Here we are, one of my favourite chapters. Along with my favourite suitor! I also apologise on behalf of this suitor for how Belarus-ish he may seem in future chapters but hey, the Emperor of Japan (the original suitor for this point in the tale) was very persistent!

Tanoshimu!

Your suitor may suit you,
But his timing may not.
You may be in love too,
But marry him you cannot

"Sir, we've now arrived." The brown haired man whispered.

"Duly noted Toris! You may take your leave now." Another voice, emanating from the chair at the far end of the room, called.

Toris bowed politely before leaving the room and the other man rose from his chair to reveal dirty blond hair and a blue yukata decorated with pretty white markings like stars in the night sky. He looked up and smiled.

"Princess Igiko... I just can't wait to meet her. I know that many men have failed but I surely won't because I'm..."

"More mail... Seriously? Just because people seem to think I'm pretty doesn't mean that I'm worth anything. I may be rich, but that's not the point. Half of these look like romantic haikus, and others are probably from nobles wanting to be my friend and boost their popularity. Is no-one interested in me?" Igiko sighed.

She stared blankly at the piles of letters and haikus that lay before her. Did they expect her to write back? Igiko had never responded to anyone. Her father Yao had been polite enough to send thank-you letters on her behalf and Sakura had sent small tokens of appreciation but Igiko had never written to anyone personally. It made her a little sad really, but in truth there was no one that she wanted to respond to.

"Igiko-chan..." Yao called softly.

Then the door slid open and her father stood there wearing his formal green yukata. She smiled at her father politely- her father and mother were the only people she smiled to for they were the only ones she cared deeply about.

"It seems that another suitor is here to visit you-aru." Yao explained.

"Very well." Igiko sighed. "Send him-"

But before Igiko could give the full command, a flash of blue and traces of white brushed past her father and in walked a young blue eyed man. He was beaming proudly and his hands were on his hips. Igiko never usually took a proper look at her suitors, but how could she not with this one? After all, he was wearing a blue yukata- normally only worn in very informal cases but also he wore a vibrant red sash to accompany it.

Not that there was anything wrong with the red sash, but it was so bright and stood out greatly against the gentle blue and white yukata so it was quite a big clash really. Though his yukata was short, the hem was still dirty which surprised Igiko but she managed to control herself.

"Whoa! So you're the famed Britannia-hime? It's an honour!" He beamed.

"My name is Igiko Wang..." She whispered.

"So wait, are you English, Japanese or Chinese?" He asked curiously.

Igiko didn't know quite how to respond to that: she was none of the assumptions that the peppy young man had made. In fact, she wasn't anything that he was familiar with. The truth is, she was-

"Ah well that doesn't matter!" He continued. "So! My name is Alfred Jones- you can call me Alfred-kun or even Alfred-sama if you like!"

Fat chance, Igiko thought. Like I'd ever use such a highly respectful and admiring honorific for someone like him. What an idiot. Seriously his ego must be the size of Japan with all the rubbish he feeds it.

"Well err... This is embarrassing." Alfred laughed nervously.

"How so, Alfred?" Igiko asked.

Igiko had specifically not used an honorific for Alfred's name making Yao, who was still standing in the doorway, gasp a little with the word 'aiya' before leaving. Technically it was rude to not use an honorific for one's name, but Alfred didn't seem to notice.

"Well here I am, heart pounding fast and explaining myself yet you haven't spoken much." Alfred blushed.

"Yes. Generally Alfred, it's considered rude to burst into a room without some indication beforehand." Igiko explained.

"And generally it's rude not to use an honorific for someone's name unless you know them well but I guess we'll just call it even."

"I guess so."

"So..."

Silence.

"You know why I'm here right?"

"Like so many others, you intend to seek my hand in marriage, correct?"

Then Alfred's face lit up like one would expect a child to do when offered something that they want. A child. Igiko saw a big connection between Alfred and a small child. Even though she hadn't known him long, she could already tell what he must have been like in his childhood... And that wasn't necessarily a good thing.

"So, you'll marry me right?"

"No."

Surprisingly, Alfred's wide jack-o-lantern smile didn't falter or fade away. He remained as confident as ever, much to Igiko's horror. In fact, she was starting to crack ever so slightly and her mouth opened a tiny bit with shock.

"I was prepared for this. So I'm willing to travel to any end of the Earth to collect what you wish! Name your item and I won't stop until I've gotten my hands on it!" He declared.

There was silence for a few moments. Alfred expected her to send him looking for something extremely rare like the cowrie born from the swallows (a man had been lost looking for it after all). Even though the tasks were impossible, Alfred refused to believe it and was willing to travel anywhere in the world to find it for Igiko.

But after a few seconds, Igiko shook her head. This was what made his smile drop, and Igiko had to hold back a small triumphant smile for accomplishing this.

"Why? I'll do anything!" He whined.

"Because..." She began. "I could never go to the palace with you."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not of this country, neither am I of any other. I originate from Tsuki-no-Miyako."

"Tsuki-no-Miyako!" Alfred gasped. "That means..."

"Yes." She whispered. "Tsuki-no-Miyako: the Capital of the Moon."

Yeah Tsuki-no-Miyako means capital of the moon. Don't worry, I'll explain everything that you guys don't understand.

But yay! The sixth suitor is Alfred! I bet you guys like him don't you. As you may or may not have noticed, his personal butler was in fact Lithuania. Don't worry, at the end of this I'll be putting up everyone's role in the story so you can understand.

Oh something I'd like to point out. Kimonos and Yukatas. Kimonos are formal, worn by both men and women but Yukatas are slightly less formal and are worn at festivals and other casual occasions. You can see why most were shocked because one would expect you to wear a kimono when visiting a noble but also because nobles are generally required to wear kimonos. But hey, it's Alfred so the rules of 10th century Japan don't apply to him!

And another thing, honorifics. No honorific (e.g just Alfred) is for people you don't treat highly or know very well. -Kun is for young boys, -sama is for someone you greatly admire or respect, -chan is for a girl you know quite well and -san is just a generally polite honorific, generally for strangers.

So reviews and whatever you want.

Sayonara minna-san!

~Neko