A/N: A special thanks to all my wonderful reviewers, favorite-ers, followers, and readers. To those who reviewed recently last chapter, I didn't get the opportunity to reply to you because I was legit speed writing this for our 100 review special.
Be grateful children. I didn't pay attention in Computer Science at all and am probably going to fail my test now LOL.
I'd also like to clarify something from last chapter. I forgot to include anything about Yamuraiha's place on the written test and my earlier reviewers pointed it out. I thanked them and changed the chapter by adding second place's score so y'all could know haha.
I love you all, and one warning:
PREPARE YOUR HEART FOR FANSERVICE AND SHIPS.
"I don't need a wife."
"But the Kingdom needs a Queen."
Crown Prince Nicholas the Fourth of the great Musta'sim Kingdom crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at his advisor. "I already have enough on my hands for my coronation this upcoming month, but you expect me to find a wife?"
"Yes, my Prince," the man looked unperturbed. "You know very well that Musta'sim's royal family works very differently from other kingdoms. In order for a ruler to make a decision, he must have his Queen ratify it before he can bring it up to the council. If there is no Queen, then there is no King. The Queen and King are coronated on the same day."
"This is bullshit," Prince Nicholas swore. "You're expecting me to suddenly 'fall in love' with a girl just by dancing with her for three nights. Are you crazy? What if the woman is a spy, someone to take us down from the inside?"
"We invite only the ladies of highest social standing, my prince," his advisor replied smoothly. "I assure you that all their backgrounds are checked and spoken for."
"And if all of those women are just as idiotic as my other admirers? What then?"
"..."
"This sounds like one of Dunya's fairy tales," Prince Nicholas snorted derisively. "Why don't you just make her and Isaac the rulers? You know I do not care for positions."
"As well regarded as Isaac is, ancient scriptures decree that the King must be of royal blood. You, my Prince, are the only one who fulfills these requirements."
"Ancient scriptures, my ass," Prince Nicholas muttered, his stormy gray eyes glaring out of the window. His eyes trailed the chittering birds, freely soaring through the sky, wistfully. Turning back to his advisor, he asked weakly, "Is there any other alternative?"
"Musta'sim adheres to tradition, my Prince. I'm afraid not."
"Then I am going to search for a candidate ahead of time. I won't let fancy dresses and sparkling jewelry decide my Queen."
"But where shall you go, my Prince?"
Prince Nicholas looked almost annoyed that the man hadn't figured out his intention. "There is a festival coming up. I'm sure that there will be a variety of women attending, and I'm sure at least one of them can prove intelligent."
"Mind your words, my Prince."
"All of the women I've met, minus Dunya, have foolishly giggled and flirted with me for my wealth. I stand corrected," Prince Nicholas retorted. The advisor was wise enough not to disagree.
"Yamuraiha, where are my slippers?" Alyasa demanded.
"Shishou, how do I solve this problem?" Aladdin trembled.
"My darling Yamuraiha, why don't you come to dinner with me?" Sinbad proposed, radiating a sparklines only achieved by the stupidest of idiots.
"Oi, Yamu, did you hide my sword somewhere?" Sharrkan asked, ignoring the glare sent his way at the nickname.
"I TOLD YOU ALL TO SHUT UP!" Yamuraiha screeched, sick and tired of them all bothering her while she was working. Sending a vicious glare to all of them, minus Aladdin who she simply handed a slip of paper on how to solve the problem he was working on, she huffed. Furiously, she addressed each of them, "Your slippers are in the hall. I won't go on a date with you. Ever. And you probably left it at the training grounds."
And before any of them could protest or complain any further, she sent one last scathing glare to shut them up, spun around, and exited the home with a huff.
.
.
.
"Raiha!" Dunya cried delightedly, seeing her friend approach the town fountain. Princess Dunya of the Musta'sim Kingdom was not raised to be an open person, yet somehow she still managed to become the accepting and kind woman she was now. She had decided one night, about six months ago, to sneak out of the palace and see the outside world. Isaac had agreed to help her, and with his assistance, she had easily escaped.
It happened that she stumbled upon a group of rather rowdy men, and just when she began fearing the worst of her situation, in swooped the teal haired woman who she now regarded as her close friend.
Yamuraiha, or 'Raiha' as Dunya had proudly nicknamed her, was unaware of Dunya's status as a Princess, and thus treated her like any other equal. It was refreshing: she and Raiha were on equal ground, with neither above nor below the other. Although Dunya sometimes couldn't keep up with the random theoretical stuff that her friend spouted out, Dunya delighted in hearing about her friend's strange companions and house tenants.
Whenever Raiha spoke of them, even if in a mocking tone, there was always a soft look in the girl's eyes that belied her true emotions. Dunya liked it when her friend smiled: Raiha didn't smile that often, just like Dunya's brother.
Nicholas and Raiha were alike in that way.
That thought struck her like a bolt of lightning, and Dunya froze mid step while crossing the street. Raiha, seeing her friend's distracted look, immediately reached out and grabbed her, yanking the green haired girl to the other side of the street.
"Oi, oi, pay more attention to your surroundings," she scolded.
"Raiha...are you interested in courting anybody right now?" Dunya asked, half in her mind and unknowingly half out-loud. If she had been focusing on Raiha's expression she would've seen the teal haired woman choke on air and subtly glance towards her house where the rest of her housemates remained. However, Dunya was solely focused on the task at hand.
"Why?" Raiha asked cautiously.
"I think my brother needs a woman to keep him in check." Dunya snorted, shaking her head and sighing. "But I know he'll never accept anyone's help because he thinks it's practical to do things yourself. He's a lot like you in that way, Raiha."
"He sounds realistic and down to earth, like most people should be," Raiha deadpanned with the same blunt tone that had brought the two women so close together as friends.
Dunya let out a twinkling laugh. "I guess so...huh?"
"So...you were speaking of your beau last time we met. Continue?" Raiha pressed, subtly steering the conversation to another track. Dunya didn't notice, happily complying with her friend's request, and the two of them spent the next few hours walking around town and chatting about life.
"You are not going to the festival in those clothes if you're going to be my house-mate," Alyasa declared arrogantly, gesturing with a disgusted look at Yamuraiha's plain blue robes. "We are going to arrive in fashion. Got that? We need to show off our awesomeness."
"Oh, great," Yamuraiha muttered, pondering if she should strangle herself or not. "It's just a festival, and it's not like I'll be off flirting with guys or anything. I'm planning to attend Sir Mogamett's lecture: I heard that he would be in town for the rest of the festival to speak about the fundamental theories of-"
"Stop geeking out and get over here," Alyasa demanded, shooing the rest of their house-mates out of the room. "I can't believe I'm even doing this for you. It's only because you look so hideous, you know."
"Yeah, yeah…"
Although the process probably only took a few minutes, those minutes felt like slow and painful torture to Yamuraiha, who was being prodded and used as a face canvas for Alyasa's myriad of makeup tools. When the girl had finally pulled back and deemed Yamuraiha's face 'acceptable', she had moved on to her nails and hair.
Yamuraiha's eyebrows were twitching at the ten minute mark.
By the twenty minute mark she was ready to pull her hair.
When the clock struck, signalling an hour, she was already planning various ways to commit homicide.
Finally, after a tortuous amount of time, Alyasa nodded. "Acceptable," she said grudgingly. "Now show me your closet."
"This?"
"Ugly."
"This?"
"That's so last year."
"...this?"
"No. End story."
"You pick it out then!" Yamuraiha threw her hands out in desperation. "Besides, you already did my makeup first, so there's only a few options that match anyways."
"They match your eyes, and the way I did it, they can compliment any color. Out of the way," Alyasa pushed Yamuraiha, glaring at the girl's closet and shifting all of the plain, practical robes aside until she pulled out something.
"That's a dancer's dress. I don't even know why I have that," Yamuraiha choked out. "No way. Way too revealing."
"You're going in it. No arguing."
"No."
"Yes."
(When Sinbad entered the room and brightened at the sight of the outfit, Yamuraiha inwardly resigned herself to her fate.)
"What was she thinking, dressing you up like this?" Sharrkan muttered, glancing at Yamuraiha from head to toe. The two of them were walking to the festival, the rest of their house-mates having left an hour earlier in an effort to watch some kind of special performance neither of them cared about. Sharrkan had opted to practice his swordsmanship for an extra hour, while Yamuraiha simply sulked about her appearance. After an hour had passed, they both decided to leave together so that Alyasa wouldn't nag them too much.
The teal haired girl shrugged, her hair which had been elaborately tied into a braid swinging slightly from the motion. The golden bangles adorning her hands let out a small jingling sound, and Yamuraiha scowled. "So troublesome."
She blinked in surprise and barely managed to catch the pile of fabric thrown at her before it hit her face. "...what's this?" She asked, drawing her hand back so she could examine the object. It was a simple gray cloak that could easily cover most of her costume. Glancing at Sharrkan, who was notably cloak-less, she could see her house-mate's face was turned away from her, his ears red as they always were whenever he was embarrassed.
"Just wear it," he grumbled. "You're drawing too much attention."
Her mouth twitched. "Softie," she muttered, shoving the boy playfully. The boy grumbled something under his breath, but they quickly fell silent.
The two continued to the square where the rest of their housemates were.
"I wanna see the dancers," Sinbad declared, looping his arm around a white haired individual who immediately blushed and attempted to ward away the purple haired man. "Ja'far, you must come with me."
"I heard that the famous magician Lynn's coming to show off some of his magic tricks," Alyasa murmured dreamily, hurrying off. Yamuraiha twitched at the name.
"There's a swords demonstration," Sharrkan realized after seeing a poster. He left immediately.
"Can I go find Alibaba and Morg, shishou?" Aladdin looked at the girl with pleading eyes.
"...yeah," she sighed, shaking her head and looking at the space where all her housemates had stood only a few moments before. They were always such capricious people. "I'm going to head to the magic lecture. Be careful."
"I can take care of myself. Thanks, shishou!" Aladdin waved, running off into the crowd. Now that she thought about it, should she have let Aladdin wander by himself in a crowded festival? After all, he was only just a kid. There was no guarantee that he and the rest of his friends would be able to stay out of trouble.
...eh, they'd be fine.
Her feet began automatically taking her to the lecture hall. She tilted her head upwards, glancing up at the night sky. The stars were out, twinkling faintly, but the warm amber glow of the lanterns hanging overhead diminished the starlight significantly. The air was cool, crisp as expected of an evening in Musta'sim. She inhaled, allowing herself to take in everything: the faint smell of crepes and various treats from food stall, the sound of laughter, the warmth of the cloak she wore over her outfit.
She bumped into someone while she was walking, causing them to fall over, and immediately apologized. "Sorry," she murmured, helping the person up. She gave the person a sheepish smile. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah." The hooded figure muttered, taking her hand and allowing himself (herself?) to be pulled up. The person looked like they were about to walk off and continue on their merry way when they took a second, thoughtful glance at Yamuraiha. "You wouldn't happen to know where Sir Mogamett's lecture is going to be, do you?"
Yamuraiha's face lit up. "Oh, yeah, I'm heading there right now. Would you like to come with me?" she offered impulsively. "I've been to this festival for so many years, I know the layout like the back of my hand. The name's Yamuraiha."
The person looked hesitant to agree, but eventually conceded defeat when they noticed the steadily darkening sky. "Alright. You can call me...Nick."
Yamuraiha nodded, and motioned for the man to follow her.
It was sort of awkward, now that Yamuraiha reflected on it, to invite a total stranger with her. Then again, Nick didn't ask for her to accompany him. "Ah, here it is!" Yamuraiha announced in an overly cheerful voice, attempting to rectify the awkward situation. It was a grand, large hall, and they were standing right in front of the entrance. "Let's head inside."
Nick dipped his head in assent and the two entered into the lecture hall.
"Are you interested in science as well?" Yamuraiha asked curiously, immediately feeling stupid when the question left her lips. Of course he liked science, why else would he be here?
"Yes," Nick replied, sounding unperturbed by the less than intelligent question. She couldn't tell his facial expression since the hood still covered his entire body from head to toe, but she assumed from his rather amused tone of voice that he wasn't offended. "And you, as well?"
"Yeah," Yamuraiha admitted shamelessly, a small grin tugging at her face. "I used to run around a lot and get into all sorts of situations. I stumbled upon a library one day and...well, voila, I become an instant nerd. It's a shame that not many of my gender prefer such subjects, but I have a few friends in the scientific community that are fun to talk to. And the majority of them are history buffs too."
She realized that she was rambling and immediately shut up. For some reason her common sense and etiquette were abandoning her when she was around Nick.
"I see," Nick mumbled thoughtfully.
"Anyways, let's find a place to sit down," Yamuraiha laughed uncertainly. The two of them both immediately headed to several empty seats in the middle of the lecture hall, which was quickly filling up with various old men and philosophers. Women and younger people like then were scarce, making the two of them stick out like a sore thumb.
"May I sit here?" A voice asked from Yamuraiha's right. She nodded politely, turning and freezing when she recognized them.
"On second thought, please go away," she said cheerfully.
"Too late." A smug smirk was shot her way.
Her smile faded. "I thought you were doing a magic show or something," Yamuraiha groaned. "Every year. Every year, Lynn."
"Not my fault that all the old geezers refuse to sit next to us 'youngsters'," Lynn scowled, taking a seat. "And who's the guy sitting next to you?"
"Nick, Lynn. Lynn, Nick," she introduced tersely. Blinking slightly, she addressed Nick, "You'll have to take off your hood now. Security reasons and all."
Her companion seemed reluctant, but slowly his hands reaches upwards and slowly pulled down the hood. Yamuraiha blinked, taking in the boy's features. A pale, freckled face was framed by wavy green locks. He had dark, stormy gray eyes that seemed to stare straight through her soul. And there was something about him...some kind of regal grace that she couldn't really find the words to describe.
She heard Lynn choking behind her and glanced at him inquisitively. "Y-you're…" Lynn started, gazing at Nick in amazement
"Nobody important," Nick interrupted swiftly, his eyes darkening. At the commanding tone Lynn simply nodded his head in understanding. The two boys shared one long look.
"I feel like I'm missing something," Yamuraiha muttered, looking at both of them. "Do you know Nick or something, Lynn?"
"No," Lynn said quickly, but Yamuraiha had known the blonde for long enough to tell that his refusal was a lie. Lynn coughed, regaining his usual confidence, and attempted to recover with a sarcastic remark. "Great. We'll be the bright haired trio. Totally inconspicuous."
"Yep, we'll be the next magician trio of the century," Yamuraiha deadpanned. "Known for our dashing good looks and colorful hair."
"You two are ridiculous," Nick shook his head, but his lips tugged upwards in amusement.
The room quieted as a tall, bearded man entered the room. "Welcome, my fellow scholars and magicians," Mogamett proclaimed, holding his hands outwards. "Abandon your quills and parchment, for today we will be discussing the everyday application of magic."
Within an hour, the discussion had shifted to how to incorporate magic in public projects instead. Nicholas had mainly opted to stay out of the discussion, but he watched as his two newly acquainted companions heatedly engaged in the conversation.
"Can't you see how much the modern aqueducts can be improved if you combine Water and Wind magic?" Yamuraiha, as she had introduced herself, hissed. The teal haired girl was an unexpected surprise: Nicholas honestly had not expected to meet any girls at the lecture hall mainly because it was an unwritten rule in society that women were more interested in things like dancing demonstrations, not scholarly lectures. "It'd help create a whole new irrigation system which could be used to fuel crops, which fuels the economy."
"Agriculture isn't the focus of our Kingdom, trade is," Lynn argued back, his sky blue eyes blazing in defiance as the two glared at each other. It was much less of a surprise to Nicholas that he was there: Nick had met the genius magician about a year or two before, when he had performed some of his brilliant magic to the Royal Court. He was just thankful that the blonde had gotten the hint and didn't reveal Nicholas's identity: he didn't want too much of a hassle. "If we focus on creating better roads with Earth magic and reinforcing security with magicians on trade routes, it'll encourage for more trade in the country."
"Irrigation would help the common folk produce goods more efficiently," Yamuraiha countered.
"Reinforcing trade will help those goods sell," Lynn insisted.
(Sometime during their argument, the rest of the philosophers and magicians had gone silent and simply watched the two debate in amusement, as if they were some kind of ping pong match that kept going back and forth.)
It was a refreshing change from the honeyed words of the Royal court and the suffocating atmosphere of the overly formal intercountry meetings. Nicholas found himself involuntarily relaxing.
"Irrigation systems are more beneficial."
"Trade routes are," Lynn countered.
Both of them looked ready to strangle the other person. Nick decided to stop the two from potentially committing homicide by coughing into his fist non-too subtly, making both of them pause in their argument. Mogamett took this moment of respite as an opportunity and swiftly began the second part of the lecture, in which he actually taught.
Yamuraiha and Lynn quieted, but were still glaring at each other. Nick simply rolled his eyes, grabbed the edges of their sleeves, and pulled them back into their seats.
"Stop interrupting the lesson," he hissed to the two of them under his breath, and they had the decency to look at least sheepish.
"Sorry," the two muttered in synchronization, sinking back in their seats.
The lecture finished after another hour or two, and by that time Yamuraiha had decided she was never, ever going to sit next to Lynn again. Sure, he was a talented magician, but he managed to piss her off almost every second of the lecture. Once, she had happened to glance at him and he caught her stare. She was about to look away when he gave the most infuriating, cocky smirk and raised his eyebrows.
It took all of her self restraint to stop herself from tackling him to the ground.
Twitching slightly, Yamuraiha stood up and packed up her quills and parchment. "The fireworks should be on in another hour or so," she muttered to herself, glancing out of the lecture hall window to look at the dark night sky. Maybe she could meet up with Sharrkan and the others, and they could all watch the fireworks together. "That's cool."
"Fireworks are beautiful," Nick agreed quietly, and she nearly jumped. She had almost forgotten about her newly made acquaintance.
"Are you going to watch them with your friends?" She asked curiously. "Or a girlfriend?"
Behind her, Lynn choked at the second one for some reason. She suspected it had to do with whatever silent communication thing the boys were doing earlier.
Nick simply shrugged. "My sister is probably here, but she's probably off with her beau."
"You have a sister? What's her name?" Yamuraiha probed curiously as she slung her bag over her shoulders. She began to exit the lecture hall, Nick and Lynn trailing slightly behind her.
"...Dunya," Nick allowed.
Yamuraiha almost tripped over her feet. She gracefully recovered, however, stepping forward just enough so she wouldn't faceplant on the ground. Straightening, she re-examined Nick's face. "No wonder I thought you looked familiar." (At this, Nick and Lynn both stiffened.) "I made friends with a girl named Dunya a few months back."
Nick had a thoughtful, contemplative expression on his face for a moment. "...you wouldn't happen to be the 'Raiha' she always talks about, are you?"
"I am," Yamuraiha confirmed, half amazed. So Nick was the brother Dunya always was talking about. She had expected someone a bit older, but he looked only a few years older than her.
"Oi, oi, I'm feeling a bit left out here," Lynn muttered, but his statement was cut off by the sound of many footsteps.
"Your Highness! There you are, we were looking all over for you! Chancellor Sera…" one of the soldiers that had rushed over once spotting Nick trailed off when he saw Lynn and Yamuraiha next to the green haired boy.
Yamuraiha simply blinked in shock.
Lynn's lips twitched upwards in amusement.
Nick sighed and facepalmed.
"...I'll be there in a moment, now go wait over there," the green haired boy gestured off in some direction. The group of soldiers immediately followed his command and rushed off. Turning around to Yamuraiha and Lynn, he said tiredly, "Well, cat's out of the bag."
"...you're a prince?" Yamuraiha asked. "Crown Prince Nicholas?"
"...yeah."
"...should I be bowing to you right now?"
"...nah." Nick glanced over at Lynn. "He figured it out right away. We met in the Royal Court a year ago or so."
"And you didn't tell me?" Yamuraiha hissed at Lynn. The blonde raised his hands up innocently.
"I didn't know what he wanted, but he's still the Crown Prince and all. There was probably a reason why he was going incognito, and I wasn't going to be the one to expose him," Lynn explained shortly.
Nick was sporting the most contemplative of expressions. "Yamuraiha...if you don't mind me asking, can you meet with me tomorrow night, at this spot and time, again?"
The teal haired girl's eyebrows scrunched together confusedly, but she shrugged and nodded her assent. "Not like I can refuse you, anyways," she half joked. "So, Your Highness-"
"You two can just call me Nick. Dunya always does," Nick interrupted.
Oh yeah. If Nick was the Crown Prince, then Dunya was...Princess Dunya? Yamuraiha had thought it was just a coincidence: plenty of girls were named 'Dunya' after the royal family females. "Well, see you later then?" she offered meekly, trying to wrap her mind over it all.
"Yeah. I'm afraid I have to go…" Nick glanced at the spot where the soldiers were standing. He offered a small nod to both of them. "Tonight was...slightly enjoyable."
The two of them nodded and gave their goodbyes before the green haired boy left, his figure getting lost in the crowds of people in the festival. Yamuraiha and Lynn just stood there awkwardly, for once not at each other's necks even though they were alone.
"Um...so are you going to stay for the fireworks? I'm going to find my house-mates, but you can come along too. Some of them would be delighted to see you," Yamuraiha offered awkwardly.
"I…" For once, the blonde was at a loss of words, and the two stared at each other for a long moment. They had been so used to doing nothing but yell at each other that the sudden cordiality had thrown them completely off. "Um...I guess."
To say that the walk towards the festival center was awkward was an understatement. There were waves of awkwardness and what Dunya would definitely giggle about and call sexual tension (ITWASNOTSEXUALTENSIONSHEDIDN'TLIKEHIM) emitting from the two of them as they continued to walk.
"Oh, um, look...a festival game," Yamuraiha pointed out lamely, inwardly facepalming at her stupid sounding tone of voice. She was getting less and less intelligent by the minute.
Lynn glanced at the booth for a second, before glancing back at her. Suddenly, there was a glint in his eyes as his lips pulled up into a smirk. "Betcha I can get a better prize than you."
"Oh, you're on."
"I hate you," Yamuraiha grumbled. "You knew I was aiming for that one."
"Then you should've hit the target first," Lynn replied, and although his words were taunting, there was more of an almost...playful glint in his eyes.
The two of them, after completely dominating all of the game booths (besides the extremely rigged games which both complained about), were completely exhausted. They had won plenty of prizes, and had given out most of those prizes to groups of kids who were eyeing their bounties with greedy eyes.
In the end, the only prizes Yamuraiha was holding onto were a stuffed pink teddy bear she planned to give to Aladdin's friend, Morgiana, and a few bags of candy she could give Aladdin and the rest of his friends. Lynn was holding the most (adorable, fluffy, cute-) stuffed panda in his hands.
They reached the festival center, and Yamuraiha could see the colorful heads of her roommates probably waiting for her to come. She was about to open her mouth and call out to them when something was shoved in front of her face. She blinked, pushing the thing back so she could see the...fluffy…panda?
Realization and slight shock colored her features as she glanced at Lynn curiously. "Why-?"
"Mo~ron. Would I actually keep something as girly as this?" Lynn scowled, flicking her forehead with his index finger.
"But…" Yamuraiha started, fully intending on handing back the gift.
"Tch. Just keep it. And I just remembered I had something to do, so…" Lynn glanced off behind him, but when he turned around and saw Yamuraiha staring at him he blushed and snapped, "What?"
"...nothing," a faint smile grew on her face. "Thanks, idiot."
Lynn mumbled a quick, "Yeah, see ya'," before he quickly flipped around and began walking away, his right hand raised lazily upwards in a gesture of goodbye.
She didn't realize she was still smiling until Alyasa pointed out how creepily happy she looked.
"Oi, get back here, that's my sword!" Sharrkan called, chasing after a giggling Aladdin. Alyasa giggled at the scene, both her and Ja'far trailing a few feet behind their two house-mates.
Yamuraiha sighed wearily, completely worn out from the day's events. She glanced at the man towards her left, his golden eyes for once flickering with not playful mischievousness, but deep thought. "Thinking about something?" she ventured.
Sinbad glanced at her for a moment and gave a small nod. "It's...nice, for it to be so peaceful like this," he admitted, his eyes softly watching the rest of their friends laugh and moan with each other.
"It...it is," she agreed, her eyes softening a degree as she watched Ja'far scold a sullen looking Sharrkan and Aladdin. And for a moment the conversation just faded into a quiet, solemn silence: a rare moment when she was around Sinbad, but a treasured moment nonetheless.
"I wish things could just stay like this…" Sinbad muttered, and at this Yamuraiha tilted her head so she could meet his eyes.
"The world is always changing, though, and there's nothing we can really do about it except adjust and accept it," Yamuraiha murmured, glancing up at the dark night sky. The stars were twinkling, and because their group was walking away from the festival lights to a nice hill where they could see the fireworks better, their astral brilliance seemed to shine even brighter. "It's beautiful."
"You're be-"
"Don't say it," Yamuraiha rolled her eyes, punching the man lightly on the shoulders. "The least you can do is come up with more original pick-up lines."
"What, no slap this time? Maybe my attempts of wooing you are less futile than I thought," Sinbad said half jokingly, a (rare) true grin spreading over his face.
"Yeah, yeah, don't test your luck."
"Would you like me to be upfront and blunt, or do you want me to sugarcoat it?" Was the first thing out of Nick's mouth when Yamuraiha returned to the agreed spot the next night.
Yamuraiha's mouth twitched upwards. He was just how Dunya described him. "Go ahead. I'm prepared."
"I need you to marry me."
"...actually, on second thought, I'm not prepared," Yamuraiha said faintly. "You couldn't have put it slightly more delicately?"
"You asked for the blunt option." Nick shrugged. Glancing around, he motioned for her to follow her. "I know a nice cafe nearby that attracts plenty of intelligent individuals. They have a lot of beautiful chess sets. Do you play?"
"Do I play?" Yamuraiha laughed, her mind still trying to process his statement. Instead, it just latched on the idea of chess: something to distract itself until she figured out what was going on. "Of course I do. Lead the way."
.
.
.
"Ah, yes, the King and Queen's coronation ceremony." Yamuraiha leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling thoughtfully. She mused, "It's been almost forty years since the last one, so it's understandable that plenty are looking forward to it."
"As you already know, Musta'sim runs differently from other kingdoms. They refuse to change from tradition, and tradition calls for a Queen to ratify the King's decisions." Nick's hands were propped against the table, his stormy gray eyes locking with Yamuraiha's teal orbs.
"If I recall right...most Kings, in the past, chose Queens that would easily go along with their decisions. A figurehead, rather than an actual authoritative figure. It's obviously more of an advantage for you to have a Queen who doesn't know a single things of politics, and I'm sure you've realized that. So...why are you going out of your way to find someone who might not agree with all of your stances?" Yamuraiha asked.
"...I am no fool. I know that at times, what I believe is best for the kingdom may not be what actually is best for the kingdom. The Kingdom needs two rulers to make sure that we prosper, and I am not arrogant enough to think that I can fill the place of both those roles," Nick explained. He obviously had been putting a lot of thought into this, based on the look in his eyes. "Musta'sim's Queen position was originally more powerful than the King's, but for the past few centuries their power has declined as focus for educations shifted away from females. I…" and at this he hesitated for a moment. "I need you to help me."
"Why do you trust me so easily?" Yamuraiha asked cautiously. "Not that I find myself untrustworthy, but it's unusual to ask this so quickly of someone you've just met."
"The Council is pressuring me to find a wife from a high class family to further our treasuries." At this, Nick snorted. "Not like we need it. And I've met all of them, and trust me when I say that I do not trust them to run a kingdom."
"The Council, you say…" Yamuraiha trailed off. "What do they think of your ventures?"
"They agree...however…" Nick hesitated again.
"I will not divulge any details of our conversation with anyone else, you have my word," Yamuraiha said solemnly, her eyes flashing.
"...my regent, who's held power for a long time since I was not eligible to become King yet. I have heard dark rumors about him...gathering allies," Nick said quietly, his voice lowered an octave.
"And you need a Queen who will not be manipulated by him," Yamuraiha surmised.
"Exactly. I...I understand that this may seem sudden, but the coronation is due in a month, and if there is no Queen, my regent is bound to rebel against me," Nick said hurriedly. "My close companion, Chancellor Sera, has been keeping an eye on him, but there's only so much that he can do."
"You must be crazy to actually be doing this." Yamuraiha's lips twitched upwards.
"And you must be crazy enough to actually be listening," Nick countered.
"And I must be crazy to actually accept this." Yamuraiha moved her bishop and lazily sat back in her chair. "Also, checkmate."
"To satisfy some of the more pissy regents, we need to pass you off as a nobleman's daughter," Nick explained. The two of them were in a fancy, high class boutique that Yamuraiha probably never would have stepped into sans as an employee. "I know this tailor, and she's definitely reliable."
"Oh, Prince Nicholas! Oh my, pardon me for keeping you waiting, I wasn't expecting you!" A golden haired woman stepped out from behind a pile of clothes. Her eyes landed on Yamuraiha and immediately a warm smile spread over her face. Offering her hand to Yamuraiha, she said kindly, "You must be the girl he talked about. My name's Mira, and I've known Prince Nicholas here since he was a kid."
Yamuraiha took her hand and shook it. "My name's Yamuraiha."
"I told you to just call me Nick…" Nick grumbled.
"And I always told you that I needed to remember my station, my Prince," Mira replied cheerfully, ruffling his hair. Turning around to look at Yamuraiha with a critical eye, the woman scanned the teal haired girl for at least a minute before nodding in determination. "I know just the right thing for you, Yamu." (Yamuraiha twitched at the nickname but sent the girl a grateful smile.)
Yamuraiha sent a questioning glance at Nick.
"...there's a ball in two weeks, where I must 'find my Queen, my true love'," Nick grumbled.
"Sounds like something Dunya would come up with," Yamuraiha laughed quietly. She paused. "Wait...are you expecting for me to dance?"
"Yeah. Do you know how? If not, I already have a dancing tutor prepared."
"...I know how to dance, but probably not the formal dances that you upper class people learn," Yamuraiha admitted. "So...this is basically a fake, pre-scripted version of Cinderella?"
"Pretty much. With more danger and politics involved. I wouldn't put it past my regent to send an assassin after me." Nick ran a frustrated hand through his green hair. "If I had known that man would turn out like this, I would've retired him immediately."
"You can't change the past, but you can change the future," Yamuraiha quoted.
"You read Solomon?" Nick glanced at her curiously.
"I find his works interesting," Yamuraiha replied, shrugging.
"Yamu~~~ I need you to come inside here so I can take some measurements," Mira called from another room. "And Your Highness, go away. She'll be here for awhile."
"I thought you wanted to remember your station," Nick grumbled, but after nodding at Yamuraiha he left the boutique.
.
.
"This…how...what?" Yamuraiha openly gaped, fingering the gossamer white fabric.
"Your dress for your debut," Mira said proudly. "You need to make a grand appearance during the first night of the ball. With this, nobody would ever miss you."
"Is that so?" Yamuraiha mused. "Well, I don't doubt that. It's beautiful."
"And when you're wearing it it'll look even better," Mira confirmed. She added mischievously, "His Highness won't be able to take his eyes off of you."
"This situation is out of necessity and practicality, not love nor attraction," Yamuraiha shook her head. Even so, the comment unnerved her for some reason, and she pushed the dress away a bit. "I'm crazy for even agreeing to this stunt."
"Prince Nicholas may be a bit prickly sometimes, but he's a very kind person," Mira said quietly. "And I'm glad to see that you seem to be one too. The poor boy has way too much on his plate, ever since his mother died and father...well…"
Yamuraiha knew why the woman trailed off. The King had eventually gone mad out of grief, and although at first the higher ups tried to hide it, eventually the news got out. Now that she thought about it, Nick probably had a hard time in the palace, especially since Dunya seemed hardly a paperwork person.
"I'll make sure he's okay," Yamuraiha promised in a low tone. "Nick's...well, he's a cool person to be around. I'm certainly not in love with him, but I hope it's not too presumptuous to call him a friend."
"He definitely does. Prince Nicholas doesn't let anybody just call him that, you know, despite regards he might have led you to believe." Mira giggled and winked at her. "Now, come along. I think Histok's here to drive you to your dancing lessons."
"...ow."
"...sorry."
…
…
"Ow."
"...sorry."
…
...
"Ow!"
"...sorry."
"How can you be this bad at ballroom dancing?" Nick asked, groaning. He had decided to fulfill the role of her dance partner himself, that way they'd be able to dance with each other at the ball naturally. "I even set aside plenty of time from my schedule for this."
"But all I do is step, twirl, and smile prettily," Yamuraiha grouched. "This is so pointless."
"Sadly, others find it important. And we're going to do this right." Nick nodded at the musicians, all sworn to secrecy, to start playing again. The violinist at the front made a small gesture before beautiful waltz music sounded through the room. Seeing Yamuraiha's reluctant glance, Nick rolled his eyes and lightly grabbed her by the shoulder. "Just close your eyes and follow my movements," he instructed calmly. "I won't let you fall, I promise."
Yamuraiha looked like she was going to argue, but ultimately decided against it and did what he asked, shutting her eyes and standing stiffly before Nick grabbed her hands and guided them to their proper positions on top of his shoulder and in his hand. "One, two, three...one, two three," he counted, pulling her towards him while making sure that the girl stayed balanced on her feet.
Their first few steps were shaky and unsteady, but gradually their movements grew in confidence as there were no stumbles, no shyness, just movement as one body rather than two individuals.
Gradually, Yamuraiha's eyes opened and met Nick's, but they continued dancing in the same rhythm as before with just as much dexterity and precision. Nick could tell that the girl definitely had danced before, for her lithe form, after figuring out the initial steps, quickly relaxed and skillfully mirrored his movements.
Finally, the music had come to an end, and the two stood there for a moment, still in their dancing position and with their eyes locked.
After a few heart pounding moments, Nick looked away. "Histok will meet you at Mira's boutique tomorrow, at the same time, to bring you here again. With a few more days of practice, I'm sure we'll look as if we were naturally 'made to be' with each other."
"Y-yeah. I suppose you have a meeting now?" At Nick's nod, Yamuraiha let out a small laugh and gave him a warm smile. "Well, I'll see you later then."
"Histok will escort you to your home," Nick motioned towards the bodyguard, who bobbed his head in assent.
"So...um," Yamuraiha started awkwardly. "I'm getting married."
All of her housemates had been sitting at the dinner table when she had blurted out the statement. Everyone simultaneously froze. Sinbad dropped his fork. Sharrkan choked on his glass of water he was drinking. Aladdin blatantly stared. Alyasa looked ready to faint. And Ja'far?
"I'm sorry, I must have heard you wrong, Yamuraiha. Did you just say you were getting married?" Ja'far asked with the sweetest smile on his face.
"Um...yes, actually," Yamuraiha confirmed, inwardly cringing at the storm she knew was coming. There was a long, extended period of silence.
Surprisingly, it wasn't Ja'far who broke the silence, but Sharrkan.
"What. The. Hell." The white haired boy said, eyes narrowing. "You're...you're joking, right?"
"Do I look like I'm joking to you?" Yamuraiha deadpanned. "I'm getting married."
Ja'far seemed to be the only one able to process this. "How come we've never met your...fiancé...Yamuraiha?"
"Oh, I met him two days ago."
You could've heard a pin drop.
"Um...and he may be the Crown Prince of Musta'sim?" Yamuraiha said hesitatingly.
"I'm going to faint." Was the only warning everyone got before Ja'far promptly fell back on top of Sinbad.
"I take it your housemates didn't take it well?" Nick surmised, glancing at Yamuraiha's dark bags under her eyes. She glanced at him, noticing the scent of cologne that she doubted Nick would've bothered with.
"And I guess Dunya took it well?" Her lips twitched upwards a fraction.
"She's convinced we'll fall in love with each other by the end of this week," Nick deadpanned. "And wants to help me in 'wooing' you."
"She's so cute," Yamuraiha giggled quietly. Her smile faded. "At least you didn't have to hear a lecture that lasted for hours. Ja'far nearly blew out my eardrums. Sinbad tried persuading me out of it. Sharrkan decided to give me the silent treatment. And Aladdin, despite being my disciple, can't believe that you're crazy enough to ask me of all people to marry you. And...well, don't get me started on Alyasa."
"True enough," Nick conceded, and with that the music started and they resumed their dance lessons again.
"I can't do this after all," Yamuraiha freaked out as Mira tugged at various parts of the fabric. "What if they recognize me from one of Sir Mogamett's lectures or something?"
"Not to sound presumptuous nor rude, but most of the upper class don't bother with such things," Mira said reassuringly. "Besides, you'll be fine. If there's one thing I've learned in my time I've served him, Prince Nicholas never goes into anything without a plan and a back-up plan. And if all else fails, you're a resourceful girl."
"You're pretty good at cheering people up," admitted Yamuraiha. "You should be a therapist."
Mira smiled at this, but then she remembered something. "Ah, yes. Here's a piece of paper that Nick wanted me to give you."
Yamuraiha took the piece of paper and observed it.
.
Your name's now going to be Raiha Matal. I've gotten Mogamett to help us: you are to play the role of his estranged daughter. Apparently he and your mother lost contact because of a fight, but he noticed you at one of his lectures and eventually realized who you were.
This will explain your presence at the lectures, and if you mess up with some social etiquette, just use the whole "you're new to this" excuse. Don't approach me for the first dance. Around the fourth dance, approach me. I'll ask you to dance. I'll be 'captivated' by you, and ask you for several more dances.
Go to Mira's place for the next two nights as well.
.
"I see…" Yamuraiha...no, Raiha muttered. "He's quite a thorough person."
"See?" Mira beamed. "Anyways, off with you. Histok's waiting outside to drive you to the ball."
When Yamuraiha and Mira approached the carriage, Histok helped her up into one of the seats. "I hardly recognized you," he said to her with a smile. "I'm sure no lad will be able to take his eyes off of you."
"It's all Mira's sorcery," Raiha dismissed, but there was a small smile playing on her face anyways. "I suppose we're all set?"
"Yes, we're off."
"Oh, my darling Angela definitely will be the one to catch the Prince's attention," Lady Delia of the Gray family declared, fanning herself pompously. "Your Lydia, on the other hand...well." she purposely trailed off.
"Oh, I'm afraid you're mistaken, Delia," purred a middle aged woman donning a flashy dress of diamonds and rich silk. Easily recognizable by her diamond pin, she was Lady Blanc, and her family dominated the diamond industry. "Lydia has graduated from her finishing school at the top of her class. The Prince even remarked on how beautiful her embroidery was the other day."
"I seem to recall that he also called your Lydia an 'annoying brat', if I quote correctly."
"And I seem to remember that your daughter was caught stalking him."
"Just checking out her future husband's habits," Lady Gray dismissed.
"Lady Raiha Matal," a man announced to the congregation of upper class men and women who had gathered in the ballroom.
Immediately eyes swerved at the name. Whispers were already going around: Sir Mogamett had a daughter? Or a wife? One glance at the girl told them all they needed to know: she was definitely too young to be Sir Mogamett's wife, so she must be his daughter, looking for the Prince's hand like many other high class girls tonight.
Young men of the upper class couldn't help but watch the girl with exotic teal hair and the most captivating blue eyes sweep down the steps, the beautiful white satin dress making her look almost like an angel.
She looked at ease in the ballroom, despite the many eyes on her, and strode forward with confidence as if she owned the place. When she noticed the stares, a polite, but almost predatory smile spread over her face as she strode over to where her presumed father stood.
Bystanders noticed how alit her eyes were when she talked with Sir Mogamett, and they immediately assumed it was out of parental admiration, not the admiration of a fan who finally got to meet their idol.
The two exchanged a few words in tones too low to hear, despite the many ears that strained to catch a bit of their conversation.
Noticing the many curious lingering people around her, the girl gave them all a bright smile that contrasted so deeply with her calculative one before that others doubted that the other smile had even happened. "Would you like to join us in conversation?" The girl asked smoothly, and quickly several curious busybodies made their way to the two figures.
"Oh my, dear. I never knew that Mogamett had a daughter," Lady Gray fanned herself with her jewel encrusted fan, scrutinizing the teal haired girl from head to toe.
"Well, it's a very long story…" the girl laughed, intentionally trailing off.
"We have all the time in the world, the dances start in another hour," Lady Blanc dismissed.
"My daughter and I have reunited after many years apart," Mogamett said swiftly, patting Raiha's head fondly. His voice left no argument.
"I see…" Lady Gray said, obviously dissatisfied with the short explanation. "And why have I not met you at one of the finishing school demonstrations, dear?"
"Please, just call me Raiha,"" she laughed benevolently. "And...well, that's because for a long time I did not know who my father was…"
And the girl continued to regale the two gossipers with her tragic tale of living among commoners and growing up without a father figure, the ladies chiming in their utter dismay at her pitiful circumstances. By the end of her tale the two women were weeping, having been completely swayed to Raiha's side.
"You poor dear," Lady Blanc dabbed at her watery eyes with her handkerchief. They both muttered their condolences before hurrying off to gossip and spread the news.
Later, some scholars who recognized her came up to her, and she immediately went into an explanation of her 'true heritage'.
.
.
(By the end of the night Raiha was sure she had at least a few influential allies.)
The music started and Raiha nearly jumped when she felt a tap on her shoulder. "May I have this dance?"
"Of course-" she cut off when she recognized the figure. "-Lynn?"
"I'm a popular magician, Nick knows me, I'm an ally, so I was invited." Lynn shrugged as they automatically grasped each other's hands and began to dance. He twirled her around. Lowering his voice, he said, "I didn't think the girl he chose was you, though."
"And why does that matter?" Raiha raised her eyebrows, amused, but for some reason Lynn decided to ignore that question.
"You're crazy for agreeing to this."
"That I am," she confirmed.
"...hey...just hypothetically, if you never accepted his request...then…" Lynn trailed off.
"...then?" She prompted.
"Never mind," Lynn muttered. "Oi, the next dance is starting. You should try another dance partner."
"Have my terrible dancing skills repelled you that badly?" Raiha joked.
"No." His solemn tone of voice made Raiha pause and truly look at him again. His blue eyes were trained only on her, as he said quietly, "Never."
She blinked for a moment, not sure how to take that, but the blonde had already pushed her forwards and she bumped into someone.
White hair...she was instantly reminded of Ja'far, but when she noticed the boy's amethyst eyes she realized who he was. Nick had often spoken of him fondly. "Chancellor Sera, I presume," she curtsied, trying to banish all thoughts of Lynn and focus on the task at hand. "Please excuse me for bumping into you."
"It's fine," Sera said kindly. "Would you like to dance?"
"It'd be my pleasure," she laughed, taking the boy's outstretched hand. They danced for a bit, exchanging polite comments now and then, and when the sight of the two dancing was nothing new and all prying eyes turned away, their polite smiles faded.
"I have just gotten word that there are assassins hidden in the ball," Sera said lowly. "I need for you to stay with Nick. I'm going to find Lynn and inform him as well. Have no fear, for if your fear is seen, they will surely know there's a mole in their network. We all have your back."
"Got it. Thanks, Chancellor Sera," she said, nodding.
"Call me Sera," he smiled at her, before gesturing to where Nick was dancing with some overly dressed up teenage girl. It looked like the girl was talking about some nonsensical topic, for Nick literally had the most annoyed and bored expression on his face. "Now why don't you go rescue Prince Charming?"
She laughed at this, but parted hands with Sera and began to make her way to Nick. A tap on her shoulder stopped her from reaching him, and she couldn't help but mentally groan because how many more surprises would she be getting tonight? She turned around, fully intending on rejecting whoever it was who secretly knew her, but froze when she examined the said man in question.
"May I have this dance?" he asked smoothly.
Everything about this man screamed danger, but she could see his hands twitching and knew that if she didn't act quickly and agree, something bad could happen. "Of...of course," she agreed hesitantly, and his hand immediately shot out like a snake and grabbed hers. This wasn't the warm kind of hand holding that she shared with all of her friends and acquaintances. No, the way he gripped her, with a strength and in such an angle that he could easily flip her and pin her to the ground, was a grip of control. Of dominance, power, one that gave a sense of being trapped and helpless.
Her face was slightly pale as they began to dance, the movements that had once been fun now a game of cat and mouse, both waiting for the other to slip. The man suddenly grinned and motioned for her to come closer. She did, and that was when he let go of her hands and flashed the mark on his palm.
Her face rapidly turned a ghostly white. That was no ordinary mark. Everyone in the kingdom and in other countries knew that mark, from children who were told stories about this group as a scary bedtime story to keep them in their beds to adults who had seen pictures of the discovered bases.
Al Tharmen, the most wanted crime syndicate group in the world. They were known for being ruthless and for taking down whole countries. Nick's regent...he had been so desperate that he had turned to those people?
"We know who you are, miss Raiha," the man spat at her. "Mogamett, in fact, did have a daughter. However, she's dead now."
"How...how do you know that?"
"We killed her," he smiled. "And since you are one of the Prince's pawns, you must be eliminated as well."
She prepared herself, magic itching beneath her fingertips when someone approached the dancing pair.
"May I steal your partner?" Nick asked, unperturbed by the whispers and stares. The Crown Prince never took an interest in anyone, and the fact that he would even interrupt another dancing couple to dance with a girl spoke wonders.
The man's face twisted into an ugly sneer. "Of course, my Prince. May as well enjoy being Cinderella's Prince Charming, because you'll never become King."
"We'll see about that, now, wouldn't we?" Nick replied levelly. The man let out a small grunt before disappearing in the crowd. Nick glanced at Raiha. "Are you alright? Did he say anything to you?"
"Who was that? Why didn't you arrest him?" Raiha blurted out. "He's part of…"
"I know," Nick tried to appease her, guiding her into their dancing positions. Automatically, the pair began to dance without paying attention at all, the orchestra simply playing a ballad to their tempo. "I've tried in the past. His name is Rutherford, and he is one of my regent's most trusted men. Sadly, I'm afraid that he holds too much influence over the judiciary system in order for me to punish him. He always manages to come up with an excuse. And currently all we can do is wait for their attack. It'll be on the third and last night of the ball."
Seeing Raiha's rather pale face, he added quietly, "You can always back out. I wouldn't blame you."
"I…" Raiha wavered for a moment, but then she regained her senses and shook her head in a firm action of refusal. "No. I'm already in too deep now, so let's do this."
Nick's lips twitched upwards a fraction. "That's the spirit. You look nice tonight."
"T-thanks," she nodded.
"I don't suppose you think we can sneak away for a game of chess right now, can we?" He mused.
"We're in the center of attention right now, Nick," Raiha deadpanned. "There's a literal spotlight on us."
"Ah, the woes of royalty," Nick said mournfully. At this, both of them broke out into small smiles and laughed a bit.
Raiha stopped laughing, allowing for Nick to twirl her around. "Wait...we're still supposed to be convincing people that we're madly in love right now. I forgot."
"I think we're already pretty convincing," said Nick without too much thought, and as soon as that statement came out the two of them turned red. He amended, "Well...you know, I'm laughing. The other girls haven't even made me smile."
"...yeah," Raiha nodded, almost too quickly.
.
.
.
The second night was the same as the first, except this time there were more eyes on her when she danced with Nick. And the man was nowhere to be seen.
.
.
.
"You're heading for the ball again, aren't you?" A voice asked from the doorway of her room.
"Ah, Sharrkan. Yo. Did you finally decide to stop the silent treatment you were giving me?" Yamuraiha...no, Raiha greeted. She was still living with her housemates for the moment. Once she explained in further detail why she was becoming the Queen, most of them had taken it better. The only ones who still refused to accept it were Sinbad, who simply sulked in a corner, and Sharrkan, who had continuously ignored her and locked himself in his room.
Sharrkan scowled. "I still think you're stupid," he admitted, "But if there's one thing I know about you it's that you don't back down from a promise nor challenge. So I might as well get over it."
"Thanks, Sharrkan," she said warmly. Although she didn't want to admit it, she missed the idiot's company. It was too quiet when he wasn't there.
"Yeah, yeah. Oh, and here." Sharrkan tossed a box at her. She easily caught it and glanced curiously at it. When she glanced at him, he nodded and gestured for her to open it.
It was a beautiful aquamarine necklace that matched her eyes exactly. She had been eyeing it one day and had begged Sharrkan to lend her money to buy it before, but he adamantly refused, saying that it'd look ugly on her.
"I was saving it for your birthday, but whatever," Sharrkan mumbled. "I would've gotten you a matching ring, but that'd probably be awkward and all since you're supposed to get one from that Prince of yours."
"Sharrkan...you…"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm a softie, I know already…" He was cut off when she quite literally threw herself into his arms. "Oi, oi, what the-"
"Thanks, Sharrkan," she mumbled, clutching onto his shirt, trying her hardest to fight back tears that had suddenly welled up.
His shoulders slacked as he simply sighed, awkwardly patting her on the back. "...yeah."
.
.
.
Nick and Raiha were dancing when they heard the first scream. Immediately, one look at the other person told them all they needed to know.
"Everyone, out, out!" Nick commanded, although that was hardly necessary since many had spotted the men clad in black robes brandishing magical staffs and the mark of Al Tharmen and had immediately retreated.
"We need to drive them out so they don't return," Nick muttered mainly to himself.
"We also have to live," Raiha added helpfully. Grabbing the boy's arm, she pulled him to the ground and summoned a Borg to protect the two of them from a barrage of throwing knives. "Duck!"
They rolled across the floor, taking shelter momentarily behind a stone pillar. "You are so lucky I teach Magic Combat lessons," Raiha panted.
"I guess I chose my Queen correctly then, huh?" Nick smirked at her. "After all, you're my most powerful piece."
"You flatter me," Raiha rolled her eyes. He sure knew how to smooth talk. If she wasn't herself, she doubted she would've taken the comment as a compliment. But she was a chess player, and she knew the value of being the Queen. Especially in Nick's eyes. "I'm glad that I'm important enough to you to be considered a playing piece."
"Everything is just a chess board. You just can't always predict the opponent's next move...like now," Nick grabbed her and pulled her to the ground before a flying Heat Magic spell hit her, also summoning a Borg.
"You do magic?" She asked surprised. "I would've thought you just learned the theories."
"I was at a magic lecture for a reason, Raiha. And I dabble in a lot of things." Nick glanced around them. "Lynn's taking out a lot of enemies, you should help him. I'll find Sera."
"Roger. You'll be okay?"
Nick gave her a flat look. "Do you really want me to make a promise I can't keep?"
"No, but I do want to make sure you're safe," she countered.
"I'll be fine. They're all attacking Lynn, anyways. He's a brilliant magician, but he'll be overwhelmed at this rate." Nick glanced at their blonde haired friend who was literally surrounded by swarms of enemies.
"Fine. Be careful." Raiha ran a frustrated hand through her hair and quickly turned around, performing several backflips and landing perfectly on her feet right behind Lynn. "Can't handle the heat?" She challenged.
"A bit late, don't you think?" Lynn asked, and although his back was to her and her back toward his, both of them clearly knew what the other was doing.
At the same time, they shot several high level spells at their enemies and proceeded to create large, glowing orbs of pure magic above them. At the same time, they snapped their fingers, and the two orbs of magic fused, creating a brilliant wave of energy that sent the Al Tharmen men flying back. The waves of energy continued, pulsing through the room and knocking down the men every time they tried getting up. She grabbed Lynn's hands, and the two of them channeled their energy to that single point to strengthen the orb.
Raiha was in deep concentration when she felt an object flying at a high speed whizzing towards her. She grimaced, preparing herself for the impact as she had to maintain her pose to keep the orb going.
But that object, whatever it was, was blocked by a fireball that knocked it sideways.
"Sorry we're late, shishou, but we heard about what was going on and decided to help," Aladdin called cheerfully, proceeding with Alibaba and Morgiana to wreck the enemy. The rest of her housemates filed into the ballroom, each beginning to take out enemy after enemy.
"Ja'far...what's going on?" Raiha couldn't help but ask in amazement, seeing her housemate send several goons flying at once like the ex-assassin he was.
"Sin gathered us all and decided to help," he explained shortly. "And we all agreed. Nice necklace, by the way."
"Oh, yeah," Raiha blinked. She had almost forgotten about it in the chaos.
"Sharrkan taken me along to buy that awhile ago, you know," Ja'far commented idly. "It took him three hours to actually haggle enough to get an acceptable price for it."
"Why are you telling me this?" Raiha's eyebrows creased together.
"Just being a good friend." Ja'far shrugged.
"Okaaaaay…" Raiha dismissed her friend's comment as him just being weird and continued to fight. It felt like hours before the fighting ceased, but eventually the ballroom became quiet as all the Al Tharmen members were secured and in custody of the palace guards, who had also apparently been assisting with the fight and had been pre-alerted by Nick.
"A week from now, I will announce my Queen." Nick appeared next to her, making Raiha almost jump. "At that time, you'll have to act slightly surprised and stuff. We can improvise then, it'll lơk more real that way too."
"Alright." Raiha bit her lip, but nodded.
"And...Raiha?" He said hesitantly.
"...yes?"
"...thanks."
"You're welcome."
"Although our ball ended on a rather unfortunate note, I, Crown Prince Nicholas of the Musta'sim kingdom, have found the woman that I can be proud of to call my wife and future Queen. I met her on the first night of the ball, and although our time together was brief, she has completely captured my heart," Nick announced.
Yamuraiha (not Raiha, not yet...she just wanted to savor the last moments of her freedom) winced at the cheesiness of his words. Dunya, who was standing next to Nick at the front of the royal courtyard, caught her eye and the green haired princess immediately giggled and winked at her. Yamuraiha resisted the urge to facepalm.
"...and today I am here to name this individual," Nick continued. "May Lady Raiha Matal come up here and stand beside me?"
Polite applause filled the courtyard as Yamuraiha slowly made her way up to the stage. Her eyes met Nick's, and she could see the question in his eyes. Did she really want this?
"May I have this dance?" Stormy gray eyes.
"Mo~ron." Sky blue.
"Idiot." Jade green.
"You look nice today." Captivating gold.
She had decided. Looking at Nick, her mouth opened as she formed her answer.
.
.
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
A/N: Imagine the end as you'd like. HAHA you didn't think I'd actually end it like that huh?
Listen up. I really, really do appreciate each one of you for taking the time to read this. I did not expect this story to get this popular so fast, and so I'm just blown away by the great response.
I'm going to keep this short, as this chapter is so long-ass it makes everything else pale in comparision. Just know I love you all, I'll try to reply to your reviews, and I EXPECT A LOTTA REVIEWS FROM THIS. :( LOL jkjk. Although it'd be nice to hear your thoughts.
(This was originally supposed to be a Cinderella omake since nobody gave me a Disney prompt. The main ship was supposed to be Nick/Raiha.)
(LOL I didn't mean for Lynn to even pop up: he was supposed to be at the magician show thing Alyasa wanted to see. The characters write themselves lol.)
QUESTIONS OF THE CHAPTER:
1) Rate the ships. Rate your ships. Tell me who you ship.
2) Did you like reading AUs like this?
3) Please tell me I'm not the only Lynn/Raiha shipper anymore.
4) anything else lololol