The Black prince
PROLOUGE
For most of my life I was raised as a female. I wore dresses and wanted to be just like my mother. I was given anything and everything I ever wanted, though I never wanted much. I had a brother and we were happy enough to have food, a comfortable bed and each other. We relished the privacy we had. Not many people knew we existed.
On the day we were to be introduced into court, my brother died. My name then had been Kaleen, and my brother was Kaien. Kaien was my twin. We both were skinny and short, had long blackish hair, our eyes were dark violet. We matched perfectly. Our mother would drop by scarcely, and when she did, we would always present her with any flower that matched our eyes. Voilets became our flowers
Anyone who knew us always thought we were both girls. That was when I had no chest, and kaien never did have very broad shoulders, leading every one to think that he too was a young girl. Kaien would always laugh about it whenever we were alone. He absolutely loved being like me. On days when we bathed our clothes would come off and end up on each other. Or when I wasn't around, he'd take one of my dresses and go to my classes. He always did very well. Of course I was forced to take his lessons which mostly ended up being sword fighting and languge.
One day he stopped, he never again went to any of my classes. Our maid, the young girl he said he had fallen in love with, had spoken to her sister about him being to girly. Somehow it got back to my brother and I, and the next morning to my surprise his once ankle length hair was only above his ears. That was two weeks before his death. We were both thirteen. He said if he was to be a proper king he had to be a man who was handsome and didn't look like a girl. Some one who knew how to fight well.
I thought that would shake our bond. But life with him continued on. We still picked flowers, we still talked all the way into the morning, and he still only smiled for me.
He died suddenly during the night. I remember hearing labored breathing and soft sighs as I fell asleep, threw out sneaking suspicons of a sickness coming. In the morning when I awoke, I found my brother dead with a look of peace on his face. My screams awoke every one within the other five apartments.
I did not want to live with out him. My mother was the first to find me holding his stiff body and a knife to my throat. She did not cry as she pried both of them from my grasp. I understood. My mother did not want to admit defeat to the Emperor's other wives, who had younger sons. She didn't have time to grieve, at least not then. She cut my once long hair and dressed me in my brother's clothes. She then shoved Kaien in one of my dresses. Taking his hands she whispered something I couldn't hear. Once she was done, all she did was nod in my direction. It meant I had to be my brother. She left me dazed and angry.
They planned a grand funeral for my brother under my name. When the time came, my father visited my mother, he try hard not to speak to her, he gave a light hug and left quickly. He came over to me and I knew what he would say. He looked at me with a crooked smile. "I know that your sister was very close to you, but thank god it was only her." I began to laugh. My father had no idea that it was really me. I doubt he ever would.