Disclaimer: 1/2 Prince belongs to Yu Wo.
A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Ratatouille, the best rat ever, who unexpectedly passed away en route to my fieldsite. You are missed!
For those of you that like Meatbun, pet rats are the way to go. They are extraordinarily cute, highly intelligent, and extremely sociable. Ratatouille's favorite past times were snuggling and eating. He could shoulder-ride, knew his name, and always looked excited when I walked into the room after class. Even up to his last moments he never looked at me with anything except happiness and unconditional love.
Why did you have to go? (;_;)
Congratulations to NarutoNineTailFox for being the 200th reviewer! I will contact you shortly regarding a special prize story so start thinking about what you want it to be about. :D And also a special shout-out to Kittychan H for being the 100th person to add this story to their favorite stories list. In all my wildest dreams I never imagined any of my stories would receive such popularity. (^^)
As always, special thanks to my beloved beta-reader Astroelvengoddess. I adore you.
Chapter Twelve
Gui reread the note at home for the fortieth time before finally crumpling it in his hands. The detention. Prince's late arrivals. Ling Bin. Feng Lan's request. Was it all just a coincidence?
"You're overanalyzing things." The doctor's voice repeated in his head.
And yet somehow, the one wrench in his theory was Second Life's inability to gender-bend. Why couldn't he seem to overlook that?
He paused as he began to reach for his gaming helmet. Could he do this? Could he act normal around Prince? With resolve he slammed the helmet onto his head and felt himself disappear into Second Life.
~o~0~o~
In her own home, Feng Lan too looked uncertainly at her gaming helmet. She knew she had either done the right thing or completely screwed herself over by leaving Professor Min that note. After he'd left the room, she'd barely accomplished anything. She'd stared at the floor wordlessly mulling over everything and trying to figure out what to do. The professor seemed oddly suspicious of her and there was no denying now her infatuation with the teacher. With any luck the note would stop him from asking more questions, but she knew she'd taken a risk by admitting the falseness of the screen name she'd provided.
She ran a hand over her face and sighed. How could she act normally around Gui? Would he confront her in Second Life? She heard Yang Ming give a sudden yell from the other room.
"Aaaahhhhhhhh, Pixie Boss!"
She sweatdropped upon realizing he was already in-game. As she heard him continue to mutter under his breath she jammed her helmet onto her head to rush into battle and help her teammates.
Prince appeared in the Infinite Courtyard and immediately sent a message over the team channel. "Where are you guys?"
"At the giant mushroom patch in the Western forest," came Yu Lian's hurried reply.
"Don't come, Prince!" Lolidragon messaged. Prince hesitated a moment. The fight with the boss couldn't be that bad, could it? He wanted to help them and he was itching for battle. He sweatdropped at Lolidragon's next message. "You'll never find the way!"
"I don't understand why they would leave without us," a voice behind Prince startled the elf so badly he screamed aloud.
"WAAAAHHHHHHH!"
Sharp bursts of light appeared at the Rebirthing Point, distracting him from the sudden appearance of the demon bard. Doll stumbled out crying. "Prince-gege!" she ran sobbing into the elf's arms. Wu Qing followed looking sullen.
"Fall back!" Yu Lian's voice ordered over the team channel.
Prince flashed Wu Qing a worried look. "Kenshin and Sunshine?"
Wu Qing shrugged his shoulders. "They were there but I'd be surprised if anyone makes it out alive."
Prince's eyes widened. No. He couldn't afford to lose those two. He bit his nails frantically in worry. "Get out of there!" He immediately PMed Kenshin.
Doll looked up at Prince with watery eyes. "We just wanted to level up for Prince-gege!" she began wailing. "We wanted to be strong for you!"
Wu Qing scoffed. "More like we were bored and getting frustrated from your late log-ins!"
"That's not my fault!" Prince yelled back.
Gui opened his mouth and shut it against his better judgment. His insides were screaming for him to call Prince out and to ask his reasons for being late to Second Life this past week. But the elf already appeared stressed over his teammates' current predicament. Doll sniffed lightly into Prince's shoulder. Prince patted her on the head attempting to console her as the minutes ticked by and the team channel remained strangely silent.
"Prince!" Lolidragon's voice suddenly came from above. Everyone looked up to see Lolidragon and the rest of the Odd Squad, including Kenshin and Sunshine, sitting upon Sunshine's flying carpet. Lolidragon waved furiously, eyes gleaming, hair askew, and oddly enough sparkling in the sun. In fact, everyone on the carpet seemed to be glowing. Prince squinted his eyes at the sight.
Sunshine brought the carpet down and Kenshin disembarked first. His displeased frown did not match his shining face and sparkling hair. Doll giggled and ran over to Yu Lian and an extremely glittery Ugly Wolf.
"Pretty!" the little girl cried.
Kenshin glared. Prince gaped. "What happened?" he hardly dared to ask.
"The Pixie Boss' special attack," Kenshin uttered in disdain as he attempted to shake loose some of the glitter attached to his face. "It was quite…illuminating." Prince couldn't tell if Kenshin was trying to make a joke but the angry look on his face suggested he was dead serious. Prince swallowed hard as he tried not to laugh. Kenshin continued looking murderous. "I could've defeated him."
Lolidragon hopped off the carpet. "No," she shook her head, "you couldn't. We just barely caught the tail end of the attack. Any closer and we all would've been sent to the Rebirthing Point."
Prince paled at her words and he turned to yell at Kenshin. "Don't you scare me like that! We can't afford to lose you. I can't afford to lose you."
The words made Gui's blood boil in jealousy. "Prince," he cut in, icy words tearing through the air. "We need to talk."
"Now is not the time!" Prince retorted angrily, still shaken up by Kenshin's near demise, and unaware of the chilly tone in the bard's voice. Gui grabbed Prince by the arm. "Ergh, let go of me!"
"Gui!" Ugly Wolf began to reprimand.
Gui narrowed his eyes at the beast man. "You of all people owe this to me." Ugly Wolf's mouth snapped shut. Everyone stared at the tense scene before them.
Wu Qing stepped in and gently disentangled Prince from Gui's grasp in a classic move used by protective brother's everywhere. "But I don't owe you anything. Leave Prince alone."
Prince stared wide-eyed at the bard in a way completely reminiscent of Feng Lan's wide-eyed stare earlier in Professor Min's office. Prince looked so fragile, like a girl, and he clung to Wu Qing like a sister might cling to her brother. Gui's head began spinning. "I'm sorry," he shut his eyes and pressed a hand to this throbbing temple. "I'm not feeling the best." He took a step back and stumbled slightly.
"Gui!" Prince couldn't keep himself from crying out and ran to catch the bard. Kenshin beat him to it. The NPC looked displeased with the situation as Gui leaned onto him for support. Prince bit his lip nervously.
"You should probably take him to the infirmary," Yu Lian finally spoke, "and let him lay down for a while."
Gui shook his head. "My room is just fine, and I can get there myself." He attempted to break free of Kenshin's strong grip but the NPC held firm.
"I'll go with you," Prince declared but stopped his forward trek short at the warning glare on Kenshin's face. He swallowed nervously. "Kenshin?"
"Don't trouble yourself," Kenshin muttered and tugged Gui forward to get him moving. Gui protested slightly as the NPC continued to drag him away.
"How much longer are you logging in late?" Lolidragon turned to inquire at Prince.
"Tomorrow's the last day," Prince responded quietly.
The words were not lost upon Gui.
~o~0~o~
After everyone else had departed, Prince sauntered up to his second NPC pet. "Sunshine," he gazed at the NPC in worry. "Has Kenshin been acting…unusual lately?"
Sunshine put a finger to his mouth in thought. "He's been a bit angrier than usual, but he seems fine except for when you're around."
Prince scrunched up his face in confusion. "Me?" the elf pointed to himself in astonishment. "What's different?"
"You've posed a bit of a quandary for Kenshin, I suspect," Sunshine mused.
Prince cocked his head to the side. "I don't understand."
Sunshine shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "I don't understand either, but I think Kenshin is confused about something concerning you."
Prince frowned. Confused? Why would Kenshin be confused? "Has he said anything to you?"
"Nope," Sunshine continued smiling and his face turned thoughtful for a moment. "But he's been analyzing you ever since your journey from the ice caves."
Prince scratched the back of his head as he pondered. Hmm, how odd. What could it be? Prince decided he would have to talk to Kenshin later in private. "Thanks for your information, Sunshine," Prince spoke with gratitude. "I suppose I'll just have to talk to Kenshin myself."
Sunshine smiled and waved as Prince walked away. He turned his head to the side as he watched the elf walk out of sight. Kenshin hadn't said anything to him, but he'd overhead the NPC muttering after Prince's angry return from the ice caves. If what Kenshin had muttered was true, Prince's behavior in general would make more sense in some ways and less in others. Sunshine paused to think for a moment before finally giving in to the truth uncovered by his friend. If Prince really is a girl in real life, he sure is an awfully violent one.
~o~0~o~
Kenshin pushed Gui into the bard's room. "Take it easy!" Gui grumbled as he made his way to his bed. "I'm ill, you know."
Kenshin narrowed his eyes. How did this demon bard think he could just grab Prince whenever he wanted? Didn't he realize the liege lord was fragile?
Kenshin shook his head in confusion again. No, that's not right. Yes, Prince was significantly weaker in strength than both himself and Sunshine, but he never started being overprotective of the elf until he'd heard the strange conversation between Lolidragon and Prince. So what if Prince was a girl outside of Second Life? That didn't change the fact that he was male in Second Life and one of the most feared players on top of that.
Even though Kenshin knew his own personal back story was false, he couldn't stop thinking of the pain shot through his body upon remembering the sadness in Kaoru's face upon leaving her, the sadness etched in such fine feminine detail. Prince had been incredibly understanding of Kenshin's own sadness when confronting her grave. Was that normal for a man? No, it wasn't. Normally, a man would not be as sympathetic.
And the look on Prince's face just moments ago when Gui had grabbed him…it was just like the frightened look on Kaoru's delicate face when Kenshin went off to battle. Prince looked at Gui the same way Kaoru had once looked at him. He'd been doing so for the last several days. No man could ever mimic the look of a girl's face when she was in love, but Prince did so perfectly.
"Do not hurt Prince," Kenshin warned the bard as he turned to leave the room.
Gui gave a dry laugh, stopping the NPC prematurely. Kenshin turned around to glare. Did the bard think this was all a game? He turned to find Gui sitting on the floor staring morosely at his feet. A pained expression crossed the bard's face. "I don't want to," Gui's voice cracked as he spoke. "I never did. Hurting Prince is the last thing I want to do.
Kenshin let the faintest smile slip. Hadn't he said the same thing about Kaoru? Well, not really since everything about him was a program. But it felt so real. The emotions were all there. How could emotions be programmed to be felt so strongly? Is this what love felt like for everyone, including players? Kenshin paused for a moment. He didn't know how many players knew about Prince's secret and he wasn't really programmed to lie. For some reason the knowledge that Prince was female made him view the elf in a completely different light. He never wanted to see Kaoru cry. He never wanted to see any girl cry. Not one he cared about anyway.
"Prince seems rather…delicate," Kenshin replied lightly. "He hurts easily, like a girl."
Gui couldn't help himself. It was like Kenshin was leading him on. "Are you calling his highness a girl?" Kenshin considered the bard for a moment. Gui didn't seem to know about Prince's true identity but the suspicion was hidden deep in the tone of his voice. Kenshin also knew the bard followed Prince around to the point of annoyance and from what Lolidragon had said earlier it sounded like the two were acquainted outside of Second Life as well.
"Yes," Kenshin finally answered smugly, pleased that for once he seemed to know more about a situation than a player. He'd been extremely sullen after Lolidragon had just so nonchalantly admitted Prince's gender. He'd been upset that he and Sunshine might be the last to know. However, Gui's suspicion confirmed that very few individuals were privy to this information, even those that appeared to know Prince's counterpart in real life. Kenshin turned to walk away, highly satisfied with the turn in events. "I am."
Gui cried out and leapt to his feet. "Wait!" he shouted to Kenshin in a voice that betrayed his troubled and confused state. "Are you really saying that Prince is a girl?"
"Prince is male," Kenshin replied. He paused for a moment, "at least in Second Life."
Gui's legs buckled under him and he fell to the floor as Kenshin walked away. Was it true? Was Feng Lan really Prince? Kenshin had just confirmed Prince's masculinity in-game but he'd hinted at the question of Prince's gender in real life.
He remembered Feng Lan's message. She asked him not to talk to her anymore about Second Life. He smirked suddenly. But there was nothing stopping him from talking to Prince. And if that didn't work out there was always the visit he owed to a specific wolf beast man.
~o~0~o~
Ugly Wolf felt a chill run down his spine as he crossed the hall. Quiet footsteps echoed his own. He paused for a moment. The footsteps paused too. He took one step. Down the hallway someone else stepped too. Ugly Wolf began to pick up his pace and heard his assailant down the hall break into a full-out run. The wolf beast man began sprinting.
"Wolf-ge, you can't outrun me!" Gui's voice called from behind.
Ugly Wolf merely grunted. He knew Gui outmatched him in both agility and speed and he wasn't going to waste his precious breath on a response and risk losing whatever distance he had on Gui so far. He spied a door at the end of the hall. It led to the kitchen area and Ugly Wolf knew for a fact the door had been equipped with a locking mechanism. Yu Lian had it installed to deter Prince from eating the city's budget worth of food in record-breaking time. If he could just make it there, he could probably lock the door and escape out the other side before Gui had a chance to catch up to him through other passageways. Ugly Wolf took a deep breath and threw everything he had into reaching the door. The gap closed slowly: 30m…20m…10…9…8…
With a loud 'oof' Gui tackled Ugly Wolf to the ground and a scuffle ensued. Ugly Wolf had the greater strength but Gui with his agility managed to flip the beast man onto his back and pin the man to the floor. Gui sat astride him with a menacing gleam in his eyes and leaned over to glare directly into the older man's eyes. "Talk. What do you know about Prince?"
Before Ugly Wolf could open his mouth, the kitchen door swung open. Prince appeared in the hallway with Meatbun on his head and both elf and pet had rounded cheeks packed with food. Prince caught sight of the suggestive scene before him and immediately began choking. "You…you…pervert!" the elf pointed at Gui who belatedly realized his compromising position sitting astride Ugly Wolf and immediately began to scramble off. Prince quickly stashed a confused Meatbun into his pouch while muttering something about protecting his pet's "innocence."
"It's not what it looks like!" Gui protested and he attempted to put as much distance between himself and the beast man. "My heart belongs only to you!"
Ugly Wolf slowly sat up, massaging his shoulders and making sure Gui didn't hurt him too terribly in the fall. He laughed at Prince's response. "You really do only like guys, don't you? It doesn't matter as long as they have a—"
Prince clapped a hand over his mouth before he could finish that statement but Gui had already figured out where it was going. Prince had looked suggestively at Gui's nether regions and immediately turned bright red.
"That's not true!" Gui responded angrily.
"May I…um…leave?" Ugly Wolf began inching down the hallway.
"No!" Both Gui and Prince responded simultaneously.
Prince turned to glare at Gui for the response. "Why don't you want him to leave? So you can finish your…erm…whatever it is that I interrupted!" He made a face at the thought.
"You idiot. I told you that's not what it looked like."
"Well maybe next time you two should get a room!"
"I'm just going to leave now," Ugly Wolf spoke to no one in particular and escaped down the hallway as the bard and elf continued to bicker.
Prince continued yelling. "You only like guys! Why do you only like guys? What about a personality? Why doesn't that matter?"
"Of course it matters to me, Prince!" Gui shouted back. "You're the first and only guy I've ever liked!"
Both stood panting heavily from the force of yelling at each other. Prince shook his head in confusion. "What? What did you just say?"
Gui closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Is that what the problem was the whole time? Did Prince really think Gui only cared about gender and looks? Prince gulped as Gui took a determined step forward. "Gui, you…what are you…" His heart pattered rapidly as Gui slowly advanced. Prince breathed heavily as Gui reached out to tenderly brush a strand of hair away from his face.
"Silly, I love all of you. Entirely," Gui declared with passion.
Prince flushed deeply from the tips of his ears to the tips of his toes. His voice wavered in despair and uncertainty. "You can't possibly…"
As he began to protest Gui leaned in to whisper, effectively causing the boy to lose his train of thought entirely. Prince's heart was practically beating out of his chest as Gui's lips ghosted against his ear, sending shivers down his spine. "I want to give you a proper kiss. But when I do, I want to give it to your real-life counterpart first." A beautiful red stained Prince's cheeks. "I want to prove to you that I love more than just the you in-game. I love every bit of you. I want every part of you."
Prince thought about the events of the past week. One week. It seemed so short, yet the events were so monumental that Gui's drunken disaster seemed worlds away. He remembered the way Professor Min treated her outside of the game. At the beginning, he was overly harsh. Then something changed. He was nicer. And then…Prince blushed upon remembering when Gui had cornered her in the office. "Do you know?" Prince found himself asking and his voice shook with anxiety. "Do you know who I am, Professor?"
Gui ruffled the top of Prince's head and smiled. "I think so," he ventured sheepishly. "I'm almost certain. And if it turns out to be anyone other than the person I'm thinking of, I will be sorely disappointed."
Prince continued to eye Gui dubiously. "You're sure you won't regret anything? What if I don't match up to all your expectations of me in-game?" He indicated to his entire body. "What if I'm not who you think I am? What if I'm…"
"Not a boy?" Gui supplied with baited breath. He watched as Prince goggled at him. The elf sputtered.
"Er…what! Yes—I mean no! I mean—"
"Don't be silly, Prince." That was the final confirmation Gui needed. He'd locked on to Prince's true identity without a doubt. "Gender is irrelevant. And if you must know, I've always fancied women. You were the one exception."
Prince gaped at the man before him. "You idiot!" he cried, looking unexpectedly hurt, which surprised Gui. "You led me to believe all this time that you were gay! How could you?"
Gui didn't quite know what to say. This was not the response he was expecting. He thought Prince would be delighted with the news he liked women. "I…I don't know…" He was at a loss for words. "Lolidragon found me out. I thought I would just have some fun messing with you at first. Then, I'm not quite sure when it happened, but eventually I realized the teasing had turned into something real. I liked you and it wasn't a joke anymore."
Prince looked beyond hurt. He was crushed. "I started out as a joke for you?" he managed to choke out.
"Prince, in the beginning I didn't realize how truly wonderful you are," Gui began.
"How could you?" Prince cried before Gui could get another word in. "How could you just toy with my emotions like that?"
"Prince…" Gui didn't know how to comfort the distressed elf. "I love you now. Isn't that what matters?"
"I was just a joke…" Prince continued to mutter as he ran a hand through his silver hair. "I'm such a fool."
"Prince, it's not like that anymore," Gui pleaded desperately. He didn't know how else to respond.
"Find someone else, Guilliastes. I'm done." Prince answered harshly. Tears threatened to spill from his blood-red eyes but he refused to let them fall while the bard was still in the vicinity. "I'm leaving."
"Prince!" Gui called after the elf as he turned away. "Prince!"
Prince continued to walk away. Gui pulled out a risky final attack.
"Feng Lan, you still have detention with me tomorrow!"
Prince stopped short and turned to glare. "Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Professor."
Gui sank to the ground as the elf turned to flee. "Feng Lan…" he murmured as Prince disappeared around the corner. No! This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. Where was his happily ever after? He pounded his fist against the ground in frustration. How could it end like this? It couldn't.
With determination, Gui got to his feet and went racing down the hall after the Blood Elf. He rounded the corner, nearly crashing into Lolidragon. "Gui!" she called frantically. "What's going on?"
"Prince," Gui shouted back as he continued running, "I've got to—"
"Prince just logged out," Lolidragon interrupted him before he could say any more. He slowed to a halt and his shoulders sagged. The thief eyed Gui half in worry and half in anger. "He was crying. What did you do?"
Gui hung his head in shame. "I'm an idiot," he whispered quietly. "I figured out who Prince is in real life and I finally told him I wasn't actually gay."
Lolidragon gave him a sympathetic look and then whapped him hard on the shoulder. "You are an idiot."
"Ow! Hey!" Gui jumped back before she could strike him again.
"Prince always liked you," Lolidragon bluntly admitted. "But he always held back because of your supposed orientation."
Gui sputtered. "What? When? Why didn't I know?"
Lolidragon rolled her eyes. "Honestly, how did you always view and treat Prince?"
Gui shook his head. "I don't…"
"Like a boy," Lolidragon answered for him, sounding a little harsh. "Like the happily smiling, completely oblivious boy that he is in-game, which was fine until you two started interacting more in real life."
"Lolidragon…" Gui eyed the hidden GM warily. How did she seem to know all this? It didn't make sense, but then again she was Prince's first teammate. And she spoke as if she knew Prince's true identity. He never would've guessed. "How much do you know about Prince?"
"I'm the GM that created Prince," Lolidragon crossed her arms and smiled smugly. "At least his physical appearance. His body is absolute perfection." Her eyes sparkled with tiny hearts.
Gui frowned at the knowledge. So this woman knew all along. He began ticking off the list of people that probably knew Prince's secret: Lolidragon, Kenshin, Wu Qing, Wicked, Ugly Wolf, Jing, Yun. Gui grew sullen as the list continued to grow so he turned his attention back to Lolidragon. "He may be attractive, but that's not why I—"
"Like Prince?" she supplied with an amused twinkle in her eye.
Gui looked at her slightly outraged at the thought that he only liked Prince for his good looks. "Of course!" he answered heatedly. "If it had been anyone other than Feng Lan in that body, I wouldn't be feeling the same way."
Lolidragon smiled at him like he'd just given the perfect answer on a difficult examination. "Then you should tell her."
"But…I thought I just did," Gui had a hopeless tone in his voice. "And I told her the truth about acting when we first met."
Lolidragon shook her head in disapproval. "All she ever hears is Prince this and Prince that. She likes you, Gui. You have to make it clear. You started out teasing Prince as a joke. But who do you actually love? Prince or the girl behind the elf?"
"Aren't they the same?" Gui answered weakly.
Lolidragon whapped him hard until Gui cowered away again. "Technically, yes. But that's not what a girl wants to hear. Especially one that has so successfully resisted the bard in-game but fallen for the real-life professor." Lolidragon winked.
Gui glanced up, eyes gleaming in hope. "You mean to say…"
"You kissing Prince last week might have set everything into motion, but the thing that really set everything off was Prince spending more time with you in real life. His demeanor completely changed once he started spending detentions with you."
Gui's face softened as everything clicked into place. That's why Prince always looked so sad. It didn't matter how much Gui fawned over the elf or expressed his emotions for the boy when the one that really mattered was Feng Lan. And the way he'd treated the girl this past week…he felt awful for not recognizing her sooner. He ran a hand down his face and laughed despondently. "I really am an idiot, aren't I?"
"And they say you're supposedly a genius," Lolidragon jibed. She shook her head and playfully teased. "Well, Gui, you'd better use your IQ of 200 and go after the girl you love."
Gui nodded his head in affirmation and turned to log off. Lolidragon narrowed her eyes as Gui began to disappear. "If Prince is not happy when he logs in tomorrow, there will be hell to pay," she warned merrily, sending icy chills down Gui's spine.
He shivered and opened his eyes to stare at his bedroom ceiling. He took off his gaming helmet and sat on the edge of his bed thinking deeply. "You and everyone else," he murmured quietly, before getting up and heading to the bathroom for a shower. It was only 4am but Gui Wen already knew that it would be impossible to fall back asleep. It was going to take everything he had to make it through the day and confront Feng Lan in her final detention. It was his last chance to spend extended time with her in real life, and if he blew it now, it was all over.
"Who do you actually love? Prince or the girl behind the elf?"
The answer was so stunningly obvious he didn't even know why the question had to be asked. He loved Feng Lan. That wasn't a joke and it was time to finally let her know in person.
~0~o~0~
A/N: Omg, how amazing was the lastest 1/2 Prince manhua chapter? I was on the edge of my seat the whole time reading! Sadly no preview for the next chapter since its so close to the end. I will be busy with fieldwork, my part-time job, and aaaaahhhhh Harry Potter final movie release for the remainder of this week so the next update won't happen for at least another week and a half.
Til next time, everyone!