"Finally," a sigh escaped her lips, turning white upon mixing with the cold air.
Kouen glanced down at her. "You should've just given a satisfactory answer from the beginning."
A bead of sweat rolled down her face as she gazed into the distance. "I thought my answer was satisfactory enough. You three just have unusually high standards."
"Do we?" he said, holding a hand out to her.
"You do," Lucy took his hand as he helped her down the icy steps of Koutoku's palace, the white fur lining their winter cloaks dotting with snow.
The two made their way to the Phoenix Palace as they paid no heed to the servants and maids that bowed to them as they passed. Koumei had lessons to attend to and had gone his separate way, promising to return quickly after his lessons. Compared to the weather earlier this morning, the snow had lightened up, pelting softly down as it stuck to the ground.
"How were your last few days in the Imuchakk nation?" Kouen asked.
"It was fun," Lucy grinned, recounting her experience there. "Though we had a few issues at first, they were all welcoming and nice. I read before that they were notorious as a barbaric nation but from what I've seen, they're not at all so. They're people who are proud of their strength but most of all, they're people who care about the well-being of their family more than anyone."
"Is that so?" Kouen softened his eyes as he reached out a hand and patted her on the head. "I'm glad you had fun."
"Mn!"
Seeing her elated face, he smiled softly with a pained expression. How joyous she looked as she talked about her expedition to the Imuchakk nation. Compared to how she was in the Imperial Palace, she looked much freer and full of energy. The Heartfilia Household was a family of merchants and naturally, that blood flowed in her, too. Rather than being confined to one place, they enjoyed the vast lands and open skies much more. Such was the reason why Jude and Layla often went on business trips and were rarely seen in the Kou Empire, even after they had officially decided to mark the Kou Empire as their base.
"But horse riding, huh?" Kouen thought about it. "Isn't it still a bit too early?"
"What do you mean?" Lucy tilted her head.
"Hakuei didn't start her lessons until she was seven," Kouen explained. "Though, the only reason why Father Emperor agreed to it is because her stature was much taller than the boys her age."
"Is that so?" Lucy said, gazing at the ground.
Kouen stared at her, feeling a little bit guilty for having dampened her mood. He was always the type of person to speak his mind and usually, he would think twice before saying something but in front of her, he was able to forget all about appearances and how he may come off for he knew that she would not judge. But right now, he wanted to punch himself in the face. He gloomed, wondering why he was like this.
"But," Lucy spoke up and turned to him, a smile upon her face, "I'm still glad Father Emperor agreed."
Kouen stared at her.
"Though I may be smaller in stature compared to others, once I've set my mind on something, I'll be sure to see it through the end!" Lucy clamped her fists together, her face lighting up. "So thank you for worrying, Kouen."
He widened his eyes slightly and though he kept a blank face, his ears were already beet red. She continued to walk along the path back to the Phoenix Palace and pursing his lips, Kouen turned the other way as he held a hand over his face. His crimson eyes flickered with hopeless affection and his face blushed a fervent red. He watched her small back as she gazed up at the sky and wondered just how much more would his feelings for her continue to grow. He wanted to know just how she was able to see through the facade he had carefully built for himself.
"Kouen!" she turned back around with a bright, radiant smile that lit up the world itself.
He stared at her before taking a step forward, towards that light. His cloak and robes dragged along the snowy ground and with each step he took, his feet felt like heavy concrete, weighing and pulling him down and away from that light. But, no matter how much weight clung onto him, he continued walking towards her no matter how hard and difficult it was. Even if these emotions and feelings of his clung to him for eternity, he still wouldn't leave her side. He had already fallen much too deep to turn around.
Standing by her side, Lucy took his hand and he softened his eyes, holding hers back.
"Let's hope it snows a lot," Kouen said.
"Mn!" Lucy nodded her head in excitement. "That way, we can invite everyone out to play!"
She smiled happily as she thought about all the fun they could have in the snow, ranging from building snowmen to having snowball fights. The two walked back to the Phoenix Palace hand in hand and a gentle, fond smile settled upon Kouen's lips as he listened to her soothing, spring-like voice.
"Yeah," he said. "Whatever makes you happy."
Though no one saw the expression he wore at the time, it was an expression filled with infatuation and deep affection that no one could ever fathom to imagine on the cruel, cold-blooded First Imperial Prince. His love for the girl before him was the sole emotion he carried and the fire that lit itself in his heart continued to flicker without perishing, its flames burning and blazing. No one could understand just how much he cared for this girl and no one could ever compare with his emotions.
Not a single person.
A month later~
Sitting next to the window, Lucy gazed out with a blank face. With everything having been dealt with at the beginning of winter, the Kou Empire finally settled down and for once, there was peace during the harsh winter weather. A sigh escaped her lips as she rested her face into her arms, nestling against the warmth of her winter cloak as she sat in her kotatsu. The Lotus Hall was empty with the exception of a few maidservants and Shadow Guards on the watch for they had all gone to attend their lessons. Even though it was winter, their classes were still being held for being royals of the Imperial family, they couldn't afford to skip any lessons. Though Lucy, too, was a member of the Imperial family, everyone could agree more or less that attending these lessons would simply be a waste of time for her. After all, there was no child in the entirety of the Kou Empire brighter than her.
"I'm bored," Lucy plopped her face on the table.
Just as she said those words, her surroundings changed and instead of the Lotus Hall, she was now in the Celestial Archive which was still as vibrant and grand as she had remembered it. If anything, she felt it grew even more spacious. Laying there against Byakko among the numerous stuffed animals, she held a large stuffed bear close to her and snuggled against it.
"There's nothing to do," she rolled around.
"Well, if you hadn't played around for so long, maybe you could've been able to do something," Kaede appeared next to her. "It's obvious that you would catch a cold after playing in the snow for three hours."
"Indeed," Byakko nodded his head.
"But..." Lucy rolled around.
"Think of this as a lesson," Kaede remained adamant for when he had seen her collapsed on the floor, panting for breath and her face flushed and hot, he was sent into panic. It was the first time he thought about how fragile human life was and how easy it was to lose her.
Lucy stared at him and pouted.
Kaede watched as she rolled about, eventually wrapping herself in her own hair and seeing her bundled up like a cacoon, he wondered just how much cuter could she be. Composing himself, he unrolled her in one swift motion and Lucy laid there before turning her head to him.
She grinned, chuckling as she did so.
Kaede gave a helpless smile and picked her up into his arms. "What am I going to do with you?"
"There really is nothing to do," Lucy said as Kaede situated her in his lap. "As it's winter, I can't start my equitation lessons until the spring. I wouldn't mind attending lessons with them as well even if it means relearning everything."
A bead of sweat rolled down his face. Being too able also has its downsides.
Lucy looked up at Kaede and wondered just how he was able to face all those countless monotonous centuries of solitude when she herself couldn't even handle the boredom and loneliness of a few weeks. She gazed at him and having noticed her gaze, Kaede grinned.
"What's wrong, Lucy?"
His face lit up and his eyes shone with each laugh and in comparison to when she had first met him, he looked much more full of life. Lucy smiled and shook her head, holding his hand as her cheeks were painted a rosy hue.
"It's nothing," she said. "I'm just glad that Kaede, Byakko, and everyone is here with me!"
The two widened their eyes before smiling fondly at her.
"It is mutual," Byakko laid his head down.
"And I'm glad that Lucy is here as well," Kaede laughed as he tickled her to which Lucy burst out laughing in tears.
Byakko watched the two with a fond smile. The two were as close as siblings and it was evident that the relationship the two shared was not a normal one for though they were mistress and subordinate on paper, they were much closer than that. In each other's presence, they wore expressions that neither one showed to others and only in front of each other could they laugh freely for there were no secrets that were kept between them. Just like how Kaede knew everything about Lucy, Lucy, too, knew everything about Kaede. Of course, there were some things that they wished to keep from each other and they were both aware of it and made sure to keep their boundaries without pressing them on. It was a relationship to be envied and Byakko closed his eyes, a smile upon his lips.
What a peaceful day, he thought as he drifted off.
Lucy sat on Kaede's lap happily as she hummed to herself, reading the book that Kaede had newly brought into the Celestial Archive. The latter stared at her with a content smile and thinking it was better to bring it up now then be the second one to tell her, he called out to her.
"Lucy," he said.
"Hm? What is it?" she raised her head and peered up at him with those large, crystal honey-brown orbs of hers.
As she raised her head, she was met face-to-face with gleaming back, rounded orbs and a soft peck on the nose. She stared at it, dumbfounded as Kaede raised it away from her and smiled at her, his cheeks a soft hue of pink and his eyes a crystal canvas.
"Happy birthday!" he grinned.
Lucy stared at him as he set the large, stuffed animal on her lap. It held a similar resemblance to a lop-eared bunny with what its ears stemming from what seemed to be an additional set of cat ears. Its body was a pure, milky white and its fur was as soft as Byakko's. Wrapped around its neck was a heart-shaped diamond attached to a pink ribbon lined with gold. She stared at it and Kaede looked at her, his brows soon furrowing as a look of fear filled his eyes.
"Do...you not like it?" he asked.
Then, a tear rolled down her face and Kaede widened his eyes.
"L-Lucy?!" Kaede exclaimed, panicking. "Did you hate it so bad that you started crying?! I'll immediately throw it out and get something new!"
Byakko, who had been woken up by the noise and was aware of what was happening, looked at Kaede with an "I told you so" look. "A stuffed tiger would've been much better."
But, before he could take the stuffed animal back, Lucy held it close and shook her head. Her tiny arms wrapped tightly around its large body and her body trembled ever-so-slightly. Tears rolled down her face as she gulped back her happiness, her brown orbs glistening as her cheeks glowed a soft rosy hue. Turning to Kaede, she opened her eyes and gave him a smile so full of delight from just one stuffed animal that Kaede couldn't help but have his heart skip a beat.
"Thank you," she made out. "Thank you, Kaede."
She nestled her cheek against the stuffed animal and cried in joy. She hadn't expected anyone to remember; not after the death of her parents. That's why she was elated. For someone to have remembered a day that she herself had even forgotten, she was more than elated. Reaching her arms out, she wrapped her arms around Kaede as tears rolled down her eyes, wetting his shoulder.
"Thank you for the wonderful present, Kaede!" she exclaimed.
Kaede widened his eyes as his heart pounded once more. Slowly, he raised his arms and wondered if it was okay to act upon these emotions but feeling her small arms wrap itself even tighter around him, unwilling to let go, he pulled his lips into a firm, affectionate smile. Closing his eyes, he placed his arms around her and held her into his embrace.
"Mn," he said, his voice soft like honey. "Anything for you, Lucy."
Lucy smiled, brimming with happiness as she held onto Kaede. But, it couldn't compare to the expression that Kaede wore. His violet-blue eyes were soft and gentle like the galaxy, his gaze filled with tender affection and his smile was worth more than a thousand gold. For the first time, he understood what it felt to be enveloped in another's warmth and how blissful of a feeling it was. He held onto her, his arms wrapped firmly around hers, wishing that this warmth would last forever.
"I'll definitely save you," he vowed.
"Huh?" Lucy blinked her eyes and looked at him.
Kaede simply smiled, his eyes resolute as he stared at the girl before him; the girl who he had decided to devote everything to and protect. "Happy birthday, Lucy," he bent down and reached for a lock of her hair, "my one and only mistress."
He kissed her golden locks and smiled with hopeless endearment.
Lucy stared at him with wide eyes before pulling her lips into a bright grin, her honey-brown orbs glowing as they reflected only him. "Mn! Thank you, Kaede!"
Kaede leaned back on his arms as Lucy played with the stuffed animal, showing it to Byakko who, despite having been asleep a few moments ago, earnestly listened to her without missing even a single moment of it all. After all, to them who had lived for centuries and even millenniums, human life was simply too fleeting. With just a blink of an eye, they would perish into nothing. They didn't want to miss anything with her and more than anything, they wanted to stay by her side all the way to the end and after. Especially for Kaede, he didn't want to lose the person whom he had been waiting for all these years. He was unwilling to lose her to the fated calamity and if need be, he was more than willing to destroy the entire world if it meant that she would survive.
Meeting you was like a miracle, he gazed at her. With just a smile and an outstretched hand, all those years of solitude and misery disappeared into thin air. Lucy, my one and only mistress, you're the only one whom I'll ever hold these feelings for.
She was his sole tie to this world and served as his sole emotion.
You're my everything.
He watched as Lucy laughed as she played with Byakko, her very presence soothing their hearts as she shone like the sun itself. Kaede watched in peaceful silence and wished that these days would continue forever. These days where they could laugh freely and spend their days in ignorance without caring a single bit about the matters of the material world.