A Palace of Disaster
Chibi Tsuki
A/N: This will be the last chapter of the entire fic. Please enjoy!
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Chapter 13
The Final Statement
Most of the rain had subsided by the time they woke up. There were only drops left and fortunately there was sunlight streaming through the leaves. Milliardo ate his breakfast, facing the front while Lucretzia changed into her dried clothes behind him. When she was changed, she placed the coat beside him thankfully, smiling in appreciation. She had originally thought the coat had belonged to herself but realised that her own had been totally drenched and Milliardo had wrapped her in his own warm coat. The tall blond smiled back, never wanting to take his icy blue eyes away from his wife's sparkling blue ones. "Lu, are you ready to head back to the palace?" he asked casually, still staying seated until she gave him a soft 'yes'. He stood up and searched for the horses while she waited for his return, munching delightedly on a scone. It had become slightly soggy from earlier on and there were traces of it being nibbled by mice but she merely broke off the pieces and laid them on the ground by a crack in the cave wall. Lucretzia once again slipped her hand into her pocket, double-checking to see that the object was still there, and once satisfied, she relaxed and began to collect the saddlebags, and wrapped the remaining scone into a tea towel. Returning, the young prince approached her, holding the reins of both stallions in his hands, a confident smile on his face. "Saddle up and we're ready to go," he uttered before beginning to saddle the horses. "Razer is perching on one of the branches outside." As Lu tried to stand up, he immediately went to assist her.
"I feel slightly faint."
"Sit down and stay still until we're ready to go. Don't hurry yourself, it's just probably from the loss of a little blood." Directing a reassuring smile at her, he returned to adjust the girth straps. Once he was done, he gathered the saddle bags and swung them around his shoulders. "I'll help you onto your horse." He lifted her into her arms and supported her as she mounted the stallion. "Sit tight Lu." Milliardo swung up behind her, startling her a little. "Twister and I get along now, don't we boy?" The stallion snorted as if he understood Milliardo's words. Slowly gathering Twister's reins, Milliardo supported Lu, letting her lean backwards into his embrace, his arms wrapped around her body protectively. "Let's go," the Prince of Sank muttered. Both stallions and falcon followed his instructions obediently, travelling together at a moderately fast pace.
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Lucretzia gasped softly when Milliardo mounted onto Twister; she was still slightly unsure and dizzy from her previous fall the night before. Her head was pounding and somehow she fell back against Milliardo's chest. She could hear his heart beating. It was so comforting although she didn't have an explanation as to why, it just did. Snuggling against his chest she sighed comfortably, her headache forgotten. Although the ride was rather bumpy, Lucretzia had managed to fall asleep with the slightest difficulty.
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An hour had past by and they were finally back on the original track, the one they were supposed to be on. Milliardo understood how Lu managed to get on the wrong track, now that he could clearly see the tight gap that was the original trail back to the palace and the wider opening of the other misleading track. He smiled at the sleeping princess and felt her forehead; it was much cooler now, thankfully. Savouring the moment, pulled her closer to him and softly kissed her on the cheek. I wish we could be like this forever. There was something clutched tightly in her fist, making it extremely tempting to open her enclosed hand. Of course he ignored it and continued to look up at the track in front of him, staring at the trees and foliage before him.
"Milliardo!" Sally yelled as she approached them, riding at a furious pace on her horse. She halted beside him and looked straight at Lu. "You guys didn't come back last night, everyone was really worried." Suddenly she gave him an evil glare that gave Milliardo shivers down his spine. "I hope you didn't take advantage of her without her consent, even if you are married to her," she said bluntly. But then her facial expressions relaxed immediately, turning into a smile. "You're a gentleman and we all know that." Then she noticed the messily wrapped up wound. "What happened when you two were out there?" The blond immediately became serious, his eyebrows knotted and his icy blue eyes cold.
"I'll explain later, we must get back to the palace and treat her wound first."
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By the time they reached the palace it was nearly midday with the sun rising higher and higher. The horses couldn't go any faster than a walk because Lu was still asleep which was actually better than watching her suffer. They immediately took her back to her room so that she could rest on the comfort of her bed. Also, they had summoned a doctor to treat her wounds, cleaning out the infected areas and applying bandages to them afterwards. He had also proscribed some medicine: sleep, sleep and more sleep. It was a key ingredient in recovering and the doctor had insisted that they delayed the trip back to the Sank Kingdom. But that had caused much distress for King Naolan Peacecraft as it was necessary for him to return on that day; he had serious matters to attend to back at his own nation.
"Father, can Relena and I stay for another week until Lu recovers?" Milliardo pleaded in distraught. His sister stood beside him, feeling the same agitation her brother felt. At first he had suggested leaving Lucretzia to recover and later send for her while they returned to the Sank Kingdom. Naolan felt that it was time to teach Milliardo about politics when he returned and that was planned before they had arrived in Italy. But now there were problems ahead; involving his own people at home.
"Silence!" Naolan ordered, slamming a fist onto the table. "Both of you, be quiet while I think."
"But Father, we want to be with Lu as she gets better. It's only a small issue. Can't you let us stay for a while longer?" Relena argued and pouted. Her honey-blond hair swayed slightly as she crossed her arms.
Once again the older man cast an angry glare at them, frightening them slightly. Their shiver made him burst into a friendly chuckle, and he muttered, "You two are hopeless. Can't you even tell when your father is teasing you?" Abruptly the two siblings grinned at each other and at their father.
"You seemed so angry that we thought you were serious about leaving Lucretzia behind," Milliardo uttered in relief.
The middle-aged man shrugged and smiled at his children. "I had been thinking about that, but right now I know that she needs you two beside her and more importantly your support Milliardo."
"Yes Father."
Suddenly Naolan's face turned serious as he jerked his head away from their view. "Lucretzia may need to rest for over a week and while you stay here with the Noin's, I want you two be on your best behaviour. They will treat you kindly and in return, you two will be chivalrous instead of giving them even more trouble. They have been very generous to let us stay with them for this long. I will be leaving within several hours. Excuse me now, King Noin has come to converse with me." He turned around again, smiling at the visitor at his door. Milliardo and Relena excused themselves, retreating from the room to find Lucretzia's room. They met Treize as they approached the corridor, eager to know Lu's condition. Together they stepped inside the room, turning to the patient on the bed, but to their distress there was none. Rushing out of the room, the three trampled down the stairs in the most undignified way. One of head chambermaids stopped them and told them off for running like rowdy children. The three, red-faced, walked out of the palace with their heads bowed. Only ten minutes ago, Milliardo and Relena had been told by their father to behave sensibly and just then, they were rampaging within the building. It was a pretty shameful sight.
"How can she do this to us?" Treize asked with a sigh.
"Where do you think she's gone?" Relena asked, fiddling with her loose strands of hair. She glanced at her brother, and following the direction of his eyes, she too looked up at the pale clouds drifting slowly across her vision. "Milliardo?"
"There's nothing to worry about Relena, she's pretty safe where she is," her blond-haired brother replied, a pleasant smile forming across his face.
"How do you know?"
"I just know."
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Lucretzia heaved herself out of the bed and made her way towards the balcony. The wind blew at her, chilling her slightly and so she wrapped her arms around herself. Her bare feet padded along the now cold cement floor, until she came in contact with the railings. She pulled herself onto it, stepping up onto the bottom horizontal bar. Suddenly she heard her door creek open, three pairs of legs walked in. As she turned to see who it was, she realised that the curtain was blocking her view. But as she was about to walk over, they had already fled from the room in great hurry. I wonder who that was. It definitely wasn't the maids. Perhaps… She smiled at the thought and after deciding that it was getting too cold for her, she entered her room and hurried back into her bed, discovering that warmth within her doona was rapidly escaping. "I wonder if I actually love h-"
The door knocked softly, followed by the subtle creak of its hinges as the door was pushed open again. A red-brown-haired individual appeared in between the open gap. "Lu, are you feeling better?" Andre asked worriedly as he stepped further into the room.
"I'm perfectly fine, only a bit tired."
"'You're not leaving today are you?" Lu shook her head and gestured for him to come closer. "Good, because I don't want you to leave!" He bounced onto her bed and wrapped his thin arms around her waist, clinging onto her dearly as if she would disappear at any moment. Lucretzia returned the embrace, hugging him just as tightly.
Even if we don't part today, we'll part some other day. It may seem to be a bad thing, but being away from each other reveals our deepest love for one another. "How about having some lunch? I'm a bit hungry at the moment."
"Let me be of service and call upon some lunch!" he once again bounced off the bed and walked sensibly out of the room, searching for one of the chambermaids. While he was gone, Lu wondered to herself whether she was actually ready to leave her home for sixteen years. But whatever adventure's ahead, I'm ready to accept!
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Later that night, she grabbed all her blankets and sat down at the closed glass doors, looking out into the midnight sky. She looked up at the round moon and the sparkling star surrounding it. Space was just so amazing and that was a fact she couldn't deny. The door opened and a figure stepped in carefully. "Lu?"
"I'm here," she said softly, noticing the shadow of a tall person approaching her. Slowly the person sat down beside her, a short distance away from her.
"There was something I wanted to tell you last night, but I never got the chance to say it." The moonlight shone onto his blond hair making it a silvery colour. Lucretzia turned to look at her husband and waited for him to go on. It wasn't as if she was totally oblivious to what he was about to say, but she felt calm and collected inside.
Milliardo felt his heart pound; he had to admit it now, he'd fallen for her. It wasn't a physical thing as to why he liked her; it wasn't because of male-minded thoughts or because she was just so attractive but in fact he had discovered his love for her opinions, her actions and her in general. It was only three words, only three words that made him so nervous and jittery. Say it now, say it proud! "I love you Lu, I love you from the bottom of my heart." When he saw her expression change he gave her a comforting smile. "I don't want you to reply, I just want you to know, to know that whatever you do I'll be by your side forever."
They sat together in silence for over ten minutes, both wondering. Ten minutes had passed, and still they were silent. "Lu?" When Milliardo received no reply, he repeated her name again, but there was still no response. He glanced at her, realising that she had fallen asleep while being huddled inside her blankets. Gently he picked her up and placed on the bed, tucking her neatly under them again. Again he couldn't resist smiling and stroked her cheek softly before leaving the room. A hand instantly grabbed onto his wrist, clinging onto him with a death grip. He tried to pry her hand open but it was difficult when he didn't want to wake her up. In the end he spent the night sleeping by her bed, his wrist held firmly.
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Morning came pretty quickly and the first thing Milliardo realised when he woke was that he had ended up sleeping on her bed. He sat up and looked around the room, but once again she had vanished. She must've pulled him onto the bed when she woke up, realising that he was asleep on the floor. Immediately he jumped out of the bed, realising that it was still dark. Where had she disappeared to again? It was pretty frustrating just searching for her blindly. "You're awake," a voice murmured.
"Huh?" Milliardo looked towards the balcony, noticing a figure leaning against the rails. He relaxed and walked over to her. She was dressed in a big coat, her pyjamas hidden underneath. "The sun is rising."
"Yes, isn't it lovely? It is one of my favourite things, watching the sun rise." Silently he agreed with her, staring at the enlarging fiery ball just behind the horizon. "I love you."
"What?" Milliardo asked, startled.
"I love you, I love you just as much as I love space and watching the sun rise, and perhaps even more than that."
"I-" Suddenly he smiled at her and glanced at her closed fist. He opened them and took the item she had been holding and held it up to her. It was the ring he had given her during their wedding. She had gone back to retrieve it when she realised that she had forgotten it, and had been keeping it with her ever since. "Will you marry me as my beloved wife?"
"I do and I already am, ever since I said those three words, 'I love you'," she replied as he slipped the ring onto her finger. Lu slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. She rubbed noses with him just before he pulled her into a passionate kiss.
~The End~
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"Ow… Milliardo, when was the last time you shaved?"
A/N: At last, it's finished! Hehehe… I just couldn't resist adding the last part in. It was a must have! Thank you everyone for being so supporting, I couldn't have done it without everyone's reviews! *does a little dance*
One last disclaimer: I'm only a poor high school student who scabs the leftovers from other people… so why would I own GW? If I did, I'd be eating like a pig at the moment. ^.^
Chibi Tsuki
