"There." Kaito closed the book, and placed it on his lap with a satisfied smile. "Was it good?" He waited expectantly for the responses of the critics.

Kaiko frowned. "Doesn't explain much. I don't really understand. But more please, since it sounds like there is going to be incest."

And as for Mekaito- "Continue please," he demanded. "I wanna' see what happens to the Plague lady. Is she gonna' explode with blood and slime?"

Kaito was crying a flood of tears inside. These kids..! They are only interested in the story for such immoral and stupid reasons..!

Kaito gritted his teeth. "Ann and the Twins had better not hear that…" He harrumphed sternly. "Its their favourite book," He lied, waggling his finger at his younger siblings. Get the hint! Get the hint! He screamed at them from inside his head.

Mekaito picked at his nose. "Okay. Now are you going to get the ice cream snack?"

Kaito groaned quietly.

~THREE ICE CREAM SNACKS LATER~

' "Your Highness! Your Highness! Where are you?" Leonhart bellowed. He darted away, narrowly dodging a huge, burning piece of wood that detached itself from the ruined ceiling. He coughed and swiped at his profusely sweating brow. The heat is unbearable!

The palace was burning. The fire was ravaging it violently. The attacks had came from Asmodean, no sooner had the announcement of the news of King Als demise spread around the other three kingdoms of Levianta, Belzenia, Elphegort and Marlon. Just as Queen Anne had predicted.

Leonhart charged furiously down the smouldering carpet. The heat blistered his throat, yet he did not stop to take a good, deep breath.

He ran past the beautiful, expensive paintings adorning the hallways, already charred into an unrecognisable mess. The detailed and intricate wallpaper was burnt to a dry, black crisp, and the carefully crafted gargoyle stone carvings were melted, lined with unsightly black burn marks. The effect of the fire had already taken place, near the Inner Chambers. A room had collapsed into its own frame, a huge fire consuming the debris. Thick, black smoke cloaked his vision. Tiny infernos blazed on the floor, and he strained his eyes to avoid stepping into them.

The elaborate French windows were melted into an ugly abstract shape. The fire was roaring like a wild, untamed beast, spiralling out of control. He saw the door of Allen's room in a distance away. He gasped in relief and immediately regretted the action when he breathed in the foul-tasting gases. Still, it was seeing the light at the end of a tunnel for him. He staggered forward and with a hefty blow, he threw his entire being onto the door.

There was a tremendous cacophony of painful-sounding crashes. Leonhart cursed as he slowly got up from lying on the broken door, grunting painfully and gripping his sprained ankle. He looked up just in time to watch the black, thick smoke cloud surge in, filling the humongous, French-window paned room, gorgeous beyond belief, filled with items of luxury, such as a four poster bed with a soft goose feather mattress with a beautifully embroidered eiderdown to match, along with a bulky golden gramophone, pushed aside to the wall and thick velvet curtains. But...

By then, Leonhart could see waves of pure heat shimmering in the air. Even Rillianne and Allen's room was not left untouched. Miniature infernos blazed brightly on the floor, and the curtains were burning. A horrible, singed smell came to Leonhart's nostrils. Tongues of fire lapped and licked hungrily at the windows, making escape through there impossible. His eyes darted around frantically, searching for Allen.

Lady Luck was smiling down at him. He spotted a young boy with a head of dirty-blond hair, lolled on the floor in dead faint, peeking out, and buried under... A huge mass of collapsed and heavy curtain frames molded out of pure gold, with the velvet curtains still attached, and blocked by mounds of broken wooden furniture. He cursed vigorously," Shit! He fainted from breathing in too much fumes and carbon monoxide!"

Leonhart crossed the little fires flickering across the floor nimbly, and forcefully lobbed the broken furniture aside, where it was attacked by the fires that grew bigger as it consumed the wood. Sparks sprang out from the fires as more chemicals were released into the atmosphere. With all the strength vested in him, he pulled Allen out from under all the curtains, roaring as he went.

"Damn, you're heavy, Your Highness," Leonhart grunted to no one in particular as he slung the unconscious Allen over his shoulder. The boy moaned softly.

Leonhart turned and charged out of the door and into the blazing hallway. He was halfway out of the palace, until he stopped at the top of the flight of grand staircases. There was a sea of flames roaring, flickering, a vast and mighty inferno straight out from the ovens of Hell itself, burning from beneath him. It wasn't that bad before, was it? Servants screamed in terror. Even the wails and cries of the townspeople had reached his ears and they rang and echoed. There he stood, transfixed in fear and horror.

Suddenly, he heard a call of a blow horn. It was elegant, sophisticated, and pleasant sounding. It could even be regarded as music to some. Distant, but yet its notes led him to feel... fear. To Leonhart, it was poison. If he could hear the blow horn, it meant that... The army of Asmodean was reaching the palace soon.

And there he was, scared stiff by the fire. He still had a crown prince in his arms, for God's sake. He was the commander of the vast and mighty army of Lucifenia. He was supposed to reach his troops, and command them to fight for Lucifenia. To protect Lucifenia, and the members of the Royal family. He couldn't let Lucifenia be taken. He could not let her fall.

Wasn't that his idiot job? ("Kaito-niisan, I'm going to tell Miku-neesan that you said the 'I' word-" "Just shut up, Kaiko!" "And that you told me to shut up too!")

Then, without any traces of hesitation, he turned and jumped out of the shattered window behind him.'-

"Ohmygod!" screamed Kaiko, like someone who had just won the lottery, shooting up in her chair, her back arched, poised to pounce. "I mean, OHMYGOOOOOOD, he jumped out of he window!" She clutched her face, wailing dramatically.

Mekaito was so excited, he jumped up and down on the futon (Since when was there a futon here? I don't even remember seeing it- Oh well, Kaito scratched his head), nearly knocking over his half-melted bowl of ice cream, and leaned forward eagerly, pink splotches on his cheeks, "Cool! Did he die too? I wanna' see him die!"

Kaito sighed in exasperation, and part horror. He made a mental note to never to mention this to Leon.

"So what happens next?" Kaiko wriggled in her seat in anticipation. "Well? Well? Well? WELL?" She screamed into Kaito's ears.

Oh goodness, I think my ears are actually bleeding, Kaito thought.

Kaito winced, "Well.. First off, you two have to promise to keep quiet. I'm half-deaf, Kaiko, for Crypton's sake."

"Awwww... Okay." They sighed agreeably. "Now?" Kaiko asked expectantly.

"Gee, I'm kinda' tired... I'm going to bathe, bye," Kaito singsonged.

"You liar! I'm going to tell Miku-neesan that you lied! Right, Mekaito?"

"Yeah!"

"Let's get him!"

"Argh!'

The three siblings collapsed on the floor in a tangle of scarves, legs and arms. Kaiko giggled triumphantly, "Yeah!" She cheered , riding atop of Kaito's back. Mekaito guffawed, as if to agree and say 'Yeah, aren't we great?'

Looking up at them, Kaito had to laugh along with them. "All right, all right," He mock-sighed, as if to admit defeat, spreading his palm face-up, while laying sprawled on the floor. "Bed time, 'kay?"

"Promise?"

"Sure do, guys. Now promise me you won't tell Miku-neesan or Meiko-neesan?"

Mekaito and Kaiko shared a look, and eyed him craftily. "Maybe!" They chorused, using that tone that makes you wonder if they mean it or not.

"Hey!"

Laughing merrily, they clambered off his back and ran off to their adjoining bedrooms to play.

Kaito smiled fondly after them, and proceeded to clear the three bowls of their ice cream treats earlier.