Starcrossed Prophecies
Co written with Jadeneffinfudo
Summary: "The destiny of a great kingdom rests on the shoulders of two cute boys." Merlin fusion. Starshipping.
- I -
At the king's proclamation, a hush fell over the great hall as the gathered open-mouthed nobles and servants could only trade stunned looks with each other. All eyes were glued to the prince who stood stock still before the throne.
Yusei felt as though he had been physically struck, something cold and hard had dropped to the bottom of his stomach. He risked raising his head a fraction from its bowed position and peered through his dark bangs in an attempt to decipher the prince's reaction, but from his vantage point, he could only make out the stiff lines of the prince's still shoulders.
"Well?" The king questioned, a disinterested brow arched over a steely blue eye. "What do you have to say for yourself?"
The brunette stood alone, as the entirety of their audience had lowered themselves to the ground out of respect for the royal family. He, on the other hand, simply averted his gaze to his toes in apparent dubiety.
Of course, when the prince had been summoned to the throne room he had expected news of the conventional sort. This was not the first time that the boy been pulled from his mandatory studies or from pre-military training to attend an official gathering within the confines of the castle. But the purpose of this particular summons had eluded him.
"Fiancée…?" He muttered, glancing back toward the crowd of which surrounded them in a hushed silence, specifically the male who remained bowed behind him.
"What's a fiancée...?"
A different sort of silence now filled the chamber.
Kneeling along with the rest of the servants several paces behind the prince, Yusei had to physically stop his face from smacking against the floor. From within the safe confines of his mind, let out a soundless groan. If he hadn't been, shall we say, accustomed to the antics of the young prince, he doubted he would have been able to keep a straight face.
From the subtle twitch in the monarch's eyebrow, it appeared he hadn't had nearly the same level of exposure. The man's normally severe visage became slightly pinched but he pressed forward without the slightest hint of amusement. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that," he said. With a flourish of his fur-lined cape which seemed to sway under an invisible wind, he pushed himself off the throne as a contingent of servants rushed forward to present him with his sceptre. Frowning, he waved them away and regarded the young prince superciliously before turning away.
"The wedding will be in two days. I suggest you do something useful with your time until then," he said as stalked towards the inner chambers. "Like open a dictionary."
A baffled expression consumed the young royal's features upon the king's less than subtle clarification. Surely he was far too young to enter a courtship with such bureaucratic, indelible terms as one would associate with the act of marriage… then again, a royal was always given the expectation to wed at a youthful age.
Releasing a sound akin to a stutter and an unintelligible squeak of shock, the brunette shook his head vigorously, as though to clear any sort of blockage that may have distorted his hearing.
"W-Wait, marriage!?" The youth stuttered, practically choking on his own voice, "Who says I want to get married!? And to who!? I don't think I even know any girls in the first place…" The teen averted his gaze in the midst of his musings, lower lip jutting out as he attempted to recall any women of the sort.
But the king had already disappeared behind the curtains. The entire room waited with bated breath until they could no longer hear the footsteps. Then the hall erupted in frenzied shouts and furious debating as the onlookers leapt to their feet and began shoving forward in an attempt to get a better view of the scene.
"The prince is to be engaged!"
"What could His Majesty be thinking?"
"Oh, my daughter will be so heart-broken!"
"He's a bit of an odd lad, isn't he? Uh, I mean that with the utmost respect, of course."
Unnoticed amongst the din, Yusei had quietly made his way through the crowd toward the shell-shocked prince and gently tugged at his elbow.
"My prince," he said, voice kept low as to not draw further attention, "I think we had better get going."
Caught up within his inner musings, the hazel eyed youth had remained silent throughout rambunctious uproar and buzzing chatter echoing about the halls. Though, upon feeling a gentle grasp seize the dip of his elbow, the befuddled prince found himself turning toward a familiar, much welcomed face.
"Yusei!" The young prince's expression immediately brightened upon sighting his long-time companion. Of course, 'companion' may not have been the proper term, considering both his own position in the royal household and the older male's position as, well, more or less a mere serving boy.
Still… their friendship was a far stronger bond than that of any strained, political alliance. One should certainly hope so, given that their first encounter had resulted in the serving boy's daring rescue of the young prince many years prior.
Yusei shook his head slightly in fond exasperation, lips curving into a nearly imperceptible smile in spite of the situation. Realizing that they had an audience, and a gawking, gossiping one at that, he quickly pulled back to what was deemed to be an appropriate distance and inclined his head towards the side doors. "We can talk someplace a bit… quieter," he suggested.
Bright, russet eyes blinked for a delayed moment, before their owner shifted slightly in turn to face the chattering crowd of whom he had long since drowned out. A sea of prying eyes seemed to latch upon his own, and though the he had usually done well in large crowds, considering the lad's bombastic social tendencies, such a sight was indeed discomforting to say the least.
"Sure…!" The young prince beamed gingerly as he averted his own gaze back toward that of his manservant. Perhaps in favor of the myriad of ogling nobles of that seemed to inch closer and closer by the second.
Giving the nobles a curt bow, the servant led the way with brisk, purposeful strides, ignoring the trail of scandalized whispers that followed them. Once they had successfully escaped the confining hall, Yusei turned to his prince and waited.
"Some meeting, huh?" The youthful prince murmured, bouncing after his companion with enthusiasm. Though, the hesitant grin of which the brunet seemed to display betrayed the zealous posture the lad was able to maintain upon exiting the throne room.
"Marriage…" Yusei said slowly as if testing out the word, not quite liking how it rolled off his tongue. "Has the king mentioned anything regarding this to you before?"
"You mean he didn't tell you, either?" The brunet wondered aloud, throwing yet another glance behind his shoulder at the gaping doors of the throne room, from which echoed with the boisterous gossip so many noble men and women were widely known for.
"I mean… since everyone in there is acting the way they are, I guess father didn't tell anyone else, either…" murmuring thoughtfully, the prince's eyebrows creased as his gaze averted toward the stonework floor beneath their feet.
"I guess they'll all be disappointed then, huh?"
The black-haired boy blinked at the words and shot his companion a questioning gaze. "Disappointed?" he repeated.
"Well, I guess they would be since they're expecting a marriage in two days, but there's no way I'm going. There can't be a marriage if I don't show up!" The brunet exclaimed in a tone one may associate with a mixture of both satisfaction and a sort of implied finality as his footsteps began to proceed once more down the hollow halls ahead.
For several seconds, Yusei did not move, rooted to the spot as he started at the prince's retreating figure. The meaning of the words slowly sank in. There can't be a marriage… if… he doesn't…? Cobalt eyes widened in shock and he hurried to catch up. "My prince… What are you saying?" he asked with certain premonition of dread.
"I'm not going." The younger of the pair answered simply, crossing his arms above his upper torso with a soundless huff as a childish pout befell the prince's youthful features.
Despite the youth's adamant display of defiance, however, cumbersome footsteps had soon begun to cease as the prince had come to a gradual stopping point, now turning to face his companion with a playful roll of the eyes.
"And haven't I told you to stop calling me 'My Prince'? I told you, if we're really friends we should be able to call each other by our names, silly!" The brunet provided a comical grin as a finger raised to poke the raven haired male upon the nose multiple times.
"It's Ju~," The younger paused to once again tap his finger against the servant's nose, "dai~."
The servant was thankful for his darker commoner's tan when he felt his cheeks heat up; if his skin was any lighter he would have been glowing redder than hot coals. He ducked his head, half out of embarrassment and half in an attempt to stop the playful harassment. "Prince Judai," he conceded, casting about for the right words before settling with, "… I don't imagine His Majesty would be too happy about it. If you didn't show up."
Releasing a silent breath of air through his nostrils, the brunet shifted slightly as he began to resume his trek down the empty, castle corridors; surely abandoned due to the current gathering within the throne room.
"It doesn't matter if he is or not. I'm the one getting married, not him. I'll show up if I want to!" Judai grumbled in an ornery manner, the pout his pursed lips had maintained only deepening upon these words.
Yusei followed about a pace behind him, keeping up without much difficulty due to his longer legs. "It's not my place to say this," he ventured carefully, "but this might be something you should speak to him about." Before you do anything too reckless, his troubled gaze seemed to imply.
Worrying his lower lip between the softened edges of his teeth, the youth simply shook his head in response.
"Yusei! You know him! He'll never listen to me…" The brunet muttered, gazing out toward the stained glass windows of which lined the halls in a breathtaking display.
Prisms of polychromatic luminescence shimmered; pirouetting about both the interior of the castle walls and the eyes of which gazed upon its splendor. The lights seemed to shine in various directions as they wished, and appeared more vibrant than any shimmering, holy god. They were free. Free to shine upon whomever they pleased. Free to display the naked splendor of their true colors.
These were his favorite halls, simply being for the multitude of stained glass windows the castle had been widely known for. Numerous times as a child he'd been caught wandering about these very corridors; simply standing within the grandeur of colorful warmth. Unfortunately, his visits had become far and few as the years had seemed to pass. More so due to the increase in mandatory schooling he was currently suffering from.
He hadn't been precisely sure where his fondness for the windows had stemmed, though he was more than knowledgeable as to why they had become such an inspirational symbol within his everyday life. The answer simply being freedom. The freedom to expose his own colors within; without constantly being lectured for doing so, or having to write an entire scrolls-worth on 'The Esteemed Ethics of Aristocracy' or, 'One Does Not Simply Reach Over The Entire Length Of The Table To Retrieve A Bread Roll'.
"I don't know…I'm just tired of being told what to do all the time!" The young prince whined in a childish manner, "I mean, I'm not even sure I've ever liked a girl before, let alone kissed one. How am I supposed to marry a girl I've never even seen before?"
A pang shot through the servant's heart as he tried in vain to come up with some sort of reassurance for one of his oldest friends, but he was at a loss. Unbeknownst to him, his hands had curled into fists as he gazed helplessly upon the young prince's drooping shoulders. "Judai…"
Features contorting in a sudden curiosity, the shortest of the pair began to scratch the back of his head as a thought forthwith occurred to his mind, "Have you ever done that kinda' stuff with a girl before? You know, like kissing and such."
Yusei blinked, taken aback at the sudden switch in topic. "Ah. No, I haven't."
"Really?" Judai inquired in both a disbelieving, yet genuinely confounded tone, "I would've thought the girls would be all over you!I mean, you should hear all the stuff the chambermaids say about you when you're not listening..."
"They're saying what?" Yusei asked, baffled.
Pausing, the brunet withheld a snicker in response to his childhood companion's oblivious response.
"You know...what girls usually talk about..."
The servant arched a dark eyebrow and crossed his arms. "I can't say I've given it much thought."
Shaking his head once more, the younger released a series of pent up laughter, hand secured loosely upon his lips.
"Yusei, you're so funny sometimes!" The hand of which hovered above his mouth retreated, affirming a goofy looking grin of which had laid beneath.
"…?" Yusei eyed the prince uncertainly, head slightly tilting in confusion. But the knot inside his stomach loosened ever so slightly at his renewed humour. He opened his mouth to respond when he was interrupted by a harried-looking gaggle of maids entering the corridor. To their slight alarm, the women seemed to light up when they saw them and made a mad dash towards them.
"Prince Judai!" one of them called out, strands of her black hair escaping its hastily tied hairnet and her thick glasses askew. "There you are!"
"Eh?" The prince blinked, turning his head as the sight of maids clustered together greeted his eyes. Though one in particular had caught his eye upon her frantic separation from the group; obviously making her way toward him.
"Hey! er…" the prince paused, nibbling the reddened flesh of his lower lip as he quite apparently struggled to derive the servant's name from memory.
Yusei came to his rescue. "What is it, Carly?" he interjected calmly, taking care not to further upset the frazzled girl. "Is something the matter?"
"Yusei!" she exclaimed upon noticing the manservant, beaming. "It's a good thing I found you here too! You have no idea how impossible this thing is going to be!"
After sharing a look with his prince who was just as, if not more clueless than himself, Yusei asked, "What thing?"
Taking a deep breath, the maid, Carly, launched into a string of incomprehensible retelling, waving her hands in a series of flailing gestures. "…and then, he said, 'They'll be arriving this evening.' This evening! There's no way we can get everything done by then! We haven't even started cleaning yet! Oooooh!"
Eyebrows creasing in evident bemusement, the adolescent royal felt his own head begin to spin upon the jumbled words of this clearly disoriented serving girl.
"Woah, woah, wait," Judai interjected, throwing a preceding glance toward that of his own manservant, "What do you mean 'he'? 'They'? Who's telling who to come where?"
Carly's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. "It's for the reception of course!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air. "All the kings and queens from the neighboring countries will be here! Oooh, where are we going to put them all?"
The brunet released something akin to a choke as the words, or perhaps any sort of vocal sound struggled to surpass the narrowing cavity of his throat.
"The-thi-this evening? As in, THIS evening, evening?" The youth attempted to clarify, a certain heightening in the pitch of his voice indicating quite the astounding amounts of alarm already evident from the male's dazed expression. It shouldn't have been such a tremendous surprise for the teen, given that an extravagant ceremony of unity was to take place between himself and a woman not of his knowing in a mere two days.
Still, the prince had only just gained wind of this abrupt decision, and quite honestly hadn't felt much of an urge to converse with his noble peers.
"That's right!" one of the other maids chirped, stepping forward with a cheerful bounce of her short brown hair. "Isn't this exciting? Oh, I've heard that the princess is so very beautiful! They say she has long golden tresses that shine brighter than the sun!"
"I heard she dances with the grace of a swan! And she can play over seven instruments and sing like an angel!" cried another maid.
Carly let out a breathy sigh and clasped her hands together, so caught up in the moment that her previous worries were momentarily pushed to the side. "She is the most beloved princess on the continent! And to think, she'll be marrying our prince! How romantic…!"
Yusei watched the giggling maids but felt as though his mind was miles away, unable to muster up even a fraction of their enthusiasm. He turned to Judai to gauge his reaction, worry clearly shining through his eyes.
The prince merely stood in silence, gaze averted toward the ground as he swallowed a lump within his throat. It was odd, to say the least. Often times when such a social gathering was organized within the walls of the castles, the youth hadn't taken a moment's thought to participate in the traditions of any communal function; that was, socializing of course. Now, obviously circumstances were different… given the fact that he was to meet his future spouse. Though, whether or not he secretly planned to do so was still up for heated debate.
"So then... she will be there, right? The princess, I mean..."
"Everyone will be there! Everyone who is anyone!" Carly exclaimed, clearly thriving in her element. "Princess Asuka will be arriving in just a few hours! … Oh no!" Here, she gasped and seized the prince's hands without a thought to decorum. "Prince Judai! We have to get you ready!"
Releasing what, if asked, the prince would confirm as an assuredly manly yelp of alarm, Judai shook his head fervently, wriggling his hands from within the maiden's grasp.
"Wait! No, I can dress myself, you know!" The sovereign objected in the midst of his squeaking, only serving to contradict what was intended to be a mature statement.
Carly shook her head furiously. "I'm sure you do, Sire. But this is not an ordinary event! Everything must be perfect," she cried before looking off to the side with a desolate expression, "…or the steward will have my head."
Drawing back slightly, the brunet felt a bead of sweat run down his temple upon this revelation. Though, another glance back toward his companion, and the problem in and of itself simply seemed to solve itself.
"Yusei can help me! Can't you, Yusei?" The youth evasively pleaded, throwing the elder male a set of desperate, earnest eyes. Many a times he had been exposed to the torture that was dress up… and, to be quite honest at the current moment in time, the last thing his majesty wished to re-live were the childhood years his mother's chambermaids would spend doting over him—using him as a makeshift doll to boot.
"Ah. Yes," Yusei replied without missing a beat. "I'll look after him, Carly. Don't worry."
"Well, if it's Yusei…" said the black-haired girl, placing a considering hand on her chin. "I suppose the prince should be in good hands."
"Ehhhh?" The rest of the maids sighed in collective disappointment.
"But I was looking forward to helping him pick out an outfit!" One of them complained.
Releasing a sheepish laugh, the youth was quick to wriggle from the ebony haired maiden's grasp as he shimmied over through the cluster of maidens, toward the taller male with a slight flush.
"M-Maybe next time!" The brunet assured with a stutter, rubbing the back of his head as a nervous grin shown through his features. Though, it was short-lived as he hastily reached out a hand to grasp Yusei's own in efforts to pull them along in the opposite direction.
When he felt the prince's pale, smooth fingers brush against his rough and heavily calloused ones, Yusei had to try very hard to force down a violent blush as he let himself be dragged along by his master. They left the behind the pointed giggles of the serving girls and made their way through the long, ornate corridors.
"Jeez! I swear, they're like wild animals, sometimes!" The teen chuckled to himself, glancing back toward his manservant with a ridiculous grin, "It almost makes me wonder how my father was able to handle them back in the day, huh?"
Yusei only nodded mutely, his attention for the moment was decidedly fixated on there their hands were connecting. "Prince Judai…" he said.
The youthful prince merely hummed, peering back toward his manservant in an inquisitive manner as the pair proceeded their prolonged trek through the narrowing halls in search of the boy's chambers.
"Hm? What is it, Yusei?"
"…I think you can probably let go now," Yusei said, finally losing the fight against his blush as his cheeks flamed. "And… We're also going the wrong way."
Pausing, Judai merely blinked in response as he allowed himself time to register this statement. However, upon realizing the elder's words rang true, the prince felt a flush of his own consume his reddening cheeks, though for far different reasons than the dusty blush his manservant was currently sporting.
"Eeh? I guess you're right!" The youngest of the pair let loose a hearty laugh as he released his grip on Yusei's hand before an idiotic grin emerged, "I must've been in a real hurry to get out of there…"
Yusei responded with a soft chuckle of his own. "It's fine. This must be a lot to take in for you."
Averting his gaze, the brunet released a silent breath through his nostrils as the hazel eyes, of which often sparkled, or glimmered with happiness dulled considerably upon the topic at hand.
"I just don't understand why I have to get married now… I mean, I'm not even king yet!... You do, understand what I'm saying, right?" The teen murmured, glancing up as to lock gazes with that of Yusei's own.
The servant's cobalt eyes softened and he gingerly reached out to clasp the prince's shoulder. "I'm sure your father has his reasons," Yusei said quietly. "He has never been one to do anything without meticulously planning it out beforehand."
"Yea, without even telling his own son…" Judai murmured in response, lower lip jutting out in a slight pout as his arms crossed securely above the upper portion of his torso in a manner that gave the impression of an upset child.
"If I'm expected to be king, shouldn't I know about this stuff? Especially if it's about me in the first place?" the prince muttered beneath his breath, deviating his gaze as his attention suddenly shifted toward the gaping, sun lit windows adjacent to them.
Allowing his feet to trail toward the gathering of windows, he ceased moment upon leaning against the stone wall beneath; propping his elbows against the ridge as he rested his chin upon the support of his palm, "I mean… if you think about it, father was never happy with mother… at least, not that I've seen anyway." The royal muttered, conceding his gaze to amble along the scenery; latching to any object or individual in particular as many proceeded to come, or go, hustling and bustling throughout the town square.
"But… then, when I hear about marriage from so many others, like the villagers, they tell me how great it's supposed to be…or, that I'm 'too young to understand' but I think they're the ones that don't understand…"
"They say that the point is to be happy when that person is around you, but I hardly even know this girl… I mean, I'm happy around you! And we're not married!" The teen murmured pointedly.
Yusei looked away, his long bangs casting his eyes in shadows. When he spoke again, something in his voice was strained. "I wish it didn't have to be this way, Sire. The truth is that most royals don't have the luxury to marry for love. But," he paused off, hesitant, before continuing on, "It may not be as bad as you think. If what the girls said was true, then I might know who your betrothed is."
Blinking, the brunet allowed the hand propping up his chin to fall against the other as he glanced back toward his companion with inquisitive intention, "You do?"
"She'll be from the neighboring kingdom of Lugus. I've heard that she's kind and considerate to her subjects," Yusei said, distantly. He stared out at the balcony, the golden rays casting his features aglow. "They say she is also quick-witted and has a good grasp of politics. I could see why His Majesty is pushing for this marriage." The dark haired boy stepped out onto the terrace next his friend and offered a supportive, but slightly strained smile. "You could probably do worse than Asuka Tenjouin."
"Asuka…Tenjouin?" The youth murmured, as if to test the name upon his tongue. It was certainly peculiar—the familiarity of which his manservant pertained concerning the names of infamous nobles, or, to his knowledge, a majority of the town's folk. When all the prince could manage was perhaps a handful of neighboring sovereigns, mostly due to their constant appearances to visit with his father. He never had been much of a quick learner where names had been concerned.
"Yes," Yusei replied. "I believe she is a person with honor. You may... even grow to love her one day."
Frowning, the adolescent royal merely huffed as he turned once more to gaze about the surrounding cluster of bustling citizens.
"That's not how it works out there…" Judai murmured, motioning to land of which stretched, far past the border lines of the hectic village life beneath, "I bet if I got out there… someday… no one would make me do anything I didn't want to and I could just be normal. No one to tell me what to do, and no wives! Just freedom…" The prince began to ramble quietly, though as to whether or not he had been addressing the male behind him or simply wondering aloud remained unknown.
"You could come too! We'd make our own little house in the forest. You could hunt, and then I could cook for us every meal! Then at night, we could catch fireflies and dance around the fire… and no one would be there to watch us for a second of it…" Judai practically whispered to himself, though as he had never been one to control the tone of his voice, the words remained considerably audible.
A hand rose toward the sky; a pointed index and middle finger raised toward the sun, thumb jutting out beside them.
"Gotcha…!"
For a moment, the servant could see the prince's described vision in vivid detail and was hit with a fierce longing. But he stepped from the balcony and turned away. "That would be nice, Sire," he said, something in his voice wistful, sad. "But that… isn't our life."
Whirling around in an instant, the hazel eyed prince gazed upon the aboutface form of his companion as a pang of desperation flooded through his veins.
"But, it doesn't have to be." The teen objected ardently, "Don't you understand what I'm saying, Yusei? Don't you get it?" he pleaded, stretching an arm out over the expanse of the green hills which lay just beyond the kingdom walls. "We can leave, right now! No one will notice… it'll just be us against the world; we can write our own adventures! Don't you want that…Yusei…?"
"I…" The black-haired boy remained turned away, his posture rigid. "I… It's not my place, Sire. We had better get going… I promised Carly that I'd get you ready for the banquet."
A frown befell the young prince's features upon the taller male's stringent reply. He shouldn't have expected anything more, or less from Yusei's infamous, unfailing loyalty. It was both an endearing, yet exasperating quality his companion possessed.
"Fine…" Judai murmured, reluctantly conceding his defeat on the matter.
For the time being, of course.
- I -
...tbc.