Heir to the Throne
By: Datenma
Disclaimer: I do not own Golden Sun but I do own Kyuhi and Myles.
Warning: Shounen-ai hints. Don't like, don't read
Thanks so much for the lovely reviews. I totally adore you and the reviews:has Akito bake brownies for everyone: Yes. My demon boy can bake. How do you think Okami survives XD He can't cook.
Steeple333 – Really? Thank you for letting me know XD :stabs self: Heh. I know, I really did not want their relationship going too fast because that just would not seem right, especially with how both of them are, they just don't seem so trusting of romantic relationships, at least…that's how I see it XD
Azalee – XD I could not help myself I just had to bring in Alex.
Read and review please.
Chapter 5: The White Knight's Decision
This was not supposed to happen.
Robin stands tense at my side, his head bowed low as he glares at his boots, fists balled so tightly that his nails bit into the palm of his hands, drawing a trickle of blood that drips onto the floor. I turn away from him quickly, clenching my eyes shut. I do not want to see him like this. I feel as if it is my fault.
The silence around us is so intense. The air is thick with it, almost as if we are about to be sentenced to our deaths and from the grim look on the King and Queen's face, they might as well be our executioners. I wish Garcia were here; he might be able to say something in our defense.
"White Knight," There was an edge in the King's voice as he spoke and I felt Robin grow even more tense next to me, as if he is fighting back against something. "We are very disappointed in you. We left Prince Ivan in your care; we did not put you in charge of him so that he could be your own personal playmate. The natural thing to do would be to relieve you of your duties towards the prince but since you are the only one capable of protecting him, that is not an option open to us."
The Queen tries to smile at us but it comes out more as a frown than anything else. "The two of you will be watched by the guards around the clock, no exceptions. You are to both be on your best behavior, especially when in the company of each other. White Knight, you are to start Prince Ivan's training at sunrise tomorrow, no questions asked, this is the reason he was brought here in the first place.
"He may be in Haidia Village now, but his life is still in danger." The King says, resting his chin on his hand. "The guards are too busy at the moment so the two of you will not be watched today but come tomorrow morning, they will be on high alert. White Knight, you know better than to go to the Sanctum without permission—I can forgive Prince Ivan this much but you…"
"I understand, Your Highness." Hisses Robin and not waiting to be dismissed, turns on his heel and walks out, the doors slamming behind him. I open my eyes and look at the place where he was standing, a small collection of blood droplets staining the floor.
"That boy has such a short-temper." The Queen sighs softly. She smiles at me finally, "Prince Ivan, you can run along now, please be good. We do not want anything bad happening to you while you are in our care." I nod. Somehow, she seems more worried about herself than me, with a statement like that.
I turn my back to them and walk to the doors slowly, pulling one open and slipping out into the deserted hallway. I look left and then right. Where could Robin had run off to in such a hurry? I want to apologize to him. The thought of him being mad at me hurts more than the King and Queen's words of distrust.
I roam about the castle, not running into anyone who can tell me where Robin went. An hour passes before I realize that I have gotten lost. I let out a groan and turn into a corridor that ends up leading me outside into a beautiful courtyard. It seems to be enclosed by the castle, four stonewalls surrounding it, a small pond in the middle with a waterfall supplying it with fresh water.
I start to walk onto the grass but stop and instinctively hide behind a bush when I hear voices. "I've had enough of their shit, Gerald." Robin!
"I know, Robin, but there isn't much you can do. You made a promise, both to those people and to Prince Ivan." The two come into view, Robin looking angry and Gerald worried. Robin turns and punches the pillar next to him, denting it. I jump and cover my mouth to muffle the gasp.
"That is the only reason I am here right now!" He seems to calm down for a moment, "It isn't that I feel obligated by my promise…it's just that I don't want to see Ivan harmed by the King's stupidity. He's foolhardy and reckless when it comes to his children. Garcia can more than take care of himself and that's why he ditches his duties as crown prince to go off with Picard. As for Jasmine…the King is putting Ivan in danger because of her! This isn't right, Gerald."
"Robin, we're just pawns to the royals, they don't care what happens, even Prince Ivan. He is disposable to them. The only reason they give even a little care to Prince Picard is because of Garcia's attachment to him. If anything happened to him, Garcia would snap and…that would not be good for them." Robin smiles at him.
"Nice way to put it, Garcia. But still, they just can't go around treating people like objects. They have everyone in town other than us whipped—even my parents willingly follow their every command. It makes me sick."
"Which is why the White Knight stays as far from Haidia Village as he possibly can."
"It seems you have finally found me out. Took you four or so years but it's better late than never." Robin lets out a sigh and sits on one of the benches. "I have a plan, Gerald, but I am going to need your help if it is going to work."
Gerald grins, "I love it when you think evilly! Welcome back to the dark side, Robin!"
"Meet me at Kyuhi's house at sunset. I am going to need his help as well. I want it to be kept between just the three of us for the moment. Go tell Kyuhi that we need his help for something and to be ready whenever I come." Gerald nods and runs off after clasping Robin on the shoulder.
I sink back behind the bushes as he disappears into the castle, leaving Robin and myself alone. Robin has yet to move from the bench so I cannot sneak back into the castle and I cannot apologize to him because I was listening in on a private conversation.
"Prince Ivan, I know you are listening." I jump and turn to look at him. He is looking down at his hands, a golden glow appearing there briefly before he sighs and looks up at me. "Come here please." I hesitate for a moment but his eyes soften and I can tell he is not mad anymore, at least not at me.
I push myself to my feet and walk over to him slowly, standing in front of him once I reach the bench. He holds his left hand out to me and before I can do anything, pulls me onto the bench next to him. "Robin!"
"Shh. I am sure that there are attendants watching us at the very least. The King and Queen are not going to trust me alone with you after this. The Sanctum is a very sacred place; the Elders will not even allow them in. The only reason I am given permission is because of my relationship with the Gods, though they see it more as an obligation to allow me in than anything else. It is not as if they respect me or anything, though I do have the title of White Knight, it means nothing to them as long as I am still a teenager."
"That isn't fair."
"You should not let it to upset you, Prince Ivan." He says softly, pushing himself from the bench and looking back at me. "Allow me to deal with this matter personally. If I have your trust, this matter will go over smoothly." Again I hesitated. If only people would talk to me normally rather than in cryptic riddles maybe then I would understand what is going on.
"My trust? If that is all…then, of course you have it, Robin. You don't even have to ask something like that. If I did not trust you…I probably would not be here in the first place." He looks away, running a hand through his tousled locks as a gentle gust of wind blows past us.
"You probably would not be in this situation, either. It is my fault for taking you to the Sanctum this morning. It was not my place to do such a thing." I push myself further onto the bench, bringing myself closer to one of the corridors leading back into the castle. He catches the movement and turns to look at me with a confused expression.
"But…that isn't what you really want to say, is it?" He blinks at me for a moment before his eyes widen in panic. Before I can do or say anything, he darts forward, his right hand bracing himself on the bench at my side and his other grabbing my wrist tightly, preventing me from moving.
"Wait, Prince Ivan, I—" He stops himself, either as if he just realized something or if he forgot what he was going to say. He bows his head, pulling back a little and loosening his grip on my wrist but not letting go completely. "It isn't that I do not want to tell you what is going on, I just cannot while we are in this place. There are far too many restrictions keeping me bound while I am here. That is why I plan to do something about it." He glances around us before leaning forward, whispering into my ear, "Have your things packed before midnight. Don't ask any questions and please wait for me only."
He pulls away again and kneels in front of me, letting his hand slip from around my wrist until his fingers brushed along mine. He tightens his grip then and presses his lips to the back of my hand, opening his eyes to direct a smirk at me. "Life certainly is not boring while you are around, my little prince." He gets to his feet and dusts off his pants before returning to the inner castle, leaving me alone in the vast courtyard.
I blow lightly at a strand of hair that slips into his eyes and blush down at my hand. "He kissed my hand again…I'm not really sure what to think about that." I sigh deeply before lowering myself gently onto the bench, stretching out my muscles. I do not really see what the big problem is, the punishment that the King and Queen gave to us did not seem all that bad. Then again, when I think about it hard enough…I do not like the idea of being watched all the time while I am here.
I let out a loud, frustrated groan and rake my hands through my hair. A kid my age should not have to deal with all these problems. I just want to go back to Karei Town, though I know I could never do that now, not with what I know. Going back to a 'normal' life would seem selfish, especially with Robin. He has sacrificed so much and he never asked for this kind of life. I cannot say that we are alike because he has been in this much longer than I have and I doubt that he had someone helping him like he is helping me.
I scared. Things have been going by so fast and…there are things I cannot remember, things that I should remember. Ever since Lord Hammet took me to Vault, things have just been going faster and faster and I cannot keep up as hard as I try, as much as I want to. I do not want to complain about it, though. That will make me seem weak and I do not want to embarrass Robin like that, he has put so much faith into me…I at least owe him this much.
"Ivan." A familiar voice. A woman's voice. Lady Layana? "Ivan, honey, it's time to get up." I flinch as the curtains next to my bed are flung open. I sit up slowly and see Lady Layana moving about the room, just trying to keep herself busy.
"Lady Layana?" I ask, my voice rough from sleep. She turns around and smiles at me warmly.
"Hurry up and get dressed, Ivan. There is someone that we want you to meet. He has come a long way just to see you." She pulls me from my bed and I have to lean heavily on her so as not to fall onto the floor, my legs still not obeying my brain's commands.
"Someone from far away?" I ask, barely managing to cover a yawn as she pushes me into my closet to get changed.
"Yes, from the far south. A place where it snows all the time, Lord Hammet agreed to start trade with his father and when he heard about you, he was so interested that Lord Hammet said that he could come along as well. He is around your age too, Ivan…" Lady Layana claps her hands together as I pull a clean tunic on over my head. "This is wonderful, Ivan, you'll have a little playmate."
For some reason, I am not as happy about that as she is. Either because I am too groggy from sleep…or because of the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I pull on my gloves and open the closet door to see Lady Layana still standing there, beaming at me as she turns at the sound of the door opening. "Ivan…you are so adorable. You are going to make one man very happy." She pulls me into a tight hug and I flinch again.
"A man? L-Lady Layana!"
Together we go to meet Lord Hammet's guests in the throne room. Lady Layana stops me a few feet from the two people standing before the thrones and the young boy standing next to the man turns slowly to look at me, my heart stopping when I lock eyes with him. Ice cold, pale blue eyes, almost lifeless. He smirks at me, a frightening action that makes his eyes look even more like the glass eyes of a porcelain doll.
"Ivan, this is Myles."
"Hello, Ivan."
I blink up at the velvety, star-filled sky. Everything seems so peaceful but…my heart is racing. Myles. Why did I not remember him before now? He came from a country far south of here, a country I could not pronounce back then so chose not to remember. He had to be a year or so younger than me but his mind seemed so dark and sinister, not like the mind of normal seven-year-olds. I was scared of him, to say the least and I refused to be left alone with him without Lady Layana or one of the attendants that I trusted. Just…something about him…
Those pale blue eyes…nothing like Robin's. Robin's eyes are so full of life and fire, the sort of eyes that made people feel special. Myles' eyes carried none of Robin's charm. A shameful copy almost.
Robin…
Oh crap! I sit up and look around the sky, trying to figure out what time it was by the stars that hung there. The constellations on this part of the continent are different from those in Karei Town so I cannot tell just by the stars alone. I scramble to my feet and hop over the bench onto the ground and run to my room, hoping not to get lost.
Somehow I manage to find my room and throw all my things together before sinking to the floor next to the window, gasping for breath.
"Oooh, where have you been?" I jump before I realize that it was Kite, hovering towards me. I shake my head and sigh at him. "You know, I have not seen Robin either…the two of you are very close. I am glad, Robin needs someone that will get him to be more careful about his well-being."
"What do you mean by that, Kite?" Kite lands on my shoulder and shakes, in what I can only guess is his way of saying 'no'. I sigh and get onto my knees, pushing the window open to look outside.
"Ivan." A soft whisper, barely audible carries up to me from the ground. I look down to see Robin standing there with Gerald at his side, talking to another man in a hushed voice. "Ivan, come on, it's time to go."
"Go? Go where?" Robin smirks, holding his hands out to me.
"We're breaking out of the prison."
TBCI would have gotten this done sooner but my friends came over, however…:evil smirk: I HAVE LEVEL-C! I 3 Kazuomi and Mizuki! And Mirage of Blaze fans! Did you know that they are coming out with the OVA? I am so in love with MoB. I thought the ending was so sad, because Takaya…:stops herself before she goes into a MoB rant: I love MoB, I really do. You just can't stop me when I start talking about it XD I'll spare everyone, though.
This went a little fast…Oh well. Once I finish it, I'll try to go back and make it all flow. My mind's getting a little scattered. I've got to make my appointment for senior pictures. Then I've got to get an appointment to get my contacts because my prescriptions changed just slightly but it is a little harder to see (I'm near-sighted but it's hard to see the computer screen right now but it hurts when I wear my glasses XD) and then I've got to get my hair done. :sighs: So much to do. And hurricane season's started up again. I am not happy about that. Grrr. Oh well. What can ya do. :looks at Alex and Robin:
Robin/Alex: What?
Never mind. Until next time!