Chapter 4

Kahoko sat on a gilded chaise lounge in the corner of the ball room, munching on some little tidbits. She felt a bit lonely, just staring at the crowd. The atmosphere was lively, with a cacophony of genteel, feminine voices and a few deeper, masculine voices chatting and laughing. In the background, an orchestra was playing waltzes and some people were happily dancing in the center of the ball room. She had been asked to dance numerous times, but she kept politely declining. She felt…disappointment when she saw how coldly Len had treated her. 'It's not like I care that much about what that stupid ice-cube thinks, anyway!' she argued with herself. How rude he was! Not at all like she had imagined. 'I have no idea why I liked such a meanie in the first place' Kahoko pouted. Just then she heard a familiar "Kaho!" and immediately spun to face the direction which the voice came from.

Sure enough, she saw a handsome green-haired lad sprinting towards her. "Kazuki!" she called and embraced her best friend in a hug. She heard a few jealous "ehhh!"'s coming from the crowd and grinned a bit. She was used to girl's being attracted to Kazuki, but it was no surprise. After all, Kazuki was kind, caring, cheerful and handsome, and to top it off, he was of noble blood. Once the two had stopped hugging, Kahoko noticed a few more familiar faces.

"Yo!" grinned Ryoutaro.

"Hello…Kahoko…" came Keiichi's soft voice before he yawned.

"Good evening, Kahoko," smiled Azuma with a bow.

"He…hello, Kaho," piped up Shouko shyly.

"Hey everyone!" Kahoko waved.

All of them looked almost exactly like they did when they were kids, just bigger. Maybe Azuma's hair now flowed down his back, and Ryoutaro's shoulders were broader from all that soccer he played, but everyone was more or less the same.

The group of (royal) friends sat down at a small round table, chatting happily. Many people glanced at the group in awe (not that they noticed, of course) But who could blame them? The whole group radiated the superior, elite glow of sophisticated royals. Plus, they were all good-looking, so it was hard not to notice them.

Kahoko felt somewhat better and more like her usual cheery self; as was the normal effect when she conversed with her good friends. She was just complimenting Shouko on her dress(cream trimmed with pink silk roses)when she heard Queen Misa's voice echoing throughout the hall. She looked up to see Queen Misa at the second level, a microphone in hand.

"I'd like to thank all of you for turning up today!" she beamed "As you know, each eligible young maiden is to perform. One will be chosen by Prince Len to stay with him for a month. I am now happy to announce that the competition will be commencing shortly; all participants please follow the head butler to the dressing room."

A wave of excited chitters came from the sea of girls and they quickly rushed towards the head butler, Edward. Kahoko got up with a sigh; after meeting Len face to face and finally talking to him after so many years, Kahoko decided she wasn't so keen on participating in this competition anymore. But it was too late to back out now; she might as well just try her best. 'It's highly unlikely that I will be chosen among so many others,' she comforted herself. She started walking away when she halted, remembering something.

"Azuma, do you, by any chance, have your flute with you tonight?" she asked her violet haired friend.

"Silly girl, you should know me by now. Of course I do, I'm never without it!" the boy laughed lightly, rapping his knuckles lightly on Kahoko's head.

"Great!" Kahoko grinned and whispered something in Azuma's ear. He chuckled and nodded in response. "Thanks, Azuma!" Kahoko shouted over her shoulder and rushed off to where all the other girls were.

The girls were lined up in a long row and lead to a large, long room. Dressing tables and mirrors lined both sides of the room. They were then each handed a card with a number. '1-0-1' Kahoko read on hers. "The number on your card is the number of your table. Please find your table and prepare for your performance. You will find all your things at your table." The head butler announced. Immediately, the girls started rushing around, frantically searching for their tables.

Kahoko was swept away with the stream of girls, but somehow managed to squeeze out of the crowd and find her table. She found her black violin case on her table, and opened it. As usual, her violin and bow were nestled in the velvet lined box. The familiar sight of her instrument calmed Kahoko's frayed nerves slightly. She stroked her violin tenderly as though it were her beloved pet. Then she started getting ready; first she rubbed a fresh powdery coat of rosin on her bow and tuned her violin. She played a few simple scales and arpeggios on it, making sure it was in tip top condition. Although she was no longer interested in winning this competition, she didn't want to put up a sloppy performance.

After that, there wasn't much to do. She just sat on her chair swinging her legs, sometimes adjusting her make-up or clothes or hair but really, there wasn't anything else she could do besides wait. The competition had already begun and every so often another girl would be called out and disappear behind the door from which they had entered. Kahoko could feel butterflies fluttering in her stomach; it was the same every time before a performance. She'd start getting nervous and her hands would begin to get sweaty. She would imagine all the worst-case scenarios coming true; playing totally off key, falling flat on her face, something horrible like that.

Just as Kahoko was imagining tripping and falling down the stage, revealing her underwear to the world, she heard the butler's clipped voice call "Miss Kahoko, you are next." She shakily got up and picked up her violin and bow. She felt all eyes trained on her a she walked towards the door, and even more butterflies appeared.

She strode out the door and the head butler led her to a tiny squashed holding room. Then the butler handed her a black hooded cape and a black mask, and told her to put it on. "The prince is not to see the participant's face, lest he may be biased." He explained. 'Darn! All that dressing up for nothing!' Kahoko pouted to herself as she slipped on the mask.

After about 5 more minutes, Kahoko heard a thunderous applause. A girl entered the room not long after, she removed her mask to reveal a beam and twinkling eyes. She left the room, and Kahoko knew her time had come.

Making her way through a dimly lit corridor, Kahoko tried to blank her mind from any thoughts that might distract her. She saw the stage and quickly took a deep breath before stepping into the bright stage light.

For a moment, the glaring lights blinded Kahoko, but when she recovered she saw a swarm of heads in front of her. 'There must be a thousand people here!' she panicked and felt like running back into the wings. But she steadied herself yelling to herself 'You've done this tons of times! Get a grip on yourself, scaredy cat!' Then she realized Azuma wasn't there, and once again, panic gripped her. Just when she felt she was on the point of hyperventilation, she saw the familiar purple head and dashing face. Azuma gracefully climbed onto the stage, silver flute in hand. He gave her a reassuring smile before taking his place next to her. He lifted his flute to his lips and she raised her violin and bow, there was a second of tense silence before, in silent agreement, the two started playing.

For a dangerous moment, Kahko's mind was scarily blank but the minute Kahoko heard Azuma's flute everything came flooding back to her and with the utmost ease, she started playing. This was one of her favourite songs and she knew it like the back of her hand. Her eyes shut and a genteel smile on her face, Kahoko was completely absorbed. Too absorbed to see the audiences beaming faces as they took in her beautiful playing. Flute and violin combined to create a masterpiece and even Len couldn't help but respect Kahoko's amazing skill as he listened from his throne on the balcony. 'This girl is good…but not as good as me, of course!' Len's pomposity still didn't change.

When the song ended, the whole ball room was deadly quiet for a moment, and Kahoko left her reverie. Her eyes snapped open. She started to tremble…could it be that they detested her playing? But all her doubts were tossed away when the ball room erupted into cheers, she heard clapping and lots of "Bravo!"'s and even whistling. Her face had the word 'shock' written all over it before she broke into a huge, dazzling smile. She swept into and elegant curtsy and quickly clambered down the stage before she remembered she was supposed to go back into the wings. Embarrassed and frazzled, she quickly jumped back onto the stage and ran into the wings at the speed of light, a black blur. But not before Len caught a streak of crimson as her hood fell off.

Immediately, he knew who she was.

He smirked as he leaned back into his throne. 'So…it's her, isn't it,' he thought to himself. He chuckled as he remembered her terrified face when he had glared at her. 'Does she think she'll get away with disturbing my practice? (Len loves holding grudges, by the way) Of course not! I'll make her pay, since I now know which one she is,' he thought with sinister glee as he leaned towards his mother's ear and whispered "I pick her."

Hope you like this chapter! The song I imagined Kahoko and Azuma playing is called "Tonari No Totoro" the violin version, of course. The childish, cheerful feel made me think of her. Okay, I know my Len is very 'dark Azuma' now, I am so sorry! I didn't intend him to be like that but…oh well… Anyway, I promise he will become more Len like soon! Please R n R!