"Ikuto, yo…why do you have a girl in your arms?"

Sixteen years of age and Duke of Seiyo, along with being Prince Ikuto's best friend, Souma Kukai blinked as his friend entered his bedroom. For the first time in many years, the green eyed male could have sworn the prince almost smiled.

"I ran into her at the market…or rather, she ran into me, and she fainted," replied Ikuto, setting the pinkette onto his bed. Considering how young she looked, the petite girl looked like a doll on his ridiculously oversized bed. "I couldn't exactly leave her."

"Wow, Ikuto, this is the first time I've ever seen you care so much about a girl, even if it was just out of courtesy," remarked Kukai. "Why didn't you ask around the village?"

The blue haired prince raised an eyebrow. "A girl with looks like that in the hands of some random stranger? I'm not stupid or heartless, Kukai."

His best friend smiled sheepishly, running his hand through his messy brown locks. "I guess you're right about that…did anybody see you? You know how people like to gossip."

"No, I made sure no one saw us," stated Ikuto, crossing his arms as he glanced at the still unconscious girl. "Hm, where is Yoru?"

"Probably out doing boring advisor things," replied Kukai, laughing until he got hit in the face with a hot towel. "Ah, shit!" He scrambled to fling the material from his face, ignoring his best friend's chuckles as he glared at the advisor who had entered the room just moments before with an innocent expression. "That hurt, dammit Yoru!"

"My apologies, nya," said the topaz eyed male, not sounding sorry at all. "I must have tripped. In any case…" He froze, his eyes landing on the small form on the bed.

Ikuto noticed. "Met her in the market, she fainted, and I brought her here rather than leave her with those lecherous men nearby." He paused when he noticed his advisor (and good friend) seemed to be frozen. "Yoru?"

"I know this girl," stated Yoru, carefully walking over. "Well, I don't know her personally, nya…but I know she's the seamstress that works at Miki's shop."

"Who's Miki?" Kukai and Ikuto immediately questioned, only the latter still focused on the petite girl on his bed. When his advisor didn't answer, Ikuto tore his eyes away from the rather enchanting girl to peer at him curiously. He didn't notice the girl start to stir.

Yoru blushed, panicking. Miki didn't want many people to know about them…but he couldn't lie to his best friends. "Uh, she's…uh…you see, Miki is…"

"Isn't she your girlfriend?"

The three males turned to the bed, seeing the now awake pinkette rubbing her head in confusion as she groggily sat up. She yawned cutely as she rubbed one of her sleepy honey eyes, saying, "You're Yoru, right? Aren't you Miki's boyfriend, or lover, or whatever?" Yoru turned a shade darker as his friends raised their eyebrows, the girl slowly coming to her senses. "Where…where am I?"

"We're continuing this conversation later," murmured Ikuto to his flustered advisor as he turned to the pinkette. "You are in the Royal Palace, miss…"

"Why should I tell you my name?" Amu snapped, still a bit loopy as she glared at the blue haired male. "I don't know you!" She paused. "What am I even doing at the palace? Isn't that where the royal family lives?" Her hand that had been rubbing her eye froze as her body finally acknowledged that she was awake, her memory reeling in the most recent events before she blacked out. "Oh…" The prince couldn't help but smirk as her face turned a fiery red. Normally, he'd be worried about the girl jumping him like a mindless idiot but for some reason he felt at ease with the unnamed maiden. "M-My apologies….I meant no offense…" Then her beautiful topaz eyes narrowed as she stared accusingly at the three males. "No, I take it back; what am I doing here?" Oh yes, Ikuto found this girl definitely intriguing.

Kukai laughed, jarring his thumb in the prince's direction. "Apparently you ran into him in the market and passed out." The pink haired seamstress blinked once before her face turned to a bright tomato color.

"And yes," murmured Yoru quietly, bowing. "Miki is my girlfriend. I wonder, how did you learn of this miss…"

"Hinamori Amu," greeted the only maiden, quickly standing and curtseying. She did have manners, after all. "Actually to be honest, I tricked her sisters into slowly telling me pieces of information about you." She smirked at his stunned expression. "I wouldn't be friends with such an impassive person if I didn't know how to outwit others."

"Yes, I see why Miki likes you so," he murmured before taking her hand and kissing it gently. "I am the royal advisor to the prince, Momozono Yoru; it is a pleasure to finally meet you." Before she could reply, Yoru was pushed away to be replaced by the energetic duke.

"Souma Kukai, Duke of Seiyo," he introduced, going for the forward approach and kissing her cheek. Amu was once again red, though for a different reason. He moved away as the prince himself walked over.

"Tsukiyomi Ikuto, Prince of Easter," he said smoothly, also kissing her hand though his lips barely brushed over her skin before he straightened. "Now that formalities have been covered, I must ask what an alluring maiden like yourself was doing in such a crowded and dangerous place like downtown of the market." Seeing her hesitation, and bright blush, Ikuto added, "And please, treat us like you would with anyone else in the kingdom."

Amu blinked once. "If you insist…although I have no obligation to tell you my personal business, I will say that I had been visiting my friends at the docks before I returned to doing the errands requested of my employer, Miki." Her tone was still polite but it showed restrained coldness as well. "While I appreciate your courtesy and hospitality, this is the only day I have off so I would like to enjoy what little time I have left."

"It is getting late," noted Yoru, looking out the window. "If you'd like, I will escort you to your home."

"Nay, I wanted to take her home," exclaimed Kukai, leading to an argument between the two males. Meanwhile, Amu sat on the edge of the bed with her hands on her lap as she watched them with slight amusement. She jumped when she noticed Ikuto had appeared in front of her. He was like a cat, silent and sly.

"Would you rather I walk you?" He asked, though it sounded forced. Amu pressed her lips together tightly.

"Nobody is forcing you," she replied coolly. "I will be content with walking by myself, if you do not mind." The prince raised his eyebrows as the other two glanced at them.

"If anybody sees you…" Yoru started, holding a hand to the duke's face to make him stop talking.

"I will be dismissed just like any other maid in this palace," finished Amu, standing and taking her basket from the floor. "Besides, it is more likely to catch attention if any of you escort me-even you, Yoru." She curtseyed, though the three males could tell she would rather have not. "Good 'morrow, Your Highness and Lord." The pink haired girl glanced one at the large French doors leading to the rest of the castle before swiftly turning to the balcony, opening the doors and leaping off.

The males dashed out, leaning over the railing to see her land gracefully on the green grass before carrying on. She turned back and smiled at their stunned expressions, waving once before continuing.

"How did…" Kukai stammered.

Yoru chuckled, the first to recover. "Well, Miki does have a very athletic sister who also grew up with Amu so she probably had to endure many physical activities." He turned to his best friend, who was staring out at the back entrance to the palace where a small blimp of pink hair could be made out. He clapped his hand on the prince's shoulder, jarring him from his thoughts. "Are you alright, mate? You seem…thoughtful. Care to share?"

Kukai laughed, placing his hands behind his head. "He's probably shocked that she rejected his offer to walk her home. I don't think any girl's ever done that before, but she's definitely not normal. She's…different from the other girls we've seen."

Ikuto finally closed his mouth, licking his lips delicately as he turned to the energetic duke. "She's…interesting," he agreed, his violet eyes turning to his now messy and wrinkled bed sheets. He walked over and picked up one of the three pastries she had left on his dresser, examining it. "Very interesting indeed."

"Amu, where the hell have you been?" Miki exclaimed as soon as the seamstress entered the shop, splotches of paint on her smooth pale skin. That was worrisome; the blue haired girl only used paints when she was stressed, preferring to stick with sketches and sculpting. "It's gotten so late, and I was beginning to worry!"

"Well, I had visited around the village," replied Amu in defense, setting her now empty basket on one of the tables next to the other seamstress. "Hello Rima."

Mashiro Rima looked up from the dress she was altering and gave her friend a calculating look. "Hello, Amu; you have yet to finish the dresses in the back, you know. With the ball being tomorrow evening, you should really work harder." She ignored her friend's astonished look as she returned to her work. "And with all those maidens coming in for last minute alterations and dress shopping, you really should have finished the dresses today."

"Miki sent me out," cried the pinkette. "Besides, it's my day off! I've been through a lot today!"

"Yes, that'll be your punishment for slacking off," said Miki thoughtfully. "You cannot rest until all those dresses are finished."

"But that'll take all night," protested Amu, not noticing how her so-called friends were purposely ignoring her. "And I have to be working by early morning to attend to the scheduled appointments for dress altering!"

"Well, you made the decision to wander off today when you should have done a simple chore and returned home straight away," replied Miki, catching her reflection in the window and wiping the paint off with a handkerchief. "And it's your own fault for putting off your work duties; those dresses were supposed to be finished three days ago so the owners could pick them up tomorrow. Now…I hope you already ate, Amu, for it will take you quite a while to finish those dresses."

"Aren't you going to help me at least?" Amu asked weakly, though she already knew the answer. Miki simply raised an eyebrow and silently pointed to the messy canvas, which had bright and bold colors to represent her anger. Rima patted the taller girl on the shoulder gently before handing her the needle and string.

Amu sighed; she was in for a long night.

"Ow, dammit," muttered the pink haired girl, hours later, as she once again pricked her finger with her needle. She was normally excellent at avoiding doing such an amateur thing, but the lack of sleep had caught up to her. Finally, she let out a breath of relief as she put her last dress down. "Done at last!"

"Good morning, Amu," stated Rima as she entered the tailor shop, hanging her cloak on the coat rack next to the doorway. "Did you finish the dresses?"

"Yes, just now," replied Amu cheerfully before she realized what her friend had said. "Is it already morning?!" The petite blonde raised an eyebrow as she sat at her station.

"Yes, I suggest you go and freshen up," she remarked. "We have a busy day, what with the ball being this evening and all." The pinkette nodded, tossing her needle somewhere in the air as she dashed upstairs to the loft. Rima shook her head, sighing as she picked up her own needle and string. The bell from the door rang softly and a pair of arms wrapped around her waist, soft lips pressing against her cheek which made her turn around with a blush on her cheeks.

"Nagi, what are you doing here?" She whispered to her lover, smiling gently. Fujisaki Nagihiko, whose family owned the small dance studio in the southern kingdom, returned the smile.

"I wanted to see how you were doing," he replied, taking a spare chair and sitting next to her as she returned to her work. "I haven't had a chance to come by lately."

"Isn't the studio busy with all the last minute students who are rushing to learn how to dance on the off chance they get invited to the ball tonight?" Rima remarked, turning to a rather ugly plum colored dress that had a rip down the skirt. "Shouldn't you be there?"

"I should," agreed the long haired male, his eyes on her as she began sewing the hole back up. "However, I missed you." Her face was covered by her long blonde curls, but he could make out the blush on her cheeks along with the small smile. "Are the others here?"

"Miki left last night to be with her boyfriend, and Amu went to freshen up since she spent all night doing the work she was supposed to finish earlier," replied Rima. Her lover chuckled.

"That does sound like Amu," remarked Nagi just as the said pinkette walked back downstairs. "Ah, morning Amu."

"Nagi," exclaimed the seamstress, running to give her friend a hug. "Where have you been? You haven't been around the village lately."

"Yes, the studio has been busy," replied Nagi apologetically. "I missed my best friends though, and decided it was time to visit them. I love them as much as dancing after all."

"Aw, that's so sweet," gushed Amu, holding him tightly. "I love you too, Nagi!" Rima shook her head.

"Amu, if it had been any other girl in this situation," she started. "They'd be past dead right now."

"I know; that's why I do it," replied the pink haired girl, winking at her friend over Nagi's shoulder. He laughed as Rima stuck her tongue out, Amu finally releasing him.

"You two bring out the best in each other," remarked the long haired male. "Anyways, I wonder Amu…do you want me to help? I know how to sew pretty well." The seamstress looked ready to kiss him.

"Please," she exclaimed, tackling him to the ground. Rima watched the roll on the floor, not being able to hold back her giggles. Nagi looked so startled while her best friend attempted to squeeze the life out of him.

The three of them managed to get through the day, handing out the dresses to the maidens and altering their outfits so they would be ready for the ball. Finally, the customer Amu had been dreading walked in.

Lady Utau had her head held high as Il opened the door for her, Lulu and El trailing after her. She looked at Amu, wrinkling nose. "My dress needs to be altered."

"You can wait in line," said Rima coldly, not allowing her best friend to answer. The pink haired girl glanced nervously at the furious looking blonde and quickly hurried the dress she was working on, careful not to mess up, and turned to her.

"Please stand here," said Amu, gesturing to a small stand. Utau sighed impatiently, lifting her skirt and standing as the seamstress began working on her dress. Luckily, Utau was the last customer and she left as quickly as she came without any drama. Il and Lulu quickly followed but El remained behind.

"Hello, Amu," she greeted cheerfully, hugging her friend. Rima's eyes narrowed in jealousy but she remained silent. "Sorry I didn't come by yesterday; busy, busy, busy with the ball! I'm sure you all must have been busy as well today." Amu and Nagi smiled, nodding. "Oh, that reminds me! Are you coming to the ball?"

The pink haired girl looked down at the ground. "Ah…no. We are not the kind of people to receive invitations to such an event. Besides, people would just look down at us if were there."

El waved her hand dismissively, reaching into her dress pocket. "Here are some extra invitations sent to our house; please take them, Amu. Anyways, it's a masquerade ball so nobody will recognize you anyhow."

Amu took the envelopes in shock. "T-Thank you, El, but I cannot…mmph!" The last part was due to the fact that Rima had slapped her hand over her best friend's mouth. Nagi smiled kindly at the startled blonde.

"Thank you for the invitations; will you be there as well, or will you be attending to duties back at Lady Utau's home?" He asked and El shrugged.

"Whatever Utau-chan wants me to do," she replied before glancing out the window, where Il was impatiently waiting outside their carriage. "I should go before they leave me again." She smiled brightly at Amu. "Make sure you come okay? A pretty girl like you will have no trouble finding a partner there, so don't worry about bringing a date!"

She ran out and Amu just stared out the window, her eyes wide in shock. She was going to the biggest balls in history, and no doubt the prince and his other handsome friends were going to be there. Not to mention, Tadase would be there even though he was known for hating Ikuto, and would most likely recognize her for her pink hair and repeatedly ask for her hand in marriage.

Why did she feel like Cinderella at the moment, about to meet her prince charming?

Aha! So I finally update! I don't own Shugo Chara, by the way.

Sorry it took so long; I got distracted by my other stories and then I had writer's block. Thanks to everybody who reviewed; sorry if the chapter more or less sucked!