Chapter 14:

Tap tap tap

Kuroko grew impatiently at the footstep behind her. She then move to her right side.

Tap Tap Tap

And there it is again, that footstep she started to hate. She knew she had a deal, but this is too much and not to mention an attack to her privacy.

"Murasakibara-kun, please stop following me"

"I can't. Aka-chin told me to follow you"

"Murasakibara-kun, I am about to visit this bathroom. Are you going to enter there with me?" Kuroko asked impatiently. She got her answer as Murasakibara opened the door and about to stepped inside that bathroom.

"This is women's bathroom. Wait outside or I will tell King Akashi that you ate the chocolate cupcake the maid served for me this morning" Kuroko told him with a threatening voice as she tried her best to glare at the tall male. It is a good thing she has something she could use against Murasakibara or she might ended up crazy with him following her everywhere.

"I will wait" and that is her cue to enter the bathroom. Her sanctuary had shrunk from her room to her bathroom and her closet. But even in her closet, there will be servants, female of course, waiting for her. She will have guards stationed outside her room and Murasakibara in the couch inside her room.

Murasakibara is definitely better than the red haired King in her room.

When she heard the red haired King will not accept letter of apology from Seirin for Kagami's rash behavior, Kuroko instantly threw out any thought of what if the King suspect her and going to put her in the same prison as Kagami. But she will not let the infamous cold and ruthless King to punish her best friend when all he did was trying to protect her.

Just five more days before her infamous wedding of the centuries, and all she could think of escaping that wedding is to run away from the castle. The King will punish Mayuzumi and there is no way Mayuzumi will be able to hurt her family once the King has punished for the crime she commit. There wasn't a problem to begin with escaping from the Palace.

Also there is no problem for the King to attract the real Mayuzumi. Both of them are a match from heaven, she should have guessed that King is also in the same circle as those men who got Mayuzumi's attention. All she should do was to let those two meet and let the chemistry do the rest.

She didn't need to play dress up like this and bring trouble to everyone around her. She realized her mistake when she saw the look on Kagami's face. if only at that night she choose to not come to the party and escaping with Queen Riko.

In the end, what is your reason to stay in Rakuzan Palace? Kuroko's inner self ask her this very same question every day. and she still couldn't provide an answer to that question. she could, however, relate that question to someone in the castle. This person is not as bad as she thought when she first meet him.

I wonder if Akashi-sama is okay with people thinking that he is a tyrant?

People make that news only to bring down the image of this person. If Akashi Seijuuro is as ruthless as rumored, it will be impossible for the mischievous Duke to be able to punish his Archduke when he messed up. Nor he let his best guard to slack off while eating chocolates.

"Are you done?" Kuroko heard her guard voice from outside the bathroom.

"Please wait"

"Aka-chin will not like it when you are late"

If Akashi is a heartless King, it should be impossible for his guard to have a nick name for him.

"Where should we go today, Murasakibara-kun?" Kuroko asked her guard. After two days being with him, she knew one thing about him.

"I don't know"

Her guard act worse than a child. He only obey King Akashi and he listen to no one else.

"I guess we have to pay His Majesty a visit in his office" Kuroko sighed. She was hoping that at least Murasakibara could help her remember about her schedule for the day. She has lots of things and lots of meeting to attend to several people who work as wedding planner and Kuroko hope at least Murasakibara remember so she didn't have to ask Akashi while he did his business as a King.

"Can't do that. Aka-chin is busy" Murasakibara pull her hand and pull her to somewhere. She should have known with her thin body that she will be dragged around the castle.

"Atsushi, I hope you remember about my rule of touching my fiancé"

"Sorry Aka-chin." Murasakibara let go of his hold around Kuroko's arm. And push her slightly towards Akashi..

And if he is as ruthless as rumored, Murasakibara should have been dead years before Kuroko ever meet him.

"Is something wrong on my face, My Princess? You have been staring" and there it is again, a smile that make Kuroko's face hot. Isn't he supposed to be in love with Mayuzumi? Oh wait, she is Mayuzumi at the moment and he is in love with her.

"I am surprised that Your Majesty manage to spare a little time to meet me" Kuroko realized that Akashi somehow never came back before midnight. And the two days she stays with him makes her wondering if Akashi ever sleep with all of his tight schedule as a King.

"I am afraid if my fiancé decided to run away with a monkey we meet tomorrow. A little time is nothing hard to choose" and there it is again, the very same dangerous light appeared on the King's eyes. Kuroko look away from him in fear as she recalled the memory when Kagami dashed into her room while she was watching the stars in her balcony.

Flashback

Kuroko was thinking about Kagami's offer to run away together from Rakuzan as it is the only way left. But if she left the Palace, King Akashi will not uphold his promise to not punish Kagami.

She still has five days left before the King found out she is not Mayuzumi. Hopefully that disastrous incident will not happen in public place

"I wonder if leaving this place is the only way" Kuroko mumbled. But she knew the hesitation she feel if she think about leaving the place is that she like it better in Rakuzan Castle than in Teiko.

"It is not about leaving the Palace" Kuroko mumbled again. she ask herself the same question since the day before and always have the same answer.

"Kuroko!"

Kuroko snapped out from her thought as the door to her room opened with a loud bang.

"Kagami-kun?" Between her bed and the couch in her room, there is a giant curtain to prevent people from seeing her if someone suddenly opened the door to her room. She asked the King to put it for her after her arrival.

"Kuroko!" Kagami seems like he still searching for her voice as his head move to his left and right.

"You can't come in here!" Kuroko stood up and she walk to grab the nearest towel to cover her hair and face as she peek from the white curtain that separate both of them.

"Let's go now!" Kagami pull Kuroko's hand.

"Where are we going, Kagami-kun? I told you I am not going to leave this Palace" Kuroko tried to fight back with what little power she had.

"I know that Witch must have promised you something. If we get out of here now, Queen Riko promised that she will help to fight against that witch"

"I can't" Kuroko shouted. Kagami stood in his place when he saw the tears in Kuroko's face.

"Don't worry about it. Queen Riko almost has the same power as the King of Rakuzan. He will not harm you Tamiko"

Kuroko knew that the King will not do anything to harm her even when Riko is not protecting them. But what will he think of her when she left the castle? Will he hate her for that? The thought of him hating her made her want to cry and left a very bad aftertaste in her stomach.

"Please let me go Kagami-kun" Kuroko begged softly.

"I won't!" Kagami insisted.

" I beg you!" Kuroko shouted at him. "I don't want you to get into trouble with Akashi"

"I will face million of trouble including that Demon King, to save the person I love"

Kuroko saw how serious Kagami has become and how his face turn as red as the color of his hair when he said the word love. He is in love with her?

"Kagami-kun, I am engaged"

"This is a false engagement! You don't love him" Kuroko averted her glance and cringed. Kagami widened his eyes as he saw the guilt in her expression.

"I thought even a commoner know a thing about not touching another person's fiancé"

"Kagami-kun, don't do anythi—huh?' Riko stop running when she saw Akashi Kuroko and Kagami in the same room just staring at each other. She also saw Kagami is holding Kuroko's hand.

And Akashi has his dark aura as he took step by step towards Kagami. Riko cursed Kagami stupidity and Akashi's timing.

"Are you challenging me?"Kuroko heard Akashi asked Kagami

"Yes" Kagami answered confidently. "If you only break your engagement to her"

"I wouldn't mind challenge since I know I will always win" Kuroko watch Akashi's sinister and dark expression change into a softer one when he shifted his glance to her. "But I will never give my fiancé as a prize for a stupid bet"

"You know nothing about her" Kagami said proudly. But he stopped smiling when he heard Akashi chuckled and his eyes lit up with amusement.

"Aren't you a pretty confident little thing" Kagami didn't see anything funny nor he said something funny to make King Akashi chuckled like this. "Queen Riko, you have an interesting Duke in here. I am sure Daiki and he will be best friend when they meet"

"Your Majesty?" Kuroko called him when she saw him glaring at her and his eyes keep shifting from her face and the towel that covered most of her head. That's when she realized, she is using her night gown with nothing to cover her face.

And King Akashi must have thought Kagami had seen her face before him.

"I would like you to leave my room" Akashi finally spoke again.

"This is her room, not yours" Kagami said.

"Need I to remind you that she is my fiancé. Her room is also my room." Kuroko saw the whole room gone quiet and Riko's face turn into the same color as Akashi's hair.

"But you two just know each other!" Riko said it a bit loud. Kagami cringed as he imagined Kuroko and Akashi sleeping in the same bed when she was supposed to be with him.

" I don't hear any complaint from the Princess"

All eyes turn to Kuroko and her face reddened immediately. There was one time when both of them have to share a room; it is when they have to escape from the crazy photographer as he insisted on taking picture of the two of them on their activities that day. Both of the end up sleeping in the gigantic library inside the Palace to escape from that said photographer.

"It was in an emergency situation" Kuroko defended. It was true as the photographer chase both Akashi and Kuroko and presented his crazy ideas of pictures for the couple. She produced the best pictures but none of those pictures could be considered normal pose.

"You low life! How can you do that to her!" Kagami flared in anger as he was about to hit Akashi.

"KAGAMI-KUN" Riko shouted when suddenly Kagami let out a loud "umpph" as he fell to the ground.

"I will keep my promise to you my Princess to not send him into any prison as long as he is in Rakuzan. But I never said anything about shut him up in my own way"

"Queen Riko. I suggest you leave this place now. I might promise my Princess to turn a blind eye on Kagami Taiga. But I never said anything that you will get the same treatment nor I have promise my Princess the same thing" Akashi told Riko.

"Are you not thrilled to see Queen Riko and her little Duke tonight?" Akashi's voice bring Kuroko's thought back to the present time.

"I am sorry. I didn't remember my schedule for the day as too many people requested to meet me today"

"Is that so?" Kuroko nodded weakly. She is ashamed to say that she didn't hope to see Kagami in the dining room tonight. "Then we will hide again in the library until it is time for us to dine with Queen Riko"

Right, Akashi suddenly decided that he want to have a dinner with Queen Riko and her representative before they left Rakuzan to go back to Seirin. Kagami-kun should also attend tonight's dinner. Is it really okay for Akashi-sama and Kagami-kun to meet again? Kuroko see Akashi seemed to wait for her answer on something. oh right, To hide again in the library. .

"Your Majesty, we shouldn't do that. What about the people who requested and took a long time to want to meet you?"

"I am meeting someone who is really want to meet for at the moment. and I prefer to talk to that person over a cup of tea and afternoon snacks" Akashi glanced at Murasakibara and Kuroko saw Murasakibara left the two of them as he mumbled about 'have to give snacks to Aka-chin'

"Shall we go to the library?" Akashi bowed slightly as he stretched out his hand towards Kuroko. She took his hand as both of them head out to the library.

-x-

AN:

I decided to separate this chapter into two part. I just have too many things to do as my family spend holiday somewhere and I am rotten in my house doing house chores(this is why.. never ever break up during holiday!)

Anyway I hope you like this chapter. And see you in next chapter