Dinner was an awkward affair.

Ikuto was unbothered by the looks his parents were giving him, silently eating his meal like normal, while Kukai was oblivious as he stuffed his face. After a maid had found the study, she had woken up Emiko and Amu and taken them to the dining hall.

Souko sat at one end of the table while her husband sat on the opposite end. Kukai and Ikuto were seated by one another, separated by one seat, with Emiko across from the duke and Amu across from her fiancé.

Amu awkwardly ate, very much aware of the silence as she struggled to use all of the complicated silverware. It wasn't as much trouble as it would have been since Emiko was purposely making a show of which silverware she was using so that her new friend could see. She wasn't entirely sure if she should start a conversation or not, but she chose to silently eat her dinner.

It wasn't until dinner was cleared and dessert was served did somebody finally say something. Kukai looked over at the princess across from him. "Princess Emiko, did your parents say how long you were staying?" His manners were in place.

The crimson haired girl looked up at him, seemingly bored. "No. They simply requested that I find a maiden worthy of being my brother's wife and to not screw up my betrothal with whomever they have set me up with." Her reply was cold, which was what everybody expected considering her reputation.

"Speaking of wives," started Souko. "Amu, would you rather stay where you currently live or would you like to have a room in the castle?" The pink haired maiden looked up at the queen in surprise. "I understand if you choose to stay with your current dwelling."

Amu was silent for a few moments, debating her options. "If I choose to stay here, may I request if it is possible for my family to stay here as well?" The others looked surprised at her answer. "It would not be fair to them if I lived in such a luxurious place while they continued to struggle for a dinner."

Souko glanced at her son quickly, noting how he looked as stunned as she did, and smiled kindly at the fifteen-year-old. "That is a unique request, but it is not out of line. Of course your family can stay with us. We do not mind, right Aruto?" She turned to her husband, who knew better than to disagree with his wife when she used that tone with him.

"Of course, dear," he replied. "We shall have rooms prepared so that you all can move in by tomorrow. Now, how many people are in your family?"

"It is just my parents and my younger sister," replied Amu, looking quite relieved.

"Oh, well, then that could easily be arranged," said Souko, waving over a maid. "Could you please set up three rooms for Miss Hinamori and her family?" The maid nodded, curtseying as she scurried away to inform the other maids. It was unspoken that the rooms had to be the best for the prince's fiancée.

"Thank you," said Amu, smiling brightly at the king and queen. Meanwhile, the other three at the table exchanged looks. "I appreciate your willingness to take care of my family as well."

"Yes, of course," replied Aruto as the plates were cleared. "Hm, Ikuto, Kukai, how about you show the young ladies here around the castle since they will be staying with us?"

Ikuto didn't acknowledge his father as he stood and began to walk out of the dining hall, his face void of emotion as usual. Amu looked between the door and Kukai, confused as to what she should do.

Finally, the duke stood. "Princess, milady, shall we?" He walked around the table and helped both ladies stand. Well, he helped Amu stand; Emiko simply stared at his hand until he pulled it away, standing on her own. "Thank you for dinner," he said to the king and queen as he led the two females out of the dining hall.

"I have never seen you so…controlled," said Amu after a few moments of silence. The duke grinned at her.

"Well, it is best to always be on one's best behavior during events such as dinner," cut in Emiko. "And you may just call me by my name; it is much easier to catch my attention since there are over a hundred princesses." The last statement sounded bitter, though that might have been because she was one of several daughters in her family and felt unoriginal.

"If you insist, Emiko," replied Kukai. "And you may call me by my name…though I hope you realize that I will treat with much more familiarity."

"If you insist," repeated the princess. "Now, I believe you were showing us around the castle since the prince rudely walked out?"

"Ikuto acts like that, but he can be a nice guy," defended Kukai as they approached the garden. "Why is it I always find myself here when I'm not paying attention?"

"The garden is as beautiful as I remember it," whispered Amu, ignoring the other two as she examined the white roses nearby. She smiled as she noticed the fountain. "Although it looks even more radiant than it did before, especially under the full moon. No wonder Ikuto wanted to propose here."

"He proposed in here?" Emiko asked, her tone surprisingly wistful. "That…that is pretty romantic." She watched as her new friend walked around the garden, looking at everything.

Kukai gently nudged her arm, chuckling. "I would have never pegged you as the kind of person to swoon so easily over something as girly as a proposal." She blushed lightly, scowling at him.

"Every girl imagines the perfect proposal," replied the princess, crossing her arms. "I suppose it is something that will always be a dream since my fiancé remains a stranger; a stranger who is being forced to marry me."

The sixteen-year-old duke eyed her carefully, noticing how her eyes were clouded and how her mask had dropped so that he could see the sadness in her features. "You know, I think any guy marrying you would be pretty fortunate." Emiko looked up at him in surprise. "I have not known you long, but I can tell you are not like other princesses in the land."

Emiko's shoulders dropped. "Well, I am the wild card in the royal family," she said quietly, rubbing her bare arms as she shivered slightly. Kukai noticed and shrugged off his jacket, carefully placing it around her shoulders. She blushed but silently thanked him as she pulled it around herself. "I am going to find Amu." She quickly walked away.

Kukai watched her stop at the fountain, talking with the pink haired girl. He heard footsteps as Ikuto approached him. "She is different from what I expected." The prince wasn't sure if his friend was talking about the princess or his fiancée but nodded in agreement. "And where did you go, leaving your fiancée behind like that?"

"You handled the situation, didn't you?" Ikuto remarked. "Speaking of fiancées, you are sixteen. Shouldn't you be searching for a wife as well?"

The duke snorted. "As handsome as I may be, you said it yourself; the only way a girl would want to marry me is to have hold of my money and status, not that it's a lot. My older brothers receive most of the wealth and fame, so the girls crawl over them. That is one thing I do not envy."

His friend did not reply, knowing Kukai just needed to express his frustration. Ikuto knew the duke secretly wanted to find that one special girl, like any other person in the world, but most of the girls in the land were stuck-up and didn't suit his laidback personality.

Finally, Kukai nudged the prince. "What about you? I can see it in your eyes, clear as day, Ikuto. You clearly like Amu, though it may or may not be just infatuation. How do you expect her to be awed by your very presence if you keep treating her so coldly like you did in the dining hall?"

"Am I supposed to take love advice from someone four years younger than me?" The prince asked incredulously.

Kukai gave him a look. "Said the prince who is marrying a girl five years younger than him," he retorted. "Then again, my parents are twelve years apart."

"I suppose you're right," said Ikuto offhandedly, startling his friend. "I should spend time with my fiancée, not that we'll see much of each other when we are married. The queen has different duties of a king, and she knows nothing about being a queen."

"Well, I don't know her very well, but even I can see that Amu will not be a doting housewife or homemaker of any kind," replied Kukai. "You saw how she reacted back then. She values her family and friends, and will want to support and help them in any way she can. She will want to be a part of your work, even if you do not want her there."

"It is a trait not many females have when they search for a husband," said Ikuto, agreeing with his friend. "However, I imagine spending time with her will be tricky." Kukai raised an eyebrow in confusion. "She and Princess Emiko have clearly become close in their short time together, and surely Emiko will be a much better tutor for Amu than any we could have come up with. They will spend much time together while Amu waits for our wedding and while Emiko waits for her fiancé to show up."

Kukai caught onto what his friend was saying. Even if Ikuto did manage to get Amu alone with him, she would not want to abandon her new friend and most likely invite Emiko to tagalong. While Emiko would politely decline, Amu would feel guilty and spend more time with her, effectively cancelling any bonding she may have done with Ikuto.

"I will keep Emiko occupied when you and Amu are out," volunteered the duke.

Ikuto nodded. "Tomorrow, I plan on taking Amu to one of the towers so make sure Emiko is occupied."

"You sound as if I am purposely keeping your fiancée from you."

Kukai jumped and while Ikuto did not make any movement, he was clearly just as startled. Very few people managed to sneak up on him.

Emiko saw their surprise and smirked. "Amu wanted to spend the night with her family and tell them the news, so she left a few minutes ago," she explained when she saw them look around for the pink haired seamstress.

Ikuto recovered his composure, nodding at her. "Very well; I bid you good night, princess." She nodded, crossing her arms casually as he left the garden with the two teenagers alone under the moonlight.

Kukai glanced at her. "You know, you are nothing like the rumors." He saw her stiffen slightly.

"What do you mean?" She asked. The duke gestured towards the fountain, silently asking her to sit down with him. Reluctantly, she did. "What are said in these rumors?"

"Something tells me you already know," replied Kukai. "However, I will tell you if you wish. The rumors say that you are very impolite and brash, and you would rather act like a ferocious and idiotic baboon in a unique way to disgrace your family name."

"Nothing would please more than to humiliate my family," said Emiko bitterly. "I suppose you believed these rumors?"

"I did, for a short time," he admitted with a sheepish expression. "However, I also used to think all girls were stuck-up snobs and that Ikuto was a heartless person who was not capable of ever loving somebody. I learned that is not best to judge a person before getting to know them." Kukai looked at her, seeing she was still wearing his jacket, and couldn't help but smile. "I would like to know about you, Emiko. In exchange, I will answer any question you have about me."

Emiko, for the second time that day, felt an odd emotion in her chest. First, she found a friend in a commoner who ended up being the fiancée of one of the most wanted men in the world. Then she learned that the commoner was nothing like the people she had grown up with. And now she was faced with somebody who wanted to get to know the real her.

It made her feel warm inside, knowing somebody cared.

The crimson red haired beauty let out a small sigh. "Well, I am the third eldest of King Kora and Queen Melodia of the Lunar Kingdom. I have six other siblings, and I am the only one who looks different. They all look like my parents, with their perfect silky hair the color of rich chocolate and enchanting emerald green eyes that sparkle with pure perfection." She let out another sigh. "There was an upset when I was born and people saw my features, all thinking there had been an affair somewhere along the lines of the king and queen's relationship. Although nobody could prove it, and my parents denied it since a scandal was too much risk of ruining their perfect reputation, I was naturally looked down on by everyone. I was hated by my own parents, my own family."

Kukai watched her, listening intently. So far, her childhood had a striking resemblance to his. He gestured for her to continue.

Emiko bit her lip. "My siblings teased me, mocked me, pulled dirty tricks on me; they knew they would not get in trouble for it. However, if I tried to do any of those things in response, I would be treated like an animal caught in the kitchen. Yes, I was educated and raised properly, but I felt like I was being modeled into something I wasn't. My brothers and sisters were all gifts to the world in the kingdom's eyes, and I was simply an annoying stain that would not go away. I felt unwanted, and I had no idea why. For several years, I did everything I could to please my parents and make them love me like they loved their other children. It was not until I turned nine did I realize they would never treat me like their daughter, not even if I saved their lives. I gave up on becoming what they wanted and did what only I wanted to do." She smiled sadly.

"I suppose that was how my legend of being the 'wild card' of the land was born. My biggest desire was to escape from that land and their horrible, judgmental people. When my eldest brother's fiancée abandoned him for another prince, my parents decided it was time for me to leave their home once and for all. They sent me here, knowing there would be many bachelorettes in the land from the prince's ball, and ordered that I not come back until I find my brother a wife. They also gave up many jewels to another kingdom so that the prince there could marry me, and get me out of their hair."

"That sounds horrible," said Kukai after several moments. She nodded, staring at the ground. He then remembered something she had said. "What about your second eldest brother?"

"Evan is the oldest, and then comes Elliot, who just turned nineteen," replied Emiko, smirking as if amused. "Evan had a fiancée who left him, and normally, Elliot would take the throne if our brother cannot. However…Elliot was caught in quite a compromising position and was denied the throne immediately, though he is somehow still more loved than I am."

"Oh, was he caught with a maid?" Kukai asked, becoming even more confused when she began to chuckle.

"No, something more horrifying to our parents," said the princess. "He was caught in the bedroom, half naked, with our royal advisor, Jonathon." She began to laugh when the duke blanched, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. "Well, at least we figured out why he always turned down the young maidens in the kingdom. It turns out he likes them with gray hair and of the same gender."

Kukai was shaking his head at her crude joke, watching her shake with laughter. "I imagine your family must have been furious."

"Yes, it was quite amusing," agreed Emiko, calming. "I personally have nothing against that, but my opinion is never asked for or cared about." She looked at him. "And you? What was your upbringing like?"

The duke sighed. "My childhood is similar, though it is also different. I am the youngest of five, and I have nothing but brothers. It is nothing compared to your tale, I'm afraid to say. It was just…anything I achieved had already been done by at least one of my brothers and my parents did not give it much attention. I was loved, but constantly overlooked." Emiko nodded understandingly as he struggled to find the right words. "I supposed the age difference between us also complicated things. All of them are either in their late twenties or early thirties. I would not say they hated me, but I sometimes wondered if that was how brothers were supposed to act. I guess they wanted me to be a strong character and treated me like I was. It was their way of caring, I suppose. But I always felt like a bother, so Souko and Aruto-who were good friends with my parents-volunteered to take care of me when I turned ten. My parents, busy with finding wives for my brothers, were very grateful and agreed. I met Ikuto and though our personalities clashed at first, we became good friends. Sometimes I forget that we are not really brothers."

Emiko felt like there was more to the story and raised an eyebrow at him. "But…?"

Kukai ran his fingers through his hair. "Now that my family is situated, my parents want me to find a wife as well. They have been very patient about it, seeing as they are still exhausted from planning four other weddings, but soon they will grow persistent and find a wife for me if I do not manage to."

"So it seems we are in similar boats," remarked Emiko, looking sympathetic. He noticed her look and shrugged.

"Your boat is on rockier waves than mine," said Kukai, suddenly feeling fatigued. He fought the urge to yawn. "Thank you for sharing your story with me, but I do believe there are things still unknown about you." He grinned mischievously, making her feel uneasy as she stared at him warily. "Prepare yourself, princess, for I will find out the real you."

Emiko blushed brightly. "Well…you would be the first to do so."

"Would you like to join me tomorrow?" Kukai asked. "I honestly have no plans but I am sure we can find something to do." His eyes lit up. "Perhaps we can climb to the top of the tower and throw satchels of pudding at people!"

The princess gave him an incredulous look, making him shrivel back. "How immature," she scolded, and he began to apologize. "If you are going to do such a thing, you should make it as sticky and foul smelling as you can. Personally, I would put in a jar of ink with several scoops of fresh mud. Sometimes if you do not like your target, it is best to place some critters in there as well."

Kukai's jaw dropped, staring at her as she slipped off his jacket and handed it to him with a smirk on her lips. "Well, if you do not mind, I am heading off to bed. Thank you for listening, and for sharing your story as well." She began to walk away, but stopped to glance over her shoulder. "And yes, I will join you tomorrow." She then disappeared into the castle, leaving behind a baffled duke.

From his balcony directly above the garden, Ikuto smirked. Tomorrow was going to be more interesting than he thought. "Perhaps," he said quietly to himself as he made his way back into his bedroom. "More than one relationship will blossom over time."

I don't own Shugo Chara!

So first, I guess this chapter was more or less to begin a relationship between Emiko and Kukai. It was also to explain her past, and why she is who she is.

BUT DO NOT WORRY, PEOPLE!

Next chapter, I will have fluffy Amuto to serve on a silver platter! That is, if my imagination does not stray off.

I'm just warning you now. Everything will seem all fluffy and romantic for now, with Ikuto and Kukai both falling in love with two unique girls, but you know how these stories go. Trouble will appear soon enough, most likely in the form of an annoying blonde. I'll leave you guessing to which blonde I'm talking about.

Hm, nothing new to talk about really.

Don't hesitate to tell me about any mistakes you caught or what you really thought about this chapter! Any advice will be taken in consideration, so I hope I get something a little deeper than "great story, update soon". I appreciate the review, don't get me wrong, but I would like to know a bit more. I don't know; perhaps I'm being picky about reviews? I just want to know what about the story you like or didn't like so I know what I'm doing.

And I ended up rambling, dammit. Well, maybe the last paragraph wasn't rambling but nevertheless…