterday."
"But that's Earl Karlheinz, not Ayato." She argued and took a few more steps towards the king. "He isn't into strange things like that, he is still the same Ayato I'm friend with nine years ago! And don't mention about the horse!"
Silence clouded the room with its heavy atmosphere, letting the princess hear her own intense heartbeats. The king exhaled a sigh and averted his gaze from his daughter, telling her, "It's enough, [Y/N]. Retreat to your room."
"So you refuse to hear me out until the end, huh?" The princess muttered underneath her breathe, clenching her fists as she slowly moved backwards.
"I'm sorry, father, but this time I won't yield to you."
The king's eyes widened as the princess took off into a run, passing her elder brother as she did and threw him into confusion.
"What happened to [Y/N], father?" The blond questioned though realized it might not be a good time to ask upon seeing his expression.
— ♦︎ —
"Curse that Reiji," the redhead muttered as he poured water on the plants and flowers. "Tend to the garden, he said. Fuck you."
A sigh left his lips, his back facing the setting sun. He was glad that giant star was finally retreating and let the moon take over, he never really liked the daylight.
As soon as he was done with all of the plants, he turned around and was about to head back into the house had he not seen something bizarre in front of the gate.
Green eyes spread wide-open and mouth hung agape, he ran towards the girl and exclaimed, "what are you doing!?"
"I ran away." She replied still with the pout on her lips, "my father's an asshole and I don't want to listen to him anymore."
"My oldman's too," he said though shook his head. "Wait, it's not the time for that! You can't stay here looking all princess-y like that, let's go somewhere and get you change of clothes."
"Huh? I'm not staying at your house?" She questioned as he started dragging her away and into the woods.
"No, I've two evil step-brothers and a demonic butler. It'll be dangerous if they're aware of our relationship." He explained and it struck her with amazement, she had no idea he'd been living with such people.
"You've been having a hard time, aren't you?" She grabbed onto his arm and smiled, looking as if the fight with her father never occured.
"I don't need that fake empathy of yours." The redhead rolled his eyes, "you never change, do you?"
"I won't change but it seems like Ayato has. You've become more temperamental, hehe."
"Huh? What did you call oresama?" He stopped his tracks and looked at her, only to be face-to-face with her cheeky grin.
"Oh, but your oresama complex still remains."
"It's not a complex!"
— ♦︎ —
The princess now stood in front of what seemed like a commoner's house. The owner must be someone close to the redhead since he knew a difficult shortcut towards their house and was now shouting at them to open the damn door, like he said.
"The fuck are you doing here so late at night!?" A man's voice resounded, slamming the door open and glared at the redhead with burning anger. "What do you want-- what the fuck!?"
"Hey, that's a rude thing to say to a princess' face." She scolded, her eyes looking straight into his confused garnet-colored ones and to be honest, it intimidated him.
"Oi, why are you bringing the princess with you?" He whispered though his volume was too loud, letting her listen as well.
"It's a long story," Ayato sighed and walked past the white-haired young man. "Anyway, we're staying the night."
With that said, the princess flashed Subaru a smile and followed after Ayato's steps. "Pardon the intrusion~"
"Staying the night!?" Subaru repeated and slammed close the door, "don't decide that yourself!"
The princess had never been inside a commoner's house before and was intrigued by how small the living room was. She sat herself on the couch in front of the fireplace, following the redhead's example.
"So, what did you and the king discuss?" Ayato questioned after demanding a cup of coffee from Subaru.
"I told him I wanted to marry you," she explained and started pouting again. "He didn't let me and I questioned why, he said your father's been searching for dangerous things like dark magic."
"Dark magic?" Ayato raised an eyebrow, "such thing exists?"
"Apparently and oh, didn't you say something about magic yesterday?" The princess looked at him with wide eyes, realization striking her. "Don't tell me you're also into--"
"No, I'm not." The redhead cut her off and sweatdropped. He didn't want to talk nor think about that strange oldman in white but it seemed like he had to. "There's this guy who calls himself Carla, my fairy godfather and he gives me clothes to go to the ball and see you."
"Wow." She remarked and bursted into laughter a second later, unable to keep a straight face on.
"The hell are you laughing at!?" He shouted, "fine, I'll show him to you next time!"
"O-Okay, I'm looking forward to it."
"Stupid intruders laughing and making themselves at home already, tch." The host grumbled beneath his breathe and placed the tray holding a cup of coffee and tea on the table.
"This is interesting," the princess uttered as she took the cup of tea he prepared. "It's the first time I've ever seen a real angsty teenager in my lifetime."
"So this is what the princess actually acts like, it's interesting." Subaru retorted in sarcasm, taking a seat at the other couch as well. "And to think that you run away from home because of such a petty reason, you're an idiot, aren't you?"
"Idiot?" The princess narrowed her eyes, "you're calling me an idiot?"
"Yeah," Subaru replied aloud, as if he was picking a fight with the princess. "You're a big idiot."
"How dare you call me an idiot?" The princess exclaimed, "and it is not a petty reason, it's a matter close to that of life and death! I don't want to marry anyone other than Ayato."
"Oi, stop being so noisy." The redhead finally spoke up, "and are you so head-over-heels over me you can't stop talking about the marriage? Even though I haven't agreed to it too."
"Wha--" her face was immediately flushed red as a rose, denying and said, "who's head-over-heels for a retard like you!?"
"R-Retard!?"
"Stop fighting in my house!" Subaru shouted and slammed his fist into the wooden table, almost breaking it in the process. "Barging into my house and then arguing over some petty marriage, it's so stupid."
"Stop saying petty over and over again! Do you have no other vocabulary, you commoner?"
Both Ayato and Subaru was about to retort when the sound of a door slamming itself open and heavy footsteps were heard, causing all three of them to fall into silence altogether.
"What the fuck's this commotion about!?"
The princess' body shook with surprise, slowly turning her head to the right to face the owner of the voice.
"A-Ayato," she tugged onto his sleeves. "Who's that man resembling a big foot?"
"I heard that, princess!"
"It's only Subaru's roommate, Yuma. Don't mind him." The redhead rolled his eyes, watching as the brunet took a seat on the remaining couch.
"I've been listening, y'know." He mentioned, taking a sip of the cup of coffee Subaru had drunk. "The problem is that this princess wanna marry this redhead but the king's not letting her, right?"
"Yes, that's correct." The princess nodded, "what about it?"
"Won't the problem be solved if you just marry that redhead secretly and announce to the king later on that you're married? He won't be able to do anything about it, right?"
They fell into silence once again and exchanged glances with each other, eyes reflecting the words, 'that's a great idea.'
"No, that's a bad idea!" Subaru objected.
"No, no," the princess shook her head, "it might actually work."
"I can't believe you." Subaru face-palmed while Yuma smirked in triumph, watching as the two soon-to-be married youngsters got lost in their own world of smiles.
— ♦︎ —
Just as the sun was about to rise from the horizon, the princess descended into the grass and sat upon them, facing both the lake and the direction the sun would rise.
It had been a few days since she freed herself of the chains the castle was binding her in. She'd always thought that living as a commoner was going to be hard but it didn't seem to be so bad.
She was having a lot of fun, at least.
"Don't fall asleep on me." She poked the redhead's cheek repeatedly until his eyes were opened once again.
"Why are we out so early?" He yawned and let his head fell into her laps, "I'm supposed to be in bed this time of day, tch."
"Stop being so whiny." She huffed though stroke his red strands of hair, smiling at its kind of rough texture and was surprised when he opened his eyes again.
"Heh," he scoffed, "admiring this oresama?"
"Yes," she chuckled and landed a kiss on his forehead. "I'm head-over-heels for the great Ayato-sama."
"Stop it!" He exclaimed and pushed her, sitting a meter away from her with his cheeks flaming the color of his hair.
"A flustered Ayato, it's been awhile since I last saw one." She chuckled to herself, shifting herself closer towards him.
The redhead only rolled his eyes and let her rest her head on his shoulder, her hand holding his own in hers.
"When do you think should we get married?" The princess questioned playfully, followed by a series of chuckle. "It sounds so funny."
"I know right," he let out a similar sound as she did. "But we're getting married for real, right?"
"Yes, even though I still don't know if you love me or not."
Her words created a short silence between them and caused the male to face her in the eye. Those eyes of hers had not changed a bit, still the same [E/C] glowing in mischief.
"I'm only gonna say this once so hear it carefully." He stated, surprising the girl though she nodded. "I... I do like you--"
"The princess!" The voice Ayato came to hate suddenly resounded behind him, "the princess is being threatened! Hurry and capture the man!"
Both Ayato and the princess stood up, eyes clouded with wrath as he got a good look at his step brother's face, "Laito...!"
"Get away from the princess!" A guard shouted, pointing his sword at the redhead while another one secured both his hands.
"Oi, let me go--!"
"Ayato!" The princess exclaimed and ran after him but Laito stood in her way, wrapping an arm around her and made it seem like she was about to fall.
"Be careful, Princess [Y/N]." He smiled at her, assuring her with a gentle voice. "And don't worry, you're safe now. Ah, to think that you're being made to wear such filthy clothes like this, that man's truly a villain!"
"Huh!?" She shouted and pushed him away, "what kind of game are you playing?"
She faced the royal guards securing Ayato and clicked her tongue, declaring to all of them, "free that man at once! This is an order from your princess!"
"Princess [Y/N], what are you talking about?" Laito faked worry in his face, holding the princess in his arms. "That man's been using you and placing you in a spell. You're being manipulated, Princess."
"Don't fuck with me, Laito!" Ayato shouted, still trying to break free from the guard's iron grip. "And get your filthy hands off [Y/N], bastard!"
"No!" The princess slapped away Laito's hands but he only wrapped them tighter around her. She watched as the guards dragged Ayato forcefully away; he was being taken away once again from her, slowly yet surely leaving her behind. She could not let him disappear from her life once more, she could not.
"I have to help him." A whisper left her dry lips, catching Laito's attention though before he could react, the princess landed a kick on him and sprint towards the redhead.
"Ah, damn it!" Laito cursed, falling into his knees.
"Ayato!" She shouted at the top of her lungs, running towards him depsite the guards in her way.
"Princess [Y/N]!" A different voice called out to her, surprising her and caused her to stop in her tracks.
"Azusa...?" She let out a gasp, "is this their reinforcement? This is bad!"
"All units, let down your weapons!" Captain Kou announced, "you're in the presence of the first prince!"
The instant the blond prince showed himself, all guards present let go of their weapons and descended to their knees.
Her eyes immediately searched for the redhead and ran towards him, "are you hurt?"
"No, I'm not." He replied and even though he said so, he couldn't help but feel the ache on his hand. It might form a bruise later on.
"You made me worry," she could finally breathed a sigh of relief, throwing herself in his arms. "You weak idiot."
"Huh? What did you say?"
"Prince Shuu, it's an honor to be able to see you." Laito spoke, approaching the prince though before he could get any closer, Kou and Azusa had stood up in his way.
"What is the meaning of this?" He questioned, still with the smile.
"You're accused with the crime of leading our royal guards with false information and treating the Princess rudely." Kou declared and had Azusa kept him in place.
"You have to be kidding me, I'm only trying to help the princess."
"No... more words, please." Azusa warned, holding a sword up his throat.
"[Y/N]," Shuu called, a frown decorating his face. "Father has been worried."
"I'm not going to return." She pointed out, "not until I marry Ayato."
"You're still as stubborn as ever." He sighed, "I came here to discuss about that."
"What's there to discuss?" She narrowed her eyes, hand still tightly clutching onto Ayato's.
Horse's footsteps were suddenly audible, coming from the woods behind the Prince. Both Ayato and the princess narrowed their eyes, waiting for their appearance but what they'd see far exceeded their expectation.
"If you're coming anyway, what's the point of me being here?" The blond prince exhaled another sigh, "father?"
"K-King Ruki!?"
"Oi, this is crazy." Ayato whispered, "what are we gonna do?"
"I-I don't know! Escape, I guess?"
"[Y/N]." The King called after he came down his horse, causing the girl to gulp and hid herself behind the redhead.
"I have come here," he approached the two of them and made her hid herself more and more behind the male, "to apologize to you, [Y/N]."
"H-Huh?"
Ayato looked back and forth between the king and his daughter in confusion. What was going on?
"I realize I have been treating you like a child all this time. And I've been too hard on you, forcing you to find yourself a man to marry when I've barely ever let you meet any of them." The King admitted, now standing right in front of her. "I have been too protective of you."
The princess felt something crushing her heart. She had been very mean towards her own father, refusing to understand him until the very end. Flashing Ayato a smile, she walked towards the King and threw her arms around him.
"I'm sorry." She apologized, "I've been too stubborn."
"It was my fault." He wrapped his arms around her as well, "you've grown up, [Y/N]."
The princess chuckled and pulled away, wiping her tears away and smiled brightly at her father. "I'll return to the castle."
"I'm glad," the King smiled as well and landed his eyes on the redhead behind her. "Ayato," he called and caused him to flinch.
"What is it, uh, K-King Ruki...?" He replied, voice a bit unsure of whether he was polite enough or not.
"There is a question I'd like to ask of you." He looked at Ayato straight in the eyes, "do you love my daughter?"
Ayato's eyes widened in a split second though he did not avert his gaze. He wiped the confusion off his face and replaced it with determination, "yes, I love her and I'd like to take her as my bride."
The princess covered her mouth that instant, unable to hold back a laughter and caused the redhead to glare daggers at her.
"I know it's stupid! Stop laughing!" He clicked his tongue and crossed his arms in front of his chest, "the confession's not supposed to be like this."
Prince Shuu snorted, earning a similar glare from the redhead though he said nothing.
The King smiled and placed a hand on Ayato's shoulder, "I'll entrust her to you then. Do take care of her, Ayato."
"I will even if you don't ask me to." His smug smirk finally revived, too bad it had to disappear since the princess decided to throw herself into his arms, causing him to fall backwards into the grass.
"We're finally getting married!" She squealed, eyes staring into his jade-colored ones before breaking into a smile, capturing his lips in her owns.
"Selfish till the end, aren't you?" He scoffed after he broke the kiss, meeting his lips with hers one last time.
— ♦︎ —
The sound of a book closing echoed, followed by a sigh.
"And they lived happily ever after, the end." He ended, opening his eye and revealed a gorgeous golden orb.
"You're playing quite the interesting character this time, niisan." A chortle left Shin's throat, earning a glare from his elder brother.
"Still, the author always comes up with ridiculous idea. Who knows what's awaiting us next?"
"Who knows, indeed." The younger first blood agreed, placing the book in its rightful place inside the bookshelf.
-------------------------------------------
Happy birthday, Ayato!!! 💕💕💕
It's less than half an hour before his birthday ends in my country but hey, I made it on time today 😂😂
I'm sorry for this super long-ass oneshot but I hope you enjoyed it (｡>﹏<｡)
I'll be ending the author's note here since the word count already exceeds 6000 words.
As usual, thanks for reading✨✨
I'm going to start Lunatic Parade after this, hehe. See you soon, everyone!
Published On: 22.03.18 | 23:46
Edited On: 15.06.18 | 22:30
~Scarlett-chan~