Kazuha knelt in the giant chapel in the northern half of the castle. She made the sign of the cross over her breast before bowing her head and beginning to pray.
"Please, Lord, give me strength to resist temptation. I have been tempted to do bad things lately, but I have held. I doubt I can much longer. Lend me your strength, please, I am weary. Tell me what to do, and I shall do it without complaint. Give me a sign and I shall obey it as a decree from heaven."
Heiji walked into the chapel and saw her there, on the ground. He grinned and sauntered over, dropping down next to her. She ignored him.
"Please take care of Aoko-chan and let her baby be born this time. She is a good person, she deserves to be happy, her and Kaito-kun both. Please, do not hurt them again. And please give Ran-chan the strength she needs to do what is right for herself and not for her kingdom. If she would be happier with a baby, let her know, but if she is not ready, please, lend her your strength.
"Look after Ayumi-chan, she is still fragile after her sickness and she is trying too hard. Please keep her well, she has been through so much already, she doesn't deserve to be in pain as constantly as she is. Look after Genta-kun and Mitsuiko-kun, they try to be strong but they are still hurting from the deaths of their parents. Reassure them, Lord, let them know that they will be okay. And please take care of Ai-chan and help her gain her optimism back. She has seen too much for such a young child. Please help her be a kid again.
"And lastly, please watch out for Heiji-san, he seems lost, so you should help him find his way. Even after hearing all the rumors, I think he has a good heart deep down.
"One last thing. Please tell mother and father I am thinking abut them and I hope they can see me and are proud of me. I have tried hard to make myself into someone they'd be proud to call their daughter. Help me find someone to love as well, if you could. It seems everyone around here has someone. Ran-chan has Shinichi-kun and Aoko-chan has Kaito-kun, but I don't really have anyone. I am lonely. Please look after us all, Lord. Amen."
Kazuha opened her eyes and jumped when she saw Heiji next to her. "W-when did you get here, Heiji-sama?"
Heiji grinned. "Oh, so I'm Heiji-san when you're talking to God, but Heiji-sama to my face? That seems a bit messed up, don't you think?"
Kazuha glared at him. "Prince or not, what do you think you're doing, eavesdropping on people's prayers? It's rude!"
"Well, what are you doing over in this chapel? The servant's chapel is around back." Heiji countered, not having a good reason for listening in.
Kazuha looked caught off guard. "Servant's chapel. I didn't know there was one. I asked Ran-chan where a chapel I could use was and she told me here."
Heiji groaned loudly. "You asked Neechan? She's nearly as bad as you, she doesn't know anything! Not only is she a guest, but she hasn't been out of that village of hers for even a year yet! You'd have better luck asking Ayumi-chan where things were!"
She scowled. "Well how was I supposed to know that?" Her expression softened slightly then. "Ayumi-chan, what a sweet child. I hope she's feeling better, I should run down and check on her...."
Kazuha stood up then, seeming to forget the prince's presence beside her as she crossed herself and moved towards the exit.
"Oi, what do you think you're doing!?" Heiji called after her, annoyed at being left so quickly.
"....maybe Ai-chan will draw me a map or Sonoko-chan if she's not busy-. What? What's wrong, Heiji-sama?" Kazuha stopped her musing, turning to look back at the fuming teen.
"You're not supposed to stand up before me, ahou!" Heiji said and Kazuha took a moment to register the fact that she'd just been called a rather uncomplimentary name.
"Ahou, you're the ahou! I don't know these things unless you tell me!"
Heiji huffed. "Well, you know now. And you shouldn't call the prince things like that, its treason."
"I'll do what I want, it's my life. Frankly, if Kaito-kun hadn't picked me up, I'd be dead by now anyways. So I'm living on borrowed time as it is. Best live the way I choose, or so I think." She said idly before walking towards the doors again. Heiji caught up with her and fell in place at her side, not making a point of walking in front of her like he should.
"You shouldn't be so careless with your life, if Kaito-kun went through al that trouble to save you, you should at least repay him by making use of yourself." Heiji said and Kazuha looked at him.
"I suppose that's one way of thinking of it. But I refuse to bend. It is not my way. Sayonara, Heiji-sama." She said, slipping out the door and down the hallway without giving him time to react before she was down the servant's stairwell.
"Oi, call me Heiji-san, at least, you stubborn girl!"