After a long stint of writer's block, I present the next chapter. I do not own Skip Beat or Harry Potter in any way, shape, or form. Please enjoy. I apologize for the lack of a link. This site makes it occasionally impossible to post one.

Vol 2 Act 9

Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi. ~ The Mirror of Erised

~…~

Kyoko opened the door to the storage room and sighed. It was a sigh that conveyed a slight feeling of comfort and familiarity, but also a hint of annoyance. Why did she have to work for a man who kept so much useless stuff?

Well, that was an easy question to answer. Duke Lory Takarada had saved her life twelve years ago from certain death and had her brought up in his home. She was a servant, but she was alive, healthy, and happy. She had been given the special job of cleaning the storage room where the Duke kept all of the decorations that he found around the world. These he switched out almost daily, redecorating and dressing up like the people from these places. He claimed it was to educate his granddaughter about the world while she was trapped at home, but everyone in the house believed it was because he just liked it.

"Cleaning, cleaning," Kyoko began to hum cheerfully, moving to the back of the room and starting to clean from there. The room itself was huge, and seemed to have some sort of obscure magical property where no matter how full it was, there was always room for more stuff. When Kyoko had first seen it she had been overwhelmed with all the cleaning she needed to do. But once she had things under control, maintaining the pieces was easy enough. It was a full day's work, but she could finish the whole room in a single day.

She sometimes wondered if there were time magics in the room as well, but she did not overtax her brain with the thought. No one knew how to make magical things anymore, or how to properly study magical objects. And Kyoko loved the mystery that surrounded magical things. It made them all the more interesting.

"Tables, chairs, pictures, statues," she continued to sing. "Hangings, rugs, chandeliers…"

Round and round the room, mostly dusting, polishing a bit, humming her happy tune, Kyoko let herself wander into her favorite daydream. She was a princess, in a beautiful palace, dressed in beautiful clothes.

"Dragon head, god statue," her song progressed as she checked both of these things. "Shrunken head, big sword, antique chess board."

She would wear a massive gown with stiff skirt and trimmed in the finest lace. Her hair would be piled on top of her head in a golden mass with a glittering tiara and soft gold curls falling down her back. Her mind's eye saw pink bows and fine jewels adorning her dress and her person. She could feel the richness of the fabric against her skin and smell the scent of her rich perfume as she cheerfully rubs at a spot on a tall vase. She knew every piece in this room and knew exactly what it needed. She would turn around now and start cleaning the golden-

Mirror?

Kyoko blinked at the new object gleaming brightly against the wall. It was large, it was ornate, and it was breathtaking. It might even have distracted her from her princessy daydreams. Except that as she stood in front of the mirror, she could see it. Exactly as she had imagined it. She fell to her knees in shock. It looked so real.

Her hands clasped in front of her as she stared in breathless wonder. Gone were her tattered rags (for work use only, because Duke Takarada provided perfectly good clothes to all his workers, thank you very much) and the dirt under her nails. A smile bloomed on her face as she stared, transfixed, at the image in front of her. It was some time before she was able to look away and remember her other chores. She kept running back to the mirror to sneak glances at the tempting image within.

~…~

Ren leaned back against a fence post and forced himself to not fidget. Kyoko was late, and that could mean any number of things. Most likely that Lory had gotten in a new shipment of goods and she was sorting them. But there was the chance she had been injured. It had happened before. To distract himself he closed his eyes and let his attention wander, focusing on the pockets of gossip in the yard.

"…heard no one's seen him in an age. Don't know what the king's thinking, but that son of his-"

"Can't be worse than everything going on next door. At least our kingdom has an heir, even if he is a waste."

"Has King Kuu gotten through to them yet? I thought he was negotiating the absorption of the country."

"They're holding out for a miracle. I think they're using the prince as an excuse."

"Ren!"

The tall man let a smile blossom on his face as he turned from the less than helpful gossip and watched Kyoko stumble to a stop in front of him. It was still a joy to hear her calling his name after two exhausting years of trying to convince her it was appropriate.

"Hello Kyoko. How are you today?"

"Oh Ren, it's magic! A magic mirror!"

Well, that actually explained more than it did not.

"The Duke has a new item?" he asked for clarification.

"Oh yes, and it's magical, and Ren, I was wearing such a pretty dress and jewels and my hair was beautiful and everything was perfect!"

"I'm guessing there is a beginning to this story," he mused, watching with amusement as her look became chagrined.

"I was cleaning-" she began, somewhat abashed.

"And the duke had a new item. A magic mirror?" Ren interposed. Her story was likely to wander in a dozen directions if he did not control it carefully.

"Yes! I looked in it and I saw myself dressed in the most beautiful clothes, all clean and neat and-"

"Breathe, Kyoko," Ren interrupted again, reaching out and tugging her ear. She swatted his hand and pouted.

"I was telling you," she huffed. "Why don't you ever listen?"

"I do listen," he retorted. "Often. But I don't need you to describe what you saw. I can imagine."

"Oh, well of course," she realized, flushing. "You've actually been to court, so you would have seen… stuff."

"Yes. Stuff," Ren agreed with a chuckle. "So, did the mirror come with instructions, or does it just show everyone who looks in it how they would look in pretty dresses?"

His tone and glance down at himself made Kyoko giggle as she tried to imagine him in the same garment she had seen herself wearing. Ren smiled, enjoying the play of emotions across her face. The urge to reach out and pull her into his arms was as strong as ever, stronger even, but he refrained as always. He knew what the consequences would be. He could not avoid them. But that did not stop the wanting.

"I don't think it would show you in the dress," Kyoko reflected. "But I don't know what it does do exactly. I'll try experimenting with it and see what I can find out."

Ren frowned. Magical items could be dangerous. At the very least, they were unknown objects. "Perhaps you should just ask the duke. I'm certain he would be more than happy to tell you."

"But that would take all of the fun out of it," Kyoko countered with a grin.

"Oh, well," he sighed, knowing that if he ordered her in any way she would do exactly the opposite, just to prove he was not the boss of her. "Just be careful, like normal. And tell me if you need anything."

"I couldn't possibly intrude on your time," she answered bluntly.

"I'm asking you to."

"Because you are always polite. You've been trained for the court, after all."

"Well, I was trained for court life, but that doesn't mean I was trained to be insincere." Kyoko flushed.

"I didn't mean that!" she reassured him violently, waving her hands. "I just meant- I- I-"

"I know what you meant," Ren reassured her, caving at her genuine distress. "But I do wish you would rely on me more." He smiled wistfully. "That's what friends are for, isn't it?"

"Oh, well, yes. I suppose. That's probably true. Maybe."

"Yes," Ren said firmly. "It is true. So please, rely on me."

"Well, if I think of something that you can do for me, I will tell you. But I don't really think you have any experience in cleaning, or magic."

"Probably not," Ren agreed. "Maybe I should fix that." Kyoko giggled.

"I can't really see you dusting or polishing for hours on end," she mused. "It doesn't really suit you."

"I suppose not. I'm sorry."

"It isn't your fault."

Their conversation continued for a while longer before Kyoko excused herself to go and see if there was anything else she could help with around the manor. Ren watched her go with a wistful smile, which amused Duke Takarada as he approached the unsuspecting young man.

"She's really something else, isn't she?" he asked slyly, enjoying watching Ren twitch in surprise.

"You are incapable of hiring normal people," was the immediate retort.

"Well, I can't help it. I need extraordinary people surrounding me to live properly." He smiled for a moment, then frowned. "Ren, how serious are you about her?"

"Your Grace, I really don't think-"

"Please do think, Ren. She's important to this household, and if you choose to, you can really hurt her."

"And she's perfectly safe with you?" Ren shot back. "What's with this new mirror you've got, anyway?"

Lory sighed. "It's mostly harmless. It's supposed to show what a person really wants, deep down in their heart. Why, did she tell you about it?"

"Apparently she saw herself as a princess in it," Ren admitted. The duke's smirk made him grimace.

"Jealous of pretty dresses and fine jewels, are we? Wishing she saw something- someone else in that mirror?"

"I don't have any expectations," Ren said firmly. "We both know that it won't work out." He paused, his face serious and a little sad. "I don't have the liberty of being serious about her. It won't work out in the end."

"Then why are you still coming here?"

Ren did not answer.

~…~

"And it was really pink," Kyoko told a chuckling Ren, mock frustration in her voice. "I'm trying to tell you how pink the dress was!"

"I believe you said it was a burning pink, with the brightness of a dozen suns."

"You don't believe me," she accused, trying to hide a smile.

"Oh, no. I believe you. I just didn't think colors like that were to your taste."

"They aren't," she retorted, growing tired of his teasing. "I like softer colors. Like the ones in Maria's storybook."

"Her fairytale book? You still like those stories?"

"Of course!" she answered exuberantly. "Stories of poor girls with good character who get help from magical guides and become sparkling princesses! Isn't it amazing?"

"I suppose so. Nobility marrying outside of their social sphere is rather difficult. They must have been impressive women to put up with the years of mockery and derision that would have come after their marriage," Ren said thoughtfully. Kyoko slumped, pouting.

"You ruined all of my dreams," she grumbled, kicking at the dirt with her toes, leaning against the fence dejectedly. Ren winced.

"Well, I'm sure they were alright. After all, they weren't alone. They had their princes to support them, right?" he coaxed.

"I guess," Kyoko mused. Then she smiled. "Although, they probably didn't need it. Since they were so incredible on their own."

"But… wasn't the point of so many of those tales that the females found true love and ruled kingdoms?" Ren pointed out. Kyoko sighed.

"Well yes, but I guess it's just harder to relate to that aspect of their lives. I suppose I would be more likely to find a fortune or be a long lost princess than to find true love."

"Why?" Ren demanded, torn between confusion and frustration. Kyoko rolled her eyes.

"Well, look at me," she answered, gesturing to herself. "I'm not exactly romantic material. Even the dirtiest princesses were at least considered beautiful. I'm just plain, at best."

"You underrate yourself," Ren told her firmly. Her answering smile was sweet, but she shook her head.

"It's kind of you to say so, but you know that isn't true. No one is going to come to me asking for a kiss to return them to being a prince and then sweep me off my feet."

"That doesn't have to be true," Ren said slowly. "And I don't see why your true love has to be a prince. He could be just a simple man." He felt incredibly guilty as he said the words, especially when her expression became resigned.

"In my case, he would have to be just a simple man."

"Or he could be a prince," Ren amended quickly. "Aren't there princes that kiss the girl and make her a princess?" She pondered this for a moment, then laughed cheerfully.

"You are right, Ren. Maybe a prince will come and give me a magical kiss and take me away to his palace where we can be together forever."

The picture she drew was brief, but it conjured very strong and real images for Ren. Irresistible ones. He did not realized what he was doing until after he had leaned in and caught her. If he had meant for the kiss to be brief, he succeeded. If he had meant for her to like it, his situation might not have been ideal. There was a long pause as she drew in one deep breath, then a second. By her third breath she had turned and fled.

It was his turn to lean against the fence, dejected. His fists clenched, but he knew it was for the best.

He had no magic to offer her.

~…~

An accident. It had been an accident.

Twelve years ago the carriage of the queen of the eastern kingdom had stalled on a forest road on its way back to the castle. In the confusion and bustle of trying to assess the damage and comfort the hysterical maid, the five year old princess had tumbled out of the wrecked box and taken off into the forest. With a mother whose interest in her child was negligent at best and the child's nursemaid comforting the distraught maid, it had not been until the party had found lodgings for the night that anyone realized the princess was missing.

Assumed dead after two weeks of searching, finding only her dress, torn almost in half, not far off the road in the woods, her kingdom found itself in a difficult position with no heir to the throne and no chance of another child being born.

It was the ambassador, visiting the Takarada estates that first noticed Kyoko's resemblance to his king and queen. With only a little bit of questioning, the truth was uncovered. No one was sure how Kyoko had made it from the lonely wood path to the edges of the Takarada estate all those years ago, and no one was particularly interested.

"You have my gratitude," Queen Saena had told the duke in a cold voice. "I wish I could adequately repay you."

Biting back a reply that he would be best repaid by keeping her daughter, the duke waved off the offer, and hoped Her Majesty would have a safe journey home. He also begged a small favor, of granting a gift to Her Majesty's daughter as a token of appreciation and apology for years of service when she should have been treated like royalty. Kyoko, gazing longingly at the courtyard, which Ren had been absent from since that unexpected kiss, waited for the magic mirror to be loaded onto a cart before she said goodbye to her long time benefactor and climbed into the carriage with her long lost mother.

The ride back was silent.

Her father having died a few years before, Kyoko could appreciate the level of stress her mother endured trying to hold a kingdom together with no royal hope of a future. Kyoko accepted gracefully the charge that she would spend the following months trudging through years worth of training to prepare her to meet her people.

"Sit up straighter. You can't let anyone see that you are tired."

"Lighter on your feet. You are dancing, floating!"

"No, none of these dates are correct. Review the text again and we'll test you tomorrow."

Her teachers ministrations were trying, but she endured them. It was her mother's words that tried her the furthest.

"Not now. I have more important things to worry about."

"Don't talk to me until you can do it correctly."

"Do you think this is sufficient? I expected better from you."

~…~

Ren paced the stable yard impatiently, waiting for the duke to arrive. He had been promised a full explanation as to why Kyoko had been let go, and he was not pleased to have been kept in the dark for so long already.

"All that pacing isn't going to bring her back," His Grace stated calmly, appearing almost out of thin air behind Ren. The younger man gave a startled twitch, then rounded on the duke.

"Where is she? What happened?"

"All of her dreams came true," Lory expounded, throwing his arms open in a grand gesture. "She found out that she had a family and was swept off by them. Aren't you glad for her?"

The clenching of Ren's fist did not suggest that he was enthusiastic about this turn of events. "Where is she?"

"My dear boy, you aren't thinking of going after her, are you?" Lory asked in a tone ripe with mockery. "She's a princess you know. It's all very hush hush, which is why your- the king hasn't heard about it yet. But apparently Queen Saena has a child after all." The duke's wicked smile widened as Ren's eyes narrowed. "What could a poor, simple man like you do to win her now, no matter how handsome you are?"

"I don't think that-"

"No. Thinking is not your strong suite. Which is why you never grabbed her when you had the chance. Now she is gone. Lost. Forever!" Lory added a few woebegone gestures to this speech to add a dramatic flare that had Ren rolling his eyes in disgust.

"I could not have pursued her without being able to do so seriously," Ren growled through clenched teeth.

"But Ren, you knew it was serious. After all, what was it that you saw in the mirror?"

As his mind drifted back to that fateful evening when Lory had pulled him aside and dragged Ren into the storage room to "face himself," he felt his cheeks burn slightly at the memory of what had confronted him beyond the glass. A thousand images of Kyoko in as many guises, from rich to poor, had assaulted his eyes. All of her hopes, her dreams, her person. He wanted all of it. All of her. Selfish, greedy man that he was.

And he was going to get it.

~…~

Kyoko gazed into the mirror in front of her, her face blank and cold. It did not show her reflection, as one might have expected from the girl who had always dreamed of wearing a dress such as the one she had on, with jewels on her fingers and a pleasant scent hanging in the air around her. No, the picture in front of her was more elusive and taunting than that. She stayed standing there, motionless until a footman arrived and told her that her mother was ready for her. She gave him a small smile and left the image of a smiling Ren in the glass behind her, feeling cut off from him forever as she heard the door close.

After all, today was the day she was to meet the man who would, hopefully, become her husband. Though his reputation was flimsy at best, Kyoko knew that her mother could not reject the offer of the prince of the kingdom to the west. King Kuu might have been a doting parent with no control over his offspring, but an engagement to Prince Kuon would help calm the remainder of the concerned populace in her own nation.

She only had to grin and bear it.

"You're late," her mother murmured as Kyoko took a seat next to the queen in the great hall.

"I'm sorry," was Kyoko's whispered reply, so soft, she doubted that Saena had heard it.

The herald announced the prince and Kyoko waited with bated breath. Here was her fairytale, as close as she would ever have to getting one. Would he be a prince or a frog?

"Do not disappoint me," Saena hissed. Kyoko knew. So much hinged on this meeting. It was a miracle that the prince had even approached them in the first place.

"Your Majesty," came the clear greeting from the entryway as the prince stepped into the room. Kyoko blinked, overwhelmed with a sense of familiarity that grew as he approached the dais and she began to make out his face. She found her heart rate quickening suddenly as he came close enough to bow regally, looking up and catching Kyoko's eye. She forgot how to breathe.

"Princess," he murmured reverently, Ren's face staring up at her with bright blue eyes resting under a golden head.

"Your Highness," she managed to reply with what little air she had left. He smiled warmly, and she knew, she just knew…

All her dreams were going to come true.

And end chapter. I hope it was not disappointing. Many thanks to Will for finding the motivation to edit this.