"So this is it, huh?" her friend says as he hovers just above her head, giant red wings flap gently to keep him afloat. "Ya gonna join our ranks startin' tomorrow."
"Ass, I'm getting knighted tomorrow. I'll only officially get a proper job the day after."
"You don't get a break once you become a Knight, Rumi," Keigo, or as he is known as "The youngest man to earn the title of Knight in history: Hawks", tells her casually. "As soon as you are bestowed the title of a Knight, there's nothing but work," he adds as he flutters down next to her, feet touch the ground.
"Thanks for stopping by, Hawks," she says to the young man, giving him a thankful look. Being one of the highest ranking Knights, second only to the mighty Knight Endeavor, in the Kingdom of High Providence Sin-Clair, a kingdom so huge it dwarves the Kingdom of Yuuei, she knows he is extremely busy and has very little time for himself.
"Well, being the neighboring kingdom to Yuuei, I have to attend the ceremony anyway," Hawks explains with a tired sigh. "Ya already getting high praises from HPSC anyway, both Knights and royals alike."
That is to be expected and she is glad to get some praise. She had gone to the Kingdom of HPSC quite a number of times to raise her reputation and gain their attention so she could get the rank of a Knight much faster. She has gotten the approval of Knight Best Jeanist and Knight Edgeshot as well as the Queen of HPSC, so she believes she is doing great with flying colors.
"By the by, my recon feathery wings had picked up some interesting vibrations around the castle when I visited there earlier." Hawks gives her a mischievous look with a wicked smirk. "Rumors had spread that you're going to be the personal bodyguard of the raven Prince."
'Raven… ha…' She tries not to let her twitching lips show.
"I know nothing, shithead," she clarifies but the look on Hawks' face doesn't reside. In fact, it only grows bigger.
"I had also heard that the raven Prince has his eyes on you," he tells her while wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. "It really makes me wonder if the bodyguard position is merely a coincidence or not."
"Shut the fuck up. I said I don't know anything and nothing is concrete yet," she repeats while landing a soft jab on his shoulder. "You're reading too much into it. And for the love of fuck, stop listening to rumors so much. They are baseless and come up with some of the craziest shits."
"I don't know," Hawks starts coyly. "I find this one is more believable than others. I can still remember when we were kids and you would escape the orphanage and-"
"Either you shut your mouth or you gonna start squinting with a pair of black eyes."
"Alright, alright. I'll stop," Hawks says casually as her threat easily slides over him, having already dealt with her since they were kids. "Did you know that Present Mic will be heralding the ceremony?"
Her steps falter before she continues.
"…Fuck, it's going to be so loud tomorrow," she whispers to herself while suppressing a shudder.
She knows the Knight Present Mic, one of the personal Knights of the King of Yuuei. He's her senior and is extremely loud. He's also extravagant.
She severely hopes he will not go "YO YO YO YA PEEPS GET READY FOR YABOI TO KNIGHT SOME BADASS MOTHERFUCKER" tomorrow and that he will be professional about it. But seeing that the King will be there, she is pretty sure he might just be professional tomorrow.
As they make their way to the barracks, her eyes drift to the gigantic building that is the castle residing at the very center of the Kingdom of Yuuei, where she knows His Majesty the King is at.
Starting tomorrow, she will finally be behind those walls that are surrounding the castle. And maybe, hopefully, her position as the newly appointed Knight will allow her to stay there.
Well, there is a high chance for that.
After all, the rumors aren't completely wrong.
.
"Rumi Usagiyama, come forth and kneel before the throne."
And that's her queue.
She steps forward from the crowd, feeling all sorts of eyes on her and silently preens at the attention. She tries not to gawk at the massive hall she is in, being here for the first time, as she walks down the red carpet until she stands right before said throne.
There sits the King of Yuuei, His Majesty King Nedzu. His dark beady eyes stare at her and his lips stretch out into a simple smile enough to fool the mass. The scar crossing his right eye indicates that he was once a warrior of the battlefield before he took the crown.
But her attention is not focused on him.
Instead, all of her attention is on son who is standing right next to the King.
Then, she kneels as ordered with her head bowed.
"Be it known to all men and women that I, Knight Present Mic, am minded to raise Rumi Usagiyama by virtue of her honor, loyalty, valor, and skill at arms, to the high rank of knighthood," Present Mic says with a booming voice but not loud enough to grate her ears. The hall is large enough to amplify his voice.
She silently wonders if being this quiet (heavily quoted) is painful to the usually loud Knight. He was never quiet the few moments he had trained her not too long ago, and that is not including his special power.
"Rumi Usagiyama, do you swear and acknowledge the son of King Nedzu of Yuuei, the Prince of the Kingdom of Yuuei, to be your true and lawful liege?"
Her lips quip up slightly at the mention of the prince.
"I do so swear," she answers confidently, putting her whole heart into her words. She needs to bare her heart to get the role of Knight.
But when it comes to the Prince, she puts even more so.
"Do you also swear fealty to His Majesty King Nedzu of Yuuei, to defend and obey him until he departs the throne, or death shall take you?"
"I do so swear."
Then, she hears footsteps approaching her, coming from feet that are intentionally loud (because he needs to be conscious to be audible, instead of the other way around). She doesn't look up, but she already knows who it is. She feels him standing right before her. She could almost see the tip of his boots (The freaking prince is wearing a pair of boots).
"Repeat after me: "I, Rumi Usagiyama, do solemnly swear and pledge my sword to the Prince of Yuuei, My Liege, to defend and obey him until he departs his demesne or death shall take me, and to uphold the honor of Knighthood"," Present Mic commands.
"I, Rumi Usagiyama, do solemnly swear and pledge my sword to the Prince of Yuuei, My Liege, to defend and obey him until he departs his demesne or death shall take me, and to uphold the honor of Knighthood."
She says it a little louder than usual, a little more emphasis on her tone than usual, and puts her whole heart into her words.
For the Prince, he can have it. She hands it to him without question, without hesitation.
It is her soon-to-be duty as his Knight.
And as Rumi Usagiyama.
"And I, for my part, do swear to defend and honor Rumi Usagiyama as befits a true Knight."
His low voice washes over her. She suppresses a shudder.
He had grown so much and his voice had gotten so much deeper.
She hears another person steps closer. Then, she feels something stiff tapping lightly on both of her shoulders, one after another. Knowing the ceremony, it's the ceremonial sword.
"I dub thee "Knight Miruko"."
Miruko.
That is her title now.
As a Knight, she is Miruko.
And she is serving directly under the Prince of Yuuei.
"Arise, my Knight."
As commanded, she slowly rises to her feet and stands tall and proud before the prince. She finally looks up to the prince, finally locking eyes with him.
She sees her own red eyes reflect back through his black eyes.
She tries to keep her smile professional, trying not to let the affection show through.
But the son of King Nedzu, Prince Shouta Aizawa, doesn't even hide the affection from his eyes, going as far as the corners crease ever so slightly. He doesn't need to hide it.
Only she can see it.
Because only she is the one receiving it.
.
"I'm going to be a knight!" the little white haired girl proudly proclaims, one fist points towards the sky while the other firmly placed on her hip as she stands on the tree stump.
"Big dreams," she hears the black haired boy, who is sitting on the tree stump by her feet, says.
"And when I do, I want to serve a royal!" she adds, still proudly proclaiming but lowers her fist until both fists are on her hips.
"Uh huh." The boy leans down, seemingly to rip a piece of grass by his feet and inspect it close, somehow finding it fascinating. She is not bothered by his seemingly dismissive behavior. She finds out early on that while he may look apathetic, he is the complete opposite.
He's just socially awkward.
"What do you want to be when you get older?" she asks him, jumping off the tree stump and landing on the soft grass before stepping in front of the boy.
"I want to be asleep in a comfortable bed," he answers almost instantly without taking his eyes off the piece of grass, as if it was an automatic response.
"That's not what I meant!"
"It's close enough." He finally looks away from the piece of grass to give her an amused look. She returns the look with a pout.
"I don't know how a commoner like you can just sleep around and be lazy all day," she comments, which only seems to amuse him much more, for some reason. He doesn't show emotions a lot, very stoic for someone his age, but his eyes are so expressive! She can see they are shining with big amount of amusement right now!
"One does not need to be a commoner to just sleep around and be lazy all day," he says it a little too complicated for her tiny ears. He's mocking her, she can tell, just because he's in the double digits of age and she is not.
Prick.
"Are you sure you don't want any help, Ru-Ru?" he suddenly asks. Paying attention back to his feature, the amused look is now being replaced by one of a mute concern. She knows what he meant by that; he had asked so many times now.
"I can rise on my own!" she answers her usual answers and smiles her usual smile, because she is confident in her ability and resolve. She gives the blacked haired boy a confident smirk before she jabs a thumb confidently into her chest. "Just watch me, Sho-Sho!"
It takes him a while but he does indeed give her a smile. A tiny one but still a smile nonetheless. It's one of the few visible features that he shows.
He needs to smile more. She likes it when he smiles.
Her eyes suddenly draw upwards, beyond the canopy and to the sky. Judging by the darkening color, she realizes it's getting late. She needs to go back or else Gramp Torino will not be happy.
"I need to go now. Bye, Sho-Sho!" She waves goodbye at the black haired boy as she turns around and sprints out the clearing and into the forest, heading straight where she knows the city is at.
"Don't get into troubles on the way!"
"I'm not a kid!"
"You're nine!"
She turns around to jut out her tongue at him before she sprints away to the orphanage.
She can still feel his eyes on the back of her head, despite already having many obstructions between them, warming the spot.
It gives her the feeling that, no matter where she is, no matter what time it is, he is always watching her.
Hello!
Got one moar EraserBunny for everyone!
Enjoy!