CHAPTER 12
A/N – Hello everyone! I've got to say I'm endlessly grateful for all your feedback and praise and I still update once every million years (because I'm an old fart… so what could you expect?) But seriously, from now on I promise to try and update more often, like once a week maybe. That being said, this chapter will be once more about one main character only – namely Kid. Enjoy!
"What horrid slums those were, I've never seen anything like it, Master," Chrona said, busying himself with setting the plates for dinner. "I had to draw Ragnarok or the stray dogs would have eaten me. It's baffling how an Emerald could have dumped even an illegitimate child in a place like that"
"It is without a doubt then?" Kid asked thoughtfully. He knew he should have paid more attention to what was going on, focus more, except that the task at hand suddenly seemed terribly complicated and troublesome. Far more than he'd expected. He didn't want anything to do with the Emerald girl. She wasn't like the prince, or the others, the young shinigami did not think he would have the strength to manipulate her. Not that she could not be easily manipulated, she appeared to be quite naïve, but the thought was simply too repulsive.
The pink haired servant shook his head. "Not without a doubt but… I could only find her so-called father – a drunkard buried in debt and the very reason she has ended up in this situation. He is not her natural father, nor his currently missing wife the natural mother. They found the girl on their doorstep one morning when she was but a tiny baby. No note was left with her, no silk wraps with golden coins in it, no nothing. Whoever left her did not care much for her fate…" The magic child sighed, stabbing the scarce meat with his fork randomly. "Unless Master Eibon knew about this girl all along. He knew she'd been dumped in the Citadel and… but then why not find her himself? There must be a plot behind this which currently eludes us…"
"I have no desire to know of whatever shit is happening in the great Emerald family, Chrona," the reaper said dryly and with a hint of anger. "Our business is solely to do what we're told. I don't care about this girl! I don't care why she was dumped or why Eibon did not find her himself or what the hell is going on! I'm not my father, I won't be impressed about our Master's affairs! You won't hear me say 'Oh, poor master Eibon is troubled, poor him!'! He is forcing us to serve him, for fuck's sake!"
The other boy glanced up from his plate with a knowing look and sighed again. "Alright… what is the matter?"
"Actually… I kissed her on the cheek and it was the most awkward moment of my entire life. The Emerald brat I mean…" Kid confessed reluctantly, not returning his servant's gaze.
"Certainly awkward," Chrona agreed. "And boring. On the cheek? Oh Master, this is the Citadel! People here don't waste their time with kisses on the cheek! I mean… it's just not… seductive. It's simply not-"
"Okay, okay, I get it. I fucked up. But you said that I'm a shinigami and I'm oh-so-beautiful and that I don't have to do anything to be liked. According to your little theory, she should already be smitten with me, despite my lack of amorous skills, don't you think?" the reaper replied a bit defensively.
Chrona blushed a bit, yet could not help a soft chuckle. "Of course, I do not doubt she's smitten with you, Master…"
The young shinigami blinked repeatedly, frowning in irritation, then rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Just let Master Eibon know of this development. Maybe he'd be willing to take this matter in his own hands after all"
To say that Kid felt constantly on the edge now around his charge was an understatement. Black Star had not mentioned anything else about Asura and his peculiar pursuits of gaining influence other than that he'd (forcibly) tried to kiss the prince, but the reaper could feel a certain tension and besides, he feared that the prince might bring up the subject again. It had all been the result of Kylee's plan to keep the Star heir under control - there was no doubt about it because Asura hated the prince otherwise - but Kid genuinely thought it was a stupid idea to try and obtain influence over Black Star by getting one of his shinigamis in his bed. Such power could only come from some sort of affection, some sort of emotional weakness, and it was all the more ridiculous - it wasn't like the prince would fall in love with any of them.
Or maybe he thinks it is possible… he really thinks that. After all, what does he know of humans, of relationships, of love? What could he know? He must have some very rudimentary notions – having lived all his life at the Temple and bound by very strict laws – and they must derive as much from lack of information as they do from his utter disdain when it comes to humans…
Indeed, Kid reckoned, he could tell all this because he was different. Maybe it was because he and his father were half-breeds that Lord Death had taken in two human children – three with Chrona – and had always shown them a genuine affection. Not something Gur Kylee would have done, for sure. No, these people were all without a heart but with a clear agenda – just like the Great Wizard Eibon -and even if Kid could not say that he feared them, nevertheless he loathed them profoundly.
"There, the mage of our House has created another magic monster," Black Star said casually, pointing towards the Arena, which was yet to see the first match of the day. "He will make his debut shortly and I really hope he's better than the last one, or else I'll be really bored. And embarrassed"
The young shinigami flinched, his gaze fixing upon the white sand. The mention of Star's last magic monster had brought his thoughts back to the Emerald girl – he hoped she was in good health or at least still alive – and feared the prince might mention her. It had been some terrible adventure to sneak out of the Temple in the middle of the night to go and see her, and it could have ended very badly. No, Kid tried to reassure himself, Black Star did not care about the slave girl, he'd probably forgotten her entirely and there was no way he could guess that Kid had visited her in the dead of night supposedly on his orders, just to make sure her wound was taken care of.
"Oh, this is so tedious!" the prince whined, after a long while – much to Kid's relief – he'd been paying his guard no attention. "Why must I watch this bullshit, day after day after day? It's a terrible waste of time, this princely job of mine. I wish that for once, instead of sitting here and smiling stupidly for the crowd's pleasure, I did something...hm..."
"Something like what, Milord?" Kid asked, out of politeness.
"I don't know... something absolutely outrageous, for example."
The young reaper did not need to see his master's grin to intuit it and he almost panicked. The prince seemed to bring up things apparently randomly, but in fact he was very calculated. Whether he was really trying to push any buttons or not, Black Star always had a reason for saying the things he did.
"Have you ever thought about doing anything outrageous, Kid?" the blue haired boy asked in reply to his guard's awkward silence.
Kid's stomach cringed in horror and he couldn't breathe all the sudden. Maybe the prince had discovered everything? His hands fisted helplessly in the fabric of his cloak - he really ought not to crap out right now! But what if Black Star knew and he was beyond screwed in this very moment?
"Well, you see Milord, if you did something outrageous, no doubt everyone would talk and gossip, but if I did something outrageous, the Clowns would eat me. Considering that, no, I can't say I have"
Black Star only sighed. "You are right, but still... how very disappointing," he observed. "It means you would not have the guts to take off your mask right now, in the open, and kiss me on the mouth"
"That would hardly be outrageous as far as I am concerned, Milord," Kid replied dryly, despite his bewilderment at the suggestion. "Like Asura has pointed on one occasion, I am not required to wear the mask in public, I just do it not to inconvenience anyone. And you are a man"
"Ah! So you would do it?" Black Star said, both amused and thrilled at the idea (for some unknown reason).
"No"
The blue haired prince nodded slowly, pursing his mouth in a funny way. "Just... 'no'. No other explanation then... Or perhaps you wouldn't say out loud that you don't like me that way"
"You are my master, I would never consider liking you in any way," Kid replied, staring stubbornly in his own lap."It is simply inappropriate, how could I ever dare? And you are married"
Black Star laughed softly, biting on his lower lip. "I see. You are right, of course. Glad to see you care about my wife's feelings too," he chuckled. "And it's not like I don't too, it's just... she is so meek and gentle and... she would never do anything special either"
Well that's why she was chosen to be your wife, for that very reason...duh. So Kid had been right to think that the prince was bored with his wife, but that wasn't any of his business. He couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for her – just like him, Lady Tsubaki must have been taught obedience all her life and it was unfair for her to be accused of the very thing and suffer her husband's indifference.
"You see, Kid, my family has had the same motto for centuries, and these words have endured in the back of my mind ever since I was a small child – I am the one who will surpass the Gods. It sounds glorious, it sounds... powerful, unattainable, it sounds right," the prince said, his words calm but suddenly dead serious. "But how can I be the one who will surpass the Gods, when someone like Asura dares call me a mere bug the mighty Ourouboros could choose to crush anytime he wanted? How can I be the one who will surpass the Gods, when I am a puppet on strings, meant to be mocked even by some low-life half-breed such as that one?"
The young shinigami froze. So that was it, really. Black Star had spoken clearly now, without anymore subtleties, of the hidden animosity between the Ourouboros and the Star dynasty. And he had openly demanded to know where his loyalties lay. It was a bit of an absurd question if he thought of it – after all Kid was a shinigami, where could his loyalty lie but with the master of all shinigamis, namely the Ourouboros? Maybe Black Star suspected he was different? Or maybe it was a trap altogether. Kid did not trust the prince, not in the least.
"Milord, I am sure the High Priest has no ill intentions towards you," he said cautiously, "but like I said, the bastard Asura is envious of anyone with a higher status than himself and will seek to cause you chagrin. However, him being so open about his views at last might have been for the best as far as your own desires are concerned. Perhaps... something could finally be done about him being here..."
The blue haired boy's gaze remained fixed on the show in front of him and he sat unmoved, but he had clearly perked up at the reaper's words. "Well then," he murmured as if to himself, "Let's hope that you are right..."
Kid had known he was walking on very, very thin ice when he had gone to Gur Kylee the previous day and had presented him with the 'pressing problem'. He might have been an adept liar, but his confidence in his own abilities was not limitless. He'd been genuinely terrified, just as he'd told the fat priest of the supposed threat the prince had made to throw him out of his service and accept no other shinigami as his guard following Asura's insult.
Fortunately for him, Gur Kylee – albeit fuming and seemingly ready to tear him to shreds for making such accusations against his ward – had confronted Asura, who in turn had not bothered to deny that he had offended the 'pathetic offspring of low-life assassins" who was currently called a prince. But Asura's calculations – if he had indeed counted on his protector's affections to tolerate his defiant behaviour– had proven wrong. Kylee was the Ourouboros' loyal servant and his master's agenda was above the wellbeing of his ward, especially after said ward had betrayed and endangered everything he had worked for, endangered to disturb the fragile but crucial relationship between the High Priest and the ruling dynasty.
And so it had been decided that Asura be sent into exile that very night, never to return to the capital. As far as Kid was concerned, it was undoubtedly a victory – as Kylee's ward was dangerous and had kept a vigilant eye on him and Chrona – therefore it was safer with him gone. Yet the young shinigami was worried, there was a feeling of unsettlement which refused to leave him, even now as he waited for the prince in the same room where he'd first met him, by the solitary bronze statue of Anubis.
Drawing a deep breath, Kid took off his white skull mask and let it fall on the floor with a clatter, not caring anymore whether it cracked or broke, and slid the black cloak off his shoulders, dropping it into a messy pile. His arm rested casually against the jackal's side as he ran his fingers absentmindedly over the smooth bronze, eyeing the door.
There it was, the usual mischievous smile upon the Star boy's face as he walked into the room, even more so this time, as well as some unreadable gleam in his turquoise eyes.
"I underestimated you, Death the Kid," Black Star said. "You did it, you actually did it. Oh well, it's like breathing a new air, is it not?" he observed, sauntering closer and closer while his grin widened. "Or is it more like... playing a new game?"
Something felt suddenly constricted inside Kid, like some unknown dread, but he still managed to mirror the prince's expression to some extent, refusing to let any of his true thoughts be read by the other.
"I don't know, is it?"
The prince tsked softly, his amusement now evident. "I think you do." Saying that, he reached out and his slender fingers grabbed the hem of the shinigami's slacks, pulling him closer before he pressed his lips against the other boy's.
To be continued