So, yesterday I didn't feel like typing, but today I decided, Hell, I still have more stuff written. Get yer ass in gear and start typing. People are depending on your (somewhat amateurish) story to update! So with that pep talk in mind, I give you Chapter Three!
~OoO~
As Housho sat and dined, he waited; secretly he had invited fairies, three of them, and they were to soon arrive.
He wasn't disappointed; he soon heard the sound of tinkling bells and saw three small, gentle lights signaling their arrival. Everyone glanced upwards and mouths dropped in awe. Ayako grasped her husband's shirtsleeve and gazed with awe as well. Housho just looked on. Whispers broke out, and Noll and Gene's attention was drawn as well. They became curious.
As the lights drew nearer, they grew, till the people could see the light encompassed three beautifully aged women. The fairies dropped to the ground gently and walked to the royals.
Standing before the royals, the three fairies bowed. They then straightened and introduced themselves. Noll and Gene returned their attention to Mai.
"I am Flora," stated the frontern-most fairy, dressed in a kind of flowery, rose-colored dress. She had hair colored like a deep red tulip.
"Hello! I am Fauna!" The second fairy was dressed in a plain ensemble of grey and brown, her dark hair flowing beautifully wild and free.
"And I am Merriweather," the third sunnily said. This one had a rain-colored skirt, a white long-sleeved top, and sunny-yellow hair.
Housho stood with a smile and wide-open arms. "Greetings! Thank you for coming! This is my wife," he indicated Ayako, who smiled and waved. "These are the Davises," he pointed to Martin and Luella. "And their boys," he led the fairies over to the boys and the crib. "And this is my bundle of joy!" He grinned broadly to them, love shining brightly in his eyes. His bundle of joy was awake; currently she was burbling, gurgling, and giggling at the boys, mostly Gene because of the faces he was making.
Noll just watched his brother make the silly faces and Mai just to see her act like most babies do. Briefly, he wondered which side of her family gave her brown hair, considering Queen Ayako's was bright red and King Housho's was dirty blond (yes, he knew how babies were make; though he wondered still how boys could even want to go near girls). Oh well, blame genes (not his brother XD), crazy things.
'Hey, Noll. Noll, Noll, hey, hey Noll,' Gene pestered. 'Noll, hey Noll, what're you thinking 'bout?'
'I'm thinking about how stupid your face looks doing that and how it'll stick,' Noll coldly responded, glaring at his brother.
'Ouch, I'm hurt lil' bro. Crushed,' Gene pretended to be dying.
'Just because you were born twenty seconds before me, doesn't make me younger than you,' Noll thought bitterly, looking at Mai. Mai just gurgled at him.
'Un-hunh!' Gene whined. Then, he saw Noll look at Mai, and he smirked. 'You like~ her.'
Noll glared. 'No. I don't,' he said with a tone of finality. Gene just raised his brow.
Both boys turned when they heard "their sons", thinking they were being talked about, Gene absent-mindedly letting Mai grasp his outstretched finger in her tiny fist.
"And this is my bundle of joy!" When the king had neared, Noll went to Gene's side of the crib (the right). The two boys could feel the joy and love radiate of King Housho in wave after wave. It became a little sickening after a minute of warm fuzzies.
"Oh, she is just too cute!" The rosy fairy said. Mai burbled at them. "And charming," the wild-looking fairy chuckled.
Noll and Gene looked at each other, extremely curious as to how these fairies knew of the christening. Looking to the king, they agreed he must have invited them.
"I must say this before we begin: we may each give only one gift," stated the rosy fairy.
"We understand," Ayako replied. "Please proceed."
"Thank you. I shall go first," Flora quipped. She gazed at the tiny maiden, and thought it over. 'Yes, that shall do nicely,' she thought.
"I shall give the gift of cleverness," Flora finally said, and waved her wand over Mai. Sparks, colored red, purple, and blue, showered the babe. The infant giggled and reached for the pretty sparkles.
'I don't think the gift worked,' Noll telepathically told his twin.
'Oh hush, Noll, she's an infant; she shouldn't be expected to sit up and start talking,' Gene reprimanded Noll. 'You didn't at a month.' Noll quieted. The wild-looking fairy approached the crib.
"I shall go next," she mistily explained. She, too, looked upon the child. She hummed, thinking. 'I should think this will do.'
"I give little Emmailee the gift of song, so her voice may ring out beautifully," Fauna swished her wand over Mai, showering the girl with more sparks, these neutral in color. The baby looked with interest at these, wondering at their lack of color. The more sunny fairy came forward.
"My turn!" She cheerily announced; but before she could even look at the little girl, she felt a shudder of uneasiness creep up her back, as did the whole room. Soon as the ripple effect ended, the doors slammed open and an eerie dark light floated into the room. It grew bigger as it neared, till everyone could see a small woman in the darkness of the aura.
Softly she landed and the woman walked toward the royals, looking as though she were bored. She stopped a few feet from the royals, where Housho had stepped to the front, the hand closest to his blade resting on the hilt, and Martin standing protectively in front of his wife and the children.
The woman had a long, straight black dress that had spots of green throughout the ensemble, as though they were petals floating in the darkness. The long sleeves covered her palms, one of which was holding a staff. Her short, black hair framed her doll-like face. Her eyes were as black as her dress and fathomless as an abyss, and just as cold. She opened her mouth to speak.
"My, my! Quite a party we have here!" She drawled in fake-admiration, boredom underlying her tone. "I must say; Housho, do you think my invitation could have been lost?" From how she spoke, you knew that she knew she had not been invited.
"What are you doing here, Masako?" Housho asked, fake-wonder turning into a sneer around the woman's name. Said person smiled, but it didn't reach her heartless eyes.
"Why, I've come for the celebration, too!" She faked excitement (I seem to like making everyone fake things, huh?). "And I brought gifts!" At this she smirked evilly, malice entering her eyes.
"I won't let you hurt her!" Housho roared. He reached for his sword, but was thrown to the wall with a wave of Masako's hand. Ayako screamed and ran to her husband's side. Martin stood more firmly, but he too was thrown out of the way. Luella ran for her husband and the children were alone. Mai started crying, frightened, but unsure of what by. The boys, formerly frozen by fear, turned back to the crying child to comfort her, though scared themselves.
Masako walked calmly toward the crib and the boys looked up in fear. They looked to each other, silently agreeing on something. The air started thickening around them and soon a yellow ball of some force was thrown towards the witch by Noll. Masako just looked at the ball before it dissipated. Noll and Gene looked horror-struck as Masako neared ever closer.
"Look at these handsome faces," she purred when she stood before the crib. "Ah, if only she would shut up." The witch waved her hand and all was silent. "Much better. I have a gift for you," she sneered. "Before the sun sets on your eighteenth birthday, you shall be stabbed by an ordinary thimble, on your finger," she smiled and giggled, "and you shall die," she finished softly and giggled again; that giggle sounded so evil and malicious. She waved her staff over the child and Mai tried to wiggle from the evil-feeling sparks.
She then looked at the boys, who shuddered involuntarily under her evil gaze.
"I have a gift for you two as well." Coming from anyone else, that would have sounded innocent, but this was not the case. The only reason the boys were still standing was by their white-knuckled grip on Mai's crib.
"My gift for you two shall be you both shall love her, but shall not attain her. And when she dies by the curse, neither will ever be able to have her. One will think she loves the other and not accept her, only to later realize your mistake." She smile and flicked her staff over them.
When she finished, she turned to walk away. As she walked, she shrank, until she was the eerie ball of dark light again and bobbed out of the castle.
After she left, the men could return to the crib (Masako kept them down so they couldn't interrupt her). The twins were shakily comforting Mai, trying not to show their fear in front of the baby princess. Mai's crying settled to sniffling (when Masako left, Mai's crying picked up sound again), and she was tearfully looking at the boys.
As the adults surrounded the crib and looked at their children, they thought the same thing:
'What will we do?'
Housho was the first to collect himself. He turned and called forth his law-writer (A.N: I don't actually know what these people were called, so if someone could tell me later, thanks). Clearing his throat, he spoke shakily but clearly.
"Let all spindles and spinning wheels be burned. Until the day after the princess's eighteenth birthday, all spinning wheels shall henceforth be banned in this kingdom. Stop." Housho then dismissed the writer and sat in his throne.
Someone cleared their throat. The king looked up and saw the last fairy. He motioned her to speak.
"Your Highness, I still have yet to present the princess with my gift, and," she turned to the Davis couple, "if you will allow me, I can do something about your sons' curse." Martin and Luella's faces bore relief, as well as the Takigawa couple.
"But you must know, all of you: I can only soften their curses," Merriweather told them sadly. Understanding crossed their faces, followed by resignation and sturdiness, replacing the relief they'd previously bore.
Turning first to the infant, she started:
"Precious child, you shall not die by pricking your finger, only sleep; until true love's kiss release you." She smiled sadly. She turned to the boys.
"Only one shall love her in the way Masako related. True love, I mean. Since she will not die by the curse, you will attain, despite your mistake of thinking she loves the other." Merriweather then poured the magic in her wand unto the princess first, then the boys.
Mai giggled and gurgled at the happy feeling sparkles, colored with yellow, soft blue, and softer grey, and tried to grab them. Failing this, the babe frowned and instead grasped the two boys' fingers that were still open to her. She smiled again.
Noll and Gene glanced back at the baby princess. Both knew that now they would do anything to protect the infant.
Merriweather looked at the boys and smiled at the two's resolution. She turned from the crib and walked back to the royals. She beckoned her sisters over as well.
"Your Highness," Merriweather said to Housho. "I recommend you hide the princess." Her sisters nodded.
"Yes," he stared off, in thought. "With whom, though?" Martin then stood.
"I think I have a solution to that," he stated. The adult royals started planning, interrupted by the fairies about a detail or three. Once finished, the royals set to put the plan in motion.
~OoO~
Okay, so that was the longest typing I've ever done, other than school assignments. Anyways, I will give you all cyber-cookies if you review! Like, saying if it was good or if it needs anything changed. I appreciate all reviews, flames included, because it just helps me be a better writer. So please review! *begging eyes*
