Author's Note: Yay 10th chapter anniversary! (Is it even an anniversary?)

I want to thank everyone who has left a review on this story so far:

Ryoma'sBiased, riethu, LVPpgzHM, CieloXX, littlepanther, SternenDisaster, Frozen teen, Misslabelled, ZombifiedWulf, Aikawa Kusagi, Ry, A passerby, and 3 anonymous Guests.

Your reviews really motivated me to keep going. Thank you so much! (I would have listed the favorites/follows too, though I think I need to respect people's privacy on that. But know that I really appreciate the favorites/follows too!)

Anyway, here's the chapter that is long overdue. Enjoy!

Chapter 10

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There was an atmosphere of unrest within the palace walls, and Fuji was not certain of the reason behind it. The disturbance had continued for a few days, whispers following him wherever he walked unless he was with Tezuka, whose cold gaze effectively silenced all chatter in the vicinity. The prince attempted to recreate similar results by hanging out with Ryoma, but the young bodyguard never noticed the annoying chatter around him in the first place. Fuji found this quite baffling.

(Although the chatter did grow too loud once. Ryoma, sensing Fuji's discomfort after it grew obvious, stomped in front of the loud servants and told them to "shut the hell up". The prince was very amused by the frowns and cries Ryoma generated.)

Fuji sighed while being deep in thought. He had always disliked this type of atmosphere, which had a tendency to turn into rumors after a period of time. If he knew the topic around the chatter and the topic did not affect him personally, then he would not mind as much. Usually, Kikumaru would be here to fill the prince in on the details, because unlike most people, he would tell the prince what was going on instead of lying in his face to keep up the formality.

For some reason, Fuji could not find his peppy red-haired bodyguard anywhere for the past days, and it was driving the prince insane. Fuji decided to try to avoid the crowds the best he could until he could find Kikumaru.

A set of footsteps approaching his workroom snapped the prince out of his thoughts. The footsteps stopped in front of his door, and the person in front of it appeared to hesitate for a moment before speaking.

"Um, excuse me, Your Highness? Are you here?"

Fuji immediately recognized that voice to be Ryuzaki Sakuno's, one of the personal cleaning staff for the royal family.

"You can come in, Ryuzaki," the prince responded.

"Oh, Tomo-chan, I mean, Osakada-san is also here to help clean the room. Is that fine with you?" asked the girl timidly.

"Yes, both of you can come in."

The sliding door opened slowly, revealing two girls in aprons. Both bowed politely, before Osakada Tomoko boldly stepped inside the room, and Sakuno quickly followed.

It was a routine for the castle cleaning staff to clean the castle from top to bottom once every month. Every cleaning day of the month, Fuji would personally meet the maids that tidied his room. Of all the cleaning staff aside from Sakuno (who was personally assigned to Fuji alone), the prince usually ended up seeing Tomoko the most, since she was Sakuno's best friend.

"Good morning, Fuji-senpai!" greeted Tomoko cheerfully.

Sakuno panicked slightly at the informality, but Fuji himself preferred this over the stiff titles. He was not quite sure why Tomoko called him "senpai", however.

"Good morning, Osakada," the prince replied with a smile.

"Um, the cleaning is going to take around half an hour, Fuji-s-s-senpai, if you don't mind," stuttered Sakuno.

Fuji tilted his head slightly in confusion at what Sakuno called him. The motion seemed to have scared the already panicking maid even more. Fuji chuckled slightly and patted her head, silently telling her to calm down, then stepped out of his room for the maids to work.

Outside, the bodyguard on duty was Kaidoh. Fuji pondered if the bodyguard's scary face was one of the reasons why Sakuno was so on edge.

Kaidoh nodded to Fuji before greeting, "Good morning, Fuji-senpai."

The prince returned the salutation and closed the door to his room. Instantly, Tomoka's hushed voice was heard as she talked to her friend. Sakuno's voice was a lot quieter, but Fuji could hear her voice clearly.

"W-wait, Tomo-chan, I don't think we should-"

"It's okay, we're not exactly talking crap behind people's backs anyway! If you don't want to say anything then just listen to me!"

Fuji chuckled at the words, while Kaidoh became mildly irritated. The bodyguard hissed while pulling down his bandana slightly, signaling his disapproval at the girls even though they could not see him.

"Did you hear about the stuff with Rikkai? It's so scary!"

"I'm still not sure if we should talk about it, but I'm scared too."

"Right? I can't believe they already invaded both Midoriyama and Josei Shonan. It's only been, what, a month?"

Outside the room, Fuji's eyes widened in shock as he processed what he just heard. He could feel the smile on his face slowly morphing into a frown before his legs moved automatically, turning his body and proceeded to speed towards the direction of his father's audience chamber. His arm was pulled, stopping his momentum. Fuji turned his head to find out what was stopping him.

It was Kaidoh who gripped his arm.

"Fuji-senpai, please calm down."

Kaidoh's words had the opposite effect. Fuji's breathing became harsher, and his arms trembled. He glared at Kaidoh's hand, then at the bodyguard himself.

"Calm down?" Fuji gritted his teeth.

Kaidoh avoided Fuji's eyes and stared at the floor.

"How long ago was this, Kaidoh? Why was I not informed?" Fuji asked loudly in a shaking voice. "You and everyone else should know that if Midoriyama falls, St. Rudolph is in immediate danger! I'll ask again, why did no one care to inform me?"

Kaidoh struggled to think of an answer before responding with, "It was an order."

"From whom?"

A dead silence was all Fuji received as an answer. The prince tore his arm away from Kaidoh's grip, and the bodyguard did not attempt to stop him any longer. Kaidoh's lack of determination to follow through with his given orders only served to make the matter more painful to deal with for Fuji.

He did not wish to make enemies with his own bodyguards. After all, Fuji saw them as his close friends.

But…

"If anything happens to Yuta, there will be consequences," Fuji enunciated each syllable clearly and slowly before turning away from the bodyguard and running away into his backyard.

He did not bother to check whether Kaidoh followed him.

The fact that he did not hear a set of footsteps following his own pained him. A feeling of abandonment grew larger and larger, and Fuji struggled to breathe as his emotions began to overwhelm him. He stopped on his tracks to catch his breath, and for a second, he turned his head to check his backside.

No one was there.

The summer wind felt chilled to Fuji as he stood still in the shade of a nearby tree, staring at the direction he came from. Then, he turned once again, did not look back, and started walking.

The prince forced himself to think. Kaidoh mentioned that it was an order; the only people who would have the authority to do this to the crown prince were the emperor, Tezuka, Royal Advisor Ryuzaki, and Princess Yumiko. Fuji immediately crossed out Yumiko from the list, since there was no way his sister would do something like this. Ryuzaki-sensei was out of the question as well; she had rarely ever disagreed with Fuji.

Fuji bit his lips as he ran down the list inside his mind.

He wanted to believe Tezuka would not do something like this. From Kaidoh's reactions, it seemed though he was somewhat unwilling to follow the orders. Fuji wanted to believe that maybe the bodyguard's reactions meant that Tezuka was not the one who ordered it.

Which left only one person Fuji needed to confront. But his team of bodyguards was clearly not on his side this time, if they were ordered to keep him out of this matter. If that was indeed the case, Fuji needed to evade his bodyguards on his way to the audience chamber to avoid being stopped.

Fuji racked his brain to try to remember his bodyguards' schedules.

They are spread out all around the castle. I probably won't be able to avoid them all unless I circle around the castle parameter, Fuji thought.

The prince's heart pounded harshly, and yet he felt as if blood was not flowing within his body as he sprinted towards the hidden backdoor of the castle. The corridor through the door still looked as dim as it did the last time he used it, even during midday.

Fuji stepped inside, wondering why it felt so much less comforting than before. But with his thoughts being a mess, he could not remember when he last came here. At least the corridors are easy to get through once you know the way, Fuji supposed.

The light at the end of the tunnel pierced Fuji's vision temporarily. As he blinked to get his sight adjusted, a voice startled him.

"Fuji-senpai?"

He recognized that voice.

His eyes darted towards the direction of the voice.

"Echizen?" Fuji called out.

The figure of his young bodyguard became clearer as his eyes focused and Ryoma approached him. Cold sweat dripped on Fuji's face as he realized that he had run into someone he did not want to see.

"What are you doing here?" Fuji asked in an attempt to divert Ryoma's attention.

"Uh," Ryoma's eyes widened. "Patrol."

A sense of frustration began building up inside Fuji.

"Let me ask you again, Echizen," Fuji talked slowly. "What were you doing?"

Ryoma jumped a little bit. "I was… trying to take a nap in the shade."

Oh. Fuji let out a breath.

"Fuji-senpai, what's wrong?" Ryoma asked, voice laced with concern.

Fuji breathed, "Nothing is wr-"

"Lies," Ryoma interjected. "You're breathing heavily, and," he paused, "I thought you were going to call me by my name. Senpai, if you need help, you need to talk to someone, otherwise no one will know how to help you."

For a moment, Fuji felt his heart stopping before slowly returning normal. His erratic breathing was calming down, and a thought surfaced within his mind: that's right. Ryoma is different. He isn't just my bodyguard; he's my friend.

"Ryoma," Fuji said. "I need to talk to my father, but everyone looked like they wanted to stop me. It's… really important. I can't bear to lose my little brother because of this. Can you-"

Before the prince could finish his sentence, the young bodyguard had taken Fuji's hand and started running. The prince hurriedly followed as he was being pulled along.

"R-Ryoma?"

"I'll help you. None of your other bodyguards should be at the main gate, only the regular castle guards. It's probably the safest route to the audience chamber."

Ryoma's hand felt warm against Fuji's. The prince was especially thankful that Ryoma did not once hesitate to keep holding onto his hand, even when it was drenched in a nervous sweat. From behind, Ryoma's back looked a lot taller than it actually was. Fuji speculated if it was the summer sun casting illusions in his eyes.

The trip to the main gate felt exceedingly short. Fuji panted and gasped for air due to his lack of exercise for an extended period of time, and Ryoma stood still after entering the gate, waiting for the prince to catch his breath.

Ryoma did not let go of Fuji's hand.

"We can take it slowly, Fuji-senpai," Ryoma said. "Maybe you can tell me what's bothering you on our way there."

Fuji reached out with his free hand, and Ryoma caught it with his own. Both of the prince's arms were shaking – a side effect from the combination of tiredness and apprehension.

If there was anything Fuji would like to avoid for the rest of his life, talking to his father would probably be the first thing that came to his mind.

"Ryoma," Fuji spoke.

But he could not continue. The prince did not know what to say, or rather, what he could say. Ryoma was part of his team of bodyguards; he might be under the same command from his father or Tezuka, just like Kaidoh was. The prince knew he should not trust his young bodyguard if he wanted to be safe.

A small voice inside Fuji screamed at him to believe in his friend. To believe that Ryoma was different from the others.

"Can I really trust you?" Fuji whispered.

"Haven't we been over this?" Ryoma asked back. "Of course, you can. I promised I will always be on your side, didn't I?"

Yes, you did.

Fuji took a deep breath.

"I think my father is purposely trying to keep information about my brother away from me. My brother… younger brother, Yuta, lives in St. Rudolph due to some… circumstances," Fuji found it difficult to continue, but he pushed on. "With Midoriyama fallen, the neighboring country St. Rudolph is in so much danger, and yet no one told me anything! My father usually consults me with matters such as these, but for some reason…"

Fuji sighed in frustration; his hands gripped Ryoma's tightly.

"I think I have to confront my father," the prince continued. "I hate it. I don't want to, but I have to. Will you… stand next to me during the talk? You don't have to do anything. Just be there with me."

The prince's eyes, previously staring at the ground, looked up to meet Ryoma's. His bodyguard's frown and worried eyes made Fuji's heart sink, before the prince released his hands from Ryoma and attempted to leave.

Ryoma's hands never let go.

"Don't run away," Ryoma's expression changed from worried to determined in a split second. "I haven't even said anything yet. But you should know my answer even if I don't say anything, Fuji-senpai."

Ryoma pulled Fuji closer so that the prince cannot avoid being face-to-face with his bodyguard.

"I'll always be there, as long as you call for me. That was part of what I promised you, because I'm your friend."

Fuji could feel his heart beating fast. Ryoma's face was close to his own, and the bodyguard's eyes appeared to sparkle under the daylight, leaving Fuji unable to turn his eyes away. The prince felt his blood begin to flow normally once more, and his face heating up just slightly.

A growing chatter snapped Fuji out of his trance, and Ryoma took notice of the commotion then looked away briefly to check out what was going on.

A large crowd of servants gathered at the main gate, looking at something moving towards it. A figure wearing foreign clothing seemed to be approaching the main gate from afar. Ryoma stepped in front of the prince swiftly and drew his sword.

As the figure walked closer, the prince could finally recognize the person's face.

"Y-Yuta?" Fuji stuttered.

The surrounding servants bowed to the younger Fuji brother as he entered the palace. Yuta's face scrunched up in distaste as soon as he saw his older brother, as if the older Fuji had been waiting there the whole time. Yuta clicked his tongue.

"Yuta, I-" said the older prince before he was cut off.

"Save it," Yuta spat. "I'm going to talk to dad."

The younger prince took a few steps before stopping, glaring at Ryoma.

"What are you looking at?" Yuta questioned.

Ryoma paused, before answering, "You're not quite what I expected."

That statement earned the bodyguard an intense glare, before Yuta stomped off towards the audience chamber in favor of ignoring both his older brother and the bodyguard.

The older prince had expected this cold attitude from his brother after all that happened, and yet, his arms trembled after hearing the words which echoed in his mind many, many times. His emotions were rampaging within him, and he was growing weary and sick of everything that happened. He had half the mind to just walk back to his room and shut the door from everyone.

Slowly, he felt one of his hands being lifted.

"Let me borrow your hand," Ryoma said.

Ryoma guided Fuji's hand to his cheek and gently pressed. The immediate warmth from Ryoma's cheek ran through Fuji's fingers. The prince tried not to become flustered at the sight, but he could already feel his face heating up at the intimate gesture.

"Wha-"

"It's hot today," explained Ryoma. "And your hand is cold. So, I'm stealing your coldness."

Fuji was glad that Ryoma closed his eyes, because the prince was not quite certain what type of face he was making. Probably not one he would want his bodyguard to see.

At least he could feel his body temperature rising back up to normal.

The prince struggled to find appropriate words for Ryoma. After a long, awkward silence, Fuji spoke slowly.

"Ne, Ryoma."

"Hm?"

"I think you haven't been following my orders completely."

Ryoma blinked at Fuji, eyes alert.

Fuji's smile finally returned to his face.

"I told you to call me 'Syusuke'."

Author's Note: I, uhhhh, still need to proofread this lol. I had a lot of trouble getting through this chapter, so I ended up not being able to post this in August. I'll try my best to get the next chapter done by the end of this month though!

Again, if you liked it or have comments/criticisms, please leave a review/favorite/follow! Have a nice day!