Alright sorry that this update is like a Yoh-jillion months late. I also apologize for such a short chapter! I have my hands tied with so much stuff! So gomen nasai!! (From Keeper of Yoh)

Just My Luck

Written by Keeper of Yoh and Strawberry Promises

Anna is thrown into a marriage lottery where spouses are chosen by chance. The Prince, her husband-to-be, is abusive so Anna flees. He captures her but not before she meets someone she thought a commoner: his younger brother!

Chapter Two: The Winner

Anna sat there hugging her knees. What had her parents gotten her into? Why were they so willing to just throw her future just like a pair of dice?

She shook her head. No use of getting upset about it now. She glanced at Tamao who was gossiping with the other girls about how they wanted to be with the Prince. She sighed. What was the big deal? He's just another guy.

She looked towards the central square where the girls were being taken. This made Anna chuckle. It's as if they were being treated like cows on their way to the meat packaging company.

When the wagon stopped, the girls were let out and were lead to stand in front of a huge capsule machine. About every single teenage girl in the whole kingdom had her name inside a capsule. Who would get her was the question. She bit her lip nervously. What if some idiot got her? Like the village moron Horo. Although they were childhood friends, she wouldn't want to be stuck with him for the rest of her life.

Guys came in periodically. They added their names to the list so they can get a chance to pick a capsule. Most of these guys she's seen around when she was shopping. None were really worth her time. She sighed and began to doze off, until that man caught her eye. That commoner from yesterday.

What's he doing here? She wondered. She felt her face heat up, but she fought it. She wanted to ask him if he was going to enter. She tried to divert her attention to somewhere else. When she glanced back, she noticed that he was walking towards her. Ahh! What does he want? She began to panic. She held her cheeks so he wouldn't see the pink crossing over

"Good morning, miss!" The brunette called. He had that blasted grin on his face. He bowed but hit his head on his knee. "Owie…"

Anna sweat dropped. Was this the same guy from yesterday?

He put a hand behind his head and laughed. "Sorry about that! I haven't really a habit of bowing… lemme try it again" he clenched his fist and made a serious face. He tried again but fell.

Anna laughed slightly. He noticed that and smiled and laughed with her. "I guess I'm not so good at this kind of thing"

"Maybe you should try not to bow down so far. But only to where my hips are" she tried giving him suggestion. He nodded and tried once more. With success he jumped up. "Yesta! Yesta!" he said triumphantly. Anna once again sweat dropped but had a hint of happiness that he was able to do it correctly.

He took her hand and brought it to his lips. "Thank you, fair one… eh heh heh heh heh" he grinned again.

Anna once again felt her face heat. She took her hand back and turned around; not facing him. "I-I didn't do anything.."

He smiled. "So you say…"

Anna looked down and remembered why she wanted to talk to him in the first place. "Why are you here?" The young man gave her a serious look. "Just looking…"

For some reason, she felt like her heart crack. So he wasn't entering? "This whole thing is wrong" he said, breaking the silence. She looked up. But every guy in the kingdom wanted this. "All these young women shouldn't let their fate be decided by chance. It's not right. And it's just a darn shame that none of the officials aren't doing anything to stop it" he explained.

"But the officials and the Prince himself are the ones who created this idea" Anna pointed out.

She saw him clench his fists. "Is that so?" His attention went back to the central square. He whistled for his horse as soon as the horns began to sound. The horse was a beautiful white stallion. Anna gasped as he placed a kiss on her cheek and placed something in her hand. "Until we meet again… uh..." he stammered as he closed her hand.

Absent-mindedly she said her name. "Anna. Anna Kyouyama"

He smiled as he got on his horse but fell. "Eh heh heh heh…" He tried again and held on the grip of the reigns. "Well, until we meet again, Lady Anna" he waved and galloped away. She watched him as she felt her face where he had kissed her. However she winced when she saw him fall off. He turned and waved. "I can do it!" He got back on and rode away.

Anna smiled. What a… unique man she was. She frowned when she found that she didn't get his name. She remembered that he placed something in her hand before he left. She opened her hand and released a small gasp. A pearl crest. Only the royals had one. Along with the Nobles. She shook her head. He can't be… he's a commoner! Oh I know... the local jewelry shop sells these as well. But where did he get the money to get it? It didn't matter. She put it in her pocket. That was… quite an experience.

She walked to where Tamao was when the royal announcer announced that the event was about to begin. "But before we begin, I would like to announce the arrival of your Majesty, Prince Hao!" The cart rode up and someone opened the cart door to let him out. He walked out and on the red carpet in all his glory. He smiled and winked at some girls.

Anna twitched. "He's too cocky for his own good" she mumbled. She crossed her arms. Oh how she hated being here.

A reporter asked the Prince something for the newspaper. "Where is your brother, your Highness?" he asked.

Anna arched an eyebrow. The Prince has a brother?

He raised his hand. "Him? He's off somewhere. So let's get this thing started!" he smirked. It looked like he didn't really care where the other prince had gone off to. Anna wondered. Was he also in the lottery? She shivered at the thought. Great another cocky ruler. Just what this country needed.

Hours passed until it was the Prince's turn. All the others who haven't been chosen, including Tamao, swooned. "I hope it's me!" and "He's so dreamy!" were heard. Anna laughed as she knew that everyone's chance of getting selected was extremely slim. Including Anna's but she was just fine with that.

He pressed the button that released the capsule. He caught it and opened it. Silence covered the whole kingdom. Everyone was anxious to find out who would be the Prince's princess.

Anna laughed silently as she saw Tamao bite her lip. "I hope it's me" she said quietly. Anna placed her hand on Tamao's shoulder. "I bet it is" she said to her nervous friend.

The announcer turned to the Prince as he opened it. "So who is your bride, Prince Hao?"

Fingers crossed, the girls awaited for him to say their names.

"Anna Kyouyama"

Author's Note:

Keeper of Yoh: Finally I was able to post this chapter! Again I'm sorry for such a short chapter and sorry again for such a long wait. Now it's Strawberry's turn!

Thank you for reading!

Ja Mata!

Keiko