Yo! I am proud to introduce to you all the longest chapter of "TKS" so far. I didn't mean for it to be this long (about 5,000 words) but I was having fun. Go figure.
Summary: —
Disclaimer: I don't own Free! Iwatobi Swim Club. Just the plot and the princesses!
[CHAPTER FIVE: "THE TENTH PRINCESS."]
"Make some friends, Baa-chan."
Guh! Nmmph!
Haruka smiled, scratching underneath his trusty camel's — and now the royal family's, too — chin. The furry animal nipped at him before she turned her head away, demonstrating the one rule the black-haired male had taught her upon receiving her; no spitting at him. Haruka watched the camel spit at the ground, taking his hand back and letting it drop as he grimaced, though only slightly. There was a scoff to his right.
"Disgusting," Rei said with a scowl, looking away from the spitting creature just as her owner turned his head to look at the blue-haired male. Said guard stood with his arms crossed and a deep frown settled into his face, the tips of his eyebrows furrowed together as he focused his purple hues on the ground. Haruka let his own smile slip off of his face, frowning as he turned towards the palace guard.
"We can go now," The black-haired young adult said, taking a step away from Baa-chan and leaving the stables. Finally, Rei thought, pushing his silver glasses up the bridge of his nose. He followed the shorter male out of the stables, glad to be rid of both the flies and the stench. He'd had to bring Haruka here the night before on the King's orders and then again that morning due to Haruka's own personal demands. He found the whole ordeal to be rather ricidulous; it was only a camel. Then again, Rei had never quite been an animal person.
The two walked in silence back to the palace, where Haru found himself immediately relieved from the sun's heat upon entering into the cool, dimly lit structure. The male paused for a moment, standing there in his new outfit — white, tented pants with a red sash around the waist and a royal blue, sleeve-less vest embroidered with gold thread around the hem — and allowing the cool draft of the corridor to ghost over his partially exposed sides. It felt nice; after just half a day of being inside such a dark and cool palace, he'd found the sun brutal after venturing back out into it's scorching heat and bright glow.
"Oi, this way."
Haruka turned his head to the left, realizing that Rei had already begun to walk ahead without him. The shorter but apparently older male followed — they'd already discussed ages; he was nineteen, Rei was eighteen — and allowed himself to fall into step beside the blue-haired guard. "Where are we going?" Haru asked, his blue eyes shifting to look over at his companion.
"To the southern end of the palace," Rei responded to Haruka's question, glancing over at the male briefly. "I was told your first order before I fetched you this morning and I am to have you perform it before the Prince's bridal selection comes to an end." Haruka raised his eyebrows, surprised but also curious.
"First... order?" Haru repeated in a mumble. Rei nodded.
Meanwhile, in another wing of the palace, one that was heavily decorated and well-lit by torches upon torches upon torches, a short, silver-haired male fished around inside a rich purple satchel. The boy mumbled quietly under his breath, softly cursing himself — with words like "idiot" "moron" "horrible assistant, horrible" — as he rummaged through his bag. He finally pulled out a small scroll, breathing a sigh of relief. He'd thought he'd lost it— or left it behind, at the very least.
The boy, whose hair was as silver as moonlight on the desert sand and eyes were as blue as the purest of all water, grunted softly. He took hold of the strap of the bag draped across his chest, anchored on his right shoulder, and swung the bag around so that it was situated behind his back. Feeling behind him, the boy made sure the bag would stay without coming back around to his front before he looked at the door in front of him.
This is your first time assisting Prince Rin with something so crucial, Nitori, The boy thought to himself, squeezing his eyes shut as he knocked on the door. So be helpful and don't mess up! The boy encouraged himself as he held his breath, waiting.
One, two... Seven seconds the silver-haired boy stood there in his pale yellow ensemble, waiting for the door to open. Always one for patience but never when nervous, he was about to knock again when the door opened. The boy jumped to attention, bowing his head out of both respect and obligation.
"Prince!" The greeting came out as a bark, causing the boy to clutch at his scroll nervously. There was a laugh.
"Oi, Nitori— there's no need to shout," The Prince grinned, eyeing his anxious and now-blushing assistant. The boy flinched slightly at what he knew was meant to be a joke before slowly opening his left eye, then the other.
"R-Right," Nitori mumbled, then tried again, offering up an apologetic smile. "Good morning, Prince." He bowed his head again, this time more calmly, for good measure. Rin snickered.
"Morning," The Prince replied, tucking his hands into the large sleeves of his robe. Nitori took a moment to look the Prince over, feeling that it was okay to be bold enough to do so, as he was his aid.
You can tell that there are worlds between us, Nitori thought as he eyed the Prince. He wore a long-sleeved robe that was a dark gray color — it was almost black, but Nitori knew it to actually be a few shades off — and matching pants. A small dagger was situated against the Prince's waist, some golden bands lining his forearms, and his robe was designed with a little bit of gold, but otherwise was not decorated and left to be plain.
The silver-haired young boy immediately found himself understanding the reasoning behind the robe's design; a lot of decorations would be too much. Two necklaces — one made of jade and the other golden and supporting a charm shaped like the sun — hung around the Prince's neck; this was where one's attention was supposed to be drawn. Unfortunately, Nitori couldn't say that these were the first thing he saw when he looked at the Prince anymore. He'd seen him too many times.
Above the necklaces, up past the Prince's neck and face, wrapped around his head, was his signature red turban, which Nitori had always found to be his favorite part of whatever outfit the Prince wore. He admired how royal but comfortable the red headpiece made the Prince look and had, since he was a child, really liked the small whisps of what Nitori could only liken to donkey tails that extended out of the turban. He'd never known what to call them— he could only refer to them as "donkey tails" to himself, though, of course. He'd never dare make such a reference out loud. After all...
He had once as a child— which Princess Gou heard, then went around laughing and giggling and singing about, finding it funny. Needless to say, when the King heard her singing about such a thing and had asked who had said the Prince's turban made him look like a donkey, Gou had pointed at him— Nitori, the little servant boy. She hadn't known better, he guessed, so he didn't hold it against her, but... That punishment was harsh. Never again will I...
"You look nice today," The Prince suddenly commented with a grin. This pulled the silver-haired boy out of his thoughts almost immediately and Nitori frowned, looking to the redhead, then at the floor.
"I'm wearing the same thing I wear every day," Nitori responded somewhat grimly. The same pasty, pale yellow shirt he wore every day was draped over the boy's chest and the same matching, just as bland and plain tented pants covered his lower half. He looked the same as he always did — just as dull and boring.
The only things Nitori found himself grateful for in his outfit were the blue sash tied around his waist and the purple satchel slung across his chest. Aside from his eyes, these pieces of accessories were the only real means of color he had to him. Not even his shoes held the all-attention grabbing power of the color black; they were a pale, pasty color that rivalled his naturally light skin. Needless to say, the outfit he wore day in and day out caused him great displeasure.
"Hm, well, I guess that just means you must look nice everyday, neh?" Rin said absentmindedly as he placed his hand on Nitori's shoulder, brushing past him and expecting the boy to follow. Nitori turned to watch him go.
The Prince is... excited, I think, Nitori theorized before quickly moving to catch up with the Prince, not wanting to be left behind. He's eager to choose his bride— to be like the King.
"So, Ni," Rin said as they walked, moving down the corridor at a slow but steady pace. "What can you tell me about this selection today?" He asked, red hues glancing over at his assistant, who jumped to attention.
"A-Ah!" Nitori quickly opened up the scroll he'd fished out of his satchel previously, skimming over it briefly as they walked, the silver-haired boy a pace or two behind Rin. One did not walk next to the Prince unless they were on the same social level as the Prince; only Princess Gou could, amongst the royal family. Servants such as himself walked a couple of steps behind the Prince and Princess, while the King and Queen, their parents, walked several paces ahead of them. It was like a horizontal pyramid; the farther back one was in line or in formation, the lower one was on the pyramid. And Nitori was one of the many at the bottom.
"There will be ten young women at your bridal selection this morning," The blue-eyed boy began, letting himself roll the scroll in his hands back up. "All ten of these women are princesses that your father, His Royal Highness, the King, has had brought in to be seen by you. He hopes that you'll find one among them that you favor— that woman will be your betrothed. She will be the one to take over the role of Queen when you assume the throne as King." Nitori explained, ducking slightly as Rin, still ahead of him by just a step or two, moved a tarp that was hanging in one of the corridor doorways out of his way, holding it for Nitori, as well.
Rin paused on the other side of the tarp, letting it fall back down after Nitori had passed through the doorway, and nodded. The Prince grinned, placing his hand on his chin and looking at the door that awaited them, just a little ways ahead the door that lead to what they called the "Bahr."
"Right. So I'm supposed to be interviewing them, essentially?" Rin asked, having noted that his assistant had said that his father hoped he'd find one that he "favored." He couldn't wait to do this— it was nice being able to pick the person he would spend the rest of his life with. And the idea of sitting down and getting to know ten different girls one-on-one sounded like it could be fun; the idea of following in his father's footsteps sounded very appealing to the young Prince, as well. Overall, he thought the day could prove to be very promising and eventful.
"Ah..." Nitori sucked in a small breath, quietly, before slowly letting it out. "Not quite," He said with a shake of his head. Actually, not at all. "He wants you to simply look at them. They are all of noble blood and the King believes that their backgrounds are sure to be perfectly fine, so he wants you to base your decision off of their looks. Every Queen in the history of Firdous has been very beautiful, you know," Nitori said with a nod, slipping his old, trusty scroll back into his satchel. "He told me last night when he briefed me on all this that this is the same method he used when choosing your mother as his bride— his Queen."
Not true, Rin made a face, heaving a small but heavy sigh. He knew for a fact that, back when his father had been at the appropriate age to wed, there had been only two princesses in the entire desert— his mother... and her twin sister. Identical in looks, but polar opposites in personality. He had to get to know them, Rin mused inwardly, frowning just ever so slightly. His Otou-san was losing it, he knew— he didn't want to admit it, though.
"Something wrong?" Nitori asked with a frown, eyeing the Prince. Rin shook his head, letting another grin slip onto his face as he turned to look at the boy, pushing his previous thoughts away. "Let's go," He said, thrusting his thumb in the direction of the Bahr before he turned and began to head in it's direction. Nitori blinked, staring after the Prince, then nodded, quickly following. Once they arrived at the door, Rin pushed it open.
The Bahr was where the royal family threw all their important events, making it a palace highlight for royals, but in town it was simply treasured and known best as the home of what was known as the "Great Well." It was a large room — the only room in the palace that rivalled the throneroom in size — and was brightly lit. Half of the room was plain, mere empty space until the area was needed for something, and the other half was nothing but the Great Well.
The large body of water sat situated against the southern end of the room and was lined by a wall that was two feet in height and acted as the Great Well's perimeter. All throughout the walls of the room, tiny waterways tunneled down to the back of the Great Well, where the water flowed seemingly endlessly into the large collection of water. Nitori had always wondered how the large body of water had never managed to overflow.
"Good morning, Princesses," Prince Rin greeted with a smile as he and Nitori approached the girls. They were lined up just along the outer edge of the Great Well, all holding hands with one another. Rin grinned, finding it cute and wondering if that was protocol or they'd simply decided to do so on their own, and beside him a fierce blush ignited Nitori's cheeks. All the princesses were beautiful, to say the least.
Each princess was dressed in a white, sleeveless dress that flowed down to the floor, a brown sash tied around each of their waists and a single gold necklace situated around their necks. They had all been dressed to be seen as identical— that much was clear, but none of them looked alike in appearance. No twins, Rin noted to himself, not sure whether he was happy or a bit disappointed about the fact.
"Hello, Prince. Good morning," The ten princesses bowed their heads as they greeted him in unison. Rin's smile grew and he stopped in front of the girls, giving them a once-over as a group. "I hope you all had a nice trip," The Prince said, motioning for Nitori to stand where he was before stepping away, allowing the silver-haired assistant to take his spot as he approached the first girl. Let the selection begin.
The first girl in line, situated to the far left of the group, was gorgeous, though she looked to be a few years younger than the Prince. Her hair was light brown and just barely reached her shoulders; Rin imagined the girl's locks probably would if straight, but the ends of the brown tresses curled a bit, flipping outwards. Her bangs were parted in the middle, swishing out to frame the sides of her face, and her eyes were a nice golden color. Her skin was just barely sun-kissed, a soft tan color, and as she smiled at him Rin took note that her dimples were cute.
Smiling at the first girl, Rin stepped to the side, moving onto the next girl just as the door to the Bahr opened and a masculine but not quite deep voice called out, "Delivery."
Both Rin and Nitori, as well as all ten of the visiting princesses, looked over towards the door, in the direction of the voice. Rin slowly turned to face the door, while Nitori settled for glancing over his shoulder.
A boy stood just barely inside the door, dressed in white and blue garments that both the Prince and his assistant were able to easily recognize as the standard dress for servants. His hair was black and his eyes were blue; lining up and down both his arms were crowns of flowers— five on each arm. Those must be what came out of Gou going to town yesterday, Rin thought as he grinned. They — the crowns, that is — looked nice.
"Those are the gifts, right?" The Prince called out to the boy, beckoning him closer with his hand, the other resting on his hip. The servant slowly moved over towards the Prince, his blank look slowly dissolving as he looked to the Great Well during his trek across the first half of the Bahr and stopped just in front of the Prince. As the boy examined the water, peering between two princesses to do so, the Prince examined him.
Up close, the boy had more detail than he had farther away— naturally. What Rin had only seen as black hair before he could now note was a bit side-swept, and the boy's eyes weren't just blue, but rather striking. Rin couldn't say he recognized him; distantly he found himself wondering if the boy knew who he was as he began to feel slightly agitated.
"Oi," Rin snapped his fingers, pulling the boy's attention away from the Great Well and back to him. That's not for you. He was the Prince here— servants were supposed to be focused on him.
"Yes?" The servant boy responded as he looked at Rin, settling his blue hues on the cerise-haired Prince, who frowned slightly. "Who are you?" Rin asked, dropping his hand to his side. The boy blinked, face dull once again. "Haruka," He answered simply, absentmindedly running the pads of his fingers over one of the flowers that made up the flower crown closest to his right wrist. Rin watched the boy's movements, nodding.
"You're new here, aren't you, Haruka?" Rin asked. He made it a point to know the servants; someday they'd all be his, once his father stepped down from the throne. Rin watched the boy, Haruka, as he nodded. The Prince grinned.
"You're lucky to be able to have the honor of helping out with something so big, then." Rin turned back around to face the princesses waiting for him, snapping his fingers before he gestured to his left.
"Follow behind me," He ordered. The Prince made sure Haruka had moved to stand beside him, positioned in front of the first girl and putting one of the flower crowns — one made of red and yellow Morning Glories — on her head before he looked to the second girl. Behind the two, Nitori's mouth fell open slightly.
You do not stand beside the Prince! You do not! The silver-haired assistant mentally scolded the new servant boy, but found the boy obviously had no way of hearing him. He watched on in shock and — secretly — slight jealousy and admiration as the Prince and the new servant, Haruka, made their way down the line.
None of them are sticking out, Prince Rin thought, distressed as he and Haruka moved down the line of girls, him looking them over while Haruka placed their flower crowns gingerly upon their heads. They're all just... beautiful. The Prince glanced over at the servant boy, fighting off a scowl. He was back to staring at the water, glancing between the eighth and nineth princesses. The Prince felt something in his stomach flip.
This is a big day for both myself and the city of Firdous— the least you could do is pay attention, Rin commented inwardly as he stepped over to stand in front of the tenth princess. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Haruka stand in front of the eighth princess for a few seconds, still looking at the water behind the girl, before he realized the Prince had moved on. The boy side-stepped, reaching up and placing the ninth girl's crown on her head. Distracted much? Rin thought.
"Hello," A soft, purring voice pulled Rin's attention away from Haruka and back to the girl in front of him. The tenth Princess was smiling up at him — or was it a smirk? Eitherway, Rin was both surprised and semi-impressed. So she'd dare to be different and actually speak to him, huh?
"Hello," Rin returned the Princess's drawl of a greeting, smirking before looking her over. She was attractive, for sure— her hair was light purple and cascading down her back, her eyes a bright blue shade. Her skin was nice and white, smooth, and as his red hues trailed over her face Rin found himself pausing, eyes locking on a small beauty mark just under her right eye. He glanced back at his assistant, who blinked at him in a curious sort of way, before looking back at the Princess. He didn't catch the way her eyes roamed to the silver-haired boy, the corners of her mouth curling upwards. What a funny coincidence.
"Nice help, huh?" The Princess said with a smirk — yes, this one was definitely a smirk — as she nodded her head towards Nitori, then Haruka. Rin glanced over at the black-haired boy to his left before he grinned, stepping to the right and saying to the Princess, "Yes, but he hasn't helped you, yet," The Princess's smirk widened. Her eyes glanced one more time over at Nitori, who this time was able to meet her eyes.
Haruka seemed to be paying a bit more attention this time around, enough to know when to move, and the boy moved to the right as well, standing in front of the purple-haired girl. She smiled as the boy reached up, staring past her but fitting the last crown of flowers on her head, all the same. The girl leaned up slightly on her tip toes, putting her head in front of Haruka's face. Like Rin and surely some of the other girls, she didn't like not being the center of attention.
"Is there something more interesting than me that you see?" The Princess asked with a smile. Haruka, eyebrows slightly furrowed, slowly reaching out, bracing his hand against her shoulder. "Yes," The blunt, not-used-to-pacifying-royalty servant answered dully as he pushed the Princess out of the way not quite forcefully, but enough to make her move.
The girl squeaked slightly as she stumbled and frowned, her eyes shooting forward as she noticed both the Prince and his assistant were looking at the servant boy now rather than her. Feeling agitated for being brushed aside so easily, she reached out, grabbing the back of Haruka's blue vest as the boy went to make a dive into the Great Well.
There was a scream as Haruka dived, dragging the unrelenting Princess into the water with him as well as the sound of a large splash followed by a slightly smaller one echoed throughout the Bahr. The Prince and Nitori gaped and Rin quickly approached the edge of the Great Well, bending forward slightly and placing his hands on his knees. "Princess?" He called, looking around in the water, feeling his throat go dry in anticipation but tears springing to the corners of his eyes as he tried to hold back his laughter, managing to stop all possible chuckles and snickers from escaping past his lips even though that had been funny as hell.
"Wha- Wha-" The Princess came back up to the surface of the water first, spluttering and angry. Her once semi-curly, gorgeous hair now hung limply, sticking to the sides of her face as her makeup ran, painting black waterfalls down her cheeks and a river of blood from her lips down to her chin. The girl kicked at the water, flailing her arms as she began to curse and shout, talking about how humiliated she was and how violated she felt — though Nitori found he really didn't get that; Haruka had just been trying to get the overly self-centered girl out of his way. He personally felt he'd have done the same — if he'd been that bold of a person.
"Ah, are you okay, Princess?" Rin asked as he offered his hand down to the wet and red-faced Princess, who scowled at the other girls as they watched, trying to contain themselves and not cry out in laughter. She turned her blue gaze to Rin as he made an attempt to help her out, smiling as she took his hand, beginning to thank him as the Prince averted his eyes elsewhere.
To the Princess's right, just a few strokes behind her, Haruka bobbed up to the surface, effectively — though unintentionally — slipping the Princess's forgotten and floating flower crown onto his head. The black-haired boy shook his head a bit — getting the water off the ends of his hair, Nitori would imagine. He then looked up at Rin with the same dull, blank look he'd had pretty much the entire time he'd been in the Bahr, save for an excited stare Rin had caught on the boy's face just a split-second before he dove into the Great Well. Returning Haruka's blue stare, Rin lost it. How could such a blank face look so comical?
"Hahaha!" The Prince burst into laughter, letting go of the Princess's hand by accident as he brought his hand to his face, covering it while the other hand clutched at his abdomen. The Princess shrieked, dropping back into the water with a splash louder and bigger than the first had been, and soon she heard the laughter of the other girl's echoing in her ears, as well.
Rage flooded through the girl's system as she spluttered back up to the surface, shooting a hateful, angry glare at everyone in the room that only Nitori caught, as everyone else — save for Haruka — was too busy laughing. Nitori shrank back slightly as he caught the girl's gaze for a second time, then she shifted her hateful stare to Haruka and he felt relieved, sucking in a breath as he watched on.
Feeling the girl's glare on him now, Haruka turned his head to look at the girl, returning her angry look with his usual dull one. Uh-oh.
Then he sank back into the water, diving as deep as he could, and the Princess's mouth dropped open. The girl kicked angrily at the water, slapping her hand against the rippling surface, and hissed as everyone but two people in the room laughed at her and the two that weren't laughing blatantly ignored her.
You all just keep laughing it up— wait until my mother hears about this!
[CHAPTER FIVE: "THE TENTH PRINCESS." END]
Things I learned this chapter: I like writing for Nitori... and some princesses really are whiny drama queens. This one may end up being more than that, though. Anyway, I hope you guys liked reading as much as I liked writing this — come on, how else would I pump out 5,000 words? See ya! Remember Free! is in 4 days!