Chapter Twenty Four: It Might Have Been
For all the sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.'
-John Greenleaf Whittier
xxXxx
Lune,
While I'm gone, spend time with Haru. She's your intended, after all.
The crown prince of the Cat Kingdom stared in blank shock, and checked the other side of the card for more words, any words. "Is this all that was left this morning?" he demanded.
Richard sighed. "Only a matching card for me, telling me to mind everything as usual until his return. You'd best do as the note says."
Lune stiffened, from many emotions. It didn't feel right to be ordered about like this; it was against his very upbringing. "Perhaps I don't wish to spend more time with Haru than I need to."
The old steward's gaze turned cold and disapproving. "Perhaps I don't wish to tell the lady where you were all of yesterday, and with whom."
The darker cat's mouth fell open in shock. "You know?"
"Everyone knows, save for the lord and Lady Haru. But that can change in a heartbeat, my prince."
His fists clenched painfully, and he had to fight back the childish urge to kick a chair that was close by. "I hate being the prince," he snarled under his breath, tossing the card at his desk while marching out of his chambers and down the hall.
Ever since the fiasco in the Human Kingdom, he hated being the prince. If he had just thought of something else, anything else, perhaps there could have been a way to avoid the whole Sea Maiden business entirely.
Not that yesterday had been perfect, by any stretch of the imagination. Even if he and Yuki had confessed their feelings to each other time and again, just since coming here, the unalterable fact remained; he was engaged to her mistress and best friend. Not even the love they had for each other was enough for Yuki to consider betraying Haru with anything more than a stolen embrace and whispered regrets.
'Why couldn't they have traded places?' he lamented once again as he strode down the stairway, avoiding cold gazes from the usual servants. 'If Yuki was the Sea Maiden, Father would have had no problem with us getting married, and Haru could do… whatever it is she'd rather do than become a princess. Flirt with death on the open sea, no doubt.'
He opened the door to the main hall, where Haru was talking with Yuki.
The prince was forced to quell the familiar fear that the maid was telling her that they had been sneaking around behind her back.
Haru looked over expectantly, but seemed slightly disappointed at seeing him. "Good morning, Lune," she greeted him as Yuki made a swift retreat to the wall.
"Good morning, Haru," he replied as he took his familiar seat next to her, using every bit of his willpower to not follow Yuki with his eyes.
Haru looked past him at the door expectantly. "Baron's usually here by now; isn't he?" she asked, almost to herself.
"Baron won't be coming today; he left on some errand."
She looked at him with alarm. "Wait, just like that?"
"Just like that; not even Richard knows what he's up to," Lune informed her, a bit of irritation slipping through his tone.
Then he saw something so strange, he couldn't help but stare. For the first time since giving her the locket… Haru looked scared.
"I hope he's not doing anything stupid," she fretted, nervously biting at a finger, only to flinch when her sharp teeth came down a little too hard.
Lune laughed shortly. "I don't think you need to worry about that. Baron only does stupid things when Father threatens to remove his head, and even then, it's under protest."
"I guess so… did word come from the palace?" Haru couldn't help but ask.
"Oh no, Richard would have known and told me about that. Speaking of which, Haru…"
She looked at him again as servants from the kitchen came, bearing breakfast on simple metal platters.
"Baron left a card, strongly suggesting that we spend time together until his return."
Haru flinched, clearly finding the idea as appealing as he did. "How long is he going to be gone?"
"Only he and Toto know, and I hope he has a good explanation when they get back."
She sighed, and began delicately eating her porridge. "So do I."
ooOoo
Thus began the longest day of Lune's life. At least, that's what he thought until enduring the second day, and then the third.
It wasn't the way that he spent his days that were drawing on him so; he had always loved taking long walks through the forests and such, and loved playing games like chess with a passion. In fact, they were some of the reasons that Lune always looked forward to visiting Baron's home. He wasn't allowed so much leisure time while at the palace.
It was just the fact that he had to do all of it with Haru that irked him. As if that wasn't bad enough, she had insisted on Yuki coming with them as a chaperone. A good enough idea, he had to agree for propriety's sake, if it weren't for the fact that it added an entirely new level of awkwardness to their outings.
Haru could never know just how hard it was for him to avoid staring at the maid for too long, or even talking to her. To keep Yuki safe, the slim brunette had to remain as oblivious as ever.
Lune had thought that he had done an excellent job of it. He had thought that she suspected nothing.
He thought wrong.
On the third day, Haru suddenly grabbed his sleeve to make him stop walking from another trip through the extensive orchard. "Yuki?"
"Yes, my lady?" the white servant asked in surprise, since her mistress had been mostly silent for the three days.
"It's getting late, and the cooks are probably about to start dinner. Would you mind telling them that I would love to have their filet mignon again?"
Yuki seemed surprised at the request, but bowed her way out of their presence. "I will inform them right now, my lady."
"Thank you," she replied, although Lune was certain that she preferred saying 'thanks'.
"I thought you wanted a chaperone for propriety's sake," he couldn't help but point out once the love of his life was out of earshot.
"I did, but there's something we need to talk about alone."
Lune flinched while taking two steps away from her. "There is?" he squeaked uncertainly.
"Yes. It's about Yuki."
'She knows!' "U-uh, um…"
Haru sighed and crossed her arms at him. "Lune, you were the one to find her when she came to the kingdom, right?"
"Y-yes."
"You made sure that she was well cared for and got a job, right?"
"Yes," he confirmed again, wondering how she was using this to lead up to the betrayal.
If it could be called that. It wasn't like he had ever had feelings for the brunette.
"You've been keeping touch since then, right?"
"I-It would be hard not to. We both live at the palace, after all."
"So why the heck are you treating her like a stranger?" she finally snapped at him.
Lune's jaw dropped in complete shock.
"Look, I might not be as smart as Baron, but I can still tell when my best friend's unhappy. She hasn't smiled in weeks, and she won't tell me a thing, but I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that you're ignoring her."
'Thank heaven; she's still in the dark!' "W-Well, I thought you would misunderstand, or perhaps someone around here would misunderstand, and tell Father."
Haru scoffed at that. "Do you really think I'd rat you out to him?"
He stared at her, wondering if it was a trick question.
She flinched from his silence. "That hurts, Lune. That really does. I hate your father, remember?"
"It's a little hard to forget."
"Then why the heck would I rat you out to him? If you needed some form of disciplinary action, I'd skip telling him anything and just yell at you again."
He shuddered from the memory. "You do have powerful lungs."
"Thank you. Now will you please track down Yuki after dinner some time and make amends? Clear up whatever misunderstanding there is?"
'She has no idea how much I want to do that.' "… I will try."
"You will do. I miss her smile something awful."
He smiled at that. "I bet she has the same opinion about your smile."
Haru gave a small sigh as they started walking again. "She's told me so. Hey, Lune, can I ask something random?"
"I doubt it would stop you if I said no."
She looked at him a little sadly. "It would."
Lune stared at her. Something seemed… off about her tone. "What is your question?"
"Have you had any health problems since Baron used a tear on you?"
He blinked twice. "… Are you referring to physical or mental health?"
"I'll go for both."
"Well… to be honest, I haven't quite felt right in the head since I met you," he confessed. "Not to be offensive, but things were a lot simpler when you were just a heroic figure in Yuki's stories."
"She talked about me a lot?" Haru asked with surprise.
"I highly doubt that a single day has gone by since leaving that she didn't at least think of you, and I am her closest friend, after all. Besides you, of course," he added hastily.
"Of course. So, no real health problems at all?"
"None other than what I mentioned."
She bit her lower lip nervously. "What about your father?"
Lune shuddered. "He's a complete mess, both physically and mentally. But I'm certain you already guessed that."
"Can you give me details?" she asked, sounding just a shade desperate.
Lune stared at her, but kept talking. "My… father was not young, when he married my mother. According to the gossip I overhear from some of the older servants, he used to be quite the player among the ladies. He was also very athletic, and loved parties. But when he started getting older, he was pressured into selecting a bride, eventually choosing my mother, who was generally agreed to be the most beautiful of the maidens at the time."
"Naturally," Haru grumbled.
"Naturally what?"
She opened her mouth to answer, but then changed her mind. "It's just an old issue of mine. So, when did he start having problems?"
"Shortly after my mother's death. He tried going back to the life he led before her, but it didn't work anymore, because my grandfather had died by then, leaving Father king. He found solace in this fine type of mulberry wine, but the producers of it have been out of business for years." He gave a light laugh. "It was quite strange, to find out that the wine came from Baron's old family business."
"Was there anything else that happened to push your father over the edge?"
"Pressures of ruling a kingdom can be staggering, Haru. After the wine was gone, he turned to rich food instead, and even after he came to his senses, he could never get his former fitness back. He still yearns for the good old days, but the plain truth of it is that he's too old and fat to pursue it anymore. It shames me to admit this, but my family sometimes has cases of madness. I think a good portion of it has to do with all the inbreeding that's encouraged to keep our titles."
Haru shuddered. "I'm sorry Lune, but that's a really gross practice."
"Coming from a human, that has little meaning," he defended.
"At least we don't eat mice!" she shot back.
"What do you have against eating mice? They're delicious!"
Haru began gagging, turning away from him in case she threw up. "It's… just… eww!"
"Yet your kind eats cats; how comforting," he almost sneered.
"Okay, just for the record, we prefer eating cows, certain types of birds, and fish. Eating cats was only out of desperation many years ago, even centuries, and not even Jack's gang would have been willing to eat you!"
"So you think that if cats get hungry enough, they should be allowed to eat humans?" he demanded to know.
"Can't we just agree that it's a gross subject and drop it?" she begged. "Besides, some humans believe in inbreeding, too."
Lune stopped walking. "Was that what we were originally discussing?" he couldn't help but ask.
"Actually, we were discussing your father's health. It's in bad shape?"
"Very bad shape. He'd give just about anything to go back to the good old days, but even if one's the king of the realm, one can't reverse time."
Haru's large eyes turned distant, and she looked away towards a distant cloud. "Right. No one can."
There was something strange in her tone. Strange enough to make him worried. He gently grabbed her elbow, and forced her to look at him.
"Is there a reason you were inquiring after my family's health?"
"What, no, of course not," she assured him, making him wince.
"Yuki was right; you are a bad liar."
She flinched, but sighed. "It's the kind of thing you wouldn't understand, Lune."
"I can understand a lot," he asserted, but she shook her head.
"I can't say, Lune. Not yet. But I will soon, I promise."
"How soon?"
She looked up at the lone cloud again as her eyes turned distant once more. "I think Winter Solstice sounds about right."
"Before or after…" He couldn't force himself to bring up their wedding. Not with Yuki's name still fresh on his tongue.
"Definitely before," she said firmly, managing a small smile for him. "If I really do know what I'm doing… well, you'll see."
"Know what you're doing?" he asked incredulously. "Haru, what are you-"
"What's that?" she asked out of nowhere, pointing up at the lone cloud.
Lune looked up as well, seeing the shape change dramatically off the side, as if someone had tried to tear off a corner of the cloud.
"I've seen that before; it's Toto," he confirmed happily, tugging on her elbow to encourage a race to the courtyard. "He usually hits a cloudbank to send word that he and Baron will be here soon."
Haru gave a smile that was so beautiful he could hardly believe that it had come from her. "Last one to the courtyard's a rotten egg!" she cheered as she started running as fast as she could.
Now, ever since Baron used a tear on him, Lune had always had extraordinary health. Some said that he was even fitter than his father had been, at his age.
So, it was a little hard for him to accept that he was absolutely no competition for a scrawny girl like the Sea Maiden. She was in the courtyard long before he was.
"Slow poke," she teased when he finally managed to catch up to her.
"Am… not… rotten… egg," he managed to say between his gasps, leaning against a wall for support.
"Okay, so you're not. It's just a saying, Lune; no meaning whatsoever," she consoled as Richard also ran into the courtyard, gasping terribly.
"My lord… has better…. have a… good explanation… for this," he panted as Haru eased him against a wall as well.
"You should take it easy, Richard; we don't want you to collapse, after all," she scolded him with affection.
He gave her a warm smile, so unlike any he had given the crown prince recently. "You sound just like the lord, my lady."
"Maybe you should consider listening to…" Haru started to say, but then stopped.
Stopped talking.
Stopped moving.
Lune wasn't even sure if she was breathing.
"Haru?" he asked worriedly, but she could not hear him.
All of her attention was focused on Toto, who seemed to have an abnormal amount of baggage hanging from his talons.
"What in the Cat Kingdom is he carrying?" Lune couldn't help but wonder.
"He didn't," Haru whispered in shock, almost too quietly to be heard.
"He didn't what?" Richard asked, but she was now moving away from him, closer to the middle as Toto drew close enough to land.
However, he didn't land immediately. First, he dropped off the biggest cat Lune had ever seen in his life, and then flew slightly to the side to personally land.
The huge cat collapsed to his knees, and started rubbing his wrists sorely. His fur was fairly short, and mostly cream with a hint of brown on one ear like a lopsided hat. As if his size wasn't enough to mark him as different, he was also wearing clothes that the prince recognized as being from the Human Kingdom, as well as a large, strange bag that fell from one of his shoulders upon impact with the ground.
He seemed weary, but somehow alive as he stared solely at Haru. "Chicky…"
"Muta-san," she sobbed, throwing herself at him in order to wrap her arms around his neck.
"Ow, the back!" he yelped as he almost fell over backwards from the impact. "Remember the back?"
"Sorry," she sobbed, just before launching into a long tearful tirade in that strange dialect of hers.
Muta-san seemed to understand every word, because he started crying too. He wrapped the girl up in a hug so fierce that Lune would have feared for her health if it had been anyone but her.
Baron climbed off Toto's back, a smile of deep satisfaction on his face as he hugged the crow. "Thanks for not dropping him after all," he whispered as the prince approached.
"Baron…" Lune tried to say, pointing in shock at the large cat hugging the daylights out of Haru. "Did you really…?"
"It seems that I forgot to return the Fish of Nilpan on my last assignment," the kitten said in a lighthearted manner, handing over the necklace from the pocket of his grey jacket. "Would you mind sneaking it back into your father's study when you return to the palace?" he asked as Toto flew up to the tower to await dinner.
"Baron… do you have any idea how my father will react to this?" Lune asked harshly as the golden chain slid over his fingers.
"What do you mean?" Baron asked in a calm challenge. He then gestured to the fat cat. "This is merely a new acquaintance of mine, who goes by the name of Muta San. No matter how many lessons I give Haru, if there is a need for violence, she will not back down. To counter that, Mr. San has agreed to become her personal body guard and champion. Unofficially, however, this is my response to her problems with Natoru. Not even he is foolish enough to resume stalking her with Muta standing guard. We'd best leave them alone for now," he said rather suddenly, pulling on Lune's sleeve to encourage him to stride into the castle; gesturing for Richard to do the same. "I am certain that Haru and her new body guard would like to become further acquainted. Our presence is not required for the present."
"Except that it's her stepfather!"
"Is there anyone that you would deem more suitable for the job than he?" Then Baron sighed as a suitably impressed Richard held the door open for them. "The king only knows her stepfather by the name of Renny. After I and Haru give him the remaining instruction as well as a wardrobe more suited to our kingdom, no one at the palace will ever know the truth, unless you tell them."
"Father would kill you if he knew what you just did," Lune whispered in horror.
"Considering how many times he's threatened my life, the possibility doesn't really faze me anymore. Besides, I owe Haru that much for saving my life, if nothing else."
Lune shook his head in amazement. "How did you do it? I thought he hated cats."
"He does, when they happen to come between him and Haru. However, his attitude changed completely when I gave him the chance to be with her again. I wrote some large letters explaining what happened to Haru and offered him the bodyguard job if he agreed to a few conditions, such as not interfering with the engagement or offering violence to the royal family. That includes you, so you don't have anything to fear from him."
"How did you keep him from killing you long enough to read the letters?" Richard asked curiously. "If I had a stepdaughter like Haru, I wouldn't show kindness to the one responsible for her disappearance."
Baron sighed, and pulled the steward close enough to that no one else could overhear him. "What you are about to hear, you can never repeat. Lune, when Haru approaches you and asks why you never said you left a note for Muta, say that it never felt like the right time to tell her."
Lune's jaw dropped at his friend's amazing bravery. "You mean… the last time?"
Baron nodded. "He was completely distraught, my friend. I feared he would do himself harm if he didn't get some word that she was all right." Then a wry smile overcame his face. "In fact, when Toto and I approached him in the middle of the night to avoid attention from the castle, he wanted to know what took us so long to come back. I guess he somehow knew he hadn't heard the last of us."
"But… Muta has to know the note's from you," Lune choked.
"I told him you did it. In case Haru asks, the exact words were 'your Chicky is safe, and in good hands'."
"My lord," Richard said slowly. "Are you lying to the lady?"
The little kitten nodded, looking ashamed of himself. "It's one of the things I could lose my head for, if she finds out."
"Baron, you have done everything but write it on the walls!" Lune couldn't help but explode.
"Keep your voice down," he hissed, looking nervously out a window facing the courtyard.
Lune also looked to see that Haru and Muta were now standing, and conversing deeply while keeping a firm grip on each other. He could only assume that it was the strange dialect she was so fond of, but he couldn't tell from this distance. "Why is it that he's a complete cat, and she isn't?"
"I used the Fish of Nilpan incorrectly on her," Baron admitted softly, unable to take his eyes off the two. "In order for it to be a complete transformation, the wearer must know that it is a permanent spell and that returning to the Human Kingdom will be impossible before putting it on. I tricked Haru into wearing it, so I explained the process completely in the second letter to Muta. He said it was a small price to be with his Chicky again. His transformation was much less painful than hers was."
Without warning, Muta started laughing uproariously, falling on the ground to pound it with one fist.
"It's not funny!" Haru yelled at him, waving her arms in the air.
"What's not funny?" Lune asked, perplexed as to why the ex-human was laughing so hard.
"Humans have a strange sense of humor, it's easier not to question it," Baron advised, although there was a blissful smile on his face from the cheerful sound. "Richard, would you mind preparing the room right next to Haru's for Muta?"
"It would be my honor to," the steward replied, bowing his way out of their presence.
"I hope the cooks are about done with dinner. I'm completely famished," the little kitten admitted, wearily heading towards the dining hall. "So, how did you get along with her while I was gone?"
"Well… we were together every day from breakfast to dinner," Lune answered evasively.
"Yes?"
"We went for long walks."
"And?"
"She's not very good at chess."
"It's because she's not used to complex strategies. She's very straightforward in her opinions and beliefs. It's one of her best traits," Baron added, almost as if he didn't mean to.
Lune sighed. "She thinks I've been ignoring Yuki."
"Haven't you? I don't think you've spoken directly to her since you… came…" Baron trailed off, his eyes widening with horror. "Lune, you haven't been!"
"We spend time together, yes," the prince admitted, looking away in shame. "We mostly talk, though. Yuki is completely loyal to her mistress."
Baron began growling angrily, angrier than Lune had ever heard from him before. "Lune, I'm more than aware that Haru is no Yuki, but that is no excuse for sneaking around behind her back!"
"Says the one who made the engagement possible!" Lune shot back.
Baron gave a quick glance to the window to be sure that Haru and Muta had gone somewhere else before retaliating. "No, your father is the one who made it possible. I'm merely a favorite tool of his, and I am only a part of this mess under protest!"
"That doesn't change the fact that the contract was your idea!"
"How about the fact that you are still engaged to Haru? Despite all your protests, you're still meant to wed her in a few months' time!"
Lune groaned from the inescapable truth. "I wish I didn't have to."
Baron's glare increased a hundred fold. "Do you have any idea how lucky you are?" he demanded at the top of his lungs, louder than anyone would have thought could come from such a small, frail body. "Haru's smart, sweet, beautiful, and quite possibly the bravest girl I'll ever meet! Even without being the Sea Maiden, any cat would be honored to be with her! So help me, Lune; if you dare to break her heart, I will find a way to break you for it! Haru deserves better than to be treated like this, and you know it!"
Lune stared at him in horror. Baron had never talked about a girl in such a manner in his life, he was certain. The two had relatively few secrets from each other, so he was also certain that the stunted kitten had never looked at a woman before. In fact, he believed that his friend's condition had eliminated any true yearnings for female companionship or a mate.
But what he saw in Baron's eyes was something so heart-breaking, and so powerful, that only one conclusion could be reached.
"You love her," Lune whispered.