Chapter 2

"Ai."

"Father," she replied, looking up from her perch on the window.

He looked concerned as he reached a hand out to her. "Nora told me that you've been here all day. Is there something wrong, my child?"

She looked away from him, wondering why he was so nice all of a sudden. "Not really."

King Sei looked disappointed. His daughter couldn't tell him her feelings, but Nora had told him what Ai felt.

"Nora is going to Earth soon—did he tell you?"

She looked up sharply. Her eyes tried to hide the feelings that threatened to burst forth and her mouth suppressed the questions. But her wings fluttered excited with hope. She glared at them, and they calmed. Then she turned back to her father.

"No. He didn't tell me."

Her father looked slightly discomforted at her wings, but he said nothing about them. "Well, he is going. You see, he has some business on Earth. It's very confidential, but you play no role in it. I just thought that you might like to go because you miss the people you used to know there…"

Ai jumped up instantly. "I can—you'll let me go? To Earth?"

"Well…Yes…" Her father's face grew grim. "As long as you stay with Nora the whole time. Don't try to sneak off, Ai. You're leaving tomorrow."

She looked excited and began to open drawers and throw clothes out of them. With a slight skip in her step, she went over to the closet and began rummaging for a suitcase. Her father watched her, worry lines on his face becoming more prominent.

"I'll get a servant to pack for you. Go to your lesson with Lissa."

She hated servants with a passion. Not the actual people, but the idea of someone serving somebody who was "better." She hated that. By the look on her father's face, she knew that now wasn't a time to argue. She couldn't risk him changing his mind.

He watched her as she, in her rarely meek manner, rushed off to have lessons with her tutor. She didn't know that King Sei wouldn't change his mind so easily about this decision. She played an important role in Nora's mission, and she wouldn't know it until it happened. Sei didn't like using his daughter, but it was crucial for the Second Revolution. Everybody said that there was peace in Ai-land now that the Second Revolution was over, but it wasn't true. Nora's mission was to ensure the peace lasted.

"Lissa, do you know why Nora's going to Earth in the first place?" Ai was asking.

Her tutor smoothed the hem of her neat, flower-patterned skirt and adjusted the high collar that she always wore. Ai watched and waited, admiring this woman who was the closest she had to a sister. Lissa would make a better and more proper princess than me, she thought. Lissa was always sitting tall and in a no-nonsensical way. People respected her.

"Princess," Lissa said, closing the book she was teaching Ai from, "I don't know. King Sei doesn't tell me these things. I don't think he trusts me not to tell you. And I'm not as close to Nora as you are. I remember you two used to be friends. Why don't you ask him?"

Ai blushed. Truth was, she didn't know if she could face him. These days, her insides squirmed around him and she didn't like the memories that returned when she was with him.

"Lissa, I have a question."

Her tutor smiled patiently. "Whenever you have a question for me, it's never about your studies."

Ai looked apologetic, but continued. "Will you come with me to Earth?"

Lissa looked her square in the eye for a moment. "Princess, I don't think your father will allow anyone but you and Nora to go. Tess, Fa'an, and I have already asked King Sei. He denied us all and became very angry when we demanded a reason."

"You knew? That I was going to go to Earth?" Ai stood suddenly, the chair she had been sitting on making a scraping noise on the floor. Lissa winced at the black marks that it made. Ai didn't notice. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I…wasn't allowed."

Ai paced the room and her tutor watched her with worried eyes.

"Damnit. I knew going to Earth was too good to be true…"

"What's wrong, Princess?"

Ai stopped and scowled. "My father's up to something. He usually insists on an escort, even when I go to the bathroom! And now when I want the escort, he won't let me have one…Do you think he's plotting to murder me?"
Lissa stood, too. "Princess! What an idea! King Sei loves you to death. And Nora would never let any harm come to you." She walked to where Ai was and gripped her in a hug. "Go find your friends. Have some fun. I'm sure you'll be fine."

Her sweaty hand was gripped in Nora's cool one. He had commanded her to close her eyes until she felt her feet on solid ground. Since when had she ever been one to listen, though?

She had opened her eyes once during the journey, gazing at the spinning world before her through her eyelashes. It made her dizzy, traveling to another world, and she vowed not to do it again.

When her feet hit the ground and she opened her eyes, she found her and Nora in an alleyway. The same one where her journey had begun before. Garbage littered the street before her.

Nora kicked a can and wrinkled his nose.

"So this is Tokyo. Princess, if you don't take offense at me saying so, but how could you miss such a putrid place?"

Ai glared at him. It felt good to be angry around him—opposed to that other feeling.

"I do mind you saying so," she replied coldly. "Why don't you go do your mission and I'll go to Kent's?"

"I'm not allowed to let you out of my sight," Nora replied. If he heard the raw need to hate in her voice, he didn't show it.

He was quiet as he followed her out into the streets of Tokyo. Cars honked at the sight of Ai and a group of girls rushed over to them.

"Princess Ai?" one of them squealed. "Are you, like, back? We heard that you retired from singing or something and no one's seen you since!"

Nora was silent and guarding as Ai replied that she could be back for a little while to the girls. He knew all about her stardom on Earth, having watched her with his brother Kaz the whole time.

"I never really went anywhere," Ai laughed. "Who knows? I might start singing again."

"Can I have your autograph?" another girl asked, her pigtails swinging. They were all in their uniforms, most likely just finishing a school day.

As Ai gave all the girls her autograph, one of them looked at Nora. She took him in, from wings, to silvery hair, to amber eyes.

"And who is this?" she said flirtatiously. "Is he your boyfriend, Princess?"

Ai laughed nervously. "No. Just my bodyguard. Listen, girls, we have to go…Have a nice day."

The schoolgirls just followed them, though. As much for Nora as for her, Ai guessed.

"Do you know Kent's address?" Nora whispered out of the corner of his mouth. When Ai nodded and jerked her chin in the direction, he smiled. "This will be easy."

Before she got the chance to ask him what he was talking about, he pulled her around a corner and jumped. Air whooshed around them and Ai realized that Nora was flapping his wings—they were flying. She flapped hers vigorously and they landed on top of a building.

The fan girls soon turned the same corner to rush pass.

"Where'd they go?"

"This way!"

They disappeared into another alleyway in the wrong direction.

Nora smiled at Ai, who was still gripping his hand. Embarrassed, she let go hastily.

"Are you ready to fly again?" he whispered. He didn't wait for an answer. He gathered her up in his arms and took off.

Ai watched in awe as wind gathered under his wings and he jumped from building to building. She wondered if she could do that someday, even though she was only half dougen.

The streets of Tokyo passed, crowded with kids coming home from school and people getting off from work. Even though it was rush hour, no one noticed the shadow of Nora and Ai pass overhead. Ai grinned at the speed they were going at and Nora said something that she couldn't hear over the noise of the wind.

"What?" Ai yelled.

"I said, 'what building does Kent live in'?"

Nora had never met Kent, and as Ai told him the building, she felt a feeling of dread in her stomach. She had never pictured the only two lovers that she had meeting. She wondered which one was worse, them becoming enemies or them becoming friends.

He descended down the building, white wings flapping slowly. Ai told him the apartment number and admired how cool he was about this world, even though he had never been to Earth before.

She pressed the doorbell and they waited. As the door opened, she realized that she was still in Nora's arms. This wasn't exactly how she had planned on greeting Kent.

Hey! Thanks to all those who reviewed and I hope you review some more! lol. Sorry if this chapter's kind of weird. I promise I'll do better next time. Now, for the question I ask all my friends:. Nora or Kent?

So You Wanna Change the World (What are You Waiting For?)