Ok this is my first fic so please be merciful, ne? ^_^()
I say 'His Majesty the King' rather than 'Kohuouheika' so that it doesn't seem confusing. ^_^
I know nymphs are meant to be female but we're making a little exception here.
/thoughts/
Standard Disclaimers Apply
Set me Free
At the final contact with two swords, the powerful force of the first blade against the second was enough to send it hurtling through the air to land several feet away from its owner, whom stood in a state of absolute stiffness before standing upright and lowering his shield.
"You've made great progress, Yuki-sama. I guess it will be I that shall need to receive lessons from you soon!" A moustached man said, rubbing the back of his neck with a palm while bearing a grin on his face.
"I doubt I'd be able to improve your swordsmanship skills; you, who seems to believe that carelessly swinging around a sword like drunkard is a technique for killing." Yuki replied in his usual cold voice.
The man's smile faltered slightly as he retrieved his sword but tried his best not to let the remark get to him. It was well known that Yuki Eiri was not one for polite conversation and insulted those who were unfortunate enough to be present while he was not in a good mood, which was often. Just the other day, he had sent one of the servant-girls crying to her quarters wishing to leave her work in the castle. After the other maids had calmed her down, Yuki apologised after Mika, his sister had threatened to tell their father that he'd been skipping the lancing lessons that were compulsory for his upbringing as a Prince. The maids saw this as charming rather then seeing that he was forcing an apology unwillingly from himself, thus they continued to fawn over him like the had for many years.
"Well then, I shall excuse myself early today so that I may inform His Majesty of your success with a sword," he said as he backed toward the doors of the practice room. No one dared turn their back on Yuki Eiri unless they had a death wish.
"That won't be necessary. I doubt such a trivial thing like that would change his opinion of me," Yuki stated just before the man vacated the room. Yuki's relationship with his father was not a good one. Yuki had resented him for as long as he can remember and did everything he could to defy him. This meant denying his own position as heir to the throne, which he was more than happy to do since he did not desire to become King.
Yuki shed his armour and placed the practice sword on one of the hooks emerging from the wall. He left the sweat-stenched room and followed the staircase leading to the royal chambers. Uesugi Castle was one that contained a labyrinth within. The halls were tall and displayed countless paintings of previous Kings and Queens but with its meandering design, it was a maze to those who were strangers to it. However, Yuki was no stranger to the seemingly random directions. At a particular wall he pushed a specific brick with the base of his hand and stepped through the opening it made. Once through, he walked at a relaxed pace down the now straight hall and entered his room through a large, but light-weight, wooden door.
Before he was all the way into his room he was greeted by the unappealing sight of his brother surrounded by Yuki's books. Yuki slammed the door behind him causing his younger brother to realise his presence. The latter turned around bearing his usual grin.
"Eiri, you've got some weird stuff here! Don't tell me this is what you spend all you're time-"
"What are you doing here?" Yuki interrupted, "Come to make a mess of my room as well as your own room?"
Tatsuha retained his smile. "I've come to annoy you."
"Get out." Yuki's voice as cold as ever cut through the air, aimed at Tatsuha. However Tatsuha had grown immune to his elder brother's remarks.
"Eeeeeh? But it's my job as your brother to annoy you! I was practically born with the duty!" Tatsuha walked towards his brother, bumping the desk he was next to at the same time causing several of the surface's contents to topple and roll across the desk. The man was a walking disaster. Yuki pressed his thumb and forefinger at his brow. He could feel a migraine coming. Getting rid of Tatsuha was always close to impossible and the process of trying would only make his head hurt more.
"Do as you like," he said, deciding to try and ignore him.
And so Yuki ,ignoring his brother, sat at his desk reading a novel, while Tatsuha tried to get his attention. Soon Tatsuha grew bored and ended up slouched in one of Yuki's chairs, he murmuring curses under his breathe while plotting a way to irritate his brother. But something interrupted his thoughts and caught his attention. Outside in the hall he could hear the maids scuttling and whispering in an excited manner. He got up and opened the door just as a couple of maids were about to scurry past.
He latched onto one of them, "Hey," he said, causing the young girl to jump and flush a light shade of pink.
"I'm ever so s-sorry for being s-so loud, Ouji-sama", she stuttered while keeping her head low. The other maids followed her lead and apologised too.
"What's all the commotion, anyway?" Tatsuha questioned, leaning against the door to Yuki's room. The girls gave each other a quick nervous glance and the first girl, with her head still bowed replied, "His Majesty the King has returned from the hunt and it is said that he has caught a nymph!"
Tatsuha's eyes widened. He dismissed the girls before running back into Yuki's room. Before he could utter a word, Yuki already answered without looking p from his book.
"No."
"Pleeeeeease, Eiri?" Tatsuha whined in a tone he knew grated Yuki's nerves.
"Go by yourself. You're not an invalid so you don't require my presence." Yuki closed his book, and rubbed his right temple with his hand.
"A nymph! I mean, It's not everyday you get to see one of those. I heard they're really rare and really hard to find!" Tatsuha continued to whinge while pulling on his brother's clothes.
"No. I don't care." Yuki replied, glaring at his brother.
"I'll stay out of your room for a week!" the younger boy bribed.
Yuki seemed to think about this, his eyes moving up in thought. He knew all too well that if he didn't go with him, Tatsuha would be at his peak of irritation as revenge.
"A month." Yuki stated. Not waiting for it to be compromised, he stood up and walked towards the door.
Tatsuha sighed and let his shoulders drop in defeat and followed Yuki out of the room.
---
Once they arrived at the dungeons, Yuki and Tatsuha headed straight towards the small crowd around one particular cell. They had heard the frantic voices a long while before they arrived. Yuki's hand automatically went up to his head as the voices grew louder than before. /Just remember that this is worth the rewarding month peace and quiet./ He approached the small crowd with Tatsuha in front of him trying to see through the bodies and into the cell.
"Aaagh! The bastard burnt me!" one of the guards yelled out, clutching his right hand with the other, teeth gritted together in an attempt to subside the pain that he was obviously experiencing. "We should kill it! And hang its head on display!"
"No, no, no. We shall keep him confined. It'll keep the guests entertained. Won't you, my little trophy?" The King's patronising words caused the imprisoned to lash out at its confinement.
"Fuck you! Let me outta here you bastard!" A tenor voice spat from within. The flaring anger in his voice caused the King to retreat a little. His regular dignified face slipped back in place and he turned his back on the creature.
"Keep him confined." And with that, he strode out of the room, not once looking back to acknowledge the presence of his sons.
Yuki, however, held no interest in the man's spiteful actions but was genuinely curious about the creature within the dungeon. He had heard the legends about nymphs but he never expected it to captivate him as much as it did now. He shoved everyone out of the way to obtain a proper look at the mystical creature.
Violet eyes stared straight at him, brow still creased with rage. It had blazing pink hair, a few silken strands falling into his eyes. It's body was small and lithe, legs folded beneath and hands curling around the bars of the cell.
Yuki returned the glare, unable to tear his eyes away from something so unique. He was intrigued by the unmatched vision before his eyes. He was fascinated by it. No. He was fascinated by
/Him. /
TBC?
Or not?
S'up to you guys - feedback is craved, if I've misspelled anything or gotten any facts wrong, I apologise.
If you like, review.
I say 'His Majesty the King' rather than 'Kohuouheika' so that it doesn't seem confusing. ^_^
I know nymphs are meant to be female but we're making a little exception here.
/thoughts/
Standard Disclaimers Apply
Set me Free
At the final contact with two swords, the powerful force of the first blade against the second was enough to send it hurtling through the air to land several feet away from its owner, whom stood in a state of absolute stiffness before standing upright and lowering his shield.
"You've made great progress, Yuki-sama. I guess it will be I that shall need to receive lessons from you soon!" A moustached man said, rubbing the back of his neck with a palm while bearing a grin on his face.
"I doubt I'd be able to improve your swordsmanship skills; you, who seems to believe that carelessly swinging around a sword like drunkard is a technique for killing." Yuki replied in his usual cold voice.
The man's smile faltered slightly as he retrieved his sword but tried his best not to let the remark get to him. It was well known that Yuki Eiri was not one for polite conversation and insulted those who were unfortunate enough to be present while he was not in a good mood, which was often. Just the other day, he had sent one of the servant-girls crying to her quarters wishing to leave her work in the castle. After the other maids had calmed her down, Yuki apologised after Mika, his sister had threatened to tell their father that he'd been skipping the lancing lessons that were compulsory for his upbringing as a Prince. The maids saw this as charming rather then seeing that he was forcing an apology unwillingly from himself, thus they continued to fawn over him like the had for many years.
"Well then, I shall excuse myself early today so that I may inform His Majesty of your success with a sword," he said as he backed toward the doors of the practice room. No one dared turn their back on Yuki Eiri unless they had a death wish.
"That won't be necessary. I doubt such a trivial thing like that would change his opinion of me," Yuki stated just before the man vacated the room. Yuki's relationship with his father was not a good one. Yuki had resented him for as long as he can remember and did everything he could to defy him. This meant denying his own position as heir to the throne, which he was more than happy to do since he did not desire to become King.
Yuki shed his armour and placed the practice sword on one of the hooks emerging from the wall. He left the sweat-stenched room and followed the staircase leading to the royal chambers. Uesugi Castle was one that contained a labyrinth within. The halls were tall and displayed countless paintings of previous Kings and Queens but with its meandering design, it was a maze to those who were strangers to it. However, Yuki was no stranger to the seemingly random directions. At a particular wall he pushed a specific brick with the base of his hand and stepped through the opening it made. Once through, he walked at a relaxed pace down the now straight hall and entered his room through a large, but light-weight, wooden door.
Before he was all the way into his room he was greeted by the unappealing sight of his brother surrounded by Yuki's books. Yuki slammed the door behind him causing his younger brother to realise his presence. The latter turned around bearing his usual grin.
"Eiri, you've got some weird stuff here! Don't tell me this is what you spend all you're time-"
"What are you doing here?" Yuki interrupted, "Come to make a mess of my room as well as your own room?"
Tatsuha retained his smile. "I've come to annoy you."
"Get out." Yuki's voice as cold as ever cut through the air, aimed at Tatsuha. However Tatsuha had grown immune to his elder brother's remarks.
"Eeeeeh? But it's my job as your brother to annoy you! I was practically born with the duty!" Tatsuha walked towards his brother, bumping the desk he was next to at the same time causing several of the surface's contents to topple and roll across the desk. The man was a walking disaster. Yuki pressed his thumb and forefinger at his brow. He could feel a migraine coming. Getting rid of Tatsuha was always close to impossible and the process of trying would only make his head hurt more.
"Do as you like," he said, deciding to try and ignore him.
And so Yuki ,ignoring his brother, sat at his desk reading a novel, while Tatsuha tried to get his attention. Soon Tatsuha grew bored and ended up slouched in one of Yuki's chairs, he murmuring curses under his breathe while plotting a way to irritate his brother. But something interrupted his thoughts and caught his attention. Outside in the hall he could hear the maids scuttling and whispering in an excited manner. He got up and opened the door just as a couple of maids were about to scurry past.
He latched onto one of them, "Hey," he said, causing the young girl to jump and flush a light shade of pink.
"I'm ever so s-sorry for being s-so loud, Ouji-sama", she stuttered while keeping her head low. The other maids followed her lead and apologised too.
"What's all the commotion, anyway?" Tatsuha questioned, leaning against the door to Yuki's room. The girls gave each other a quick nervous glance and the first girl, with her head still bowed replied, "His Majesty the King has returned from the hunt and it is said that he has caught a nymph!"
Tatsuha's eyes widened. He dismissed the girls before running back into Yuki's room. Before he could utter a word, Yuki already answered without looking p from his book.
"No."
"Pleeeeeease, Eiri?" Tatsuha whined in a tone he knew grated Yuki's nerves.
"Go by yourself. You're not an invalid so you don't require my presence." Yuki closed his book, and rubbed his right temple with his hand.
"A nymph! I mean, It's not everyday you get to see one of those. I heard they're really rare and really hard to find!" Tatsuha continued to whinge while pulling on his brother's clothes.
"No. I don't care." Yuki replied, glaring at his brother.
"I'll stay out of your room for a week!" the younger boy bribed.
Yuki seemed to think about this, his eyes moving up in thought. He knew all too well that if he didn't go with him, Tatsuha would be at his peak of irritation as revenge.
"A month." Yuki stated. Not waiting for it to be compromised, he stood up and walked towards the door.
Tatsuha sighed and let his shoulders drop in defeat and followed Yuki out of the room.
---
Once they arrived at the dungeons, Yuki and Tatsuha headed straight towards the small crowd around one particular cell. They had heard the frantic voices a long while before they arrived. Yuki's hand automatically went up to his head as the voices grew louder than before. /Just remember that this is worth the rewarding month peace and quiet./ He approached the small crowd with Tatsuha in front of him trying to see through the bodies and into the cell.
"Aaagh! The bastard burnt me!" one of the guards yelled out, clutching his right hand with the other, teeth gritted together in an attempt to subside the pain that he was obviously experiencing. "We should kill it! And hang its head on display!"
"No, no, no. We shall keep him confined. It'll keep the guests entertained. Won't you, my little trophy?" The King's patronising words caused the imprisoned to lash out at its confinement.
"Fuck you! Let me outta here you bastard!" A tenor voice spat from within. The flaring anger in his voice caused the King to retreat a little. His regular dignified face slipped back in place and he turned his back on the creature.
"Keep him confined." And with that, he strode out of the room, not once looking back to acknowledge the presence of his sons.
Yuki, however, held no interest in the man's spiteful actions but was genuinely curious about the creature within the dungeon. He had heard the legends about nymphs but he never expected it to captivate him as much as it did now. He shoved everyone out of the way to obtain a proper look at the mystical creature.
Violet eyes stared straight at him, brow still creased with rage. It had blazing pink hair, a few silken strands falling into his eyes. It's body was small and lithe, legs folded beneath and hands curling around the bars of the cell.
Yuki returned the glare, unable to tear his eyes away from something so unique. He was intrigued by the unmatched vision before his eyes. He was fascinated by it. No. He was fascinated by
/Him. /
TBC?
Or not?
S'up to you guys - feedback is craved, if I've misspelled anything or gotten any facts wrong, I apologise.
If you like, review.