Title: S O V E R E I G N
Author: Shao Bei Bei
Rating: M
Genre: Romance/Drama
Summary: At the age of thirteen, Ichigo Kurosaki was married to a foreign princess he never met. Years later, the princess' brother Toshiro Hitsugaya comes to him with an urgent request for him to escort him back to his kingdom...with vicious vampires hot on their trail.
Warnings: Vampires, violence, slash, yaoi, an attempt at plot, alternate universe
Author's Note: So I went to the bookstore and I picked up one of Tamora Pierce's books. I was instantly filled with jealousy; her writing is so good! I have to pick things up, start writing better, if I ever want to even dream of getting to her level. I'm going to see if I can evolve my writing style through this story. Imma work on my characterization, and fight scenes, and romance, et cetera, et cetera...
And also, I only just realized how retarded it was for me to make this original character a canon character's relative and marry her off to another canon character, but I had to have a story. Don't worry, Jun's not like one of those precious original characters toted around by their authors. She's there to keep the story moving, like a prop.
And...THESE VAMPIRES DON'T SPARKLE, BECAUSE SPARKLY VAMPIRES ARE A RETARDED IDEA.
Archived On: Fanfiction dot net and Livejournal dot com
S O V E R E I G N
S T A R T
"What?" Ichigo felt dizzy, Toshiro's words not quite registering in his mind. "Me? Me specifically? To - to Yuki'da? But why?"
Toshiro stood, pushing the seafoam sheets aside. Even standing he was only a few inches taller than Ichigo, who was kneeling. He walked over to a bloodstained bag on the floor, the oversized yukata dragging along the floor with a sshhp sound as his bare feet padded silently on the wooden floor. Digging through it he found a letter printed on grained paper and sealed with Yuki'da palace's official seal, and tossed it at Ichigo, who nearly fumbled it.
The orange-haired prince broke the seal and read the letter from Emperor Juushiro. Some of the things it said he already knew, like how they had an Agreement with the vampires, and how the vampires had a curse that had been placed on them a thousand years before by some past Hitsugaya. However, he never knew that it had been twins that cursed the Hitsugayas, nor that his wife and brother-in-law were the first twins in the family in centuries.
In most magic-using countries (of which Karakura was not one) being twinned usually diluted your power. But Yuki'da, being the only kingdom with vampires in the world, was different. Vampires were not magic, but not human either. It wouldn't be fair to call them the opposite of magic, but it also wasn't fair to say that they did not affect Yuki'da's magic either. The usual laws of magic that applied in every country did not apply in Yuki'da due to the large population of vampires, and that held true for Toshiro and Jun. Instead of both being born with magic, as identical twins usually were, Toshiro had magic twice as strong as normal magic-users, and Jun had none.
It was also through the letter that Ichigo learned of the current head vampire, a vampire named Aizen who planned to use Toshiro's unusually powerful magic to break the curse on his kind. It was because of Aizen's plot that Emperor Juushiro threw up a huge festival, had Toshiro and Jun don matching outfits along with several body doubles, and sent them all out in different directions. Some stayed in Yuki'da, others fled to different countries allied to Yuki'da.
The letter ended with Juushiro's request that as ally of Yuki'da and husband of his daughter, Ichigo hide Toshiro in Karakura and keep him there for a few weeks until a few days before Toshiro and Jun's 17th birthday. Then, Toshiro would be escorted back to the kingdom by his guards to have the rites performed on his birthday.
Ichigo stared at Toshiro, who waited silently as he read. There had been no guards with the icy prince. It was obvious what had happened.
"Aizen found out." The orange-haired man guessed softly. "He sent people after you."
Toshiro nodded.
"My guards sacrificed their lives to protect me." He said quietly. "I will not forget them. Nor will I forget the face of the vampire who slaughtered them. His name is Tousen, I know not much else. He is blind, but that does not hinder him. His hearing is extraordinary, even for a vampire. And I fear he has followed me."
"Well, what do you want me to do?" Ichigo scratched his head, still unsure of his role in all this. "We can offer you protection, of course."
Toshiro closed his eyes and began explaining.
"Yuki'da has two ways for people to enter. One way is the regular way, for normal people like tourists or citizens coming back from vacations. Originally the plan was for my guards and I to enter back through that way. But Aizen is surely watching that entrance. The other way is for special visitors, like foreign royals. It wouldn't be suspicious for you to come to Jun's - your wife's - seventeenth birthday. Turning seventeen is when you're officially an adult in Yuki'da. If you come to the celebration no one will think anything of it, especially if you ask for a divorce so you can marry someone else. You'll smuggle me in with you." He finished. Ichigo was impressed. For a sixteen-year-old midget he was quite smart.
"Ichigo."
When the orange-haired prince brought his gaze back to Toshiro he was shocked to find that the foreign prince was bowing on the floor, forehead touching the ground. Toshiro's voice was hard as he spoke.
"If you cannot protect me, Ichigo, the world will exist no more. Everything will continue to go on, but with Aizen ruling your life will end as you know it. He plans to bring all the countries together as one world, which he will call Hueco Mundo, after his vampire community. All existing royals, nobles, and officials will be stripped of their ranks and made to live among the peasants. And no one but the vampires will be happy anymore. Please. You must do this."
Having taken lessons on etiquette Ichigo knew that the bow Toshiro executed was the most humbling of them all. He was truely serious about this. With a nod he conceded, and called for a servant to summon his father and Kisuke Urahara to the throne room. Toshiro wasn't the only one who could put together a good plan.
B R E A K
After the situation was explained to the two older men, things were put into motion. It would look suspicious if Ichigo waited until right before the birthday celebration to enter the city, since visiting royals normally took a few days to settle in. Plus they'd have to allow a few days in case they had to lie low to avoid a vampire attack. With all that factored in, Ichigo would have to leave almost immediately.
King Isshin had an announcement made that Ichigo would be leaving to seek a divorce from Yuki'da's royal family. Kisuke dragged Toshiro off so he could make a gigai, a replica of his body, and make it look like they'd killed him before he had a chance to show his letter as proof that he wasn't a spy. It had a good chance of working, since only the royal family of Karakura and Kisuke knew about gigai. And Ichigo had to train as much as he could with the palace trainer Zangetsu before he left.
Halfway during the first training session Toshiro escaped from Kisuke and made his way to the training grounds, where he took a seat on the fence barring outsiders from entering the pen. He had changed into a yukata that fit much better, one that Ichigo recognized as being part of Uryuu's extensive Yuki'da fashion line. It was black with gold threading, and in it he looked elegant and out of place in the dusty field. He was the image of a noble prince, somehow managing to look perfect sitting on that fence, emotionlessly watching them battle as he remained untouched by dirt or dust.
Toshiro Hitsugaya was probably the exact opposite of him, Ichigo mused as he blocked an attack from Zangetsu, whirled around, and struck back. His sword clanged against Zangetsu's and they held fast for a moment, testing their strength against each other. But Ichigo was no longer the fumbling little boy who nearly stabbed himself several times, and Zangetsu was no longer young, and soon they broke apart and started again.
Toshiro was calm, authorative, and smart. He was well-mannered, a quick thinker who also thought plans through carefully, and willing to do anything for his country. Not to mention he was pretty, a fact the little prince denied as soon as he heard Kisuke comment on it. He was completely unlike Ichigo in every way.
Zangetsu nearly got him with a fake and a quick jab, but Ichigo pushed his sword aside in time. His move was clumsy and he got thrown off-balance, though he quickly regained control as he managed to push his trainer further and further back. Zangetsu dealt with this for a few more seconds before he lunged forward and Ichigo became the one defending.
Sure, Ichigo was handsome, but he wasn't refined. He skipped palace lessons as often as he could, and quite frankly did not want to become the king. Karakura would be much better off in the hands of his little sisters. Karin could make logical choices for the kingdom and Yuzu was the soft touch to keep her fraternal twin from becoming a dictator. And it was possible for him to hand off the throne.
But Isshin wouldn't have it. He believed that only a strong ruler could lead Karakura properly (even though he was the one who showed up for Ichigo's fifteenth birthday party in sparkling pink) and refused to allow his little girls to take the dangerous position. And of course, there was him.
Ichigo gritted his teeth upon remembering him, but couldn't think about it any further as he hit the dust, landing on his back with the tip of Zangetsu's sword just millimeters away from his nose.
"You're distracted." The old man said, and put away his sword. "Come back when you're not."
Ichigo sighed and walked over to Toshiro, who held out a waterskin, from which the orange-haired prince drank gratefully.
"You're strong." The teal-eyed boy noted. "Do you have any magic?"
Ichigo snorted. He was always asked this by people who saw him fight. As if he needed magic to help him pick up a sword.
"I do, but it's just a speck. Barely enough to light a candle, and that's all I use it for." Well, there was setting Prince Shinji on fire when he got too close, but that was another matter. "The rest is all me. What about you? That letter says your magic is extremely strong but not much else. Are you a battle mage, or maybe a healer?"
Toshiro snorted.
"If I were a healer, I might have been able to save my guards. No, I'm a battle mage who specializes in ice attacks. And I can't even use that." He said the last part with a hint of bitterness in his tone.
"Why?" Ichigo asked.
"My magic is too powerful. A vampire can sense it from several miles away, so my father had me sealed. I can't use my magic for any more of what you can do until I get this seal lifted, and I can only do that when I get home." Toshiro explained bitterly. Ichigo understood now, an expression of enlightenment on his face.
"Ah! Is that the reason you're so short? The sealing affected your body?" Too late he realized his mistake, as Toshiro snarled at him.
"Why you - I am not short! Yuki'da people are just genetically shorter than Karakura people, that's all!"
"But your father is the tallest man I've ever seen!" Ichigo couldn't help himself from teasing the little prince, who had lost his cool.
"When I get my magic back I am so going to kick you - " He didn't get to finish his threat, though, as a blond man popped out of nowhere and wrapped his arms around Ichigo's torso from behind. "Eh?"
"My dear Ichigo!" Prince Shinji Hirako of Vizard wailed in his accented voice as he hugged Ichigo. "They say yer leaving in a few days! Tell me yer going to be here ta see me off!"
Ichigo twitched slightly. He did not like physical contact from people he didn't like, and Shinji was definitely one of the people he didn't like.
"I'd love to see you go back to Vizard, Shinji, but unfortunately I will be leaving for Yuki'da before your departure." He said as he fought the blond off. As he pried the prince's arms from around his waist, he noticed that Toshiro looked rather - amused, his lips twitching upwards in what could have been a smile. "What?"
"You did not tell me you had a lover." said the little prince. "I had assumed that if you were to die, you would not be leaving a, er, wife behind."
"He's not my lover, and - Shinji, get off! - he's definitely not my wife!" With a final roar Ichigo pulled Shinji off, only to have the blond tearfully throw his arms around his neck and hug him with what seemed to be an even tighter hold. He fought the hug for a few more seconds before realizing it was futile to struggle, and with a sigh gave in, awkwardly putting his arms around his clingy stalker and patting his back. Toshiro only smirked, and murmured something to himself that Ichigo didn't quite catch, but he could have sworn the Yuki'da prince said,
"And to think, I could have married you."
B R E A K
At dinner that night Ichigo was a monster, devouring everything the servants put in front of him. He hadn't had a training session that intensive in months, and his aching muscles proved it. To the side Toshiro daintily nibbled at a salad (something Ichigo would have to remember the next time the little prince denied how feminine he was) while Shinji looked at him with something that resembled jealousy. Ichigo didn't dwell too much on it, though he noticed that the two left dinner at almost exactly the same time.
"Ichigo." Isshin began when Shinji and Toshiro left, and it was only him and Ichigo in the room. "You understand that it is very important that you protect Prince Toshiro."
"Yes." Ichigo furrowed his forehead, wondering why his father was asking him this. It wasn't like the old man to be serious like this.
"Then you understand, that should the situation become futile, you should use him." Before Isshin could continue, Ichigo rose right out of his seat, plates clanging to the floor as he yelled,
"No!"
"Ichigo!" Isshin cried.
"I refuse to use him, father, he is a berserker and who knows if he won't kill Toshiro too? He's a wildcard, and an unreliable one at that!" Ichigo argued. His father's face softened.
"Yes, Ichigo, I know he may seem that way to you." A large hand reached out and patted his orange spiky hair. "But you realize that he will give you no choice if it seems inevitable in the end. Your body is his, too, and he won't let you die. Even at the cost of someone else's life."
Ichigo turned away, feeling his father's hand slip down the back of his head. As Isshin's hand landed on his robe with a soft thump, Ichigo swallowed, memories ripping past walls that had taken years to build.
"I know." He whispered bitterly, a hot tear sliding down his cheek. The breath of someone who wasn't quite there rolled across the trail the tear left, a chapped lip gently brushed against his ear, and he shivered. "I...I know."
E N D
S O V E R E I G N C H A P T E R T W O
a/n: Damn. My writing still sucks.