Disclaimer: Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure belongs to Atlus and its respective owners. I own this humble fanfiction (unfortunately not Ferdinand, but I own his thoughts, I suppose.)

A/N: We're back with Chapter Ten, in which Ferdinand realizes how many things he has not accounted for… And I'm sorry, but you get another filler chapter of dialogue. Even though this story is mostly filler. But the intermissions between the events need to be filled with something, right?

Rhapsody: The Princely Chronicles

Chapter Ten

Prince Ferdinand walked through the bustling castle toward his room, flanked by Franz and Phillip. He was worried about how Cornet was doing, but he trusted Hans to send him word if something were to happen. For now, he could only pray that she would be well enough to compete in the Third Round in a couple of hours. (That was flexible, though, depending on Cornet's status. Schedule flexibility was one of the perks when there were only two contestants.)

He really wanted to visit Cornet himself to check on her with his own eyes (and maybe have that conversation that they did not have), but that would not be a good idea. Not only was the castle swarming with people, limiting his movement, it would cause undue rumors at this stage if he were to see her. He couldn't put her in a bad position, especially with Minister Golonzo skulking around and trying to prove that she was the "assassin." (And, despite his highest hopes, what if she did have a boyfriend, and his actions caused tensions between them? But then again, if she had a boyfriend, would she even be competing in this contest? Probably not. That conclusion brought some hope to Ferdinand and eased that earlier concern.)

As soon as they had entered his hallway and stopped outside Prince Ferdinand's room, Franz turned to Phillip and said, "All right. I've waited long enough. What's the girl's name, Phillip?"

Ferdinand turned to Phillip in time to see a light blush creep across his cheeks. Interesting. Ferdinand couldn't help his grin when he asked, "Do you have a girlfriend now, Phillip?"

Phillip looked nervously at Ferdinand, and Ferdinand remembered belatedly that the guards were not supposed to be seeing people on duty. Chances were, then, he had met this girl while he was on duty. Furthermore, given the nature of the Miss Marl's Contest and the rate at which guards found their wives during the contest, he had probably just met her.

Franz waved his hand dismissively and said, "Oh, don't worry about it, Phillip. His Highness isn't gonna tell on you. Besides, it happens all the time. This contest how we all find our wives and girlfriends, being cooped up in this castle—even the Prince, because this whole contest is to help him find a wife. Now, c'mon, spill!"

Ferdinand blushed as Phillip's blush deepened. The prince wished that Franz hadn't brought him into this discussion, but then again, everything Franz said had been true. This contest was to help him find a wife. Consequently, if the guards found wives in the process—although Ferdinand would be a little jealous at their sooner luck—Ferdinand wouldn't hold it against them.

"It is all right, Phillip. You're not going to get in trouble," Prince Ferdinand assured the guard. "If you found a girlfriend or wife, I would be happy for you, not condemn you."

Phillip stared at the floor for another moment, and Ferdinand was content to let the attention be on Phillip again. "She…" The guard held his spear in a death-grip. Finally, he murmured, "Her name's Chiara. She's an angel if there ever was one!" He looked back up, a dreamy expression on his face.

Ferdinand had never seen Phillip melt before, and if 'cute' was not an unmanly term to use, he might have used it to describe Phillip while the guard was thinking about the girl that he had apparently just met.

"Chiara came here for the contest, but before she pulled out of the Leadership Round to avoid Etoile, she asked me if I'd fight for her. There was just something about her that struck me. Maybe it was the way that her hair framed her face, maybe it was her eyes, maybe it was her cute dress, but…" Phillip trailed off.

Franz laughed. "The way I heard it from Garrett, you were sold when she began conversing with you about the palace weapons, Phillip."

Phillip's face burned a darker red, but it faded when he looked up excitedly. "Oh, come on, Franz," he laughed excitedly. "What guy doesn't appreciate it when a girl can speak his language? She knew exactly what kind of spear I was holding! I think that she's a blacksmith's daughter." Phillip grinned. "Eh, it doesn't matter. I don't know how she feels, but I know that I'm in love. Besides, she asked me to fight for her when she could have asked anyone. That has to mean something, right? She chose me."

"Oh, move over, lover boy, and allow the Prince into his room," Franz teased, giving Phillip a good-natured shove as Phillip laughed and protested playfully.

Prince Ferdinand laughed. It was nice to see his soldiers so joyous and finding love.

Now, if only Ferdinand could be that happy someday…

Ferdinand shut his door behind him with a quiet click, having a feeling that he would not have solitude for very long, given the current trend (and the look that his mother had given him, promising a later discussion). He would have to take advantage of the time while he had it.

There was work for him to finish before his tutor arrived, but due to the contest, his lessons had been postponed for another couple of days. Maybe a nap was in order; he desperately needed one. If he didn't accept the rest, he would surely fall asleep over his work. If all the paths ended in sleep, he might as well make himself comfortable.

Ferdinand was surprised that he succeeded in attaining a half-hour nap before his mother arrived. Her light knock and quiet opening and shutting of his door returned the awakened prince to the world outside of his slumber. Ferdinand sat up slowly, stretching as he yawned.

Upon the sight of her son, his mother grinned teasingly, not even attempting to hide it behind her fan as she sat down in her chair. "Good morning, Sir Bedhead."

Ferdinand hurriedly fixed his wayward hair, a light blush on his face. He slid off his bed and, moving his chair a little closer to the queen, sat down. "What is it, Mom?"

The moment gone, his mother became uncharacteristically serious. Ferdinand's eyebrows creased at her in confusion. Queen Siegrind took a breath and said, "We need to discuss your friend."

Something cold dropped into the pit of Ferdinand's stomach. "Is something wrong with her? Did she become seriously injured during the fight?"

His mother smiled lightly, shaking her head. "No, no. Nothing like that," the queen assured, and Ferdinand exhaled in relief. His mother continued, "As far as I know, she is recovering just fine. I have heard nothing to the contrary, at the very least. What I really wanted to say was that you and your friend need to be really careful."

Ferdinand raised an eyebrow. "Careful, how?"

"Minister Golonzo was very intent upon the match between Etoile and Cornet, but he was paying particular attention to Cornet. It was good that the fairy puppet that you described, Kururu, was not around, because she would have been much more distinctive than attempting to single out one girl. Cornet's abilities as a puppeteer, however, will be a double-edged sword for her."

"How so?" Ferdinand asked. "I thought that we already ascertained that, if she had skills as a puppeteer, it was a greater chance that she would be a relative of Mustaki. As a relative of Mustaki, she would have greater political protection from Minister Golonzo."

Queen Siegrind nodded. "That is true, but it also proves her equally capable of controlling puppets. Even a fairy puppet."

Ferdinand's eyes widened. He had not thought about that. But— He looked up determinedly. "Minister Golonzo cannot prove anything. Simply because Cornet has puppetry skills does not conclude that she owns Kururu."

"However, neither do her puppetry skills certify that she is a relative of Mustaki," his mother reasoned in turn. "The Leadership Round has done nothing more or less than portray Cornet as Golonzo's likely "assassin," but thankfully, it has not concluded anything that could condemn her in his eyes. However, it has not concluded that is a relative of Mustaki, either, so—"

"—While he cannot accuse her publicly, Cornet also has no guarantee of political protection," Ferdinand concluded.

Queen Siegrind nodded. "The best thing to do would be to warn Cornet that she should not be seen with Kururu. That will be difficult to do away from Minister Golonzo, though. He tends to appear the most when he is not required." She paused.

Someone knocked on the door. A voice called, "It is Hans, Your Highness. May I have permission to enter?"

Hans! "You may enter," Ferdinand called.

The door opened swiftly, and Hans stepped inside. He inclined his head toward Queen Siegrind. "My Queen." Upon Queen Siegrind's acknowledgement, he turned to the prince. "Prince Ferdinand." Ferdinand returned the greeting, and then Hans continued, "I have news from the physician about Cornet's condition, Your Highness."

Ferdinand decided to focus on Hans instead of the raised eyebrow and teasing smile that his mother sent him. He asked, "How is Cornet doing, Hans?"

"Cornet is recovering smoothly. She had no serious injuries beyond some scrapes and bruises. In fact, they should be healed in time for the dance."

Ferdinand had completely forgotten about the dance. He did not dare see his mother's expression, unless she thought that he had been thinking about dancing with her already. "Is she awake yet? How soon will she be ready for the Third Round?"

"The physician believes that she will awaken within an hour. He will not be able to give her a full health check until she is awake, but he does not believe that she suffered anything that should prevent her from further participation in the Contest." Hans paused for a second, and then added, "I left Garrett standing outside of her door while I came to speak to you, but while I was standing guard, I saw Minister Golonzo only once. After he saw me standing outside of her door, he quickly left, pretending that he had never looked my way."

Well, it appears that that hunch was correct, Ferdinand thought. Aloud, he said, "Have there been any signs of Kururu?"

"Kururu arrived after Minister Golonzo left. When I asked if she had seen the minister, she said that she had not, so it's possible that Minister Golonzo did not seen her. She is waiting currently with Cornet until her puppeteer awakens, and she promised to alert Garrett if something occurred before I returned."

Ferdinand nodded. Despite the brief presence of Minister Golonzo, things were moving smoothly. "Thank you for your report, Hans, and thank you for standing guard. You may return to your post." He really needed to speak to Captain Linus about giving Hans and Franz a raise, what with all of the extra duties he sent them on…

Hans bowed. "My pleasure, Your Highness."

After Hans left, his mother offered Ferdinand another teasing grin. "You posted a guard outside of Cornet's door? How sweet of you."

Ferdinand blushed and looked away.

His mother sighed. "But also slightly dangerous. While Hans is not officially one of your personal guards, he is unofficially one. We shall hope that Minister Golonzo did not read into his presence."

Oops. Ferdinand had not considered that, either.

"Well, there is no use worrying about that now," Queen Siegrind reassured. "What is done is done, and you can always say that the guard was posted to ensure that her condition was stable and to prevent possible sabotage. As the winner will be your bridal candidate, you do have a personal stake in the protection of the participants."

The Queen paused for a moment, and then she asked, "By the way, how did Hans know about Kururu?"

Ferdinand explained about consoling the distressed fairy puppet prior to the Second Round.

Queen Siegrind nodded. "That's interesting. Now Cornet's costume makes sense." Ferdinand was surprised that his mother did not comment upon Etoile buying out all of the stores in Mothergreen, but he figured that she had filed it away nonetheless.

There was another lull as each of the royals collected their thoughts. Finally, Queen Siegrind's eyebrows creased. "That's strange," she murmured.

"What is?"

The queen turned an intent eye upon her son. "You did say that Kururu was here by herself, right?"

"Yes, I did." Ferdinand nodded.

"Do you remember how Cornet fought in the Second Round? She controlled the puppets with her horn," Queen Siegrind explained. "How was Kururu able to be here on her own if Cornet was not controlling her?"

This had not occurred to Ferdinand before. Was it possible that Cornet had sent her to the Prince's room on purpose—? Ferdinand shook his head. "No, that's not it."

"What is not it?"

Ferdinand looked back up at to his mother. "Cornet does not control Kururu," he murmured.

His mother arched an eyebrow. "How can a puppet move around without its puppeteer?"

"I don't know." Ferdiand's eyebrows furrowed. "I'm only relying on memory, but when I first saw Cornet and Kururu in the forest, Kururu was flying and speaking on her own. And," he continued, "now that I think about it, I remember hearing people mention Kururu in Orange, when I was visiting the town, prior to meeting Cornet in the Wonder Woods. There were some older women outside of the General Store complaining about a fairy puppet that was a 'troublemaker' in the town. They had to be speaking about Kururu. Why speak about the puppet if the puppet is always being controlled by the puppeteer? Would it not then be likelier that the puppet is able to function outside of the puppeteer's control? Cornet and Kururu had conversations as though it was human, just like she spoke to us…" Ferdinand trailed off.

"It doesn't make any sense, though." Queen Siegrind sighed, but then her eyes lit up. "Oh, that reminds me!" She grinned. "I have a way to determine whether Cornet is a relative of Mustaki."

"Really?" Ferdinand asked excitedly.

"Cornet's horn."

"Cornet's horn?" Ferdinand echoed.

The queen nodded. "Her horn looks like the horn that an old friend of mine used to play. It even sounds the same. My friend married Mustaki's son. If Cornet is her daughter, then Cornet is Mustaki's granddaughter." Queen Siegrind grinned. "How convenient is that?"

Ferdinand laughed. "So all I have to do is ask who her mother is? That won't be too difficult." Well, theoretically, he added silently.

"But there is one thing, Ferdinand," his mother interjected, her tone suddenly became somber. "You need to know that my friend died a long time ago. We're not really even sure how she died, just that something happened one day, and she was gone. Her body was found in the underground passageway, and there were no clues as to why she had died. It was also shortly after her husband had died in the war. He was a soldier." Her voice faltered for a moment, and it appeared as though she was going to say something, but instead she finished with, "Although Cornet would have been young, if you choose to ask Cornet about her horn, please tread upon the subject of her parents with care."

Ferdinand nodded seriously. "I will be careful, Mom." How sad that she lost both of her parents when she was so young… Ferdinand thought, his gaze falling to the tiled floor. I was always sad about losing Dad, but I never thought how lucky I am to still have my Mom. I'll be more grateful from now on. I guess we share the loss of our fathers, though… That's something in common…

There was another moment of silence, and then Ferdinand realized that he didn't know the name of Cornet's mother. He looked back up. "Mom, what's—?"

Someone knocked on the door, cutting him off. "Your Highness!" a voice called. "It's Franz!"

Franz? "Come in!" Ferdinand called.

Franz opened the door, and after acknowledging Queen Siegrind politely, he said, "Prince Ferdinand, Hans sent me with the message that Cornet is awake. The doctor has proclaimed her fit to compete in the Third Round."

Prince Ferdinand nodded as Queen Siegrind arose. "Thank you, Franz."

"Shall Phillip and I escort you and Queen Siegrind to the Auditorium, Your Highness?"

As the private talk with his mother was over, Prince Ferdinand's answer would simply have to wait. The Third Round was now beginning. "Yes, Franz," he answered, and he and Queen Siegrind were led out of his room, Franz shutting the door behind them.

A/N: My goal this summer is to finish projects that I've started, and that includes my fanfictions that I've left hanging. I'll do my best to fulfill it! (Especially since I have been unable to find a summer job thus far, so I have nothing else to do but write stories that won't earn me money, draw things that don't provide income, teach myself how to cook like the poor college student that I am, and study for my college comprehensive exams, right?)

Next chapter is the Third Round! Please share your thoughts on the story so far in a review!