All right, first post on the new profile. Yes, I'm still writing for Vampire Diaries and Awkward. but I thought it would be nice to have one for my anime stories. Since I write such serious stuff for the other two, I wanted my lighter stuff to be on this profile. It helps calm my OCD and such.
Still, the link to my other profile, if you haven't read my stuff and would like to, is on my profile. Check it out and tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara!

Prologue

I won't let nobody hurt you,
won't let no one break your heart.
No, no one will desert you.

"Young mistress, your mother wanted you in bed an hour ago! You must return at once to your quarters!" a young woman demanded, chasing a small girl down the halls of the expansive Hinamori castle. She wore the clothes of a maid and was careful of every decoration placed throughout the hallway. Flinching when the child's laughter only grew more uproarious, the maid said sweetly, "Dove, if you do not return to your room, you will not have enough energy to meet with your betrothed tomorrow!"

She had known that would stop the pink-haired hellion, who paused almost immediately to turn a wide amber gaze onto the woman who have given chase. The girl's head fell to one side in question, as if she couldn't believe that that would be her punishment. Though she had no idea what "betrothed" meant, it was well-known that she enjoyed her playdates with the young Hotori heir of the neighboring state. "I won't see...Tadase?" she asked brokenly, her lower lip quivering.

But the maid was prepared. She crept forward slowly so as not to alarm the child. "If you do not go back to your rooms, you will simply sleep through your time with him! Would you not like to play with Hotori once more?"

The Hinamori girl nodded furiously before running at the maid. "I wanna go to bed, Ai! I wanna play with Tadase tomorrow!" Her thin arms wrapped around the maid's neck and the woman lifted the near-crying child against her. She treated the pinkette as she would her own little sister, and Ai felt horrible for having to trick her as she did. Nothing was about to stop the young heiress's time with Hotori Tadase; the king and queen wouldn't tolerate it. But the child had to go to bed, otherwise Ai and her mother—the little girl's personal attendants—would be in trouble. Besides, it was well past the decent hour when her parents had tried to put the child to bed.

"Shh, Amu," Ai whispered into her ear, stroking Amu's beautiful hair. "I promise I will not let anyone stop you from going to Hotori's house tomorrow. You have my word."

The girl looked up at her surrogate sister with a furrowed brow. "Even if Mama and Papa say no?"

Ai smiled as she quietly lied, "Yes, even if the King and Queen deny it."

Satisfied, Amu laid her head against Ai's shoulder. Sticking her thumb in her mouth with an exhausted yawn, the princess murmured, "Love you, Ai."

The grin remained in place on Ai's face, though her eyes filled with tears—as they always did when Amu spoke to her in such a way. "I love you, as well, Amu. Now, sleep, my sweet. I will be here when you wake in the morning."

Gladly carrying the sleeping child back to her room, Ai gently placed Amu on her bed, sweeping a stray pink lock from the girl's forehead. She was so happy that Tadase and Amu were friends now, in their youth. Perhaps, they would grow to love each other one day and Tadase would be a good husband. They had years to learn who they were to one another, to fall in love. Ai only prayed that stubborn Amu would accept her fate.

But, as the maid closed the door to the room so quietly, she knew that she would do whatever the little girl asked of her. Even if she had to go against the king and queen to do it.

We were both young,
when I first saw you.
I close my eyes,
and the flashback starts...

Amu knew that, behind her back, Ai was shaking her head. Though the twelve year old had long grown out of her attendant's late-night chase downs, it didn't stop the woman from watching her every move. And, even if Amu loved Ai like the sister she'd never gotten with Ami, she needed space.

She now knew what it meant to be betrothed. She knew that, someday, she and Tadase—her oldest friend—would marry and bring their two states together under their rule. Her mother had explained everything almost the day that Amu first had her cycle. Oh, what an embarrassing day for all.

So, now the young princess would take this midnight stroll—with her dutiful guards always watching—just to get out, to wonder at the freedom that she might never know. The freedom to be herself, to do what she liked. Gods, how she wished for a chance to live like that.

Unfortunately for those following her, Amu had long since learned how to...avoid capture, so to speak. She knew every nook and cranny, could disappear from sight in the blink of an eye. That was how she got the time to teach herself how to fight, asking the young servant boys in the castle to assist her. She could now wield the dagger she kept attached to her hip—hidden thoroughly, of course—well enough that she had thwarted a would-be thief while in a village with her parents.

And she was coming upon one of those hiding places now. No one would see her duck into the hedge, nor would they think to look inside of it. She only needed to control her breathing long enough for them to disappear to look for her.

Knowing that she caused Ai quite a bit of stress brought guilt into the pre-teen's mind, but she couldn't fight the need for freedom that wrestled for control inside her.

However, when she would have ducked into the bush, a long-fingered hand flew out, yanking her forcefully into what would have been her sanctuary. Though panic filled her, she held back a scream, turning on her assailant and pulling out her dagger. He had pulled her into the middle of the hedge maze that the bush was connected to, though, and his surprise was quickly thrown out. Grabbing the wrist that held the dagger, he swiftly brought it behind her back, lifting it until the back of her hand rested between her shoulder blades.

Wide amber eyes flew up to take in every aspect of the man that had taken her captive, shocked to say the least by what she saw.

Eyes that were bluer than sapphires shone in the darkness, seeming emotionless. But the longer she held his gaze, the more pain she could see hidden in their depths. Dark blue hair fell in his face, nearly blocking her view of it. She could tell he was tall and thin, though he was obviously still just a boy. She would place him at eighteen, despite the weary knowledge in those strange eyes. His clothes were ragged and torn, and she knew that he had to be a burglar, meaning to come steal from her family.

Little did he know, no one had ever been able to break through the Hinamori castle's guards. They were trained to be ruthless and only answered to the king, queen, or one of their daughters, though Ami wasn't yet old enough to understand the power she wielded.

"Whatever you are looking for, you will never get," she breathed out, noting in the back of her mind that something flashed in his eyes when she wet her dry lips. "This castle is armed to the teeth and the guards only listen to the royal family."

He cocked an eyebrow at her. "You think I don't know that, little girl?" His voice grated on her, but not in an unpleasant way. In fact, even if she knew she was in danger, she rather liked the way he spoke. "I'm prepared, as well. I'm definitely going to get what I came here for. Besides, it rightfully belongs to me."

Snapping herself out of her minor trance at hearing his voice, she hissed, "You will have to get through me then, thief."

Then, he did the most audacious thing she'd ever seen anyone do. He laughed in her face. "Little girl, I don't think you're much of a threat." He slowly pulled her arm farther up her back, forcing her body closer to his. Leaning with his face just above hers, he murmured, "I've already got you right where I want you."

Matching his smirk, she whispered, "Oh, but there is one problem with your plan, dear boy. I am Princess Amu. And all it will take is one shriek for my guard to come running." Gaping in a mocking fashion, she wondered aloud, "What will you do if you have to hold me and fight off the guards? I am sure they must have us surrounded at this point."

His eyes widened just before his head shot up, narrowing on the surrounding bushes. He must have known that he wouldn't make it out of an ambush, even if he was waiting for it. Two guards at once, he could probably handle, but a whole fleet of them, bent on protecting the heiress to the throne?

He was doomed before he began.

Releasing her, he took a step out of her arm's reach. "Well then, Princess Amu," he said tauntingly. Bowing using an imaginary hat, he backed away. "Until we meet again." With that, he disappeared into the shadows, making Amu almost jealous of him. How easy it was for him to leave without a trace, no one stalking after him. Soon, she would be met by her guards, scolded once again by the ruthless Ai, who would no doubt be throwing a tantrum.

I keep my jealousy close,
'cause it's all mine.

Tsukiyomi Ikuto wasn't one to waste time reading the papers. He knew better than to look too closely at the wanted pictures in there. He and his crew were among the most wanted men in the Hotori kingdom, and he didn't need to see a picture of himself to know that it hadn't changed. It never would. Not until the Hotori's grudge was forgotten.

Again, that would never happen.

But he couldn't stop himself from glancing over when he saw those familiar stubborn eyes staring up from the front page. Those golden eyes had haunted his dreams since he was just a seventeen-year-old boy; he would know them anywhere.

He would also recognize the man beaming just beside the owner of that beautiful gaze. They were born to be enemies; Ikuto was the Tsukiyomi heir where Tadase was the Hotori prince. Though they had five years difference in age, the blue haired man had met the blonde prince when he was ten. Just before the Hotoris had taken Tsukiyomi Aruto's most prized possession, hiding it away. Ikuto had believed his father's heirloom had been given to the Hinamoris as a part of the betrothal agreement, but, after a silent raid of the castle done by Ikuto himself, it had been revealed that no such deal had conspired.

And so, Ikuto would haunt Tadase until the day he died, desperate to fulfill his father's dying wish.

The headline read Two States Brought Together and, upon further inspection, he realized that Prince Hotori Tadase and Princess Hinamori Amu were to be married. That day.

He glanced at the large clock in the square. Fate had conspired in Ikuto's favor when it decided to allow him this reprieve. What better way to destroy the prince than to take a priceless treasure as well as the bride to be? And he had just enough time to round up his men and storm the church.

"Kuukai!" he barked without looking behind him. He knew his first mate would be there. The man was always there, watching his captain's back.

The green-eyed, powerful man was beside him in the blink of an eye. "Are we gonna ruin that wedding, Captain?" Kuukai asked, his tone filled with humor. Of course he had noticed what had taken hold of Ikuto's attention; his quiet perusal of everything around him was what had made him first mate. "'Cause all the men are ready. We've just been waiting for your say so."

Turning his head, Ikuto smirked at his comrades. "Then let's prepare an ambush."

The lyrics between scenes are, respectively:

Never Grow Up by Taylor Swift
Love Story by Taylor Swift
Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner by Fall Out Boy