Okage Hearts

Chapter 13

Sorry for it being a few days late. I still don't own Okage or Kingdom Hearts. I've forgotten the flower's name. Hopefully, that's the right one. If not, someone tell me in your review.

Ari woke to the nearly nonexistent sound of someone trying to sneak down the stairs. This was definitely not the way he wanted to start his evening, which he planned on being uneventful and filled with sleep, but now he had to deal with this issue that had arisen. Summoning his Keyblade, Ari silently crept towards the stairs. While he highly doubted there was an intruder in the house, he wanted to make sure of that belief, as it was always better to be safe rather than sorry. Stan was still asleep in his shadow, for which he was grateful, as it meant that the king wouldn't do anything to reveal his presence, nor would he be talking, something that Ari was particularly grateful for.

To the boy's surprise, when he found the intruder at the bottom of the stairs already, rather than it being Rosalyn coming down to argue with Stan, which he had somewhat expected it to be due to what he was certain was some sort of lover's spat he had yet to understand that was going on between the two, it was Princess Marlene standing before him, smiling innocently at him as she said, "Um... Good evening Servant Ari. I'm glad you are awake, actually."

"Why?" he asked, confused as he could be, "What could you need me to do in the middle of the night?"

"I wish to repay your mother for the cooking lessons, Servant Ari," she explained softly, "As such, I want to look for a Moonflower to give to her as repayment for her kindness."

"What does that have to do with me?" Ari asked, though he had a suspicion as to what his evening was going to turn into.

"You're coming with me, of course," Princess Marlene said with a cheerful smile, which reminded Ari of all the times that Julia had made him play her 'secret mission' games with a smile like that. With his mind occupied by his memories, Ari didn't even bother struggling as Princess Marlene led him off, deciding that acquiescence was the better part of valor in this case.

"Where do you two think you're going?" a strong feminine voice asked. Turning, the pair saw Rosalyn standing there, fully equipped and wielding her parasol.

"That is a very good question, Hero Rosalyn," Princess Marlene said in a regal tone, "You are very perceptive to have noticed that we are leaving the house, which is of course and excellent trait in a Hero of your caliber. The answer to your question is... What in the world that could that be?"

The exact instant that Rosalyn instinctively turned around to face whatever it was that was behind her as she drew her sword quicker than the eye could see, Princess Marlene quickly grabbed Ari's hand and rushed out the door, all but dragging him out of the house. Once the two children had stopped running in the forested area, Ari moved so that he was facing the Princess as he asked, "Was that really necessary?"

"Yes," Marlene responded with another one of those smiles, "If we'd have told her, she would have insisted on coming along with us, and I only wanted to have you with me, Servant Ari."

"Why just me?" he inquired, now even more confused. Not many people ever wanted to deal with him in general, and now someone other than Julia wanted to be alone with him?

"Because...umm... I wanted to have my trusted Servant with me, and having a Hero alongside the two us would lead to a lot of conflict with all sorts of ghosts and Heartless," she responded hastily her cheeks looking slightly darker, though that might have been Ari's imagination, "At any rate, when did it become appropriate for a Servant to question their Princess? Now that this matter is settled we must go find that flower, Servant Ari."

It was a long, arduous search, with neither being able to spot the desired flowers. Ari occasionally had to fight off a few ghosts and Heartless, as well as some bizarre forest animals, but the pair had really not had much difficulty come their way aside from those fleeting instances. After a few minutes of this cycle repeating, Marlene finally broke the silence that had been between the two of them and asked, "So, just how much does this Julia mean to you, Servant Ari?"

"She's my best friend," Ari responded honestly, "She's been with me since she noticed that I was being more or less ignored by everyone else in the village. I miss her."

"Ah," the Princess said, not pressing any further.

The pair to fall into another silence until Ari, not used to having anyone around him silent for long asked, "How long has Beiloune looked after you?"

"According to him, he's been around since I was an infant," she responded, "Personally, I don't really remember much, but I think I believe him."

Ari held his tongue at the 'I think.' It wasn't really his business, so he shouldn't question what she says is a fact. It was her life, after all. If she said she believed him, he would have to believe her. As a yet another silence brewed between the two, Marlene's suddenly eyes focused on something directly behind Ari as she cheered, "There it is! We've found it, Servant Ari!"

Turning, Ari saw a group of white flowers that glowed like little stars. As Marlene walked determinedly towards the flowers, he went up to them and began picking them slowly, so as to not damage them. Once they got what Princess Marlene considered a suitable amount, they headed back to Ari's home.

Once they were at the door, which Ari would bet money that Rosalyn was currently standing directly behind, Marlene turned to face him.

"Thank you for helping me Ari," she said gently before giving him a peck on the cheek. Upon giving him the kiss, Marlene quickly opened the door and rushed back to Annie's room with a serene smile on her face.