Shinning Golden Star: As always, I do not own any Skip Beat or Beauty and the Beast so please do not sue me.
Several months had passed since the near disastrous event with the wolves. Since then, Kyoko and Ren had begun to grow closer. One particularly beautiful day Ren was watching Kyoko from the balcony of one of the many rooms of the castle. He could not help but be memorized by her as she played in the snow with some of the children turned objects. Her hair flying through the winter air as if the wind was stoking it.
Her smile bright with joy and her laugh with all the clearly and beauty of a bell.
As he watched, memories of the events the day after the wolf attack flowed through his mind
"Mr. Tsuruga," Kyoko probed. Ren cast a wary eye in her direction" Yes" "Your clothing, it is still torn, don't you have something else"
Ren stiffed. He thought of all the clothing that used to fit his. Since his…physical alteration, not only did most off his clothing no longer fit him, but the current forms of his servants made it nearly impossible to get new clothing. At some point over the years, he found it to be easier to simply dress in the same outfit day after day. To put it simply, he had only one outfit.
"No" he replied shortly
She blinked in surprise before grabbing a piece of paper, a quill and some ink and began to stare at him…intensely.
'…' he stared back at her uneasily. Her eyes were narrowed and focused.
" …. What are you…?" He began, before Kyoko abruptly stood up and left the room.
"…."
"…."
"…."
"…."
"…."
"…."
Ren and the various objects stared at the door completely at a loss.
"…What just happened" Ren finally asked
Hours had passed, and no one saw hid or hair of Kyoko, or if they did, they did not tell Ren.
Then, shortly before dinner, Kyoko suddenly appeared, her eyes bright with excitement.
Mr. Tsuruga? I have something for you'
Then to this surprise Kyoko then magically presented a small neatly folded stack of clothing consisting of a simple white shirt, a pair simple black trousers and a new blue cloak.
"OK" he thought "Perhaps it was not 'magically', but that clothing did appear too quickly to be considered normal" with a soft smile, he gazed at her before adding. "Then again she is far too special to be an ordinary girl."
"It is a thank you gift for saving me." Kyoko explained upon seeing the questioning glances of everyone else on the room. "Since your cloths got torn from rescuing me" she added "There are lovely Kyoko." Shoko told her. Kyoko turned her face away with an embarrassed look on her face. Not the embarrassment that results from a wrong doing, but rather that of one who was too modest to accept an over indulgence of praise. Later to his great surprise the simple white shirt and dark brown trousers. Then a sudden, rather startling though occurred to him. "How did she get my measurements?" he wondered
As he watched her, he touched the new cloak with a tender gentleness.
"I want to do something for her". He explained, then frowned, "But what?" he muttered "Fufufu" Yashiro snickered and as Ren glared him, he could have sworn that he saw a devil tail sprouting from the clock's backside with devil horns appearing where his head should have been.
"Well there is the usual flowers, chocolates, promises you do not intend to keep" Yashiro went on with a slightly more casual, if not nervous tone.
This time it was Lory who glared at Yashiro, quite possibly for the last suggestion. "No, no, no, it has to be something special, something meaningful, something that speaks from the heart, something that will sweep her off her feet…"
Ren rolled his eyes as Lory continued with his love obsessed monologue.
Suddenly, the image of a rather young petite girl with black hair and golden eyes occupied his mind. "Corn" she cried happily. Ren shook his head. The memories associated with that girl were over a decade old, yet…
"I think I might have an idea" he whispered, smiling softly to himself, turning to the doorway. Lory and Yashiro gave each other questioning look as Ren exited the room.
As he descended the stair way through the hall and out the door, he could not help but muse over the girl from his childhood memories. "Miss Morgami." He called out. He almost lost his nerve she I have something to show, bust close your eyes. Kyoko tilted her head in confusion. "Why?" she asked with pure Kyoko innocence. "Ren smiled "It's a surprise" As he led the closed eyed Kyoko down the hall to their destination excitement and adrenaline pulse through both.' "what if she does not like it" ren worried to himself, while Kyoko was lost in fantasies. "I wonder if he is going to show me a room full of fairies or fairy artifact, or perhaps …" Ren could not help but chuckle.
"Can I open them?" Kyoko asked eagerly as she heard the slight creak of a door opening. "Not yet" Ren replied struggling to hide the smile on his face and within his voice. To think all the training, he went through to hide his emotions for diplomatic issues would ultimately be used on a surprise gift for a young girl four years his junior.
He gently led her into a dark, large, open. "Wait here." He told her and quickly spread to the nearest window and flung open the current. Light instantly flooded the room. Kyoko shifted as the she could sense the change, despite her eyes still being closed. "Ok…now" Ren told her eagerly. Kyoko did not have to be told twice. Instantly she opened her eyes and gasped in awe and delight. She was standing in the middle of the most magnificent library she had ever , encouraged her reaction went on to step two of his gift." It is yours." He told her gently."OhIcouldnotacceptsuchagift" she cried shaking her head and hand wildly, eyes even wider then they had been a moment before. ("Oh I could not accept such a gift"). Ren chuckled "I insist, these books have not been used in years, and if we do not find someone to read them soon, we might have to through them out or burn them"
Kyoko's eyes went wide. "Then I shall do my best to read as many of these books as possible" she told him "But I do not know where to begin."
"The section with fairy tales is right over there." He told her pointing toward the northern end of the room. "Thank you so much Mr. Tsuruga" she told him bowing. Then turning to leave not even notice her hand brushing against his paw in the process
She glanced back and smiled brightly at him while waving enthusiastically.
"There's something sweet and almost kind
But he was mean, and he was coarse and unrefined"
She mused, remembering their first meeting and how cruel he had been toward herself and especially her friends.
"And now he's dear and so I'm sure
I wonder why I didn't see it there before"
As she smiled to herself as she searched through the books to select a book.
Ren on the other had had frozen for a bit
She glanced this way, I thought I saw
And when we touched, she didn't shudder at my paw
He glanced at the paw she had touched. It almost seemed lighter then it had been. "Had her touch removed some invisible weight there?" He wondered
"No, it can't be, I'll just ignore
But then she's never looked at me that way before"
He looked back at her, smiling as she gazed at each book with a focused intensity,
Kyoko gave him a quick glance before almost instantly disappearing behind a stack of books, which provided more than enough cover for her. "What is this" she wonder as her heart hammered against her ribs.
"New and a bit alarming
Who'd have ever thought that this could be"
She thought as clutching the silk cloth of her dress right over her heart. "Maybe my heart is ponding so much from adrenaline of seeing so many books on princesses and fairies." She though
"True, that he's no Prince Charming
But there's something in him that I simply didn't see."
Kyoko giggled a bit at the sight that greeted her the previous day when the two had gone out into the courtyard together. Ren was covered in birds for no reason what so ever. "Corn was also popular with birds" she thought before shaking her head wildly. "What am I thinking comparing Corn to Mr. Tsuruga, they are nothing alike."
Meanwhile, a certain trio were watching the pair through the doorway.
Lory laughed. Well, who'd have thought?
Shoko smiled at the pair. "Well, bless my soul."
Yashiro grinned. "Well, who'd have known?"
"Well, who indeed?"
"And who'd have guessed"
Lory added, grinning widely. "They'd come together on their own?"
Shoko sighed softly. "It's so peculiar"
"We'll wait and see
A few days more
There may be something there that wasn't there before"
The trio murmured in sync as they spied on Ren and Kyoko, reading together by the fire
You know perhaps there is something there that wasn't there before. Yoshiro grinned
"What?" Maria exclaimed out loud
"There may be something there that wasn't there before. "Shoko murmured to them with a soft smile.
What is there between Ren and big sister?!" Maria cried out in exasperation. Hiro rolled his eyes. Shoko simply smiled "I will tell you two when you are older" Hiro shoot her a look of pure agitation. "There she goes again, treating me like a child" he muttered under his breath as he and Maria hopped after the others. "What?! Tell me!" Maria continued as the group continued through the main hall. "Tell me Shoko!"
Shinning Golden Sun: I am so sorry for the weight, but once again life has taken over.
Ren: In other words, you got busy and then forgot about us.
Shinning Golden Star: …
Kyoko: Be nice to the author.
Maria: And please comment because it will guilt trip the author to update faster and give big sister her happily ever after sooner.
Ren: You mean encourage the author Maria.
Kyoko: Please comment, I want my happily ever after and my revenge on Sho.