Disclaimer: Kaichou wa Maid-Sama! was written by Hiro Fujiwara. This story is fictional; any scene resembling that to a person's life is completely coincidental. AU.

The Princess Pauper

By Lady Stradivari

"A Cinderella dream come true; her majesty is a commoner in disguise."

PROLOGUE

"You're not the real crown princess, Misa-chan."

A smirk forms across his lips as Usui Takumi moved his face closer to Misaki's. He had her cornered, his body hovering over her with a hand on the wall bearing his weight. Although her flustered face and her back against the wall conveyed the immense discomfort that she was under, Ayuzawa Misaki mustered the courage to lift her head up and look at him straight in the eye, gritting her teeth in the process.

"And you're not the real son of your father, Usui."

Takumi's face shifted from that of intrigue to disbelief. Knowing that she had pushed his buttons, Misaki gradually regained her composure in front of Takumi as she removed her back from the wall.

"I had a feeling that you knew about it, and I know that one day, you'll come up to me and say that to use it to your own advantage… so that you could break off your engagement with Igarashi Mariko." Misaki sneered, pushing Takumi's arm away as she takes a step closer to him. "Were you expecting that this damsel would falter in front of you and beg for mercy, just because you're the crown prince? Stop joking with me, you perverted alien—,"

Misaki gasped as she found herself leaning against the wall once more, and Takumi's arm encasing her further in the small space Takumi had allotted her, with only a few inches to spare before their bodies would brush against each other's. For a moment, Misaki had thought that she had finally gained the upper hand in the situation by her knowledge of Takumi's birth history, and truly, Takumi was fazed by it. But her strategy didn't seem to tame Takumi, who now looks so self-assured and in control.

"Don't think that you would be able to win against me, Misa-chan." Takumi warned her as his fingers lightly played with the soft tips of her hair. Misaki quivered at the slight touch, since her hair rested on her bare shoulder. "After all, you are the one who is irrevocably tangled in this web of lies. Because of that, you should be the one at my disposal, not the other way around."

Misaki couldn't stand the depth of Takumi's stare at her that she averted her eyes unto the marble floor beneath their feet. Her entire body froze, and all that she was able to move were her head and her hands, which were grasping onto her peach chiffon dress. Breathing becomes a conscious activity, and her heart was beating tumultuously under her chest.

This is it. This signified her exit from the royal family as Igarashi Mariko, the crown princess of Japan, who is engaged to Usui Takumi, the crown prince, the man standing right before her, finding her fearful state laughable, to say the least. She should've gone with her gut and refused this job from Igarashi Tora the moment he offered it, when the job that she was applying for, at that time, was the position of a humble palace maid. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine herself to be a princess, having only accepted to play along with this pretense due to Tora's pleas and the promise of tripling the salary that she would've received as a palace maid. She needed the money, yes, but she was not utterly desperate. She had made that clear to Tora.

However, despite the consequences and the morals she had violated to do her job, Misaki viewed this façade somewhat as her escape from her reality; from her daily life, where she was drowning from the abundance of jobs she had to pursue in order to help pay off the debts left by her father as well as her younger sister's school expenses. It wasn't that she was ungrateful with the life she has, but rather, she had grown weary from it. Even if she takes pride in herself for being strong and self-reliant, having to do it for a long time had depleted her energy.

Nevertheless, it was fun while it lasted.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Misaki mumbled bitterly. "Are you going to inform your grandfather, the king? You know that he's still recovering from a heart attack. Are you still going to tell him about this?"

"No."

"I don't believe you!" Misaki cried out, her grip onto her dress tightening to the point that her knuckles have paled. "If you're not telling the King, then perhaps you're going to rat me out to Igarashi Tora. The moment he hears about this, he's going to chase me out."

The air around Takumi was somehow lightening up. His smirk has slowly morphed into a playful smile.

"No."

"You're thinking of exposing me to the press, is that it?" Misaki exclaimed, thrusting her fists onto Takumi's chest. She felt how hard it was underneath his black military attire; perhaps his heart would've been similar. "Tell me so I could mentally prepare myself for what's coming, you jerk!"

Takumi holds both of her wrists in his hands and directed them away from him, his green eyes still fixed at Misaki. His grip was gentle, Misaki commented to herself, compared to the punches she had thrown at him just now. He was staring at her endearingly, enough to make her knees weak and at the same time, horrified. He was such a puzzling specimen to begin with.

"I will not inform my grandfather or Igarashi Tora about your secret." He whispered into her ear, sending chills down Misaki's spine as his hands slide to hers. "I will not expose you to the press either. You have my word."

As he pulled his head back to look at her face that has turned entirely red, Takumi rubbed his thumb against the back of her palms, and the slight friction from his gloves somewhat eased her mind.

"Why?" She managed to spit out of her. Misaki had so many questions running in her head, and it frustrates her how she couldn't come up with the right words to express them concretely to him. He was making her feel emotions of such magnitude that have undoubtedly confused her. Why is he smiling like that at her? Why is he holding her hands like this? Why do his green eyes stir up something inside her? "Why aren't you telling anyone? Why!?"

"Because…" Takumi releases his hold onto her hands before gently cupping her face, as he plunges forward to kiss her. Misaki's eyes flew open, her mind went completely blank. The kiss had left her in a daze. After what seemed like forever, Takumi breaks away from the kiss, and he locks his eyes with hers before going on to say, "I like you, Misa-chan."

He let a chuckle out upon seeing her so dumbfounded over the kiss before leaving the room. Even when Takumi had closed the door behind him, Misaki remained speechless. Once the idea of Takumi kissing her had finally sunken in, Misaki fell onto her knees, her fingers grabbing onto her hair.

How did it even come to this, Misaki thought to herself as she yelled out the tension that had been building up inside her chest since the first time she had met Usui Takumi.

TO BE CONTINUED

A/N: Hello everyone! My-violinprince here, and this is my very first story in the Maid-Sama archive! Yoroshiku! This story will mainly involve TakuMisa, with some ToraMisa and HinaMisa (is that the right name for the Hinata x Misaki pairing? I'm not really sure, haha!) Expect some Kuuga and Sakura action too! :D Other pairings will be revealed soon. The events presented here in the prologue will occur later on in the story. Treat it as a sneak peek, perhaps. I'm planning to incorporate some humor into the story too.

A little info about this story: In this universe, Japan's government was an absolute monarchy, until such a time that they have been overthrown by a dictator that aimed to make reforms in the country. At present, the dictator is trying to reinstate the monarchy and make it into a constitutional monarchy. In real life, Japan is a constitutional monarchy. I'll explain more about the type of government Japan has in this story as well as the history.

So how's the prologue? Do you like it? Hate it? I hope you guys enjoyed it even if it's just the prologue for now. I had so much fun writing it. If you have the time, please review, favorite or follow this story! :D I want to hear your opinions on this story, and if you think that I should continue it or not. Constructive criticisms are welcome. :) Thank you so much for reading! Sorry for the long Author's Notes, I talk way too much.

Until the next chapter,
My-violinprince / Lady Stradivari