Disclaimer: 1/2 Prince belongs to Yu Wo!
A/N: Waaaah! Thanks for all the reviews! I just about died at the amount of reviews coming in for the last chapter. Sorry I didn't get this up sooner. School started and then I had a root canal and was on vicodin for a few days (yaaaaay) and then I had to get re-caught up in schoolwork...and...well...enough explaining. Please enjoy chapter four of Stolen Kisses. (^-^)v
Special thanks to my new beta-reader Astroelvengoddess! You're awesome. :)
Chapter Four
Prince searched desperately around the castle. "Meatbun!" Where was that little bun of meat? He was stressed out and needed someone to comfort him. The talk with Zhuo-gege had helped immensely, but aside from Wicked, Prince didn't really feel like associating with any of the other players. Hence his—now turned—two hour search for his beloved pet. "Meatbun!"
Doll appeared out of nowhere, startling the handsome lord. "Is Prince looking for his meatbun?" she gazed at him questioningly. He blinked at her in surprise.
"Ah, Doll, yes I am. Have you seen him?" Prince scratched the back of his head, giving her a charming smile.
"No," Doll answered. "But Prince should really keep better track of his pets."
Prince frowned at her. "I'll keep looking."
"Wait," Doll halted him, one finger pressed to her lips in thought. "Now that I think about it, he might've been in the Infinite Café."
Prince hugged Doll. "You're a life-saver!"
"Anytime, Prince." She smiled as he ran down the corridor. Prince was a good lord and a good friend. You didn't often meet people as genuine and loyal as him. Prince didn't know it, but she'd seen him pass out in Gui's arms the previous night. The corners of her mouth turned down. She couldn't be certain, but from her vantage point it almost looked like Prince was about to kiss the older man. She was relieved when all Prince did was slump over and exit the game. "Please be careful, my lord," she whispered as his cloak whipped around the corner. "I don't think any of us can bear to have that innocent smile wiped off your face."
~o~0~o~
"Meatbun!" Prince exclaimed, rounding the corner into the Infinite Café, Yu Lian's newest money-making scheme. The several dozen restaurant-goers looked up at the sound of Prince's voice. Female players in the vicinity immediately fainted at the sight of Prince's undiluted, radiant smile upon finding his tiny pet. The NPC at the counter merely sighed as a female customer fell head first into her bowl of soup. Neither Prince nor Meatbun noticed.
"Mama!" Meatbun cried, jumping into Prince's awaiting arms. "You're home!"
"Meatbun, I've been looking all over for you!" Prince crushed the tiny meat bun to his chest. Meatbun squee-ed in delight. How was it possible for one tiny globular figure to be so cute? Prince didn't know and frankly he didn't care. All he wanted to do was lock himself up in his room away from all his problems and snuggle with the tiny creature. "You look well-fed," Prince noted, as Meatbun hopped atop his head and began bouncing. "How many meat buns did you eat?"
"Fifty!"
Prince sweat dropped as he turned to see the weary look on the cook NPC's face. "Meatbun…"
"And Meatbun also played with Firebirdy!" Meatbun shouted merrily.
"Firebirdy?" Prince took a sharp intake of breath. "Then that must mean…"
"Hello, Prince," Gui's voice cut through the air. It sounded cold…and angry.
"Gui!" Prince spun around, flailing his arms and nearly causing Meatbun to fall off his head. "Eh? What are you doing here?"
Gui's eyes narrowed. "I could ask you the same." He glanced over Prince's shoulder. "Where is Wicked?"
Prince looked confused. What kind of question was that? And why was Gui acting like this? It was quite uncharacteristic of him. Despite Prince wanting to ask these questions, for some reason the only word able to come out of his mouth was, "Huh?"
Gui's eyes smoldered. It was like he was channeling the fire phoenix sitting on his shoulder. "I saw you earlier with Wicked," he spoke as if the words burned his throat. "You two looked rather…cozy."
Prince blinked. "I have no idea what you're- oh. Oooohhh." Prince's eyes widened in understanding. Then he started panicking. "Holy crap. What did you see? What did you hear?"
"I didn't hear anything," Gui crossed his arms and looked away, missing the immense look of relief that passed across the elf's face. "But you should really stop flirting around with every male player in the vicinity."
The restaurant-goers gasped. The female players that had all just re-awoken abruptly fainted again. Prince gaped at the bard. He thought…whaaat?
Silence. Then…
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Prince doubled over laughing and pointed at the now-flustered bard. "I can't believe you seriously thought that's what was going on!" The elf was practically in tears from laughing so hard. "Is that what's got you all worked up right now, Guilliastes?"
Gui flushed deeply from his ears to his toes. "I…what…er…of course not!" he muttered sullenly, though he was secretly pleased he had misread the situation. The sound of Prince's laughter was like music to his ears. It was hard not to smile despite his deep embarrassment.
Meatbun jumped up and down. "Mama doesn't like Wicked like that, silly!" Even Firephoenix cooed in amusement.
"What is going on in here?" Yu Lian ran in, taking note of all the passed-out female customers. She caught sight of Prince's glowing face and immediately put two and two together. "Your highness!" she shrieked.
Prince whirled around, laughter cut short. "Yu Lian?" he grimaced as the anger levels rose on her face. "I swear I didn't do anything."
"Except make the entire female population faint at the sight of you!" She thrust his masquerade mask into his arms. "Put this on."
Prince glanced around the room, noticing for the first time the amount of players slumped over in their seats with little hearts swirling in their eyes. "Oh…" Gui had to stifle the chuckle rising in his throat.
"What do you have to say for yourself, Prince?" Yu Lian glared at the lord's crestfallen face with her hands on her hips. That lady was really too scary when it came to business. Prince gulped.
"It wasn't me?" he tried weakly.
"Nice try. You're just lucky that-"
"Yu Lian!" Ugly Wolf's stern voice rose over the commotion of Prince being scolded by the gorgeous mage. Yu Lian turned around at her husband's voice. Her face crinkled up.
"But sweetheart, he-"
"Has a lot on his mind," Ugly Wolf finished and gave Prince a very pointed look. "Don't you, Prince?"
Prince's eyes widened. "Um…" he gulped. Surely Wolf-dage couldn't have figured it out? That time the doctor had looked at her in the garden had to be a fluke, right? Prince swallowed nervously.
"What's going on here?" Gui interjected, looking wildly between Ugly Wolf and Prince and trying to understand their stare-down. "Is there something I should know?"
Prince shook his head. "No, absolutely nothing. I have to go." He grabbed Meatbun and swept towards the door. Gui grabbed his arm.
"Wait!"
Prince shook him off, ignoring him completely. "I'm afraid I won't be around much the next couple days," he spoke, looking past Gui to Ugly Wolf and Yu Lian. "I've got stuff I need to attend to in the real world. I'll be logging in late for a while." He turned.
"I know." Ugly Wolf's voice sounded extremely loud in the silence, causing Prince to halt.
The Blood Elf paled. "Of course you do," he muttered and then forced himself to speak a little louder, "Take care while I'm gone!" Before anyone could say anything else, he dashed out of sight taking a squealing Meatbun with him.
Gui turned around to look at his hairy friend. "Wolf-ge, what's going on?"
Ugly Wolf shook his head. Yu Lian looked on in confusion too. "I wish I could tell you both. But you'll just have to figure it out on your own."
"Wolf-ge…"
His friend stopped. "Gui," he spoke quietly. "I hope you make it through this next week." And with that, Ugly Wolf turned with Yu Lian in hand, leaving the bard in complete and utter confusion.
~o~0~o~
Day One of Detention. Day One of Doom.
Perhaps that was a bit melodramatic. But Feng Lan couldn't think of anything more sinister than having to spend an extra hour with Min Gui Wen. She rapped her fingers against the desk nervously while Professor Min poured over her class' essays from last week. "Will you please stop that incessant drumming?" He spoke slowly and deliberately while giving her a fierce look. "I'm trying to grade papers."
Feng Lan bit her lip and obediently put her hands in her lap. "Sorry, Professor," she mumbled.
So far it had gone well. Professor Min hadn't really paid her much attention. He spent most of his time running his hands through his hair and sighing loudly while marking papers. Feng Lan didn't really have anything else to do except stare around the room. Inevitably staring around the room would result in staring at Professor Min because she couldn't do anything except remain in her seat. Thus, she'd had plenty of time to examine him thoroughly.
He was rather cute, she forced herself to admit. His brows periodically furrowed up in confusion. Sometimes he'd have to re-read a sentence twice. She hoped her essay wouldn't make him frown in disdain like so many others did. Their topic had been quite difficult and she'd spent countless hours in the library researching for it. Professor Min was a genius, and he seemed to expect his students to achieve high marks as well.
"Feng Lan." His voice broke her out of her quiet daydreaming.
"Hm?" She looked up. The professor fixed his unnerving gaze on her. She could feel herself start to flush again.
"Your hour's up. You can leave now."
"It is?" Feng Lan glanced at the clock. Sure enough, one hour had gone by in no time. She smiled to herself as she picked up her satchel to leave. If every day was like this, this detention would be a piece of cake. "Right, Professor. See you tomorrow!" She practically bounced out the door.
He watched her retreating figure and forced himself to look back at the massive pile of essays strewn across his desk. He heaved a heavy sigh as he picked up another one. "It's not like I have anything better to do," he muttered. With Prince not logging into the game right away, he didn't have anything to rush home to. He couldn't shake the feeling that Ugly Wolf was hiding something from him. That man knew what Prince was up to. Gui concluded he might even know who Prince was. Why his friend wouldn't tell him was the greatest mystery. He swore under his breath as he eyed the next essay in fierce determination. "I will figure out who you are, Prince. Mark my word."
~0~o~0~
A/N: Still not entirely finished with the next chapter yet. But here is a taste of what you can look forward to. Now back to my homework (and trust me, I'd much rather be working on this story than reading about illocutionary acts. Yeah, say that three times fast).
Preview next chapter:
Feng Lan's eyes narrowed. Oops. Had he said that out loud? And why was she glaring at him? Come to think of it, why did the thought of him with Prince make her so upset? He smirked as the pieces fell into place. She must have a crush on his handsome little elf. But unlike Gui, he knew she'd never have a chance.
"Why are you so obsessed with him?" she finally asked, confirming (for Gui) her unrequited love with the elf.
Professor Min snorted. He didn't have time to deal with the emotions of this silly, immature teenage girl with her superficial schoolgirl crush on the man he loved. He smirked wickedly in the hopes that his mere happiness irked her. The corners of his mouth twitched up in amusement as he saw her scowl deepen. "Why is anyone?" he retorted.