Disclaimer: I do not own rights to Pokémon or anything else.
Music had never been something that Crystal really understood. She was better at connecting with actual facts, history or math. She was better at analyzing literature than just enjoying it.
But she could not deny how enchanting the concert was. In a small theatre within , the citizens had their names on a list and when called would run up and perform. It warmed Crystal's heart to hear the beautiful music coursing through the auditorium, to see people swaying along.
The best part to her was how improper it was. The lights were mainly set on the stage, but the seats were not totally dark, so many of the attending people would walk around and chat quietly, change seats, or encourage the performers.
Two shy girls were shoved onto the stage by their friends when their names were called. They sang a love song with imperfect yet sweet voices, and string accompaniment. A man who went up later sang an agonizingly tragic yet undeniably musical melody. The violins interlocking with the pianos sounded incredible. Then, the man who came on after him brought up a banjo and sang a humorous ballad. All of the acts were amateur, yet they didn't have to be good at all to be great in Crystal's eyes. She enjoyed all the songs as they went on.
She sat in the row farthest back, with a group of disguised guards and Roxie, who wore a hat to hide her fluffy locks, and she jumped when the name "Kris Harper" was called out. Crystal had decided to use that name in hopes that something familiar would calm her, but it didn't. She glanced frantically at Roxie, spontaneously filled with stage fright.
Roxie beamed. "You'll do great, Princess."
Crystal swallowed, feeling a lump in her throat, and stepped onto the stage. Her hat partially hid her face from the crowd, and her cape disguised her fine dress. Sitting at the piano on the stage, she spread out her music with shaky hands. Not allowing herself to hesitate, she began playing her piece. The only other acts without vocal melodies had been string quartets or other groups of the sort. A lone piano sounded almost out of place, the notes thrumming underneath Crystal's fingertips.
Then, it happened. She hit a wrong note. She froze, afraid. The other performers had looked like they were having so much fun, but how could they have when it was so stressful? She could feel the eyes of the crowd on her, waiting for her to do something, but she was suspended in time. She did not know what she was supposed to do.
But a shout broke the silence. "Keep going!" A man's voice, coming from somewhere in the crowd.
"Don't give up, Kris!" Another yell. This time from a girl.
Then the entire crowd was pushing her on, to continue, to not force the music, to let it flow out. And she did.
Crystal smiled and shakily started again, more confidently. The notes didn't sound forced or strange; they sounded like they belonged. Her eerily beautiful piece soared in the theatre. By the time the key changed, she hardly even thought about what she was doing.
But when she held out a long note, she held it with her left hand, and used her right to toss off her hat and open her cape. For a moment it seemed like the crowd did not recognize her or did not believe it could even be the princess.
She jumped back into the piece, when the key changed back to its origin and the song ended, sounding ominously unfinished and yet resolved at the same time. The crowd applauded as Crystal leapt down the steps of the stage. The plan was just to get out right afterwards, but a hand grabbed onto her arm and she stopped in her tracks. She thought maybe someone was trying to see if it was really her, or trying to kidnap her, but then she saw who was in the tiny group around her.
"How did you know I was here?" she half-gasped incredulously seeing Tanzanite, Gold, Yellow, and two short blonde boys who must have been Yellow's brothers. Gold beamed and released her arm and she realized it must have been him and Tanzanite who called out to her when she was onstage.
Tanzanite giggled. "The list was posted outside the theatre. You thought we wouldn't notice a Kris Harper appearing on it?"
Crystal laughed, unable to hold it in with all the adrenaline rushing through her. "I guess I should have seen that coming." She glanced over to where Roxie and her guards were rising. She could not let them see her with her friends! "I have to run, though. Thank you all so much!" With much whooping and clapping from behind her, Crystal raced to her guards and slipped out of the theatre.
Crystal had not seen King Corvus very much since her arrival at the castle, so she was taken aback when he requested to see her in the throne room. It was just meant to be a conversation in the receiving room of the castle, but it still intimidated her greatly. She stepped through the doors as they opened nonetheless, feeling very out of place. She still did not feel as though the Kanto castle was her home.
Tapestries, curtains, and carpets of all shades of ruby and garnet were hanging on the walls or spread out on the tiled floors. She started down the long strip of carpet and curtseyed when she was before the king, who sat fittingly upon his throne.
King Corvus had a sort of ever-present placid expression, which made Crystal uneasy. He had had his bloodstone fastened into a plain steel scepter that seemed like a fairly dangerous weapon as well as a staff. There was only one throne, centered, and Crystal wondered vaguely what had happened to Red's mother and why her throne had been moved.
But she did not ask anything. She could not find the voice to even question why she was there. She just stood quietly until the king spoke.
"So, Lady Crystal," he began, "you seem to be quite popular as of late. It seems as though Shauntal's ploy has worked. I believe we will be keeping her around for a long while." He paused, smiled, and clasped his hands together. "I know from your father how accomplished you are. You are just as knowledgeable as your brother, and you can take on an issue head-on, such as your piano playing. I will admit, I was using that to test you, and you passed with flying colours. I truly expected you to just stick through the piece even though it was too difficult for you. However, you thought like a genuine ruler by finding a second path and working at that instead."
"That was not entirely my thinking," Crystal replied. "Your son was the one who proposed that I tried something different." That was a lie. It was Yellow who had given her the other piece of music, but Crystal felt the need to discuss Red.
"My point is, though," the king continued, "that I approve of your marriage of my son. I believe you will make a great queen for Kanto. We could use someone like you in this time of war."
Crystal's fingers fumbled together behind her back. She was not sure how she could respond to the king, so she only smiled. That was when she noticed something. When speaking with her grandfather, she did not feel intimidated. Perhaps that was simply because she was his granddaughter, or maybe it was because he just was very easygoing. He smiled a lot and tried to treat everyone with kindness and equality. However, King Corvus was the opposite. Although he did smile in that calm manner of his, his power was very evident, almost as if it radiated around him.
"However, there may be a few issues." The docile smile drained away. "It seems you are a bit too friendly with some commoners. I am aware that you have left the palace unannounced quite a few times. Is there any reason to this?" he questioned, feigning innocence.
Crystal pretended to act resigned. "I do apologize, but Viridian City does intrigue me dearly. I very much enjoy strolling around the town, and it is more convenient not to have guards. I am aware that it is rather hazardous, however I do not plan to do it often in the future."
The king nodded. "Wise girl. I hope you are speaking the truth." He considered what he was about to say for a moment. "You are very much like my late wife. She also found the town amusing. She used to like taking Red out there. It was very reckless of her, but she did it nonetheless. Just remember, that there are consequences to carelessness." His hands unclasped and clasped again a few times. It was evident that that had been his true point of conversation; how thoughtless Crystal probably was. And how that would be punished.
"Well, Lady Crystal, I should not keep you from what you are occupied with," the king finished. "Caitlin, please escort her out."
After her talk with King Corvus, Crystal found herself trembling slightly. Every word she had said worried her, as if he could turn it around back at her. At the same time, she felt like she was inclined to please him, as she was the future queen.
Aimlessly walking at a furious pace through the corridors, Crystal hissed through her teeth, "How is Red related to that man?" In her thoughts, though, she asked a different question.
How can I get back out into the city again?
Crystal had no clue in the slightest why she went to Green. But there she was, in his chamber, pacing back and forth, retelling her conversation with King Corvus.
"He talked to me too," her brother pointed out.
"About what?"
"Just the alliance. After all, I'll be leaving to return to Johto soon. He didn't make any threats or talk about consequences." Green crossed his arms. "You're troublesome."
Crystal grunted in frustration and continued pacing. "I just don't see why the king would be so concerned about that. I mean, he talked about his wife as if going out into town had been the end of her, but that wasn't it, right?"
Green, full of facts as ever, replied, "She died of illness. Tuberculosis if I remember correctly. You should study more, sister."
"Don't talk to me about history lessons at a time like this," Crystal snapped. "I just don't even know what to think at this point. Maybe I'm just over-analyzing things. I just don't know what that man will do in the future. I mean, who is he to tell me not to go into town? Okay, don't answer that question. But really, I don't see what the problem with that is. If his sources are as good as they seem, he probably somehow knows that I snuck out of the Johto palace too. I mean, I never even closed my window. Anyone could have guessed. So why does the king believe that I'll only cause flaws? Does he doubt my instincts?"
Green shrugged. "Perhaps he would rather you focus on learning to rule. Or maybe he suspects how much loathe you feel for this type of society. Crystal, you're enthralled by the commoners' life. Just don't go thinking you can be like Princess Citrine."
Princess Citrine Berlitz was the former princess of Hoenn, heir to the throne. Everyone had thought she would be a marvelous queen, after all, she was level-headed, wise, and fair. However, one day she just went missing. She was completely gone without a trace. For months, years even guards searched for her throughout the kingdoms. Eventually, she was presumed dead and her younger brother Ruby took the throne, but Crystal had always wondered if Citrine survived. If she was happy.
But Crystal resurfaced from her thoughts when she heard Green add, "I know you wish you could live like they do. I've overheard enough of your conversations with that very loud woman."
"Blue? Why do you always call her that? And where is she, anyways?"
Green crossed his arms. "Town. I brought her there."
"Green!" Crystal nearly scolded. "If I was just outright reprimanded…"
"You are over-analyzing, and you do that with everything," Green answered. "The king knows better to tamper with me. He may seem tough upon his throne, but you forget just how powerful your older brother is."
"I suppose you're right." Crystal sunk into a chair, her skirt fluffing around her. "So you brought Blue to town? Why? How far did you go into it?"
Green rolled his eyes. "Not far. Hardly into the city. I just brought her in and turned round. There was, though…" He paused, his jade eyes flashing with some unreadable emotion. "Something a bit odd," he went on. "I saw that little girl you told me about. She's called Aries. And apparently she doesn't like me much." He thought back to his prior experience.
"I really don't know why I'm doing this," Green grumbled.
Blue tugged him forwards. Green felt so exposed, so unguarded. He probably would have felt better if he had a sword or something. "Come on," Blue said, "it'll be fun. I'm sure you'll find some things to be of note. It's interesting; the commoners gossip endlessly about the royals, and yet they never seem to notice when they're right before them, buying a loaf of bread."
Green grew irritated; he was more concerned about getting recognized than he was about mingling with commoners, even if he did not seem that way. Blue smiled and pushed her bangs out of her clear azure eyes. "Alright, let's hit the road."
"How do you even get out of the grounds?" Green questioned.
Blue giggled. "That's for me to know, and you never to find out."
It honestly was just the back gates where shipments and visitors came through, since the main gate was primarily just for show, but Blue never missed a chance to have the upper-hand in a situation.
Once in the city, Green gazed all around like it was his first time seeing the world. It's not, Blue thought, but it's his first time seeing it freely.
He walked alongside Blue, who knew the city well since she had visited it before. Continuously, he asked her questions such as what places were, which she actually found amusing.
"So…I guess this is very similar to a Roman forum?"
"You study too much. It's just a marketplace, Green."
"I see…and do common men actually store things in their hats like in stories?"
"I'm not quite sure. Not that I've observed, but I suppose that would be a handy storage space."
"Is it always this foggy out?"
"Yeah. It gets thick and green-coloured sometimes, so the locals call it a pea-souper."
"Right then. What's in that building?"
"That's the bathhouse, you dunce."
"Oh. Right then."
Despite the fact that she might tease him for it later, Blue found that it was extremely endearing the way that Green inquired so many things and was constantly seeking knowledge as he experienced something new. He was exactly like his sister in that way, that he just wanted to keep on learning.
They turned down a street familiar to Blue and took note of a group of children playing around. One little girl with owly grey eyes spun around and beamed at Blue, racing over and clinging to her legs.
"This little one is Aries," Blue introduced the girl, hoisting her up onto her waist. "She's very shy. Aries, this is Mister Green." He said a word of salutations, but Aries only gave a tiny wave. As they continued on, Aries mumbled something into Blue's ear.
"She says she doesn't like you," Blue said bluntly to Green, who merely raised his eyebrows. He had not really expected the little runt to like him anyways. Aries pounded on Blue's shoulder, like she was not supposed to say that out loud.
"And that her father wouldn't like you either," Blue continued, ignoring the little girl's wordless protests. "I have to agree. Silver's a man of few words, but he grew up tough. Actually, you two are very similar. That's probably why you'd clash so much." She laughed heartily.
"So you're from Kanto?" Green questioned, but it sounded more like a statement.
She nodded. "Initially. I grew up on the streets. A few years back I moved to Johto to see if I would fare better, and I got myself a job at the palace. Unfortunately, though, I don't get to come to Kanto often, so I don't see this little one much."
"Must be hard to be away from your family."
"Yeah. It gets rough. But Aries has got her big strong father to take care of her, even when her mother gets a bit scatterbrained." She patted the girl on the head and then looked up sharply as a raindrop hit her nose. "It's raining!"
Green rolled his eyes. "Of course it is. Not a pinch of blue sky is showing through those clouds, and villagers are walking about with closed-up parasols in their hands. You really did not suspect any showers? You are scatterbrained."
"I wasn't talking about—"
"Come on, you pesky woman, let's just go inside somewhere and maybe get the little kid something to eat. I'll pay, and then I'm going right back to the castle."
Crystal giggled, snapping Green from his thoughts. "Well I didn't expect you to be warm and fuzzy towards kids anyways. Not that you are kind to Blue to begin with," she added.
Green just sent her a look, not feeling the need to respond. Instead, he asked, "So that Aries girl is really her daughter?"
Crystal shrugged. "I guess so. She looks enough like Blue." She paused. "Why are you so concerned about that?"
Green opened his mouth, then closed it. Then he said, "I'm not concerned, I only want to know."
"Alright." Crystal raised and lowered her eyebrows a few times. Green threw a pillow at her.
"And what about you?" Green twisted the subject around. "Why are you so interested with what I saw in town?"
Crystal didn't miss a beat. "You said it yourself; I'm enchanted by the commoners' world."
Green stared at her, and then in his usual monotone, deadpanned, "You love him."
"P-pardon?"
"That commoner boy," Green continued, as if it were obvious. "The one who brought someone called Tanzanite who you knew all the way here and they found you. Blue nearly jabbed my ear off about it when you dealt with that piano calamity of yours."
"I do not love him. I am repulsed and infuriated by that boy, but I have to deal with him because he's the family friend of an acquaintance of mine, and he brought Tanzanite all the way here," Crystal replied.
Green rolled his eyes. "It would only make sense if he loved you. Why else would he come all the way here? Please, Crys, it's similar to one of those clichéd stories."
Crystal's eyebrows shot into her bangs. "Excuse me, but I am not some Mary Sue out of a novel who falls desperately in love with some boy and dreams of running away with him. I already explained to you, he is a shallow and irritating imbecile, and I am engaged to Red, who is kind and will make a great ruler. My heart belongs to no one, but my hand belongs to him."
Crystal left the chamber without another word. She could not have been in love with Gold. That was just preposterous! To think that she might be that fussy princess who was unhappy with her arranged marriage and was unfaithful. Besides, it was not as if Gold would be attracted to her. They lived in two separate worlds. It just would never happen. It just can't happen…she told herself.
Right?
The following day, Crystal tried to ignore the prickling in her nose, the heat behind her eyes, and the water threatening to spill out down her cheeks. She kept her chin high, though, and blinked the blurriness away. She had to see her brother off with a smile, after all.
But when Green rode away on a carriage, back to Vermillion, then back to Johto, Crystal felt as though her old life was slipping away from her. Strangely, she began to long for those awkward dinners with her stiff, proper family. For the safety she felt having her big brother around. For the days when she would sneak into Goldenrod. Or the few times she quietly rebelled by hiding from Lorelei and not following the woman's demands. Or the long, strenuous hours of studying by candlelight.
All she really had left with her was Blue and her two friends from Goldenrod, though she was not even permitted to meet up with the latter. As Green's carriage drove into the distance, she felt as though Johto was far, far away; an unattainable fantasy. The fact that she would see her grandfather and brother in a few weeks, though, gave her some amount of comfort.
Blue sauntered over and brought an arm around Crystal. "He'll come around. He always does."
"You miss him too, don't you?" the princess asked, searching for someone to share her anguish. Blue had been around the castle for long enough to know the royal family—even impassive Green—fairly well.
Blue shrugged and said nothing, but somehow her unspoken words confirmed Crystal's question.
It was time. It was the time that they had been told. Clocks ticked away. They were ready, crouched, poised in position. It was the specified, obscure time they had planned for. It was what they had discussed, debated for so long. Well, there would no longer be wishy-washy debates. Because they were taking action, and they knew that that action would cause a ripple in everything.
The minute hand clicked. It was noon.
Go!
They leapt from position. City dwellers flinched or yelped. And then it began; the shots of the rifles, the slashes of blades, the falling of bodies.
Their fight, their ambush, their massacre was planned perfectly. Right in the capital.
There was a tough man fighting back. Three more ambushers helped their accomplice fend him off and soon he was not fighting back anymore because he was not moving. Many ducked in the covers of buildings. Many ran out of the buildings when they found that more attackers were waiting inside. A young girl with light blonde hair and pleading emerald eyes shrieked with horror for them to stop. Mercilessly, an ambusher slashed her leg and she fell to the ground and huddled behind a bench, sobbing and bleeding out.
Medics attempted to get through to the people who had fallen, but none of them made it far either. A few of the ambushers questioned for a moment what they had to do, but then stopped. They would be paid a large sum and anyways, those people were the enemy. Working for the other side. It was right that they would be stopped. It was the ambushers' duty to their country to fight the enemy. At least, that was what they told themselves.
Red was on his way to a fencing lesson when out of no where, he spotted Yellow rushing through the corridor adjacent to him, covering her face with her hands. He called out her name, but she did not appear to hear. He groaned and sped after her, easily catching up.
Taking her by the shoulders, he asked, "Yellow, what happened?"
Yellow lifted her head from her hands. Some girls looked even prettier when they cried, as weird as it was. The small pearls of tears streamed down their cheeks and gave them a natural blush. Even though they were painfully sad, those girls would always find empathy from anyone around them.
However, Yellow was not one of those girls.
Crying turned her pale face red and blotchy, and her tears were ample. For some reason, though, Red wanted to punch whoever or whatever made her this way.
"There was an attack, Your Highness," Yellow told him with a shaking voice. "An ambush in the capital city of Unova. My sister…she was there. She was badly injured; they mistook her for a Unova citizen. They do not know whether or not she will survive, and if she does, she may never walk again." She wiped her eyes and murmured, "I just got the message."
Red took her face in his hands and wiped her tears away, not caring if he was being too forward with her or rude or improper. "How did this happen?"
"The attackers were Kanto soldiers." Yellow didn't meet his eyes. "Your Highness…I don't know what to say. The command for the ambush was from your father." She broke down in tears and Red gritted his teeth, wishing he could fix everything. Wishing he could just hold Yellow for even a second to comfort her. Wishing that she was lying and that everything was fine and as it was before.
But nothing would be the same ever again.
The door was thrown open with a mighty clatter. "Father!" a harsh voice shouted, reverberating angrily through the wide expanse of the room. Most would think that a study where much work is conducted would be cozy or cluttered, worn in from hours of work. But the office of King Corvus was cold, large, and hostile.
The dreaded king himself looked up from his desk to stare at his son in a gaze that held no warmth. "Hello, Red. What is it you need?"
How could he be so calm knowing the deed he had just done? How was he not distraught knowing that Red was? This man was not the father that had kept him at a distance, but still kept him. This was a different person. An alien.
"What is the meaning of this?" Red stepped closer, failing to keep a dangerously angry tone out of his words. "Is what I've been told true? That you sent troops into a Unovan town and ordered them to kill innocent people?!"
King Corvus hardly blinked. "It was my order."
"Why?" Red asked in a fume. "Why, Father? All those people who did nothing wrong, died just because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time, just because one man decided to be cruel. But they're just casualties. They're just numbers to you. Someday, when people remember you in history, this will just be one of your listed orders, nothing that shook the world. And now, you've only succeeded in provoking Unova. They'll just play the martyrs."
"You must understand, son," the king barked back sharply, "that it was either this, or wait for them to make an attack like prey waiting for their predator to pounce."
"This isn't just about the sake of our nation. Someone important to me was injured in that— that massacre. This isn't something you can just do when you have power! Things like this have consequences!" He thought of how he felt when he found out that Belle, Yellow's beloved younger sister, had been in the city at the time of the ambush and had been badly injured. He felt like there was someone who needed to pay for what happened. He supposed rage ran in the family, because he swore his wrath coursed through his blood, like the red of the Kanto bloodstone.
King Corvus shot up from his desk, slamming his hands against it and shaking the room. "Don't go thinking you've got something to teach me, boy. I've got years on you; I know what war can do to a nation. I know what kinds of consequences the actions will do!"
"Then why did you do it?!"
"I told you!" bellowed the king, the voice of an ogre taking over his throat. "In war, someone has to take the initiative! It's better if we have an upper hand, if we are the ruthless ones! That's the only way we can win this!"
Red stared. For a moment, the only sound was the evil ticking of the tall grandfather clock, the echo of the king's yell, and the thudding of Red's heart, his blood in his ears. Then he spoke.
"That kind of thinking…that's just twisted," he snarled. "You don't care how many people you have to kill in cold blood. Even if it's your own people. Kanto is supposed to be the Kingdom of Life, where people can prosper safely under a fair monarchy. By doing this sort of thing, you're just turning it into something wrong. You're turning this into the Kingdom of Blood. This is like a game to you, something distant that can't get you hurt. Well I guarantee that one day soon, you're going to have to wake up and see that you're not safe, sitting on your throne and playing God."
He turned, and walked away before he let his father, or himself, say another word.
Red had locked himself away in his quarters for the whole afternoon, and as the day grew dark, Yellow became rather apprehensive for him, as well as the constant worry churning within her over her poor young sister. She wondered over and over as she absentmindedly swept the palace halls what Red was thinking about. Whether it was the most intricate rhetorical theories or even just the burgundy colour of the heavy velvet curtains.
The princess of Johto snapped her from her thoughts at one point. Yellow hastily curtseyed in her presence as Crystal asked, "Yellow, is something on your mind? You look rather lost in thought."
"Only concerned. About my sister, who has been injured, as well as His Highness, who seems rather upset," Yellow answered, then turned rosy. "N-not that I have considered the latter very much; I am sure there is an explanation I need not be anxious about."
Crystal smiled. "I think you should go find Red and see if he's okay." With that, she strode away, musing to herself, Yellow must love him dearly to be so caring even at a time like this.
When the hall she had been listlessly brushing up for an uncountable amount of time had become vacant, Yellow set her broom aside and began making her way towards the prince. With every step she ran laps; what if he didn't want to see her, what if she was interrupting him from something, or what if he had just fallen asleep, or maybe he was doing his tedious studies and did want company, oh but if he were doing his studies he may not want to be interrupted…
Somehow that got her to be before his door. Tentatively, she knocked. For a moment she wondered whether he heard her, but then she heard his voice question, "Who's there?"
"I-it's Yellow, Your Highness," she sputtered. Again, she circled that endless, questioning track, wondering if she should just turn on her heels and flee, before she heard Red's voice again.
"Come in."
Hesitantly, she stepped within the threshold and made sure the door didn't slam; a nervous habit of hers. Red was sitting at his desk—so he had been studying—wearing what appeared to be a wry smile. That made Yellow slightly nervous for some reason.
"I-I was just wondering if you were alright, since you've been up here for so long…" Her timid voice was surprisingly loud against the silence of the room.
"I'm just fine," Red replied. His smile was replaced with a sigh. Yellow busied herself by lighting a few more of the oil lanterns.
"You really shouldn't work in this lighting, it'll damage your eyes, and how many young nobles with poor vision do you really come across these days…"
"You really are the only one who cares about me."
Yellow stopped short and put down the lantern. Red was looking down at his desk, not at her. "How could you ever think that?" Yellow questioned. "I mean, of course I am concerned about you, but no one in the entire region would hesitate to assist you. If anything, you're the most cared for."
Red shook his head, laughing bitterly. "That isn't true. They only would bother with me because I'm the prince. That's the only reason anyone bothers with me. I don't know anyone out of the castle who isn't an official. My father wouldn't even search for me if I disappeared, unless it inconvenienced him."
"How could you think like that? All that your father does is for you," Yellow tried to get through to him.
Red scoffed. "All he does is for the region. I suppose that's good enough; all I'll ever be is the prince, and then the king, and then I'll just be another name in a history book."
The words hit Yellow hard. Red wasn't like that; he wasn't just some bratty prince who was being disciplined to become king. He was so much more. He was the boy who walked through the grounds and praised the planters, the boy who smiled at her over his book when she passed him in the library, the boy who saved her from the streets of Viridian City. He could be a peasant and she wouldn't be able to think of him any differently.
If only she could somehow put all that into words. But he beat her to it, still not meeting her eyes.
"I just…I'm not sure how I'm supposed to do all of this. All the kings and queens before me have done this. They've taken power during wars, they've married according to what is best for the nation, they've won and lost battles, they've solved political problems…but how am I supposed to do that? I feel like I couldn't do anything that they could. I could never make a necessary decision like my father could, even though his decision was horrid. I'm not fit to be king, but I don't know how I can be anything else. I don't belong anywhere, and I don't have anyone who can tell me what I'm supposed to do. I mean, here I am complaining to a girl who does not even know the fate of her own sister. I am pathetic. There's a mountain on my shoulders. I wish I could be away from the chaos, but when I'm alone everything comes down on me and I can't breathe. I just have no idea what to do."
He held his face in his hands, and Yellow didn't want to see what was behind his fingers. Where was the smiling prince she had come to know? All the time she had spent with him, she didn't know how well his façade could be. She didn't realize how lonely he really was. She probably should have, but she hadn't.
She kneeled on the ground in front of his chair. It was easier that way, looking up at him. It was easier for him to be so high above her.
"Y-your Highness…" She wanted to reach out for him, but didn't know how to. "Don't ever think that way. All the royals in the past have gone through the same feelings as you have. I know you'll be alright. With the alliance to Johto, we'll be the most powerful and most organized force. Hoenn will have to side with us, and then we can win the war. I know you'll be the best king Kanto will ever have! I know it! So why don't you?"
Red slipped from his chair and kneeled on the floor before her, still not looking up. He leaned his head on her shoulder. "You're my best friend, Yellow."
Yellow's eyes were the size of an owl's. When she felt the fabric of her sleeve get damp, she found the courage to wrap her arms around Red. "You're going to be fine…we'll be able to figure this out. I know we will. It's hard now, but someday…someday things will resolve. Someday…"
She left her hidden worries unspoken, but they still echoed through the back of her mind like a chorale of lost thoughts. What if that all comes true? He will regardless move on…but what if he forgets about me? He says I am his best friend…but that's only because I'm the one that's here. That's only now, and he might change. Then I'll…she didn't know how to finish her thoughts. She didn't know what she would do. How she would face the cold, harsh world without a bright smile in the back of her mind guiding her along, knowing that she could return to it. She didn't know what the future would bright either. All I have is now.
"You're my best friend too," she echoed, not quite sure if he heard her.
Crystal had not been expecting to be asked to a council meeting, but she supposed she would have to start going at some point if she was going to be queen one day. She took her seat next to Red, fully expecting the meeting to be about the recent attack on Unova. To her surprise, that was not even mentioned.
"It will be a fair celebrating the old traditions and arts of the past," the councilmember in charge of commoners' affairs said excitedly. "We in the commoners' affairs department are discussing a name. We've proposed perhaps calling it a 'Renaissance Fair' in the name of the old time era…but, we've mostly decided against such a silly name."
The man sitting beside him turned to Red and Crystal. "Prince and Princess, we must know of your opinions."
Red looked hard-faced and stony still, so Crystal quickly piped up, "I think it is a marvelous idea. In fact, I believe it would be even more extraordinary if we royals made an appearance in town, to greet commoners and gain political support and such." King Corvus sent her a glance and she stared challengingly back. She had made a promise to herself to not be frightened by powerful people. To not be changed by them.
King Corvus turned his gaze from her and she let out a breath. "Yes, well, this fair does indeed sound rather entertaining, but the timing appears very poor," he addressed the two councilmen. "After all, the attack just happened so people might misinterpret, and what with the holiday coming up and the wedding, too much will be going on."
The men around the table continued on debating, but Red leaned over and muttered to Crystal, "He says it so flippantly. He calls it an 'attack'. It was murder. What he did was murder."
Crystal did not even want to have to think about it. "I know, Red. I know." One thing that Crystal also knew was that a wedge had formed between the king and his son. And I'm going to be marrying into this family, she thought in dismay.
A/N:
Etto...the girls getting shoved up onstage...Damien, if you're reading this...Oak Tree...and that is all that I will say...
Hey look guys! I got a chapter out on time~! Oh and with Roxie...see, it's the same thing as with Shantal; I gave her a similar position as to the one she holds in the games. I use lots of random game characters...you'll see. They're all in my crazy ploys. But yes, while their positions may not have been possible in a time like this in our world, this is an AU of some nonexistant mystical land.
Okay, the chapter title doesn't make sense. What else is new? It's named so because Cryssy gained a laugh; she got to be happy and play the music and that whole nonsense ended well. Right? Right. They lost two lives, Green and Belle (no, Green didn't literally die, you guys, but he still was "lost" because he left) And wait...wait...HOW LONG IS THIS CHAPTER?! I guess I just wanted to squish all of the useless parts in the beginning, but because that wasn't enough I put in an actual plot advance (for once) but whoa...
And I wrote in the things about the fog and the pea-souper, because in London, the fog used to get so thick sometimes that people would accidentally walk into the Thames! That's bonkers. And the fog was so thick and green-coloured that they called it a pea-souper. I dunno why. Must've been some strange blokes who came up with that. But I felt the need to put that in...for some reason. I guess because viridian is a shade of green?
And I had a little too much fun with Vy's OC, Aries ^-^ I just loved that kid in the story Teardrops in the Sea (EVERYONE MUST GO READ IT, IT'S BEAUTIFUL AND UNDERAPPRECIATED.) And so yes, she had to appear. If anyone knows who she actually is...don't spoil it. You'll find out in like two chapters so just hold it in. Jeez.
Rant over! Thank you for reading!
-Silvia