"Ladies and gentle men from all across the land! Welcome! To a night of magic and mayhem, a glorious party in honor of Lxaity's very own Princess! May I present the lady of the night! Princess of Lxaity, Amanda!"

I glared up at my father as the royal guard spoke my name, I told him not to mention it, and of course he ignored my one order. I sighed and pushed the trouble behind him as I looked up at Lea in crowd of people before me, my Lea. Did I mention the stupid love smile on my face wouldn't go away? Yeah, it's glued there for all eternity with my luck.

"Happy Birthday, my dear princess." The man nodded at me as I walked through the royal guards standing at attention. They all seemed happy to see me, probably because they had no choice but to be here, but also because you saw a little too much skin in this dress…

"Thank you, Clarice." I thanked him properly as I smiled to the rest of the crowd standing in front of us. They began to scatter as I took my place in a throne next to my fathers. Speaking of the King, there he was talking amongst all the nobles and towns people of Lxaity. I couldn't wipe that smile off as I saw him chatting with them; he really was a sweet man. The man couldn't harm a sweet, innocent rabbit let alone someone's feelings. I guess that's why so many people respected him, and so little despised him.

"Your highness, happy birthday."

I looked up at a sudden voice, not recognizing it at first until I took note of the wild red hair. Of course, Lea's distant, very distant cousin, Reno. The boy had trouble written across his pretty little angel face. Sure, when I first met Reno as a child he as innocent as he looked, but now the boy is just driven by lust and powered by his ego. It surprises me that nobody's put him in his place yet…

"Thank you, Reno…Hello Rude."

They older man behind Reno, Rude, was a more respective man. He held one emotion most the time, but he didn't cross any boundaries or come off a wrong way. I've always wondered why he hung around Reno, but hey whatever works for him as a friend. Maybe it was because Reno and Rude grew up together?

"Happy birthday." Rude nodded with a small smile, both his hands behind his back.

Reno smirked over his shoulder and that's when I noticed they were both wearing similar outfits. Both were highly dressed in what seemed like the finest silk and cloth in Lxaity. The belts they wore across their chests had a name inscribed at the top and a weird looking symbol on the side. I scanned Reno up and down as I look in the pretty little details, deciding a second later that it was a bad idea.

"Like what you see?" Reno winked, I heard Rude laugh shortly before looking off to the side.

"…I was trying t figure out your matching outfits." I rolled my eyes at the big headed red head and looked away, starting to wonder where Reno's better looking and more respectful cousin was. "Have you two tied the knot recently? Or was it because you haven't noticed yet?" I questioned, getting a smirk out of Rude and gasp of horror out of Reno.

"What?! Did you just imply that I was gay for Rude?" Reno looked back at the smirking taller man.

"I didn't imply anything." I smirked, loving how frustrated he got when people said he was flamboyant. Come on, what straight guy cared so much about his hair? And let it grow so long down his back, even when tied it looked pretty? I had my suspicions.

"Whatever…Incase you haven't heard from Lea, me and Rude-"

"Rude and I." I corrected him with a knowing smirk.

"Yeah, whatever, yo. Rude and I," He sighed, not really caring, "Got accepting into the royal Shinra Guard." Reno proudly stood, Rude giving a small nod as well.

"Oh really? With mister Rufus? He is a very nice man." I nodded with approval, "But, why would he hire you to protect him? Rude I can understand, but you Reno? No offense but, I think Lea would do a better job than you." I almost laughed at the look he gave me, seeing that Rude was also trying to hold back a chuckle.

"I will excuse you because you're the princess and I find you highly attractive, but it is because I can fight."

"Oh really?" I dared him, sitting forward, "Than why is it you were denied to protect me, Reno?" I smirked even more as he rolled his eyes.

"You know why…" Reno almost glared at me, but knew he could be punished for it so settled for glaring at my folded hands. "Anyway…we got to get going, princess. Rufus sends his apologizes for not being able to be here tonight." Reno bowed with Rude, a silent sign of farewell for now. "Happy birthday." He winked, walking a step closer to whisper to me.

Rude stared at us with confusing, watching as my face went from curious to outrage.

"What! Oh my god! Reno, get out of here before I have you escorted out!" I yelled under my breath at him as I blushed and he kept a smug smile on his face, another signature wink before he strutted out of the ballroom. I really couldn't stand that man.

"Ah, I see my cousin has made an appearance." There was the voice I learned to love…

"He didn't scar you with any perverted jokes, did he?" Lea approached me with a smirk; he already knew the answer to his own question.

"Oh no, he just said happy birthday very politely and walked off." I smirked, taking his hand as he presented it to me with a graceful bow. The man was full of surprises wasn't he?

"Really? So, I should call the doctor now and inform him that my dear cousin Reno is sick?" Lea grasped my bare hand with gloved hand, leading me out to the dance floor. I hadn't noticed until my heels made contact with the glass like floor. Our reflections appeared onto the polished gold tiled floor, I thought about when I was younger and how I used to slide across these floors in my socks. The thought put a smile on my face, making Lea curious as he guided me into the dance.

"Does looking at the floor always make you smile or is this something new?" Lea teased, getting himself a glare from me.

"Shut up, I was thinking about when I was younger. I used to slide across the ballroom floor while the maids cleaned them." I smiled back down at the floor, my white dress sliding over the clean floor.

"Oh, I see a memory." He smirked, looking somewhere behind me. "I guess it's a good thing we have storage for memories, right?" He looked back at me, those stunning green eyes again making me loose my breath.

"Yeah, I guess it's a good thing we have them…I don't know what I would do if I woke up one day and I couldn't remember anything."

"…Yeah, that'd be a horrible thing. But, I guess maybe it'd be cool." Lea looked off behind me again, this time he seemed to be studying something. I wanted to turn and look, but got more interested in his conversation.

"Really? Why do you think it'd be cool?"

"Well, it'd be like a chance to start over if you wanted too. Like, if one day you lost everyone you loved, everyone who gave you a reason to live was just gone…Or if something terrible happened to you, like you found out you got a disease…It'd be useful to lose your memory and start over." Lea ended his rant and looked at me deeply, unlacing our finger to touch my face softly. "And I believe if you love someone strong enough, you'll never forget them…" He smiled gently, leaning in to kiss me…but I couldn't allow that.

"Lea…" I softly turned my face away, denying him the kiss with a pull on my heart strings.

"…I know your father right?" He sounded hurt as he whispered closely to my ear.

"I'm sorry…But, if it helps, I still love you." I turned back towards him to see his eyes were closed, obviously to hide how hurt he was.

"…Enough to never forget?"

"Enough to never ever forget." I smiled, lacing our fingers together again.

When Lea opened his eyes he was again looking behind me, his eyes full on anger and something else I couldn't read. Before I had a chance to turn around or ask him anything, he was pulling me away from our spot and towards my father. I tried to pull my hand away but his grip was way too tight for me to pull away from. Damn Lea…

"Your highness, may I have permission to take your daughter away from a moment?" I couldn't see Lea's face as he spoke but he must've done something with his eye because my father suddenly looked up and behind me again. What were they looking at? Again, I tried to look behind me but Lea pulled my arm again, moving a little faster than before, even Aeleus couldn't keep up. The man kept a distance from me s it was; now it wasn't a good thing.

"Lea, please slow down. Where are we going? My party has just started." I demanded to know, I was honestly a little concerned.

"Princess please, just calm down …I'm trying to keep you safe."

"Lea!"

I turned to see Aeleus was now caught up and grabbing my other hand. I stopped suddenly, being pulled by both Lea and Aeleus, and yeah it hurt. Lea rolled his eyes and pulled on my fragile arm as if I were a doll.

"Ow! Lea, are you insane?" I gasped, pulling him towards Aeleus. Aeleus smirked at Lea, almost mocking him.

"I was given orders to keep the princess inside the ballroom until 1am." Aeleus glared at Lea, making his point clear.

"I know, but her father has given me permission to let her come with me for a while."

Lea pulled on my poor, poor arm forcefully and got me free from the bigger mans grasp. I thought I was going to loose my right arm at that moment, but surprisingly Aeleus turned towards my father.

"Are you insane? He could've taken off my arm!" I yelled at Lea, still confused as to why we were leaving in the first place.

"But, he didn't." Lea smirked, making our way quickly to the front door of the castle.

Lxaity was full made up of more than my castle and farm land; it was also home to the people that made our home possible. The towns people loved my father and me, they did everything they could to help make Lxaity a better place. I adored these people with all my heart and wanted nothing more than to make them happy. Of course, Lea grew up here before he moved into my castle to serve me full time. He came to visit his old friends from time to time, they were naturally jealous of where he lived now, but still cared for him.

The two he spoke of most were Myde and Isa. Two boys who he loved maybe more than he loved me, well maybe not more than me…

"They're probably down at the pub. Those two are always trying to find a girl of their own." Lea laughed, slowing down our pace.

"And why did we leave again?" I breathed heavily, happy we were now slowly walking along the uneven stone trail in town.

"…Lea, you look like you and my father saw a ghost."

"Maybe I did."

I rolled my eyes at him and let go of his hand, crossing my arms over my chest. The little beads and designs that decorated my dress hurt my arms, but I was determined to get my point across. He sighed heavily and crossed his own arms as well, leaning his weight on his left leg. Lea looked around at the random people walking by, bowing to me slightly and wishing me a happy birthday. He smirked when I lost my attitude to smile at them and thank them properly.

"Always a softie." He smirked, those green cat eyes of his sinking into my soul.

"Just because I give my people respect, doesn't mean I forgive you…" I huffed and began to walk away from the older servant.

"Hey!" He quickly broke into a run to chase after me, again taking my hand in the process. I groaned, knowing I couldn't run from him. He spun me around quickly and surprised me with a sudden kiss, taking away every ounce of anger I held towards him. His soft lips pressed against mine, bringing me up to cloud nine with him. This was our place, a place of peace and harmony.

He broke away before anyone took notice and gave that knowing smirk. His eyes glowing with happiness that I didn't push him away. I couldn't do it twice in one day, right?

"Come on, the pub is right up the street." He whispered, looking up and taking my crown off my head.

"Hey-"

"Tonight, you're not a princess." He winked and we began to walk, my crown in his opposite hand.

"Chug, chug, chug!"

Lea and I were smacked with excitement and energy as soon as we entered the local pub down the street. All the hard working citizens and their closest friends were all gathered around the keg, shouting loudly together as a young pair of men sat across from each other. I smelled the alcohol immediately and thought of how furious my father would be if he found out I was here. Of course, Lea didn't think twice about the fact that I had a dress the size of two large men on. The bottom already dirty from dragging it all over town, but the sparkling glitter along the white fabric still reflected nicely.

"Lea…I think everyone will notice once they turn." I smirked, placing my own hands on my hips.

"Ah, who cares?" He smirked back, walking towards the crowd by the keg.

"Lea, wait." I tried to follow him but seeing as this pub wasn't exactly ballroom size and it was most likely over its limit…it was hard to move around in this dress.

"Princess!"

I looked up, as well as Lea did, to see the supposed owner of the bar grinning at me. He was old in age, I remember seeing him once before. He had thinning hair that was as silver as my fathers, he was pudgy and round for his short height which only made him adorable at old age. I smiled as he bowed his head, getting attention from now the entire bar.

At first, the men just starred at me than they all yelled happily and crowded me instead of their chugging men at the keg. I always had a soft spot for the people of Lxaity, they always understood and cared about each other…not like that horrible Rixsap.

"What brings ye to town, darlin'?" A young man asked, wrapping an am around my shoulder, pushing the side of my dress against both of us.

"Well, I just felt like getting away with a friend." I lied; I still had no idea why I was here.

"She's not a fan of her own birthday party up in Castle Lxaity. So, she wanted to celebrate with us!" Lea shouted from on top of a wooden table where the two guys from earlier sat drinking. I now had a better look at those two guys and saw they must've been the friends Lea always spoke about. The one younger than him, a blonde energetic boy with a passion for water. The other older than Lea by a year, his hair strikingly as rare as Lea's when it came to being the color of blue jays feathers. All three looked at me as I approached the table, the man on my shoulders now gone to his buddies, all smiling except one.

"It's nice to finally meet you, princess. In person that is, I always have seen you in town when you've gone shopping and-" The blonde ranted, being slapped in the head by Lea. I gasped at my servants actions and gave him a look.

"Lea, that wasn't nice."

"It's okay, Myde needs to be slapped around every once in a while. Besides,-" Lea jumped off the table and stood behind Myde's chair, "He likes it." Lea winked at Isa, Isa rolled his eyes and looked away.

"On the other hand, Isa. Slap him and you won't live to see the next five seconds of your life." Lea and Myde laughed together, I simply just looked at Isa with a smile.

"Yes, hello princess." Isa sighed, not really seeming happy to see me.

"Evening." I smiled and let Lea sit me down in a chair he had pulled up for me.

So, this is what it was like to sit with friends? I wouldn't know much about this, but it seemed fun and Myde and Isa weren't so bad. I couldn't ignore Lea's hand under the small table grabbing mine as we sat and talked with his friends. I even was able to drink a little, my dear father won't be happy when I return, but hey it is my birthday. What could go wrong?

"Whoa, that's like…your…what like millionth cup?!" Myde giggled as he sat slumped back in his chair, nursing his cup of beer in his hands.

"No! A lady doesn't drink that much, silly boy." I giggled just as loudly, sighing as my senses felt off. I couldn't stand let alone walk, and dear lord who watches over me I need help right now. My royal bladder needs to be relived.

"What!?" Lea busted out laughing, his own posture failing to stay up in his chair as he laughed. "Royal bladder?!" Lea never laughed that hard before, and that'd when I realized I had spoken out loud, oops.

I giggled again as looked around for a bathroom, but found none. Maybe outside? Out back? Do I have to go knocking on random doors? Ah, why is this so hard?!

"I'll be right back!" I shouted, picking up my white gown, even though it was completely destroyed by now. After…how long has it been? Damn, father isn't going to be happy when I go home, is he? Who am I talking to? Dear lord…never let me drink again.

Pressing a hand to my forehead, I realized my skin was hot to the touch. Looking around I had no idea what has forced me to walk behind the pub to look for a bathroom, but my stomach was starting to turn and my vision wasn't right. Oh no, please don't say I'm going to be sick…

Without warning, I fell to my knees in the dirt next to the pathetic path of poorly placed stone. I emptied my stomach right there, a sure royal flush. My hair wasn't tied back anymore, meaning some of the remains got into my silk blonde locks and not to mention on my dress. This was bad, very bad; I just ruined a safe return home. If I get caught by my father looking like this…he'll hate Lea and punish me for sure.

"Why did I drink?" I asked myself, placing both gloved hands on the ground, feeling the stones through the thin fabric. That's when another round of vomit hit me, rushing up from my stomach towards the ground in a second. I felt a pair of hands pull my hair back and rub down my back as I threw up, ugh Lea go back inside.

"I'm sorry…I didn't think I'd be this much trouble to you." I coughed, wiping my mouth and looking up to see someone else standing in front of me…Wait.

"Oh, don't worry your highness, we were able to follow you with no problem." That voice didn't belong to Lea; it was much too harsh and sounded sinister. Now that I think about it, the hand on my back was much larger than Lea's…and the person in front of me was in all black. None of the boys inside were wearing long black coats…Only… THEY wore long black coats!

I let out a harsh scream before a leather gloved hand placed over my mouth and long dark hair cascaded over my shoulder. I got a better look at the man in front of me, he had a hood over his head but I saw the faint outline of a mustache around his mouth, maybe it was blonde. He had a knowing smirk on his lips, both arms crossed over his broad chest as he partner pulled me against his larger body.

"Now, listen to me princess, we can do this easily, or we can do it the hard way." The combination of his large hands and scary voice only made me more fearful. "Don't worry, we won't harm you…That's for our king to do." The man laughed into my ear, I swear he licked me…dear lord who helps me please…oh please help me now more than ever.

"Xaldin." The man in front of us spoke, obviously ready to move on with their plans.

"Oh, come on Luxord…She's still intoxicated, I'm sure she won't remember if we had just a little fun." Xaldin spoke softly next to my ear as I tried to move away from this disgusting man.

"Now, you know our orders. Braig would be very upset if you toyed with her." Luxord uncrossed his arms and began to walk past us. For some reason I wanted the man addressed as Luxord back.

"Party pooper…Don't worry, I'll have you one day, princess." Xaldin pressed his lips to my bare shoulder and roughly picked me up, his hand still over my mouth.

I began to fight back, trashing against his stronger grip. He seemed unaffected by my struggles as he pulled me along after Luxord, that's when I saw their carriage waiting for us. No, no, no!

I bit down on his leather covered hand, making him gasp out in surprise. With a second of freedom, I let out another loud scream for help. Luxord turned around quickly at the sound of my scream, giving Xaldin a death glare as the wind suddenly picked up, knocking both their hoods off their heads. Xaldin grunted and threw me over his shoulder as he began walking faster towards the carriage.

"He's coming…Get her in the carriage, I'll take care of him." Luxord voice had a different accent from Xaldin's, more British.

"Take your time." Xaldin whispered, taking me towards the carriage, my eyes starting to water with realization. I was being taken, kidnapped by the Rixsap army.

I looked up, seeing the red haired lover of mine running towards us. The wind made it hard to see, but I knew this wasn't good. He had to get out of here and get help, this was too dangerous.

"Lea! No! You idiot!" I screamed, now hitting Xaldin's back as he quickly threw me into the large carriage. I hit the opposite door at the violent throw; he quickly got in after me, slamming the door and giving me a better look at me. The man had too much hair for his own good, the side burns were scaring me more than the wicked tangles and up do he had going on. His body was much larger than Luxords, much larger.

"Don't you dare come near me…" I whispered in the space between us, his eyes narrowing as he glared at me, my stomach again turning.

"Oh? But who's going to help you change out of that disgusting dress?"

My eyed widened as he picked up a dress off the floor, all gray and tied with a black bow. His larger, gloved hand put the dress down between us as he forcefully reached and grabbed at my dress, pulling towards him.

"This will only take a second." He smirked, my eyes closing as I listened to the sounds of tearing and ripping, to think this dress was ruined before…now it was being torn to bits.

Dear lord who watches over me…why didn't you help me when I needed you most?

"Lea! Lea!"

Myde and Isa ran furiously through the town searching after their friend. Both confused and worried about Lea and why he had ran off so quickly. They had heard the scream come for behind the pub and outside town, but thought nothing of it until they remembered the princess was out back.

"Shit, I heard rumors of the Rixsap being in town! What if they took Lea and her majesty!?" Myde cried out to Isa who was running far more quickly than he was. Isa looked back and forth towards the homes and empty alleys until they reached the grassy open space around the town that led to the woods.

Isa stopped suddenly, Myde running into him as he did.

"What!?" Myde asked, still scared and little tipsy.

"…Lea…"

Both males stared down at the scarf stuck under a branch, swaying helplessly in the wind. The owner was nowhere to be found within eye sight, but both agreed to search until the early hours of the morning.