Once upon a time, there was a kingdom that laid far away. It sat on rolling hillsides and stretching pastures. Just behind the palace was a never-ending forest. There was a magnificent stone castle surrounded by a black metal fence. Inside, marble column soared to a breathtaking ceiling that was covered in elegant masterpieces of heaven. Luscious carpet outlined a path towards each end and room of the palace. It was the home of the king and queen.
The couple had already had a handsome son, Takahiro, who was at the age of ten. He had the black hair and brown eyes of his hair. The queen was pregnant with another son, and, soon, they would be having a festival for the entire kingdom in order to celebrate his birth.
Fuyuhiko was a wealthy lord that lived next door to the rulers. His wife had died long ago, but left him with his first son, Haruhiko. Later on, though, he remarried and had a second son, Akihiko. Fuyuhiko was a good friend with the king and queen. He often helped them whenever they were having problems with the economy, which helped them to achieve a kind of peace in the kingdom.
Nowaki, Hiroki, Miyagi, and Shinobu were the mystical guardians over the kingdom. They sought the deeper problems within the kingdom and took care of them. Together they had stopped all the poverty and filled all occupations in the town. The fairies were well known throughout the town for they blessed each newborn with admirable attributes.
However, when Akihiko was born the fairies noticed a growing evil inside of Haruhiko's heart. So the four took turns watching him, taking notice to each time he would 'steal away' his brother's belongings. It seemed the boy never gave any rest to his spiteful actions. Finally, they confronted the boy when he reached the age of twelve. They imprisoned his soul; forever chained to the pits of hell.
Though, they didn't know Haruhiko's soul was linked to very powerful dark magic of which he soon discovered. He began practicing its arts and in time he was just as powerful as the guardians themselves. They just didn't know.
The metal gate was open wide, inviting anyone and everyone inside to enjoy its brilliance.
A long table ran along the side of the ballroom, hosting seasoned meats, freshly picked vegetables, and warm pastries. Another shorter table near to the first held sparkling white and rich red wines. Scarlet banners wrapped around columns and vases. Ruby red roses and brightly lit pure white candles decorated each dining table.
Guests were conversing on the dance floor, while others came up to the king and queen, presenting gifts for the new prince. The new monarchs would get a great smile across their faces and would then embrace their company in tender hug. After them in abundance, they would wish them a marvelous time at the banquet.
Fuyuhiko arrived with his sons by his side. Fuyuhiko was a tall, black-haired man in his fifties. He was sporting a black tuxedo with a tie to respond to his friend's festivities. To his right, Haruhiko, his sixteen-year old, stood, looking almost exactly like father. The only difference was their age and their ties. Fuyuhiko's was red to match to match the décor while Haruhiko's tie was a dark blue. To his left, Akihiko was gazing around the room in bewilderment. He was wearing a light gray suit, unlike the other two, although it still matched his hair color, and he wore a lavender tie to match his eyes.
They walked up to the king and queen, leaving the noise behind. Slightly bowing their heads down, Fuyuhiko and Haruhiko bowed to their rulers, while Akihiko stared at the wonders around him. Royal births were rare in the kingdom. Most of their rulers only had one kids to inherit the position. So most people only witnessed one extravagant festivity. "Akihiko! Don't be rude! Stop staring! Bow down to your highness," Fuyuhiko barked at his son. So caught up in his surroundings, Akihiko almost didn't hear his father's commands. He quickly bended his body forward in reverence.
"Oh, it's fine. Please, all of you, stand straight. We're all good friends, here. We're all equal. No need to bow," the queen proclaimed, urging them upwards.
"Thank you," Fuyuhiko smiled, shaking their hands.
"Oh, it's no big deal. How have you been? It's been awhile since we last talked," the king asked, slapping a hand onto Fuyuhiko's shoulder.
Peering around his father, Akihiko noticed the large wooden cradle by the queen's throne. On a normal occasion, he would ignore everything, but knowing it was such an important event, he was intrigued to investigate. After debating whether or not to near it, he hesitantly walked forward. When he was by the cradle, he noticed the queen had been watching him.
"It's alright, dear. Do you want to see our little Misaki," the queen cheerfully asked him.
"Misaki?...Please, your highness," Akihiko mumbled, bowing his head to his elder.
The queen smiled warmly, lifting the purple silk away from the head of the cradle. When it was fully removed, a little babe with a few light brown hairs on its head was revealed. Akihiko's eyes widened, and his mouth opened to a small "o" shape.
"I'd let you hold him, but he's only a few days old," the queen whispered to him.
Akihiko nodded slightly to acknowledge that he had heard what the queen had said. Misaki's eyes fluttered open at the sound of his mother voice, wandering over towards where she sat. The sight of the child at peace caused a small, warm smile to cross Akihiko's features.
The baby looked over towards the new character, giving him a giant grin that showed off his gums. Akihiko smiled wider at the infant. Misaki's eyes shut as he wiggled around, giggles emitting from his mouth.
"He likes you," the queen whispered to him before she greeted another guest, leaving him alone for the rest of the party.
Akihiko decided to sit down next to the cradle, uninterested in the rest of the celebration. He continued to smile to the younger child as the other wiggled, reaching out towards him. Akihiko lowered a hand for the baby to take. Misaki immediately grabbed it, shaking it to his heart's content. His feet kicked out as his hands flew around, laughter chiming out of his mouth.
Four men neared the stand where the baby's crib lay. Nowaki was tallest of them all, Miyagi was shorter by just barely an inch. Then, Hiroki followed being an inch shorter than Miyagi, leaving Shinobu the shortest at a foot underneath Miyagi. Even though they were all eternally young and immortal, their appearances varied.
Nowaki was still frozen in his 25-year-old body. Short black hair hung around his face, doing as it pleased. He had dark brown almost black eyes and a fit body. Miyagi looked a lot like Nowaki, except for the fact that Miyagi was preserved in the body he had when he was 35, so he appeared slightly older than Nowaki. Other than that, they shared the same hair color, hair style, eye color, height, and body build.
Hiroki was stuck in his 29-year-old state. His dark brown hair tended to hang in front of his black irises. Shinobu had been stuck in his 17 year-old form. He had amber-brown hair that flowed all around his face and hazel eyes.
"Hi there, Akihiko," Nowaki waved to the silver-haired boy.
Akihiko glanced up at the man, giving him a slight nod. He was never one for interacting with others, which puzzled him. Why was he still here?
"It's okay if you want to stay here, but we're going to go ahead, okay," Hiroki added.
"O-okay ," Akihiko mumbled, going back to Misaki's tiny hand.
Haruhiko was standing by his father, watching the five by the cradle. He walked over to them. Jealousy grew inside of him with each smile that was placed upon Akihiko's face.
"I bless you with compassion and mercy," Miyagi whispered as he made the sign of the guardians on his forehead, then kissing it.
"I bless you with gentleness and kindness," Shinobu said, following the same suit as Miyagi.
"I hope the best always comes your way," Hiroki told the babe, blessing his forehead and sealing it with a kiss.
Just before Nowaki said his blessing to Misaki," Haruhiko pushed him away, fury completely engulfing him.
"All happiness come with a price! And yours will end with the age of nineteen. By the touch of a spinning wheel your life will cease," Haruhiko shouted at the frightened babe. With a few scratches that Haruhiko made on his cheek, Misaki was cursed by Satan.
The four watched in shocked silence, before Nowaki realized he hadn't given his gift to the child. Haruhiko was about to strike Nowaki to push him away, but instead the other guardians seized him, holding him back.
"Let me go," Haruhiko shouted, trying in vain to get away from their tight grasps.
"No! Evil like you needs to be locked up, away from people that you can harm," Miyagi shot at him as the three of them took him away towards their isolated castle to be enclosed in a chamber of imprisonment.
Fuyuhiko shook his head in shame, then turned to the rulers, apologizing over and over.
"It's not your fault, Fuyuhiko. Kid's possessed," the king tried to sympathize with him.
"I'm sorry for your son, though," Fuyuhiko returned.
Nowaki sat down next to the crying young. "There, there," he soothed, stroking Misaki's cheek. "Instead of dying, you'll fall into a deep sleep only to be woken by a kiss from your true love." Nowaki covered the Satanic marking with the guardian's symbol, kissing it afterwards.
Akihiko stared in disbelieve at the world around him. Why would his brother do something like that? Once Misaki had quieted down some, Nowaki turned around to Akihiko, only to see the solemn expression on his face. "What's wrong, Akihiko," Nowaki asked, ruffling the others hair. Akihiko's frown deepened. "It's okay, little Misaki, here, will be okay."
Akihiko nodded, clenching his pants as he stared down at the doomed child. "Here, hold out your hands." Akihiko's eyes widened as he watched Nowaki take the newborn out of its crib. "Place a hand on the back of his neck. Misaki's not strong enough to hold it up on his own.
"O-okay," Akihiko muttered unsurely as he was handed the babe.
"Put one hand here. There," Nowaki smiled as he looked back at the pair. "I think he likes you."
A slight blush appeared on Akihiko's face as he held the child. Misaki was leaning over his left shoulder, watching the ballroom behind him. One hand rested behind Misaki's neck, while the other rest on his bottom. Misaki started squirming around in Akihiko's arms, giggling in his ear. Akihiko smiled.
Moments later, the child started to calm down. "Misaki," Akihiko called questioningly. There was no answer besides a soft snore from aside. Another smile spread across his face.
The queen with the king and Fuyuhiko following closely behind walked up towards him. She took Misaki out of his arms and set him back down in the crib, covering him back up in the purple cloth.
"Thank you for taking care of Misaki. He seemed to really enjoy the evening," she said.
Akihiko sadly looked back to the cradle. He missed the little ball of joy in his hands. Nodding, he made his way to his father's side.
"I enjoyed your company this evening, but I must be getting back home," Fuyuhiko said, shaking the king's hand goodbye.
"All right. You should visit more often," the king acknowledged.
"Will do," Fuyuhiko called as he left the castle with his son.