This is sooner than I thought I'd be able to post. I want to thank you all for your lovely reviews, I'm glad you enjoyed it! I hope I don't disappoint you with this chapter! Don't forget to review . I love y'all ❤.
"My Lady. There are but a few hours to the masquerade ball. We must begin dressing you up. " Said the attendant for the fourth time in that hour.
18 summers had passed since her birth and the ball was in honour of celebrating that very day. Men and women from all over the world came to greet the princess, who had now grown to become a beauty all the other women envied.
Long raven locks flowed down her lean figure, her delicate waist and small chest amplifying her majestic aura. Gifts were brought from countries far away , but alas, none ever pleased the princess. Her heart longed for a person that she had met in her childhood, whose memories had kept her from running away.
And their promise.
She ran her long fingers over the gown she was to wear to the celebration. Woven from expensive japanese silk by the best weavers in the whole country, designed perfectly to suit her body. Her fingers trailer over the accessories and stopped at her mask. It reminded her of a certain someone that she had once known. It was almost like a fleeting dream and she often tried to forget about it, but her mind and body had betrayed her a long time ago, that very day she had seen him.
So many things had changed in the past few years. Her contact with her father had decreased more and more with his increasing responsibilities. She barely ever saw him and if she ever did, he would come to the inner sanctum of the palace only to discuss construction matters. She had given up on trying to please him, and lived solely for herself.
Tonight, she was to be greeted as an adult woman, tonight men's eyes would turn to look at her with an intent to wed her. And she swore to enjoy herself to the fullest, whether he was going to be there or not.
The King looked around,visibly pleased with the amount of people gathered for the princess's birthday. He softly tapped the tip of his spoon on the silver wine glass, to get the attention of the four thousand or so people gathered.
"My dear guests," he began, his voice screaming authority. "I welcome you to my kingdom. I am truly honoured to receive so many guests from so many different countries on this day of celebration. As you know, my daughter ,Princess Aoko has turned 18 with the advent of this night. I thank you for your audience on this day of joy. Now then, let's welcome the person of the night!" Saying so, he parted the curtains and everyone burst into applause.
From above the long staircase , with her helpers by her side, came the one and only heiress of the king, the princess of the country, her beauty too overwhelming for words to describe.
She had donned an ink blue gown that fell past her feet, enhancing her natural beauty. A chain of sapphires lined her neck and glass slippers supported her shapely feet. Her naturally long black hair was neatly put into a bun from where a few strands were left hanging to line the beautiful blue and silver mask around her eyes. Her entire attire was a play on her name. Aoko meant blue, just like her eyes.
She walked down with grace, like a swan in water. The entire hall went silent. Everyone was speechless. Oh how elegant she looked!
The king extended his hand, for his daughter to accept as her feet touched the ground of the hall. She must not put her father to shame, being the only thought in her mind at that moment. She slowly looked around to see everyone.
People were dressed beautifully. All of them wore similar masquerade masks , hiding their faces from her. Most of them were acquaintances of her father whom she had seen maybe once before and among them were some princes that came from far to attract her attention, complimenting her beauty. She wasn't the least bit interested in men that drowned her in vain flattery.
With her thanking everyone for their presence, the ball began. The princess was to begin the dance, so with her father, she danced at the centre , with the end of the song, inviting the other guests to form a circle and participate.
Partners continuously kept changing and the anonymity due to the masks only increased the excitement. The princess gracefully danced with the men in the outer circle , being with the women in the inner. As she moved around , she tried to guess the identities of the men she danced with.
First prince of Vyerestria, she guessed. He had come to ask her hand in marriage once.
Fourth prince of Xerenia. He was the son of her father's important ally.
She was impressed with her skills at guessing and the song was soon to end. As the last partners for the night reached each other, she began trying to guess who he was.
He wound one hand round her waist and took her hand in his other, a small but polite smile gracing his full lips. He adorned a similar blue mask and blue orbs peered from underneath them. She recognized him, but from where? He seemed so familiar and all the while, he kept smiling. She took her hand of his shoulder and ran her fingers along the side of his face.
Realization began to dawn on her. There was no way, she thought to herself. Her eyes widened , she ran her fingers along his pink lips and he broke out into a larger smile. She gasped.
" Is it you..?" She asked, still unsure.
He grinned and slightly nodded his head.
"Won't you welcome me home, princess?"
Tears began flowing down her eyes. She couldn't believe it. Was she still dreaming ? There he was grinning at her, dancing with her, holding her so close to himself that she could breathe in his scent. He had returned. The boy she had been in love with for the past 12 years of her life had returned. She had never been happier.
With the song now over, and partners bowing courteously and moving away from each other, she found herself unsure of what to do. Before she could say a word to him however, the hall blacked out. People began to panic. She felt a soft warmth on her hands and when the lanterns were lit, he was gone.
She felt the spot where his lips had touched her hand and smiled to herself.
"Greeting everyone. First of all, might I wish the princess a very happy birthday! " Came a voice from above the staircase. Everyone turned to look. There, on the railing of the first floor, stood a man. He wore a white suit, the likes of which she had never seen. A blue shirt inside with a red cravate ( French for necktie) and a white cape flowing behind him. A tall hat sat on the top of his head and a monocle covered his left eye.
The man may have been a stranger to others, but she recognized that voice. It was him.
"And in honour of this hour of merrymaking, I would like to entertain you all." Saying so, he lifted the hat off his head and bowed graciously. He then flung his hat high up in the air and along with his hat, snow began falling down from above.
Everyone in the audience was surprised. How did he do that? He walked along the railing and pulled a line of small cloths from his pocket. Magically, a string of tens of thousands of cloths tied end to end kept coming out of his shirt pocket. He flung one end to the chandelier and swung down to where Aoko was standing.
Putting his hand in his pocket, he produced a blue flower, the same one he'd given to her all those years ago. She accepted it, a light blush adorning her face. He smiled at her and returned to the upper floor and everyone clapped.
"Now then. Thank you for watching, my audience! I guess I should take my pay and leave. " Saying these words, he produced a beautiful jewel in his palm.
The king exclaimed.
"That is from my royal jewellery collection! That man is a robber!" Everyone was astonished, surprised at his audacity, but all the man in question did was laugh.
"I am no robber, my Lord. I'm a phantom Thief. I have a name," he said, pausing and looking at Aoko. They're eyes met as he said the next words, "I am called Kaitou KID." And saying so , he vanished.
That night Aoko returned to her room, exhausted and hoping to soak into a warm bath. The guards looked for him everywhere, but the thief was nowhere to be found. She pushed the door of her chambers open and there, sitting by her window sill was none other than the thief himself!
She turned around and quickly shut the door behind her. He was playing with the jewel that he had stolen just a few hours ago and had put on a massive show too!
And the nerve of this man, sitting there and admiring his prize with pride!
"Did you like my gift, princess?" He said ,his gaze not moving away from the jewel. "
Why,offcourse I did!" She exclaimed sarcastically. "And now, thanks to the lovely show you've put up, all the kingdom's guards are looking for you! My, my how pleasant this night is!" She said, enraged. She was fuming and she had every right to!
He turned to look at her, his gaze softening. She knew her anger wouldn't last long if he continued to look at her like so.
He got up from his position and walked to where she was standing. She was in two minds. One part of her wanted to go to him and wrap her hands around his neck and the other wanted to run out of the room. So, instead of moving, she remained glued to her spot. She maintained eye contact with him all the while and he lifted her hand and placed the jewel in it.
She looked up at him and he smiled. She let herself fall into his arms, where she had longed to be for many years.
"Why put yourself in harm's way? For what reason would you do so?" She asked, her voice low,almost a whisper. He pulled back to look her in the eyes.
He took a strand of her hair, lifted it to his lips and said,"I'm merely toying with the king, my love. The king because of whom I've had to part from you. Is that not reason enough?" She could no longer use any words against him. She didn't wish to ruin this moment of reunion in the slightest.
After a short while of enjoying his warm embrace, she pushed him away slightly and ran to her cupboard. She began pulling out some clothes and unfolded a large cloth. She wrapped the clothes into the large cloth and took a small pouch with gold coins out.
"These are coins I've been saving in hopes of leaving with you when I meet you. Now, let's leave before the guards find us. I know a secret route. " She said running around the place.
"Princess..." He said softly but she didn't let him talk.
"Oh , maybe we should wait till dawn ,since the guards would still be searching right now. Offcourse, they could never find you here."
"Princess, listen to me.."
"Or we could escape now and run to the forest at the back of the town, that would be a wiser way out. But then again the wolves-"
"AOKO!" He screamed, losing patience.
She stopped moving around, but she dared not look at him. "Listen to me,please." He pleaded.
"No.. I don't want to." She said, tears beginning to flow down. " You're going to ask me to wait again, aren't you? No more!" She screamed. He remained tight lipped.
"How much longer must I wait? I am meeting you after so long, do you not feel the slightest for me? Does seeing me not make you happy? Do you no longer want to be with me?!" She said, pain and frustration of the past 12 years flowing down her eyes in one night.
"Am I just a burden to you? "
At this point, he had had enough. He pulled her to himself ,holding her head in between his two hands and crashing his lips to hers.
Every ounce of desire he had been holding back, flowing out of his body with a single kiss.
Anger for being separated, fear of losing her, the desire to make love to her, she felt everything he wanted to convey. The princess was overwhelmed by his actions and could do nothing but release a small moan.
He pulled back after a few seconds , but she didn't let him stop. She threw herself at him, gripping his head in her hands and kissing him like he had done to her. Why must she be the only one to feel? He didn't waste a second in holding her by her waist and returning her affection.
She didn't want to stop. She didn't want this moment to disappear.
She didn't want him to leave.
He pushed them apart, feeling the need to breathe. They stayed like that, forehead to forehead, breathing heavily for a few minutes , until he softly lifted her face to face his , gripping her chin.
"Listen to me, princess. A lot of things happened after I left the castle all those years ago. My father was murdered two years later and I've been looking for the culprits." She gasped. She had never in a million years thought of his suffering. How evil she had been!
"The position I'm in right now, I cannot take care of you. Taking you out there would be like handing meat to hungry animals. " She remained silent, so he continued. "I promise you, I'll be back soon. Please give me some time. When I'm certain that I'm able to take care of you, I swear I'll be back." He stopped talking.
She cried into his chest. He ran his fingers through her silky hair, trying to soothe his crying sweetheart.
"Will you wait for me?" He asked her.
She wiped her tears and gave him a weak smile.
"I've waited twelve years," she said holding back her sobs.
"Another twelve would be just fine."
He smiled at her, adoring her patience. Time was testing them and she was certain they would triumph.
"Before leaving, can I ask something of you?" She asked, shyly looking up at him.
"And what may it be, my love?" He asked, taking her hand in his.
"The mask. Can you take it off?" She asked. It had often come to her mind that she had never really seen his real face and it made her really curious !
He let out a soft chuckle, nuzzling the area between her neck and her shoulders.
"I suppose I could, but then again, a part of me wishes to leave you longing to uncover this mask that has been the wall between us for all this time. So for now, I'll leave it on. But I promise you, the next time you see me, there won't be even a trace of it. " She nodded and smiled at him.
He kissed her one last time before disappearing into the dark night. She could only pray for his safety.
She lifted open a small box from under her bed and made space for the new rose she had received. And there, among other valuable jewels was the same old rose, that was now withered, to be replaced by a new one , signifying her everlasting love and faith in him.
And so then, the princess prepared her heart to wait just a little more, for the path of love she had chosen wasn't one without trials.
But she was sure, if at the end of this thorny road, he was waiting for her, she would gladly walk a thousand miles without stopping because no matter wherever he'd go, or whatever he'd do, she'd always be right there, waiting for him.
I just wanted to put this note at the end because a few of you might find the time skip extremely insane. Now, let me explain. This story is set in the 18th century ( 1700s) and at the period of time, being in contact while away was extremely difficult, if not absolutely impossible. In fact, before the invention of the telephone also, it was very difficult to stay in contact. My favorite author 'J R R Tolkein' , author of the 'Lord of the rings' also stayed apart from his lover for many years before finally being able to be together.
So here you have chapter 2! I hope I didn't disappoint you! There is only one chapter left to post which I will do as soon as possible. I hope you liked it. Please R&R. Ciao!