Just like all prodigal sons, prince Asakura Hao was no different... he had managed to test his father's temper to its very extent.

He was just any other prince... yes... anyone can perfectly say nothing was special about him... except the fact, that he had managed to break the hearts of all the princesses near and far of... at least eight or nine of the surrounding kingdoms...

As King Mikihisa paced worriedly around his study room, much to the annoyance of Yohmei who was sipping his tea, getting quite tired of the continuous back and forth pacing of his son...

"No, this is absolutely unacceptable! This is a national crisis! I am not getting any younger~!"

"Of course you aren't... and what has got the nation got to do with you not getting any younger? Are you worried that all those fine ladies shall cease to attend your royal banquets?"

Mikihisa had a pulsing gargantuan twitch. "Father~!! I was referring to Hao's behavior! And please, I already have a wife..."

"But it's in our genes... even Hao seemed to be enjoying himself with the ladies..."

"What would mother say when she hears you...? But that is NOT the point... I am trying to find Hao a suitable bride... I want to see my grandchildren before I die and so that I can secure that the kingdom will remain within the Asakura's family reign!"

At this Yohmei had raised an eyebrow, "You want to have grandchildren already? Wouldn't Keiko protest?"

"Yes~! Every father would want one... and why would Keiko protest?!"

"Maybe because Hao is only fourteen..."

"Oh... but then... I am almost desperate... I'm going to ask Mother."

Yohmei sputtered his tea, "Kino?"

Mikihisa gave his father a solemn nod and took out a piece of custom stationery...

"Mother had always been good at solving this kind of things."

Imperfection

© Jess-chan/Kari

Of all other aspects, except this particular detail of not wanting to be married, the prince was highly praiseworthy of all the graces and honors rightfully bestowed to the future shaman king. He was young, handsome (the ladies noticed this the most) and was in a very cheerful disposition (although rather annoying sometimes)... he could decide the matters concerning the people's interests, but he could not, EVER, decide matters of the heart...

Unlike, most people, Hao Asakura's problem was not matters concerning charm, it had come to him in a very early age, and had practiced courtship in a much earlier one (care of Yohmei oji-san) ... it was something else... he was too much of a perfectionist... If he could not have known any better, Mikihisa could've think that Hao would have something to say against a goddess.

The trumpets sounded from the towers of the castle, and Mikihisa could do nothing but give a long, suffering sigh...

"Now I really wish Yoh would come back from his visit from mother... at least I know that he would be happily married someday."

Yohmei winced at the thought... Yoh, and the term 'happily married' would never go together... EVER... from what he had heard Kino had engaged him to her best student... oh, boy another itako in the family... and from the letters Yoh had been sending to him... he sighed, pitiful of his younger grandson.

There were a few, soft raps heard, and a page ushered himself into the room, "Mikihisa-sama... Prince Hao is back..."

"Yes, yes... tell him to see me immediately."

"As you wish, your highness..."

"Well, then I better go..." Yohmei stood up from his plush, velvet sit, and proceeded to inhabit the room... it was never good when you get in between Mikihisa and Hao's little 'conversations'... oh, yes they were perfectly normal... only a little more volatile.

"H-hao-sama..."

"I know, I know, Father would want to see me in his study room... Hmm, but I'm a little hungry maybe I'll drop off at the kitchen first..."

The page couldn't help but sweat drop... it never ceased to amaze him, how the prince could never fear his father... well aside from the fact that he was his son... but he believed it was the fact that the prince had came across his father's temper for more than a thousand times so it may have lost its affect on him by now... another sweat drop and the page shook his head...

"Where is he?!"

Mikihisa had been waiting for his son for more than half an hour... where had his son gone of now...

Then he heard a few respectful raps against the door, and Hao ushered himself in, with a smile on his face, as if he hadn't had his father waiting for him for half an hour...

'And he had the nerve to carry sweets with him...'

Pretty sure enough, Hao had been carrying a plate of Chocolate Mouse...

"What is wrong with YOU?!"

"I'm very happy to see you too father..." he greeted him pleasantly and with a smile on his face,

Helping himself in the same plush, velvet chair, that Yohmei had occupied earlier, Hao laid down the dainty plate of cake at a nearby coffee table and helped himself to some tea... Mikihisa's twitch was starting to change color...

"Well?! How was Jeanne-hime-sama? What?! Did she have an awful complexion? Was her nose off-centered?! Did she have bad taste in clothing?! Or what?!"

His father had sent him to the Eastern lands to court Jeanne-hime-sama famed for her mythical beauty... "Actually nothing was wrong—"

"Then why the HELL is she not with you?!"

Hao suppressed the urge to laugh out loud... although he could've sworn that one of his ribs would crack if he suppressed it even further... his father always had the same reaction.

"Father, please let me finish..."

Mikihisa simply gestured at him, with a wave of his hand... "In fact she was quite beautiful, a little bit short though—"

Mikihisa sent him a glare, and he held his hands in surrender... "Father do you not have any sense of humor? As I was saying she was quite beautiful but she already had chosen someone..."

"Chosen somebody else?" Hao nodded nonchalantly as his father echoed faintly... "She's going to marry the prince from the Southern Kingdom..."

"Southern Kingdom...?"

"Yes, that is perfectly correct... Lyserg Diethyl... heard of him?"

"Of course I've heard of him~~!!"

Mikihisa bellowed at his son, and rubbed his painful temples... well, at least he can count on his son on one aspect... he could never fail to give him a migraine...

Then it hit him... "Did you even tell King Marco, that you wish to court the princess...?" he interpreted the silence as a yes...

"Why did you NOT—?!"

"And ruin a happy match? They seemed perfectly happy with each other and I for one could never care less... I'm not that desperate..."

That was the last straw...

"Good morning Mother..." Mikihisa had just kicked him out of his study room... literally.

Keiko happily enveloped her in a warm embrace... it had been so long, and she missed the presence of her sons deeply... especially Yoh, who had been staying with Kino... it had been a relief for her when she had heard that Yoh would be arriving soon.

"Oh I'm so glad you're back~~!!!"

He smiled... sometimes he just wished his father would greet him like that... well not exactly this way since...

"Mother you're suffocating me..."

Abruptly letting go of her son, Keiko asked him to have breakfast first...

"Go?"

"Yes, I want you to go to the Western Kingdom immediately. Mikihisa had asked me to deal with a few things... and because I am unable to, I am sending you there."

Anna sipped her tea quietly... "How about Yoh's trainings?" in all honesty she did not want to go... she wanted to make sure Yoh would do his trainings properly...

"I shall take care of that. For now, I want you to deal with Prince Asakura Hao." Anna had raised an elegant eyebrow.

"Hao? The future shaman king?"

"Yes."

She paused for a moment... aside from Kino-sensei, Yoh, and Yohmei oji-san who had visited often, they were the only ones whom she had met from the Asakura's... it would do her good. It was best to know the family of who she would be marrying... besides it would be rather interesting to meet the future shaman king...

"I see... then I shall fulfill your wishes, Kino-sensei..."

"As expected."

Tsuzuku

Thank you for syao-chan first and foremost~~!! This is dedicated to you, even though it may never be continued... To Patty-chan who had been bugging me about a Hana fic, here it finally is. To Lor-chan who hates Asakura Hao to NO end (I don't know why) heh, heh don't worry I'll add Horo-sama in the later chappies... IF I ever continue this... to Bel-chan, who doesn't give a damn about mankin, I'm still dedicating this to you, and promise to post my new CCS fic ASAP, to Sarah the birthday girl, kahit hindi mo na ito mabasa, to Ate Eina, who also hates Hao-sama... why does all of you hate Hao-sama~~~!! Only Patty loves him as much as I do... WHY?!