Ake stopped practicing and faced the tired girl. "Aiyame, please don't call me Princess Akegata. I just think it makes me sound very... high class. Just call me um...... Ake ok?" She smiled.
"All right Princess Ake." Aiyame bowed.
"Oy..." Ake slapped her right palm on her forehead.
~*~*~
"Yamato! Where in god's light is he!?" A boy with auburn hair yelled looking for his master. He ran from one room to another desperately looking for the King and Queen's eldest son.
"Yamato?" the boy yelled poking his head into a room.
"AH!!!!!! A man! Get out!" came a woman's yell.
"A thousand pardons Madame!" The boy yelled shutting the door as clothes were being hurled at him. He came out of the room with a big white sheet over his head. Tossing the sheet off his head, the boy muttered something only he himself could hear. "Women these days. To think catching a woman in their undergarments is a big issue. They should see us men! We see each other stark naked and we don't seem to mind!" The boy shook his head as he continued searching. "'Tis must be their once every full moon cycle once again... I wonder why the cause of their once a month unusualness come from the blood coming from their...." He then shook his head and shrugged the idea off. "'Tis not a thing I should be meddling about." The boy then continued his search.
"Yamato!" the boy yelled slamming a fairly large door open. He found his master sharpening his eye skills with a crossbow.
Yamato turned around to face a very red and very tired man with his hands on his knees huffing. "Yamato..." Satoru took in another breath. "Your mother,"
"My mother what Satoru?" The blonde asked.
"Your mother wants to speak with you... It's important."
~*~*~
"You what!?"
"I have arranged a marriage for you darling."
"Mother! How - How could you even think of something like that!?" Ake stomped.
"Now dear, that is not lady like." Her mother scolded.
"Lady like! Mother! how many times must I tell you? I don't want to be lady like! I would just like to be myself!" Ake argued.
Ake's mother, the queen of the Sky Kingdom, did not even listen. She was already off arranging for something else. "Aiyame, do you have all the arrangements for the ball tonight?"
"Yes, your highness. Everything is prepared and ready down in the ballroom." Aiyame said following the queen around as she courteously walked around the room.
~*~*~
"A ball!? You must be joking!" Matt ranted.
"Of course not Yamato, why would be joke about something as serious as this?" The queen of the Elemental Kingdom questioned her only son.
"But -- arranged marriage!? Why?" Matt paced.
"Just listen to your mother Yamato." His father said trying to calm his son down.
"Besides Yamato, this is for YOUR benefit. You and the Princess will be so happy together. Believe me, Yamato. You will be happy with her." His mother said smiling.
"Why can't you let me choose my own wife?" Matt asked with pleading eyes.
"Yamato... it's much more complicated than that..." His mother reasoned. "It has been our Kingdom's dream to reunite our Kingdom and the Sky Kingdom together under one rule. And so the kingdom will once again be called the legendary Celestial Kingdom. We will only complete this by your marriage to the Princess of the Sky Kingdom."
"Oh..." Matt made a face. "So the whole point of this marriage was not because of my happiness... It's because you want to join the two Kingdoms! I am just a pawn in all of this!" Matt yelled throwing his arms up in the air to show how much anger boiled within him. "That's it! The wedding is off!" Matt yelled in fury.
"YAMATO MATT ISHIDA!" His mother yelled. "Now you hold your tongue and keep it in your mouth! You will marry Princess Akegata, you will be happy with this arrangement, you will join the Kingdoms together and YOU WILL GO TO THIS BALL!!!!" His mother yelled poking him at each statement she made.
Matt was going to protest but his father held him back. "Yamato, go to your chamber." His father whispered. "Now is not a good time to argue." Matt nodded and turned to walk out of the room.
"Matt," His father whispered. "If I don't get a chance to tell you tomorrow, Good luck in the tournament. I know you will do well."
Matt turned around to face his father with a fairly large grin on his face. "Thank you." Matt then bowed and left to go to his chamber.
~*~*~
A very upset Ake began pacing back and forth in her room. "What am I going to do? I can't reason with mother... look at where I am now... " She walked around the room haphazardly. A sound of her foot stepping on paper came to her ears. Stepping off it, Ake picked up the paper and eyed it carefully. "A tournament? This is wonderful! Something that will get my mind off the ball!" Ake exclaimed. She then looked back at the paper to find what time she will have to be there.
"Oh.... But it's TOMORROW... But still, a tournament is a tournament ... and this time, mother won't hold me back from attending." Ake had a fairly wide grin on her face. "Well, I must get ready... mother will have a fit if I don't attend this ball...." Ake sighed and then went to the washroom to cleanse herself.
~*~*~
Ake sighed once again at the top of the spiral staircase. "Grace, poise, calm..." Ake muttered under her breath as she then began to slowly walk down the stairs.
"Princess, what an honor... you look lovely tonight." A gentleman who was with her mother spoke as he bowed.
Ake was wearing a pearl colored dress. It was long and light. The dress had no sleeves or straps. It was basically bounded to her chest. (It's like Serena's/Usagi's dress in Sailor Moon minus the sleeves.) Her incredibly short hair was somehow braided from the front and the two braids were brought to the back in the middle and joined together in one braid. (Relena from Gundam Wing.)
Ake curtsied as she forced a grin. She really didn't want to be here. "Thank you sir." Ake was about to leave when her mother called out.
"Akegata, dear, don't you want to know who this is?"
"In a matter of words mother, not really..." Ake said boldly.
"Akegata, that is not a polite of you to speak like that." Her mother said trying to control her anger.
"It's all right your highness." The man said. "I am Tak--" before the boy could reply, Ake had already turned around and excused herself then walked away.
"Seems like she's not much of a talker..." Takeru said quietly.
"Yes, but she is just upset by all of this. My daughter just needs time to get used to it..." The queen said sighing. "Sooner or later she'll be your in law..." Then queen then laughed.
"What is so funny your highness?" Takeru said confused.
"Oh just the image of my daughter acting like this and you being relative to her and you will have to put up with her for she will be married to your brother."
Takeru laughed. "Yes, the kingdom will never be bored now!"
~*~*~
Ake walked to the balcony to find someone had discovered her 'place' and was standing there as well. She sighed and leaned against the railing looking at the stars. The man next to her noticed her presence but didn't say anything... yet.
After moments of just standing there, Yamato decided to start a conversation. He removed his gaze from the stars and leaned his back against the railing of the balcony staring at the people in the ballroom. His elbows were propped up against what he was leaning on. "Trying to relieve your problems?" He asked not even looking at Ake.
Ake was looking at the full moon when she replied. "You could say that... So are you here to put away your problems as well?" She asked.
"Possibly." Yamato grinned he then looked at the person he was talking to. His breath caught. She was beautiful. Even if it was only the side profile of the girl, Yamato could've sworn she was a goddess (yes corny I know... ^^;).
Ake felt eyes on her so she looked to see who or what was staring at her. Once she turned her eyes locked onto Yamato's. "I... what are you looking at sir?" Ake said trying to be as calm as possible.
"I.. I... I was just surprise to see..."
"My face?" She asked suggestively.
"Possibly..." Yamato continued with the game.
Ake grinned. Yamato did as well. Soon their faces began to close in on each other. Slowly. It seemed as if it would take an eternity for the kiss to happen. Both their eyes closed as they began to press forward. Only a few MILLIMETERS away and then the clock rang 12 times signaling that it was midnight. Ake and Yamato jumped back and Ake's cheeks flushed slightly. "I... should get going... goodnight..." Ake said as she walked away.
"Sweet Dreams Mi La -..." Yamato then stopped. "Wait!" But it was too late. Ake had already left to her chambers. *Damn it Ishida... Why did you not ask her name!?* Yamato then turned pale. "Because I'm engaged..." He said slowly. "Damn it!" He hissed as he banged his fist down on the wood of the railing.
-------------------------
Whoa... finally! I finish the first chapter! It took me forever since I had to but this fic off for 3 weeks! Sorry lime_lizard... I'm not sure if this fic will be ready in time for the contest but I'll see if I can... I'm not even sure if the contest is over yet! ^^;
well I hope you enjoyed this fic! ^^; I'll try to have the next chapter up soon...
peace
~HSK-sama~