Hey everyone! Hope you're glad chapter 3 is up, I wrote this one fairly quickly as I knew what I wanted to happen. As you might have guessed from the title, this chapter is when Rose finally learns the truth. As always, standard disclaimer applies!

Mia21

"Oji, Oba, I'm back!" Rose called as she entered the cottage. "Guess what I found – oh, good afternoon Sir Hiko."

Rose glanced around the cottage uneasily, taking in everyone who was there. Not only were Oji and Oba seated around the table, so was Kenshin, Sir Hiko, and several other knights she recognized as friends of Sir Hiko. It was almost as if they had been waiting for her.

"Hello Rose. There is something we need to tell you." Sir Hiko began, a simultaneously pained and pleasant smile on his face.

"Oh?" she asked, a frown marring her face.

Sir Hiko nodded and stood. "You are the cursed princess Rose, Princess Kaoru Akira Kamiya."

Rose stood staring at him for a moment before blinking and telling him, "I regret to tell you this, Sir Hiko, but your joke is a rather poor one."

"It is no jest, Your Highness. You are the hidden princess." Sir Hiko kneeled and bowed. Rose took a deep breath, the cottage suddenly feeling unbearably stuffy. She turned towards the others, seeking reassurance, but found they too were bowing. Staggering towards the door, her ears ringing, Rose said, "If you'll excuse me one moment." She then closed the door on their protests.

They were lying, they had to be. There was no way she was the princess, the one cursed to fall into a deep sleep by her eighteenth birthday. Shaking her head, Rose closed her eyes and whispered, "I'm not Princess Kaoru, I can't be."

To be the princess was the worst sort of sentence Rose could imagine. To be confined to a castle with all of her freedom gone, to be condemned to rule one day and carry the weight of a country on her shoulders, seemed awful. Not to mention there was a distinct possibility that she could be killed by the evil magic user who had originally placed the curse.

"Rose." Kenshin said, interrupting her reverie.

She opened her eyes and pierced him with a glare. "Is it true?"

Kenshin hesitated, then nodded.

Rose covered her mouth with a hand to hide her trembling lips and realized that strange things suddenly seemed to make sense. Sir Hiko had invited her to join Kenshin's lessons, not to get more use out of the tutor, but because Rose needed the lessons, the constant visits to Hiko by nobility, usually during lesson time, and the strange killer just yesterday. Fearing the answer, Rose asked, "Are you really just my friend Kenshin?"

"I will always be your friend," Kenshin said and her heart calmed for a moment. "But I'm also a Black Dragon."

Rose closed her eyes again. Of course. Who would be a better childhood friend, a better protector, than a Black Dragon? "Sir Hiko is too physically fit to be a mere country knight, is he a Black Dragon as well?"

Kenshin hesitated. "Yes."

Rose took another deep breath, realizing that everyone she trusted, everyone she loved, had lied to her. Did anyone really like her for who she was, or when they looked at her did they only see Princess Kaoru?

'Stop it.' She thought.

Yes, it was a shock, but finding out she was a Princess didn't take away from the love she knew.

Oba hadn't stayed up with her when she was a child, singing songs and rocking her back and forth just because she was a princess, but because she loved her.

And Kenshin…looking into his amethyst eyes she knew that every smile, every laugh, every look of concern he had given her was for her and not for Princess Kaoru.

Rose wasn't stupid. She knew her world was about to shift dramatically. Though the lies still stung and she felt betrayed, she knew that she would need every scrap of love and support she could get if she wanted to survive palace life, not to mention the curse.

Far off, a horse neighed. Rose and Kenshin turned, surprised to see a small group of horses and men dressed in glittering armor. The standard bearer that rode with them adjusted the flag so they could see the crest of the Black Dragons, a rearing black dragon set on a silver and blue field.

A handsome man, perhaps in his late forties, rode up on a prancing bay horse. "Excuse me, Your Highness?"

Rose took a step back in alarm, looking to Kenshin.

"It's alright," he murmured. "Sir Hiko spoke with King Koshijiro last night."

The knight smiled. "Indeed. We have come to bring you home, Princess."

Rose clutched Kenshin's arm. How could the knight say that when she would be saying goodbye to the only home, the only life, she had ever known?

By the time they reached the royal palace, which was picturesquely placed in Handa, the capital of Miyoshi, Rose had decided to try to make the best out of a rather poor situation. Even though she would soon have to tangle with her curse, being a princess had to have some perks. Certainly it was going to be a much more difficult future than she had imagined, but she would probably have lovely dresses right? And almost everyone would at least have to pretend to like her. Also, she wouldn't have to reckon with the barnyard animals anymore, and she had been assured that arrangements had already been made for Oji and Oba.

What she was possibly most excited for was the fact that she would have a family, a real family. Once, as a child, she had tried calling Oji and Oba mother and father and the pair had nearly died. She was then given strict instructions to never do so again, a more understandable reaction since the truth had been revealed to her. Now she would have a real father and mother!

She shifted on Shadow's back and readjusted her grip on Kenshin's torso. She tried not to gawk as they approached her new home, but it was a difficult task. The palace was massive and rather awe-inspiring, constructed with a greenish sort of stone and offset with white marble pillars and edging. She sucked in a breath through clenched teeth.

"It's a lot to take in, I know. You'll be fine though." Kenshin assured her.

"How could you possibly think that I'll be fine?" Rose asked.

"It actually reassures me that you're so reluctant to claim your birthright." Kenshin said.

"Why?"

"Because it means you grasp the situation. Plenty of silly girls would leap for joy if they were told they were Princess Kaoru. Your reluctance proves you understand how difficult your new life will be." He explained.

"If you mean to be encouraging, you are failing miserably." Rose told him.

Kenshin shrugged. "It might not be encouraging, but it is the truth. I know you Rose, I've watched over you for years. I know you will excel here."

Rose was silent as she contemplated his words before noticing that on the marble steps that led up to the palace stood the royal family. With eager eyes she took in her first glimpse of her family. King Koshijiro and Queen Ryoko, her father and mother, stood together at the edge of the staircase. Her mother favored a gold tiara with rubies and a red and gold dress. A few tears leaked from her blue eyes, but she was smiling as she grasped her husband's arm. The King wore a simple golden circlet and was also clothed in red and gold. He was a tall and limber man, well-toned, with dark hair that was turning from black to a shade of salt-and-pepper and he was beaming at her momentary arrival.

Kenshin pulled Shadow to a stop near the base of the palace stairs. He helped Rose dismount before backing away with a bow.

"Kenshin." She hissed.

He held her gaze long enough to give her a barely perceptible smile, then joined Sir Hiko and the other Black Dragons who stood in formation around the royal family.

"Kaoru Akira Kamiya," The King said in a booming voice. "Welcome home."

"Oh Kaoru!" The Queen said, graceful and beautiful as she hurried down the stairs. She threw her arms around Rose as soon as she reached her, surprising her with the joy of the reunion. Slowly, cautiously, Rose returned the embrace, surprised when the Queen began to cry even harder. 'I can hardly believe this, I have a mother and a father now, something I have always wanted.' Rose thought and leaned into the embrace.

Moments later the King joined the embrace, wrapping his arms around both the Queen and Rose. "Welcome back, daughter."

Rose smiled up at him, feeling awkward, shy, and a little hopeful. Though she had done nothing to warrant it, the King and Queen looked at her with the same love Oji and Oba did.

"Tonight there will be a banquet to celebrate your return."

Rose nodded and felt herself adjusting, warming to the love her parents showered on her. This was more than she'd dared hope for, and if all she gained was a loving mother and father in exchange for her new difficulties, it would be worth it.

After being paraded up and down endless palace halls and finally shown to her rooms, Rose wanted nothing more than to pass out on her elegant over-stuffed bed, but as the announcement had already gone out that there would be a banquet that night, and as she didn't wish to disappoint her parents, Rose allowed the servants to dress her in a lavender gown with slashed sleeves that allowed the dark blue kirtle to be seen. The servants also braided her long black hair and pinned it up. Glancing in the mirror, Rose was somewhat surprised, she'd expected that being with her parents and fulfilling the role of princess would make her look different, instead she still looked like the same old Rose, only cleaned up and in a nice dress.

When it was time for dinner, she was shown into the dining hall and escorted to her place which was across from her mother, next to her father who sat at the head of the table. After she had taken a few bites of the second course, her mother asked, "How do you like it daughter?" She blushed prettily when she said the word 'daughter'

Rose swallowed the bite she was chewing, "Everything is delicious."

"Quite the change?" Her father asked.

Rose nodded. "Yes, a good change though."

It really was a good change, Rose reflected. Not only the food and her wardrobe, but having parents now.

"After the banquet is finished, there's going to be some dancing," Her mother told her. "If you feel unequal to the challenge, your father can lead you through the first several dances and teach you a bit."

While it was true that Rose only knew country reels and jigs, she wasn't too worried about attempting a dance or two tonight. Especially as her father promised to only surrender her to an 'acceptable' gentleman, though she wasn't sure if her idea of what an acceptable gentleman was would mesh with her father's.

Rose soon learned that dancing with her father was fun! He was a patient instructor and was perhaps even more delighted when she stepped on his boot than when she moved correctly.

"Very well done daughter, you have learned in one hour what took me weeks to bumble through! Now, I'm afraid I must to release you to the wolves. Ahh, here is the perfect partner for you, Sir Aoshi."

The young man Rose had met in the woods smiled at her, "Good evening, Your Majesty, Your Highness." Rose relaxed. Based on what little she knew of his character, she thought he was a kind soul and wouldn't mind her fledgling dance skills. Her good humor turned wry however when her father continued the introduction. "Sir Aoshi is a member of the Black Dragons, I believe he was knighted three or four years ago. Is that correct, Sir Aoshi?"

He was a what!? Rose thought, nearly gaping in shock.

"Four years ago, Your Majesty," Aoshi answered with his easy-going smile.

King Koshijiro kissed Rose's temple. "Enjoy yourself, daughter, and take care of her Sir Aoshi."

"I will, Your Majesty." Sir Aoshi said with a bow, taking Rose's hand and leading her onto the dance floor.

"You seem reflective, Your Highness," He said.

"I'm just wondering how many of the young men I met in the woods were actually random young men and not Black Dragons."

Aoshi laughed. "Kenshin and I probably deserve that, but don't fear. He and I were the only ones alerted to you, and I wasn't brought into your retinue until this spring. I wasn't actually supposed to talk to you, but you caught me when I was about to do a sweep of the forest."

Rose shivered as she recalled Jin-e and his black eyes. "Was I really in that much danger?"

Aoshi glanced over to the front of the room, where her parents stood talking with another Lord. "I probably shouldn't tell you, but Kenshin said you're grounded and reliable. You were safe, up until about two years ago. We – The Black Dragons – detected an influx of dangerous magical creatures and assassins. It started out country wide, but last year we noticed the area growing smaller and smaller."

"Let me guess: they were centralized around Sir Hiko's manor and the forest where I lived?"

Aoshi was silent as they joined hands and formed part of a bridge for the lead couple to duck under. He renewed the conversation when they began the promenade part. "We picked up a sorcerer some months back a few miles south of Sir Hiko's lands. He confirmed they were searching for you. You were never found, but after the incident with Jin-e we knew it wouldn't take them much longer to find you. That was why it was decided to bring you back to Handa."

Rose nodded. "I see. Thank you for telling me."

"Not at all. I'm glad to see Kenshin is right about you."

"What do you mean?" Rose asked.

"Most other girls would have swooned or gone hysterical to learn such facts. And I don't think many others would calmly accept their curse."

Rose snorted. "Oh, I haven't accepted it, not in the least. But if I let myself panic it will only serve to cloud my judgement."

Aoshi smiled again. "You are a treasure, Your Highness."

"There is no need to flirt with me now that I know you're true identity, Sir Aoshi." Rose told him to which Aoshi laughed outright.

Rose passed the rest of the evening in a mostly amused state. Most of the young men sent to dance with her were overly flirtatious, sons of nobles, or painfully respectful, Black Dragons. She was not surprised that a small handful of young men seemed to hold her in disdain. She knew from her studies that her father was a relatively popular King, but even he had some naysayers and they found saying highly inappropriate things to his daughter, newly returned to court, to be the perfect way to get to him, though she wasn't sure why as she wasn't about to run off and tell her father what they had said.

When the evening was ending, Rose reflected that she hadn't embarrassed herself or her family, and therefore declared the evening a success.

Make sure to tell me what you thought with a review!

Mia21