Dear Readers,
How did you like the last chapter huh? I bet most of you were guessing something had to go wrong at the ball anyways, right? You guess right if you did!
This chapter should be a mix of emotions. It's solely dedicated to Botan and Kurama. Putting in more would ruin the mood of the chapter. Don't' worry, Hari-haters, she'll get her punishment soon….
By the way, there's a notice (or somethin' like that) so please reply it through your reviews!
Enjoy!
Love,
Wolf Princess Aya
Lasting Memories
The night was silent, almost mourning in a way, the pitch black sky as dark as can be. The once shining stars seemed to sigh, their mistress, the moon, had appeared to lose some of her luster ever since she saw two lovers part unwillingly.
Crickets chirped monotonously, the wind softly rustling in the treetops, moaning quietly. Nature was not oblivious to a heart's plight, a heart's cry for help and comfort.
In the empty palace quarters, a young and heart-broken maid ran up countless flights of stairs, streams of salty tears streaming down her face, her weeps echoing off the walls. The pain in her legs was nothing compared to her heart's heavy grief and anguish.
She was alone…all alone…
Reaching her rooms, not bothering to shut the door behind her, Botan threw herself onto the meager bed, burying her head into the pillow, crying out endless sorrow. Her sobs couldn't be heard; everyone was at the ball, having a romantic evening.
And here she was… Dreams shattered and heart broken…
Streams of tears becoming trickles, she propped herself upward to turn her position just to gaze the full moon out her window. Reminiscing of her life, her mind drifted to a certain red-mane prince, who had stole her heart the night they had met.
But he had been nothing but trouble for the young girl since then.
Immediately, a picture of Hari and Kurama kissing for their wedding popped into her head as she was confined in the palace dungeons, forced to see her life fall to pieces, her efforts of escape futile.
Thinking about their engagement, Botan narrowed her eyes, ceasing her tears, her hands clenching into tight fists, her knuckles turning pale white.
"I wish…" she started angrily. "I wish Hari never existed… and I never wished I met those two… I hate them… I hate them!!"
Her angry voice echoed through the open door, bouncing off the stone walls. Silence soon followed, the stillness once again blanketing the room.
Stopping herself, Botan gasped, putting her hands to her face, guilt surging in her blood. Her candy eyes softened, realizing how horrible she must have seemed seconds ago. Never in her life had she been so… filled with hatred.
'I must have looked terrible…' she thought, her heart filling with guilt. She breathed another heavy sigh, her mind troubled and her thoughts unclear.
'When did I start to become so mean? I…that couldn't have been me, could it?'
The maid slowly put her hands back on her lap, remembering her mother, how kind she was to everyone… how she never hated anyone.
At heart, Botan couldn't hate either of them, no matter how atrocious Hari was.
And…
No matter how heartbroken or hurt she become, Botan could never find the courage to hold hatred towards her prince. She couldn't bring herself to hate him…
She loved him…
But it was forbidden…
Impossible…
Sighing heavily, the blue-haired maiden rose to her feet, changing out of her wonderful gown into her maid uniform, making sure the dress was stashed somewhere safe. It was one of the few items she could hold dear to her heart.
If Hari had found out what had happened that night, she would lose her only gown, the only proof that she once had happiness after her father's death.
Occasionally, she would drop to her knees, her current strength sometimes not enough to support her. But every time, she would get up again.
She didn't know why, but something inside her told her to go on.
No matter how hard it was to live, she had to go on.
Through it all, when she fell, a hand was there to pick her up. When she was beaten, the same angel helped her to recover. Botan hugged herself as she thought of her deceased father and mother… Life seemed excruciating to go through without them…
Finally making it back to her bed, she lay on the mattress, facing the small ceiling with pained eyes. Memories swam inside of her head, past events once again painted in her mind.
The first ball… The first time she met Kurama, both of them strangers to one another…
Then there was Hari's interference and engagement to him, tricking him to believe his true love was her…
She thought things couldn't be any worse.
She was wrong.
Moving to the palace caused her to be maid… a servant… a slave… To be tortured and ordered around…
Never the less, she was given the privilege to know Kurama in secret, them no longer strangers yet still so far apart…
And up to now, to palace ball, she still dreamed, still loved and still hoped.
But was all of it in vain?
Do dreams really come true? Was it all just a fairytale? Just a figment of her imaginings?
Crystal tears welling in her eyes, Botan tentatively touched her pale pink lips with her shaking fingers, Kurama's passionate kiss still lingering on them.
It was her first kiss… with her first love…
If only….
If only she could have told him everything… how she was the one he fell in love with and how Hari was lying… How she loved him so…
'If he only knew…' she wished wistfully.
But it was too late…
It suddenly occurred to her that no matter how many times she cried out for help, no one would hear her.
Would they?
Her eyes turned to the door, just hoping her prince would come to save her. But the longer she stared, the more she realized that he wasn't coming… It was possible that he would never come.
She finally understood why the caged bird sang.
Because they were one of the same.
No longer able to keep from crying, tears streamed from her lost eyes as she began to weep once more, knowing she had to face another day…
Another unbearable day…
At long last, the blue-haired girl cried herself to sleep, her hands clutched upon her two necklaces, unaware her troubles were just beginning…
Early golden rays poured through the window sill of Botan's bedroom, her sleeping figure lay still upon her dull and shabby bed. Dawn had dripped from the sky, spreading all its glory to world as birds chirped cheerfully from the treetops.
But… nothing seemed quite normal. It was as if, after that night, things seemed different, no matter what someone did to return things the way they were before.
Botan's door, left open from the other night, squeaked slightly as a visitor entered the quarter gingerly and cautiously. Still, young maid slept.
The red-haired prince quietly made his way to the blue-haired girl's sleeping figure, taking a seat on the mattress, careful not to wake or disturb her.
His face was stony, quite troubled, his eyes lost in space as he stared at the maiden, a typhoon conflict battling inside of his mind.
A frown tipped his lips as his emerald eyes gazed at her delicate face, as if seeking answers from her. Kurama sadly smiled as he watched Botan turn towards him in her sleep, oblivious to his presence. He could only what she was dreaming about.
Was she… she dreaming about… him? He couldn't help but wonder.
He remembered everything about last night… His heart was absolutely confused, mystified… His feelings in a tight knot and his thoughts in disarray…
It … it seemed so right to have her in his arms, to hold her and never want to let her go.
It was so perfect… so heavenly. The feeling that surged through his body the other night was foreign yet…
It was a feeling that made his soul soar as high as a free dove, a feeling that made him feel as if the world was inhabited by only them, that the world was a Paradise for their love… a feeling that had his heart move on its own, like it was natural…
He had never felt such a feeling, but when it coursed through his veins, nothing else mattered.
Botan, still sleeping, smiled in her slumber, her grin catching onto the Kurama as her angelic features turned his deep frown into a slight yet sad smile. Subconsciously, he reached out a single hand, caressing her cheek with loving comfort.
She was a simple angel with locks of blue that emphasized her candy innocent eyes, her soul as pure as any jewel with a smile as glowing and beaming as the glistening silvery moon. And when she had entered his life, everything he knew had changed, his world turned upside down.
From the start, he knew there was something…special…without-a-doubt wonderful… about her.
First, it was his engagement to Hari and then, when he met her as a naïve maid, he had no idea how amazing and fantastic it could be to have fun.
When he was beside her, alone with her, nothing in the world mattered. Every little worry of his, every little pain he was hiding just ebbed away because she smiled at him.
It was because she was all he ever hoped for…
She had taken him outside the palace, shown him the elegance of a simple life, and had taught him many lessons unintentionally…
Or was it fate?
Were they meant to meet? To…harbor such feelings?
Before all of these events, life seemed so… easy to handle, easy to understand. Learning all skills with flowing ease, Kurama had always been perceptive, his intelligence stunningly impressive, and without a doubt, he was a prodigy.
Before it all, he had never given any thought to marriage… to love…
His kiss with Botan immediately reappeared in his mind. Instantly, the prince's heart fell.
What on earth had compelled him to do such a thing…? Did it mean anything? Who did he love?
He was engaged!
But did that engagement mean anything to him?
If the situation hadn't involved the blue-haired maiden, he would have gone to her for advice.
He could just picture Botan telling him "to just follow his heart; it'll never let you down", a laugh upon her lips, her lavender eyes dancing with amusement, her radiant smile instantly wiping the frown off his expression.
Love… A feeling his mother and father had tried to force into him, a feeling they tried to teach him. He could never understand it, and before, never cared about his future with a woman that shared that feeling.
But now, he could think of nothing but his love problems and to this moment, still couldn't grasp its concept.
Snapping out of his thoughts and ponders, Kurama leaned down, placing a sweet kiss on Botan's forehead, as her smile grew slightly wider in her sleep.
"I…I don't know what to do right now, Botan…" he whispered to her, knowing she couldn't hear him. "It might take a while to get this straightened out… But promise me… you'll wait… you'll wait for me in the end… no matter how long it takes, or no matter what happens…" Grinning painfully, the young prince arose from his seat, gazing at the maid one last time.
With his final words, the red mane prince left the room, leaving a single white rose next her to pillow as a piece of evidence of his visit.
'Please wait… Mitsukai…'
(Brings out a tissue and blows her nose) That… was so… sappy… and… kawaii… beautiful… absolutely beautiful…
(Pops up like new again) Anyways…!
This time, I'd thought I would do something different after I did my chapter.
BINGO! A… contest!
Of course, nobody wins anything, but if you like contests of Fanfiction, then step right up!
Here are the questions…
1) Who is the main villain in the next part of this fanfic?
(Hm…)
2) What will he/she do to Botan?
(Hint: this one's connected to number 7)
3) What will he/she do to Kurama?
(Oh no, poor Kurama!)
4) Do you think Hari will live or die?
(Toughie… what does Aya-chan think…)
5a) How will Hari live? Who saves her?
Or
5b) Who kills Hari? How does she die?
(Life or death? Again, toughie)
6) What is Keiko's secret? Does she have one?
(Keiko-chan has a secret?! Wait…how come Botan doesn't know?)
7) What is Botan's secret?
(Botan has a secret! Botan has a secret! But… she doesn't act like she has one…)
8) What is Hinagashi's secret? Why couldn't she tell it to Hiei?
(Hinagashi's hiding something?! Hint: it's connected with number 6 and 7)
9) Who is the new character appearing in the next chapters?
a) Yakumo
b) Karasu
c) Genkai
d) Kuronue
(Sorry, can't help you here. It's multiple choice!)
10) What is the twist of this story?
(Now, that's my secret…)
And these or bonuses!
11) Where did I go for vacation this Christmas break?
12) What is my favorite brand of candy?
You can answer as many questions as you like and the answers will be posted next chapter! Or you can e-mail me and get the answers before then.
Have a happy new year!
With much, much love,
Aya Kinamoto