CARMINA BURANA

by Aeris Tiniel Mirime

Sakura'as a princess, Tori's a knight, and Li's a blacksmith in this AU crossover with Fushigi Yuugi. Cowritten with Elcyion Pitye. Includes SY, SS, MeiLi, Chelsea x Zachary, and more. Very old and on hiatus.

5. IV Tanz Uf dem anger

Disclaimers: Why would great shows like Fushigi Yuugi and Cardcaptors belong to poor lil' high school students like us?!
Clamp, Kodansha, Yu Watase, and whoever makes the anime of FY( can't remember the name right now b/c i mostly read the manga) have all the rights

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CARMINA BURANA ~ CHAPTER 4

TANZ - UF DEM ANGER
(DANCE - ON THE LAWN)

By Elcyion Pitye and *Aeris Tiniel Mirime*
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All were gathering on the still trampled fields of Lea. Remnants of the great clash could be seen scattered around the area. At the head of the massive group were Subaru, Sakura, Hikitsu, and Julian, followed by Meilin's family, since her mother was Duchess. Behind them were the various nobles of the courts. The Orders of Knights of both Enigma and Summit made a single line to finish, and after them, the commoners moved en masse. Not one among the whole assembly was riding, for this was a memorial service for those who had fallen, and the citizens, even the knights, walked upon the earth to show humility and respect. Subaru turned to address the crowd, and all became still. Her clear voice rang out in the silence.

"My friends, today we commence in fellowship to remember our lost. For all of us here this day, the loss of these lives are grievous losses indeed, yet they are not entirely bitter. It is because of their sacrifices that we are able to stand upon the very field were they were slain, and celebrate the glorious victory they gave to us. I have here the names of those honored men to whom we are eternally grateful.."

As the names were being called, Nikki, who was standing next to a few participants of the battle, was listening quietly, while thinking they should have at least added her family's name to the list. Sighing, and knowing that it would probably never happen, she looked down and began to examine the grass. She saw all different kinds of things: a ring, ragged bits of cloth that must have once been from someone's clothes, a body of an arrow that was missing the head, a necklace that somehow looked familiar....

She knelt down to see if it was what she thought, causing some of those near her to turn their heads. Indeed, the object was a silver chain she had made for her father just last year. Hanging from it was a pendant in the shape of a maple leaf, surrounded by a thin gold circlet. She had learned how to make it in one of her art classes. But how did his gift get all the way out here? The only reason Nikki could think of was that he must have lost it out in the fields on some occasion and not told her. Probably, she thought, to keep from upsetting her. But now she was glad that he had lost it - it was the one of the only things of his that she had left. Nikki closed her fist around it just as the Empress spoke,

"We remember the loss of a great and noble knight - Sir Tamahome Kishuku, the Head of the Order of the Kinghts of Enigma."

Suddenly, a young man a few years older than herself called out to her in a voice that would have been pleasant had Nikki not been so surprised by it. "You there, young girl. Where did you get that chain from?"

"What? Oh...well, I found it on the ground just now," she answered, startled.

"Did you know that that belongs to the murderer of Tamahome? I fought for Amour that day, and I saw the man cut him down. I accosted him as soon as he did it, and I do seem to remember the man wearing that particular pendant."

Another man nearby spoke up then as well. "Yes," he said, " I also felled our brave knight's foul assassin. The memory of it fades not from my mind, and the silver you carry was indeed the selfsame which fell from the neck of the Macabre man."

"But that's impossible!" Nikki protested, "This chain belongs to my father."

"If that is true, then it was your father who killed Tamahome," replied the first man evenly.

"No - my father wasn't in the army, much less the Macabre army!" she cried, insulted by the very idea of her father fighting his own people. "It must have been some different man you saw. Mine was at home in Crag Al...." Nikki stopped short, and her eyes widened as she realized that everyone considered Crag Alps to be closely tied with Macabre. Not knowing what to do, she simply stared at the two men, as well as the people who had turned to listen to the conversation.

Subaru's voice continued on, as she had not yet noticed the stir below.

"I am sorry," the second man told her, "but now there's just too much evidence to believe you. First, you find your father's pendant out here on the battlefield, and there are witnesses who saw the murderer wearing it. And to top it all off - you're from Crag Alps!"

A murmur started to spread across the crowd. Mention of "That girl," "Tamahome", "Murderer", and "Crag Alps" could be heard. Even the Empress stopped speaking.

"No.." Nikki whispered, her hand still tight around the chain. She felt like everyone in the world was staring angrily at her. "No." she said again. What if they were right? What if that's why her father wasn't with the rest of the family when the explosion happened? But, assuming it were true, why would he do such a thing? There had to be some explanation, but Nikki didn't feel too inclined to figure this all out in the middle of a crowd of strangers. Slowly, but with her head held high, she turned and walked away.

* * *

A week and a half after the memorial service, Emperor Hikitsu stood on a wooden platform in the middle of Lea Field (built for just this occasion) in front of the surviving villagers and nobles of both the Enigma and Summit Kingdoms, and raised his golden wine goblet in the air. "To all the heroes," he proclaimed.

Everyone went silent.

"To all the victims, to the very motivation of this battle," he went on. "And to the newly unified Enigma and Summit, now efficiently named Amour, we celebrate the downfall of the evil Macabre and the victory which is rightfully ours. It may have been short, but it proved our undefeatable empire to be the highest of all the lands."

There was a thunderous sound of applause coming from the Amourites. Hikitsu looked down at his son, who just stood a couple of feet away from where the platform was. The prince felt his father's gaze on him and looked back at him. He was scowling. He seemed to be angry and disappointed somehow.

Hikitsu wondered why Julian would have such a depressing look on his face, for it was a time to celebrate! "Good son, why the long face?" he inquired, climbing down from the stage as the members of the symphony (who were situated on either side of the platform) began their rounds of etudes, waltzes, and sonatas. They were made of the finest players in the land.

Suddenly, Julian's frown changed to a faked smile. "Sorry father, I was just thinking."

"Whatever about?"

"The marriage," Julian lied. "I'm worried about the marriage."

Hikitsu smiled, believing his son's words. "Well, my boy, that is nothing you should be worried about. We will have a grand ceremony in the castle; simple as that. Right now, you should party with your friends. Why, I believe I saw the other knights somewhere around here..."

"Yes, father." He went off to find his best friend.

Sure enough, Julian found Tetsuya. Or rather, almost walked past him. "Whoa, there," Tetsuya replied, grabbing his friend's arm. "You plan on walking by without talking to me first?" He laughed loudly.

Julian could definitely smell the liquor on his breath. "I'm busy, my good friend," the prince answered, moving Tetsuya's arm away. The knight shrugged and disappeared with some pretty maiden.

Julian sighed. He stared at the dancing couples, who were settled near the symphony.

"Kind sir, may I have this dance?"

He jumped up in surprise and turned around. Standing right there was Sakura herself. "Princess," he started, smiling. "You look lovely."

Sakura blushed and looked down.

She indeed looked beautiful. Her velvet dress was colored a deep green, the green of Enigma. It was shoulderless, with thin satin straps resting on her upper arm. A sheer light green fabric made up for her bare shoulders, covering them up like a small cape. It was fastened together with a crimson oval-shaped amulet framed in gold. The skirt fell to her ankles, wafting gracefully as she walked. Matching green heeled shoes with amulets covered her feet.

Little did either of them realize that everyone had stopped to look at the two nobles. "The prince and princess!" they all whispered. "How lovely a couple they make!"

Julian extended his hand out to Sakura's. The princess took it and they started dancing in the middle of the field. They were still unaware of the fact that they were the only ones moving. All of the citizens were gathered in a circle around them, watching them in wonder.

It was just them. They could only see each other. They were in their own little world. The sounds of the music and the people of Amour were far away in the background, far from their minds, blended together to a distant murmur.

Finally, the song ended and everything was back to the way it was before.

"Sakura! Sakura dear!" called Subaru's voice.

Sakura looked crestfallen. She didn't want to leave her beloved just yet. "Coming!" she answered. She turned to Julian. "I'm sorry, but my mother awaits."

"That's fine," replied Julian. He bent down and kissed Sakura gently on the forehead. "I'll see you later."

Sakura's face reddened again and she left. Julian stared after her for a bit and turned to go find his intoxicated best friend before he did anything too rash.

* * *

Soi stood behind the platform, away from everyone else, watching Sir Tasuki and Lady Miaka closely. Tasuki especially.

He was one of the Everlast, saviors she was supposed to watch out for after the battle between her empire and theirs. They were supposed to defeat her and the outcome of the entire ordeal will affect the entire World for centuries to come. Hence, the name Everlast.

But that fortune-telling lady she visited in her hometown of Saturnine -- the main city of Macabre -- who was called Shi Fang, was ready to tell her the other name of the Everlast she must annihilate, but she suddenly fell forward, her head hitting against the small wooden table.

Soi had checked her pulse; the woman was dead. Her ancient tarot cards fluttered to the floor, the Death, Tower, and Devil cards boldly staring up at her, as if they were telling Soi her demise. She picked them up and kept them in her boot. She didn't know why she even bothered, but there was something about them...

If those cards were a conspiracy and meant something, she really didn't know. She only knew that she must kill "the wolf of flames", as Shi Fang had described Tasuki, and to murder the "star of the blossom's heart", which she had yet to figure out. She knew that the "wolf" must have been Tasuki, since she had heard many stories about his feats in the other empires. And what better way to kill him than to kill those he loved? For all she knew, Tasuki only loved one person, and that was Miaka of Enigma. If Soi got rid of either him or her first, then it would be alright.

What Soi remember from the session was that she had to get rid of those idiot saviors of the World so that she and her people will conquer and have eternal and everlasting power.

But that wasn't the only reason. All she wanted was to prove to Emperor Nakago that she had power, too. That she was as strong as he was. And then maybe he would notice her. Not just as the only female mercenary who had the will and strength of a male knight, but as powerful woman who would be a perfect bride for him...

Suddenly, a loud rustling came from behind her. She looked wary and ready to kill. "Who's there?" she asked coldly. She stood up straighter without turning around.

No answer.

"I know you are trying to spy on me," Soi said over the symphony's playing. "You might as well come out and confess, you peasant."

Getting impatient, Soi finally whirled around, only to find that there was no one there. But she knew otherwise.

"Fine, be that way," she muttered. "But don't think you'll be so lucky." She stepped back and disappeared into thin air. She had gone back to her temporary home, the castle of Summit.

* * *

Chelsea stared after Soi. I have a very bad feeling about her, she thought. She sense the knight's magic to be incredibly powerful, but negative.

She had been the peasant who had been hiding from Soi. She managed to blend in with the symphony, even with a brown cloak, but not without receiving glares from the distracted players. She wasn't able to get any of Soi's motives, but Chelsea knew she didn't mean any good.

"That explosion," she thought aloud, dusting off the front of her cloak. "It must've taken years to gather energy for. It could wipe out the three neighboring kingdoms." The young villager looked toward Pinnacle Palace. "But how could have both the Enigma and Summit castles survive with everything perfectly intact while there was nothing but debris everywhere else?"

It had been two weeks since the Day War, as it was now called. The trees in Enigma were nothing but burnt, gnarled, and bare, but there was a lot more sunshine coming into that part of the kingdom now. Boulders and other rocks from Summit's mountains were the cause of some of the rubble along with the blast. Many of the the pathways into Summit had been blocked, so now everyone would have to go underground to get to the castle. It didn't really matter to anyone anyway, since they all had to live in the underground settlement while construction was going on.

Lea was the only beautiful sight nowadays, besides the castles. The borders of the flat field had long grass with lovely flowers, otherwise, the middle (where the festives took place) had short grass that was easy to walk and run around on. It returned to normal after being bloodied and dirtied in the war, the grass growing greener than ever. Halcyon River also managed to stay clear and calm. There were no bridges though, since they crumbled into the water a day after the soldiers from the war crossed them, so merchants and other travelers could not cross the wide river to and from New Chalice or wherever.

Since the entire empire was now just Amour, Summit and Enigma were considered provinces and Wildwood, Timbergrove, Massif, and Eminence were the towns within those provinces. There were no plans for Crag Alps to be rebuilt, and it was left in ruins.

...It had also been two weeks since Zachary had been gone. Chelsea highly doubted he was still alive. Knowing this, the girl's eyes started to water. After all these years of trying to get the warrior's attention, he had left her. Something could have developed between them...

The symphony stopped playing, people were getting into carriages and leaving to get to the Underground. The celebration was over.

"Chelsea!" called her mother, a soft, kind middle-aged woman. "It's time to go dear!"

"Come on, Chels!" added Chiriko. He stood next to his father, a tall muscular man with dark brown hair. He was finishing up a piece of cake.

"Yes, mother. Yes, brother," Chelsea answered, running to her family. They all hopped on to a large horse-drawn carriage with the other townspeople and rode away to their homes.

* * *

It was everywhere. The prejudice. Everywhere Nikki went, people would shun her and glare.

She was a pariah. How she loathed that word. She didn't want any of this treatment, especially since her family was taken away from her. Her roommates had moved out of her room. Good for her, but now it was too quiet for her liking. Chiriko barely talked to her nowadays. He didn't even try to make fun of her.

She was also an orphan. No family, no other relatives she could keep in close contact with... she didn't have any friends to run to for help. There was nothing for her.

But at least she had her books. Intelligence was all she needed. She could use it to gain wealth and become famous. She didn't need friends when she had wealth and power.

But her mother always taught her that love and family came before power. But where was the love? The nobility from the castles couldn't possibly forgive her family for being traitors...

Now Nikki sat by the river, staring at the clear waters. No one could trace what was left of the war. She wasn't the kind of person to sit and think about her life. But she wasn't in the mood for reading and there was no one for her to talk to.

"You shouldn't be alone this late at night," said a female voice.

"Mistress Soi!" Nikki quickly got to her feet. She looked up at the woman warrior. "W-what are you doing here?"

Soi held a up a hand to silence her. "Hush. I'm supposed to have a lost memory, but we are alone now, so it's alright..."

Nikki stayed silent, unable to think of anything to reply.

"You are a quiet girl," Soi continued, taking slow, relaxed steps around the student, as if examining her. "Can you keep a secret?"

"I-I guess I could," Nikki stammered, staring at the ground. She fiddled with some strands of her chin-length hair.

"If you help me and keep this secret I'm about to tell you, then I will tell you what happened to your father."

Nikki gasped. "...My father?"

Soi stopped walking and leaned in closer. "I plan to obliterate Amour, but it will take careful planning and a smart strategy."

"...You...want me to help you...?" Nikki was trying to take it all in. Help Soi destroy Amour? Why would she do that?

"I know how smart you are. I spoke with your father a lot right before the Day War. He talked a lot about you and your studies... your excellent grades... that type of thing..."

"But to do all of this just to tell me a simple thing wouldn't persuade me to help you with such a dangerous mission," Nikki replied. "What else would I get for this?"

Soi chuckled and put a hand on the girl's head. "A friend, my dear," she answered. "A true friend you can laugh and cry with until the end of time."

Nikki lowered her gaze again. "A friend?" she was happy about that, but unsure if she should do this plan...

"I will see you later," Soi called, walking away. "We will talk some more then...my friend."

And she was gone.

She was Nikki, the friendless, depressed, yet diligent student who was hated for being Alpine. Now she would be an accomplice of a crime, too?

* * *

"Li? Are you Li? The apprentice of Mitsukake the blacksmith?"

"Huh?" Li had been talking to Meilin, but found there were four people standing to his right. He recognized them as Prince Julian, Sir Suboshi, Sir Hotohori, and Sir Tasuki.

"Hello, cousin, knights," Meilin greeted. She looked at all four of the knights curiously. "What brings you all the way to the river?"

"We would like to talk to Li, Lady Meilin," replied Hotohori.

"Oh." Meilin glanced from the nobility to the apprentice. "Do you need privacy?" she asked.

"Oh, there's no need," spoke up Suboshi. "He just needs to hear us out." He and the other three men turned to Li, who looked quite nervous.

"So," Tasuki started, bearing a fanged grin, "You didn't do too badly in that battle."

"I guess so, sirs."

"In fact," Hotohori added, "You did quite splendidly."

"I only killed a couple of Macabres, sirs--" Li stopped to recalculate it in his head. "Actually, I killed quite a few of them, sirs," he answered, correcting himself.

"Please, could you refrain from saying sir?" Tasuki complained. "It's not right for me. It makes me sound old. Just call me Tasuki."

"Yes, s--I mean, Tasuki."

"But what we are trying to say, Li," Julian said, "is that we would love to have you train to be a knight. Be an honored knight of Amour. What do you say to that?"

Li had a look of pure surprise on his face. "You mean I have to be a page for a billion years and then a squire for a billion more years and then I'll become a full-fledged knight?"

"Oh, no, it won't take that quite long for you, Li," Hotohori explained, chuckling. "For someone as old and experienced as you, your training will go much quicker."

"You're a really talented fighter," Suboshi added. "You shouldn't have any trouble while training."

"When do I start this?" Li questioned.

"As soon as you are able to," Julian responded. "Tell Meilin and she will contact us when you are ready. Until then, farewell." He and the three knights mounted the horses which Li had just now noticed and rode off.

"Meilin," Li said, turning to noble. He found her staring off at the other end of the field. She probably hadn't been paying attention to his talk with knights at all. "What's wrong?" he asked, for it was unusual for the girl to be solemn.

"Soi...." she whispered. "What is she doing talking to that peasant girl?"

Li looked in the direction she was facing and sure enough, Soi was talking to a bespectacled girl in a regular townsfolk dress. The warrior walked away with a smile and Li could swear that she disappeared into the night.

"I'm worried," Meilin spoke up finally. "A young person like her shouldn't be out this late talking to someone as suspicious as Soi...how could Princess Sakura let that knight stay alive?"

"Leave her alone," Li replied. "She seems smart enough to take care of herself."

"I don't know..."

"..." was all Li could say.

"But anyway," Meilin went on, turning around and smiling up at the apprentice. "What did they talk to you about? Surely it was something good."

"They want me to be an Amour knight."

"That's wonderful, but you don't seem to be very happy about this at all."

"I am, but it's just that I'm not even a journeyman for Mitsukake yet."

"I see. Your training for him. How can you be a blacksmith and a knight? Wouldn't that be hard?"

"Don't push it."

Meilin held up her hands in surrender. "Sorry."

"Plus, Mitsukake's injured, and that means I have to run the weapon shop for while, so I can't start training just yet." Li started heading for the passageway.

"Wait up," Meilin called. She looked back at that girl once more, who was now leaving for home, too, and linked arms with Li as they headed to the subterranean settlement together.

* * *

"I still don't get it," Tetsuya said, holding his head. It was lunch time, their only break time, and he and many of the males in the empire were helping rebuild and restore the kingdom it once was. They were sitting on the grass in a clearing in Enigma. It would have felt more like a real clearing if the trees had leaves on them.

Amiboshi took another bite of his chunk of cheese. "Before War and everything," he explained once more, with his mouth full, "King Hikitsu wanted Princess Sakura to marry Prince Julian so we can have one big happy kingdom--"

"Okay, I got all that," Tetsuya replied, "but I just don't understand how after the War, that the castles were okay, and how the soldiers close to Soi's blast were okay."

"Magic, you know" Chichiri said simply, who wasn't sitting to far away from them. He had been listening to the whole conversation.

"All right, all right, I see it now," Tetsuya answered, understanding the concept of magic. "So now..."

"Aye me..." Amiboshi murmured, waiting for the umpteenth history-related subject Tetsuya wanted to talk about.

"...About the Day War," he finished. "So we were north of the river, and that's where it all happened."

"Obviously," Keisuke commented unenthusiastically, who had been sitting quietly near Tetsuya and the others.

"And you guys remembered how foggy it was when we were heading home? And then when it suddenly cleared, for the first time since all of this madness had started, we took time to look at the river in front of us, and we hadn't seen it and its peacefulness in a long time..."

"And your point?" questioned Suboshi.

"I don't know," Tetsuya said thoughtfully. "It just seems like a nice scene to remember... very picturesque... that newfound peace after all of that chaos..."

There was a silence among the group, each one of them thinking about the War.

But soon, it was interrupted once again by the talkative knight. "But anyway, I was also wondering, Amiboshi..."

"Good Goddess, man!" Amiboshi said, throwing up his hands. "You're going to make me lose my voice because you're making me tell you practically the entire history of our kingdom!"

"Sorry, but I've known you to be good at history during our schooling," Tetsuya replied meekly. He tied up his lunch satchel and swung it over his shoulder. "I'm going to go start building the houses in Wildwood. I will talk to you guys later."

And he left.

"I thought you and Tetsuya were best friends, you know," Chichiri spoke up after the knight left. "But I hardly see you two talk to each other now."

"Eh..." Keisuke grumbled. "I don't really want to talk about it. We just had some argument or something and we've been on bad terms ever since. I mean, we're still civil, but we don't go out of our way to talk talk to each other... long story."

"I remember," Suboshi replied. "It was pretty late when we were doing overnight training drills at Pinnacle not too long ago. The Summit nobility let all of the Enigma knights stay in the extra rooms. Tetsuya was next door to me and you two were talking about stuff and you two started to bicker--"

"Let's not continue this conversation," Keisuke interrupted. He pulled himself to his feet with his last bit of cracker. "In fact, I'll go ahead to Wildwood and finish up there." He too left the others. They stared after him in wonder.

When he could no longer be seen, the builders who had been part of the previous conversation huddled around Suboshi. "Okay, good brother, talk!" Amiboshi pressed. The head of Summit's division of knights looked around at all the others around, with the exception of his brother, and gulped. He didn't want to be mean to Keisuke nor Tetsuya by spreading stories, but as he compared heights and muscles to the other men (except for Amiboshi, of course), he thought against it.

"Come on, it's not like they are going to find out," Hotohori persuaded.

"And plus, you never told your own sibling," Amiboshi pointed out. "You owe me."

"Fine," Suboshi said. "But if they ever find out about this, do not point fingers at me."

"We swear it to our graves, you know," Chichiri piped up.

"Okay," Suboshi responded. He cleared his throat. "They were arguing over Lady Yui," he recalled, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "And Keisuke was promised to Yui, because both of their families were wealthy and they wanted to continue down the generation with successful merchants who were kin to the royalty. But Tetsuya fell in love with her. Keisuke was only thinking about their families' future. Tetsuya just wanted to be married to Yui."

"So, Keisuke just wanted a happy family, and Tetsuya just wanted a happy love," Hotohori summarized. He pouted. "And no one considered me as a suitor for her? I'm the son of a famous patron. My family did a lot more than sell and import foreign foods. The style of our kingdom's architecture and all the portraits in the castles are--"

"Do you want to know more or not, you know?" Chichiri inquired Hotohori.

Hotohori flipped his long hair sourly. "Of course. My apologies, Suboshi. Please continue."

"So then I heard the door burst open with a loud creak and I heard a young lady's voice scream over the both of them," Suboshi continued. "I'm sure it was Lady Yui. She was horrified at Keisuke's revelation, for she had fallen in love with him, and was shocked at Tetsuya's love confession. She felt betrayed by Keisuke and was never too fond of Tetsuya."

"Interesting..." Amiboshi remarked, getting into the story.

"So she thought there was nothing left for her in Amour..."

"...And she ran away, you know," Chichiri finished for him. "It was all over the empire. A noble has disappeared, you know. Suspected to have run away."

"And of course, it has been a couple of months since she disappeared, much to Tetsuya and Keisuke's dismay," Hotohori concluded. "Who knows what happened to her."

"Yes," Suboshi agreed. "And I guess they blamed each other, so they never really talked that much again."

"So that's the whole story?" Amiboshi asked.

"That's the whole story," Suboshi replied.

"She probably went south of the river, to Porcelain or New Chalice, you know," Chichiri chimed in.

"Hey," Amiboshi started. "Isn't there an estate just southeast of the river?"

"Actually, there is," Chichiri answered, finishing his muffin. He stood up and stretched. "It used to be part of Porcelain, you know, but the count who owned it broke off from the town, signing a contract with one of their representatives to separate, since the land was really Porcelain's in the first place, you know."

Porcelain was an independent town just northeast of New Chalice, the empire south of Amour. It wasn't part of any kingdom, and they had many representatives to run the town. Just imagine a large town right on the corner of New Chalice, since most of that empire bordered Amour.

"Well," Hotohori replied. He stood up and brushed his shiny hair with his fingers of any dirt. "I think we have done enough talking for today, gentlemen. Let's get back to work."

* * *

"Can you bring me another tart, please?" Miaka asked the maid softly. The servant took the Lady's empty plate and, laughing inside, went off to get another serving of the dessert.

"Love, that was already your third plate," Tasuki remarked, chuckling. The two were sitting in the main dining hall of Summit's castle. The royalty of Amour were all gathered in the Pinnacle Palace for one big dinner party, to confirm their unity. Everyone was talking and eating, having a delightful time.

At the head of the table sat Hikitsu. To his right sat Julian and Sakura and to his left sat Subaru and Meilin. Next to Meilin was Li, who didn't look very comfortable in the palace. Across from him sat the two advisors, Keisuke and Chichiri. The rest of the table was filled with the Amourite knights, ladies, and more royalty, along with their non-nobility lovers if they had one.

Tasuki patted the little burlap pouch on his belt. It was still there. He didn't really want to wait any more to get married. They could just just have the ceremony in the castle for all he cared, but he respected Miaka's wishes. He moved his hand from the pouch to her free hand sitting on her lap and squeezed. The love of his life turned to him and smiled, her fork still in her mouth. Tasuki couldn't help but smile too. She was a silly girl, too clumsy to be a noble... yet she was very much loved anyway.

A clinking of a wine glass was heard at the end of the table. Everyone turned to look down at Emperor Hikitsu, who stood to make an announcement. He held up his glass, which was filled with a very fine and expensive foreign wine, the kind only the higher nobility could afford. "Cheers to the kingdom, the currently restoring buildings and its builders, to all of the people... to everything," Hikitsu toasted cheerfully, his voice reverberating through the spacious room.

"Cheers!" echoed all of the royalty. They all clinked glasses with each other and the party atmosphere returned once more.

"I honestly don't see the big deal is about the War," Meilin whispered, leaning in toward Li. "I mean, it was just one day of fighting..."

Li nodded absently, but was staring across the table at Sakura, who was laughing at something Julian said. She had a pretty, melodic laugh. And she had this gorgeous smile that made her eyes light up merrily, making the emerald green in them show up more.

Immediately, he shook his head vigorously. What was he thinking?! Didn't he already have Meilin? Plus, he couldn't have Sakura even if he had the chance.

"Li!"

The apprentice jumped up in shock and turned to face the raven-haired noble. "Y-yeah?" he asked lamely.

She looked very wary, and for a second Li thought she could see what he was thinking. He took a deep breath, preparing for the scolding...

"You look red," she observed, cocking her head to one side. "Are you catching a fever?"

Li let out a huge sigh and relaxed. "No... maybe... well, I don't know," he answered, trying to find a straight answer. He covered his cheeks, trying to hide the fact that he was blushing.

"Okay..." Meilin responded cautiously, as she took another sip of her wine. Li, she thought. Don't think that I don't know what you are thinking. I've known you for a long time. She watched in dismay as the brown-haired teen stared diagonally across the table at the Princess.

It looked like he was gazing at his long lost lover.

Meilin's eyes started to cloud over. She stared down at her lap, trying to hide her tears. What do you see in her?" her mind cried. Why is she better than me? What's wrong with me, Li? I thought we were going to be together forever.

* * *

Meanwhile, near the middle of the table, Keisuke and Tetsuya sat uncomfortably next to each other. Neither one of them moved to a different seat, for there weren't any left. Asking another to switch with one of them was considered inappriopriate, so they were stuck.

"So," Tetsuya started, in a somewhat mocking tone, "Advisor and syndic, huh?"

"Yes," Keisuke answered evenly. He smiled mysteriously. "And you are one of the more well-known knights?"

"Yes," responded the other tightly.

After a moment of silence, Keisuke spoke up again. "I thought being a knight meant you would be luckier with the maidens."

Tetsuya looked like he was about to kill him. It wasn't his fault he didn't have a date to bring to dinner. "Really?" he replied through clenched teeth. "I know advisors aren't known to be popular with the ladies..."

Keisuke gripped his wine glass rather hard, but not enough to break it. "It takes many years of schooling and hard work," he muttered. " Syndics are usually scholars. There's no time for puppy love."

"So then, you are one of the unscholarly ones?" Tetsuya snickered, drumming his fingers lightly on the clothed table.

Keisuke restrained himself from strangling his 'best friend'. An uneasy quietness followed. Tetsuya turned to one of the others knights and started having conversation with him.

Finally, Keisuke took a deep breath and turned to Tetsuya. "This is stupid," he said. "We are best friends... we have been since we were young. We can't hold grudges over this silly thing forever."

Tetsuya turned to him and gave him a superior look. "You were never my best friend in the first place," he answered coldly. "You were an acquaintance. You were someone I would talk to just because I was bored. Because I pitied you."

Keisuke eyes blazed with anger. He could not be possibly hearing this. Those years of friendship meant nothing?! "You--!"

"Prince Julian is my real best friend, you know that?" Tetsuya continued bitingly, cutting the blond man off. "At least he knows how to treat women right." He gestured toward where the Prince and Princess were sitting.

Keisuke was enraged by his 'friend's' words. I can't believe this! his mind screamed. He took a good look at Tetsuya. This can't be his true colors. He never acted this way... except when Yui got involved. All of this over Yui! he thought. But what can't he just move on? I thought we said our apologies and made up...

"You are a bastard," Keisuke said angrily. His eyes widened at what came out of his own mouth. He didn't know where those words came from. He didn't mean to say them. He didn't even know he was even thinking them.

Tetsuya's reaction was a mix of hurt and fury. Keisuke was usually a nice guy, and he never really had that much of a temper except for that one time at the castle...

"Leaving so soon?" Chichiri asked from Keisuke's other side. Tetsuya had just realized that the blond advisor had gotten up and excused himself from the table.

Keisuke nodded. "I am," he answered, his tone unusually calm. After saying a few words to Hikitsu and Subaru as he passed the end of the table, he left the room. Tetsuya stared after him, uncertain of what to make of him.

* * *

Keisuke noticed that he was the first one to leave. Not that he cared. He was really starting to hate Tetsuya. Who gave him the right to insult him like that? Especially when they were both loud enough for the surrounding people to hear them? Especially if his liege heard him?

Curse you, Keisuke told Tetsuya silently as he headed outside to catch a carriage home. I'll make sure you have a miserable life, you whitewashed traitor.

********************************

We know you readers are confused right now. Don't worry! All of this will come together in the future. Review (positively)!

Oh, and apologies for some of the language. I normally don't use curse words, but it was a semi-important part of the story so I didn't feel as I could change it. But I've taken out a lot of the language that Elcyion put in, so not to worry.