Hey, guys! Well, here's Chapter 3 of "TKS." I just wanna thank you guys so much for all this support. You freaking rock. Okay, bye!
Summary: —
Disclaimer: I don't own Free! Iwatobi Swim Club.
[CHAPTER THREE: "REACHING A COMPROMISE."]
"Wow."
The word left Haruka's lips quietly, slipping past them without permission. The black-haired male stared up at what was apparently the royal palace, taking in the large, towering structure. It was very tall and made out of stones similiar to the ones back at the fountain, but darker in color. Haruka couldn't help but notice that the mismatched stones all fit together perfectly, giving off the same beautiful appearance that the fountain had, even with water in absence.
How did I miss this? Haruka wondered, thinking back to when he'd been touring the city with Nagisa. He had never glanced up and seen something this big then; Nagisa hadn't even pointed it out. Why not? He questioned.
As Haru pondered this, noting that the palace had no visable windows and briefly wondering how dark it must have been inside, the guard on his left began to speak.
"Keep the camel outside; confiscate and sort through all it's cargo and then take it to the stables," Guard A grunted to Guard B, who returned the grunt with an accompanying nod. The man on Haruka's right took Baa-chan's rope from the man on his left, proceeding to turn away and drag Baa-chan off to carry out the orders he'd been given. Haru felt his heart sink as he watched them go, watching as the camel pulled away from the guard, trying to stay with her companion.
"I'll see you later, Baa-chan. Be good," Haruka said to the camel in an attempt to calm the animal. Baa-chan cried out in what must have been a sob before ceasing to resist, letting the guard lead her away. Haruka's frown deepened and he turned to the guard positioned to his left.
"You can keep all the stuff," Haru said, staring up at the guard, who was a good few inches taller than himself. "But I'd better get that camel back," The black-haired traveller said seriously. The guard scoffed. "I don't know what you'd want with such an animal; camels are dirty and hideous. Besides, it's not up to me whether or not you get it back," The guard said, adjusting his uniform with his left hand before looking Haruka right in the eye, blue meeting amethyst. "That will be up to the King."
Haruka grunted, looking away from the taller male as said man jerked him forward, escorting him into the palace.
The sound that immediately greeted them was music to Haruka's ears, playing like a long-forgotten lullaby. Water— running water. Water unlike the kind stationed in an oasis or spewed out of the fountain in the center of the town; this was the sound of water that ran free, forever charging forward. The sound was beautiful.
Blinking his eyes several times to help them adjust them as he came in out of the sun, Haruka looked around. The male drew in a sharp breath.
It was absolutely gorgeous. The room they'd entered into was large — a throneroom, no doubt — and several brightly lit torches illuminated said room. The torches were lined up along the walls, five on one side and five on the other, and their light hit the walls beautifully, making them sparkle.
"Tunnels," Haruka murmured quietly to himself, thinking back to what the old man from the evening before had said: water was constantly travelling through this place via small tunnels. Small tunnels which Haruka could see from where he stood, just on the other side of the torches and built into the walls, small waterways tunneling fresh, gorgeous water. Haruka found his throat suddenly felt dry and itchy, his hands beginning to sweat.
But wait, Haruka paused in his admiring of the fantastic water system, looking down at the hard stone floor. Where's all this water coming from? He pondered to himself, remembering that the old man had said the water all started in one small area then magically managed to run throughout the entire palace. Is that really possible? The boy wondered, turning his head to look behind himself, see if he could pinpoint the exact location the water was coming from, when the guard beside him grunted, elbowing him. Haru frowned, looking forward again. The frown melted off his face immediately, his eyebrows raising just a tad.
There in front of them, situated on the other side of the throneroom just past the last pair of torches running parrellel to each other from eitherside of the room, were the King and Queen. Their thrones were high above the guard and himself, sitting on top of a raised platform that was only accessable via a set of stairs which connected said platform to the palace floor.
"Come," The guard to Haru's left said, urging him forward as he began to approach the King and Queen. Haru followed, finding he didn't have a choice.
"My loyal guardian," The King said in a deep, slightly raspy voice as the guard stopped just at the bottom of the staircase leading to the royals, pulling Haruka to a stop beside him. "Who is this?" The King questioned, reaching out and gesturing towards the male beside the guard. Haruka couldn't help but notice the difference between the King and his Queen seated just beside him; it was phenomenal.
The Queen was beautiful, her hair and eyes a dark red to match the outfit she currently wore, but the King... Haru couldn't even see his face. A shadow was cast over it, probably due to the lack of torches atop the platform. That still doesn't explain why she's so bright and he isn't, though. Haruka thought.
"This man has been arrested for poisoning the town's water, Your Highness." The guard answered his King, gently prodding Haruka forward. The black-haired male grunted.
"Poisoned?" The King's raspy voice came again. The guard nodded, standing at attention. "Yes, sir! He attempted to bathe in the fountain located in town square, sir." Haruka scowled. "Swimming," He corrected the guard, "I was swimming." The tall male beside him elbowed him again. Haru found himself getting really tired of that really fast, but his mind was drawn away from his agitation as the King addressed him directly.
"You, boy—" The King was back to pointing at him, "you must be an outsider. If you were from my city, you would know about the oasis nearby and would have done your swimming there, surely." The guard beside Haru nodded. "Precisely!" He agreed. Kiss up, The smaller male thought.
"I did know about it, your Kinglyness." Haruka went on to say, not sure if "Kinglyness" was even a word. There was a grunt from the King's throne. "You did?" Haruka nodded. He saw the King shift.
"You must be no older than eight or nineteen," The King commented; Haruka could feel the King's eyes running over him, scanning him. Then he saw the outline of the King's face bobbing as he slowly nodded.
"Tell me, boy— What business do you have here in Firdous?" The King asked. Haru pulled his blue hues back to where he was assuming the King's face was and shrugged.
"I was just wandering the desert and happened upon your city, Your Grace." Yes, that sounded much better. Again, he saw the King's torso and shoulders move like he was nodding. "And why were you out in the desert to begin with?" The mysterious royal went on to ask; Haru's eyebrows furrowed, though only slightly. He didn't like where this was going. "I had my reasons," Was his simple answer and the guard beside him scowled.
"You," The guard began, shaking Haruka's shoulder a bit, "The King just asked you a question; don't give him such an inadequate answer!" Haruka grunted, shrugging the man's hand off his shoulder just as the King quietly said, as if he was satisfied by Haru's answer, "I see. Well then, at the very least," The King seemed genuinely interested in Haruka now, which the boy didn't find himself liking. "Tell me, where do your origins—"
"Excuse me, Otou-san, Okaa-san?" A feminine voice called out in the middle of the King's question, which Haru found he was grateful for. He looked over to a small door located just to the right of where they were standing, between the fourth and fifths torches on the right side of the room. A girl was standing there that looked eerily similiar to the Queen, except she was younger and her hair was longer, reaching her mid-back.
The girl stepped forward with a big smile gracing her face, the long, pink skirt she wore swishing against her ankles as she came to stand just at the edge of the stairs, looking up at the platform. "Excuse me," She said to Haruka and the guard, giving a nod, which the two men returned.
"Gou," The King said to the girl, whose smile only widened. She reached up, clasping her hands against her stomach, intertwining her fingers together as her thumbs subconsiously ran over the soft pink fabric covering her midriff. "What is it, my daughter?" The King asked, the Queen waving down at the girl from beside him, smiling. She doesn't seem to talk a lot, Haruka noted. He hadn't heard her speak yet.
"Ah, Otou-san, I was wondering if I could go to town for Onii-chan. The girls coming for his bridal selection will be arriving tomorrow and he wants them each to be given something nice. So, I thought I'd head to the florist in town and see what I could do. I've heard from Okaa-san that her arrangements are beautiful," The girl, Gou, giggled. The Queen smiled, while the King heaved a heavy sigh. "I suppose so. Make sure to take several guards with you, though."
"Oh, thank you! I'll make sure to be back before the sun sets!" The girl turned, practically running out of the room, going back the way she came. It was clear that she was excited. If she's their daughter, she must be the princess. Probably doesn't have a lot of freedom, Haru found himself thinking before the King cleared his throat, grunting a bit. The blue-eyed male looked back to him.
"Where was I?" The King asked. The Queen smiled, reaching over and placing her hand on her husband's.
"You were asking this young man where he wanted to be: in jail or working for you, dear." The Queen said. "Ah, yes!" The King nodded. The woman giggled, taking her hand away from her husband's. Haruka watched as she sat back in her seat, placing her hands in her lap. She winked down at him, that ever persistant smile still carved into her face, and Haruka felt himself silently thanking her. He was surprised the King had changed gears so quickly, though.
Memory problems? Old age? The King did sound quite a bit older. What surprised Haruka even more, however, was that the guard beside him was saying nothing. Must know not to interfere.
"Well, what'll it be?" The King asked. Again, Haru could just feel the King's eyes on him. He nodded slowly, eyes wandering back to the Queen before returning to the King. "I'd like to stay and work for you, sir."
"Alright, then." Again, he was sure the King was nodding. "From now on, you will be my servant. Only my wife and myself will have any say in what you do; pay no mind to my son and daughter. You'll soon learn they aren't quite ready to be in a seat of power." Haruka nodded.
"And sir?" Haruka straightened up his posture a bit, noticing he was starting to slouch forward. Having his hands tied behind his back was becoming very uncomfortable. "Yes?" The King responded.
"I have a camel. So long as I stay here and work for you, can the camel stay, too?" Haru asked. The King grunted. "I suppose." Then he clapped his hands loudly.
"Ryo! You will be in charge of keeping an eye on this boy! Make sure he gets a good feel for the palace and stays out of trouble! Also, let him go see his camel!"
"It's Rei, sir," The guard mumbled, but still nodded, and Haruka glanced over at the guard, looking up into his face. The guard looked back down at him, returning his stare. For the second time, blue met hazy purple.
Up at their thrones, the King and Queen could be heard quietly beginning to chat. The guard, Rei, looked at Haru with intense eyes.
"The King tends to forget very easily, so he can't recall. But call me Ryo and I promise you'll never see that hideous camel again."
Haruka scowled, beginning to walk as Rei lead him forward, past the King and Queen's thrones to a small door on the right towards the back of the room.
"What about the water in town?" Haruka asked, following behind the blue-haired male. The King hadn't seemed to remember what he was there for after his daughter's interruption. Rei sighed.
"The royal family will have to replace the water; the Queen will take care of it, I can promise." Haruka nodded.
And for the second time in just under five minutes, the male found himself eternally grateful to the Queen of Firdous. Bless her.
[CHAPTER THREE: "REACHING A COMPROMISE." END]
Lay it on me— what'd you think? Okay for a third chapter? This is pretty much the last set-up chapter, so be happy! Chp 4 will be up 07/27! Bye! -Puddinpie.