The quick and dirty way of dealing with a broken heart is simple. First, drown yourself in the simple pleasure of sweets. Chocolate was the best choice here, given Kaburagi's preferences. But none of his fancy "chocolat;" the goal was to drown your sorrows, after all. Second, cry it out. Fortunately I knew of a café with private rooms. And finally, a shoulder to cry on, which I would be reluctantly providing.

I shoved Kaburagi into the car and we headed to a convenience store. I ran in for the sweets, hiding them in my bag, then we headed for the café. Kaburagi was blankly sitting, so I dragged him into the building.

"A private room please." The hostess smiled knowingly, and we followed her in. Having been here before, I knew my preferences. "One slice each of chocolate cake and strawberry shortcake please. Oh, and tea for each of us. And can we be undisturbed after you bring those?"

"Of course."

Now that we were alone, I started to get nervous. Despite his sad state, Kaburagi still looked the part of the dreamy emperor of Zui'ran. Sitting across from him in a private room was a little much for a member of the forever alone village. Fortunately, my cake arrived, so I took a few bites to calm myself down. Time to get started.

"Kaburagi-sama." No response. Has he even moved since I sat him down? Just the same blank expression.

"So you got dumped, and you're still like this after several months." He definitely twitched when I mentioned "dumped." I think.

Well, no option other than moving forward.

"Kaburagi-sama." I grabbed one of the chocolates out of my bag. "Do you think you are the only person in the world to have a broken heart?" I unwrapped the chocolate in preparation. "Or is yours simply the worst of any?" I gave him a quizzical smile. He opened his mouth slightly, as if to respond, but I took the opportunity and stuffed the chocolate right in.

He gave me a slight glare as the taste registered, but continued to eat it. "Sweets are the best medicine for a broken heart. And quantity matters more than quality. So eat up." I gave my best smile while dumping out the bag in front of him. (AN: poor kids, no alcohol)

He picked up a piece and read the wrapper. "Is this even chocolat?"

Was that a response? I didn't know he had it in him! But wow, what a spoiled rich kid. This was the most common brand of chocolate in stores. Though I can't say much, considering the room we were in.

"Cheap chocolate is still chocolat, Kaburagi-sama. Like I said, the goal here is quantity, not quality." Another glare. But he picked one up and ate it. Time to move the conversation along.

"Look, Kaburagi-sama, I get a broken heart is terrible, but you can't mope around about it forever. Everyone wants to help you, but at some point you have to move on. At least learn from my mistake and improve yourself before you need summer remedials."

"Kisshouin-san, didn't you take summer remedials?" Aaahhhh! Why did I have to bring up my dark history? That wasn't even heartbreak, I was just sighing over unrequited love! I bet if this happened a few months later you would be in summer remedials too.

I took a few deep breaths. Calm, Reika, calm.

"Yes, I've dealt with heartbreak poorly myself. My grades dropped and the teachers were quite worried. Fortunately I was able to recover."

"Who was it?" So he actually responds when talking about my misfortune. This idiot. Maybe I should just slap him until he recovers.

Calm, Reika, calm.

"Doesn't matter now," I said with a wave of my hand. "He already had a girlfriend anyway. I've moved on. Something you need to do as well. How long ago was it that Yurie-sama rejected you?"

Kaburagi quieted down at that one, going back to his mopey self. And stuffed another chocolate into his mouth. Time for the next step.

"So how did you first meet Yurie-sama? Tell me about your relationship. Talking things through will help you accept things."

And so he told me. How she was the first one to treat him as a kid instead of the heir. How she was the only girl to see his true self instead of his looks and power. How he loved spending time with her, and became possessive. How she grew up and turned beautiful, causing his feelings to change to romance and lust.

He started tearing up about halfway through, as expected. I gestured for him to continue, and it wasn't long before he stopped because he was bawling.

"Its okay, Kaburagi-sama, let it out." I walked over and hugged him. "She is a special girl isn't she."

He nodded and started crying harder, but tried to push me away while saying something about "manly."

"Don't worry, its quite manly to cry. You can't bottle the feelings up forever, they have to come out sometime. You need the emotional support just like anyone else."

He didn't actually cry for that long. Still, his face looked terrible. Hopefully he recovered by tomorrow morning, or the rumors could get ugly. What happens to a girl who makes the emperor cry?

"Feel better, Kaburagi-sama?" A nod. I pushed over the half of chocolate cake I saved for him. "Now that you've recovered, you can eat the good stuff."

He took a bite of the cake, and pushed the remaining cheap chocolates back to me. "Even we did need a lot, why these, Kisshouin-san? You should have no problem buying whatever chocolat you want. Or is the Kisshouin group struggling?"

Wait a second! Is he threatening my families downfall just like the story? I hate this idiot!

No, that's right. He is just an idiot, despite his position. I should pay less attention to the story and keep my calm. How could a teary eyed boy do anything bad. Still handsome, though.

"I try not to spend too much of my allowance on frivolous things. 'Waste not, want not' and all that. If you want more cake, we can order some. I'll just have you pay for it." My best charming smile this time. Please don't, Kaburagi. Lets wrap this up. Before this forever alone villager gets too much stimulation.

"No, I think I am good. Thank you, Kisshouin-san. You've made me realize how poorly I was taking this all. Now I can start moving forward and improve myself."

"I'd recommend finding a new girl if you really want to move on fast. I'm sure there are plenty of willing candidates, whether you're going for one night or something lasting. Though your mother might not approve of the former."

He laughed at that one. Aren't you recovering a little too fast? How many months were you looking terrible?

"Are you trying to nominate yourself for the position?"

"Hell no, Kaburagi-sama. In your dreams."

"Its refreshing to talk to a girl who isn't just looking to get with the handsome Kaburagi heir. Want to spend some more time together?

I just glared at him, to which he laughed again. He smiled, making my heart twitch a bit. Damn this handsome boy. Weapons like that should be illegal.

"Lets go. Are you dropping me off at my house, Kisshouin-san?"

"Yes. Your mother will be quite worried. Probably the first apology you should make."

"Of course." He ended up paying for everything as we left. I apologized a little internally; he was a gentleman, even if he was an idiot.

.

We pulled up to the Kaburagi residence, and Madam Kaburagi appeared at the door as we pulled to a stop. Kaburagi got out and headed towards the door; Madam Kaburagi looked him over, hugged him, and pushed him inside. She headed towards me with a bright smile. I had gotten out as well, to greet her properly. I gave a proper bow.

"Gokigen'yoh, Kaburagi-sama. I was in Masaya-sama's care this afternoon."

She laughed, her eyes slightly teary, and swept me into a crushing hug.

"Thank you, Reika. Thank you for helping my idiot son."

.

Author's note:

This is the end of initial "scenario" I dreamt up while rereading Kenkyo Kenjitsu. I apologize for the slow/nonexistent updates as I finished writing things up - Its far more time and work to actually type things up properly than dream them up in my head.

I do have plans for this to continue, and hope for 1ch/wk through this summer. No promises. Thanks to everyone who read/reviewed despite my lack of posts. - Banichi