Sorry for the late update. The Scholastics contest for art is coming up so I have been rushing to finish two paintings. Thank you to those who have reviewed. I hope to hear more from my readers.
To those in the US, I hope you have a fun Thanksgiving break.
Finally, Kuroko no Basuke belongs to Tadatoshi Fujimaki.
Chapter 4: Caution
"Are you alright, Princess Kuroko?" Kagami asked as seriously as he could while Kuroko rubbed her sore arms, but Kuroko still heard the amusement in his voice.
"I will be fine." Kuroko inwardly winced as she answered, "Once I can feel my body."
Kagami cringed as he continued to watch the Princess with pity, mentally jotting down a note to remind himself not to ever anger Riko. Aside from her cooking skills, her strength is probably the scariest aspect about her. Not that he would ever say that to her face unless he has a death wish.
Kuroko wondered for a brief moment if Riko's punishment can be considered illegal to do to a princess, as she can still feel the pain even though it's been a day already, but quickly dismissed the idea as the training she went through with Kagami was probably worse. She could only sigh in defeat, willing her body to stop aching as she rested on her bed. Kuroko finally escaped Murasakibara when the childish prince decided he was bored and left, only to meet up with a very angry and terrifying Riko smiling sweetly at her. She did not have enough time to activate her misdirection as Riko pounced on her, bending her body in an unnatural angle. When Riko finally calmed down, she apologized for going overboard but stated that it was her fault for disappearing and causing everyone to worry. Unable to move, Kuroko could only listen to Riko's ranting until Kagami finally took pity on her and had the soldiers coax Riko to leave.
She continued her mumbling even as she walked away.
"So, how is this place so far, Princess Kuroko?" Kagami's questioned.
Kuroko considered her experiences, tilting her head slightly in concentration, before she replied, "It's nice, so far. I found the library, bigger than ours, mind you, and the people are nice." Well, she only met two people. "One of them introduced himself as the Prince of Yosen." She added the last part after another moment of hesitation.
Kagami blinked in surprise and cried out, "Yosen!?"
Kuroko stared confusedly at Kagami, wondering why he had such a reaction and slowly answered, "Yes, the Prince of Yosen. Why do you appear so surprised, Kagami-kun?"
"N-no reason." Kagami hastily said.
Kuroko stared at Kagami suspiciously for a while, causing him to twitch nervously, before she decided to drop the subject by stating, "I would like to rest now, Kagami-kun, you may leave."
Kagami bowed, sighing in relief, and started to back out of the room when Riko came running into the room and shouted, "Princess Kuroko! Prince Akashi had sent a servant to announce that he is on his way over to meet you, right now!"
Kuroko blinked in surprise while Kagami gaped, "Eh?"
Akashi dropped the last document down in the pile with great satisfaction. Finally, he finished the ridiculous amount of useless papers from those councilmen who must have been bored. Maybe he should give them more work so they wouldn't bother him with their complaints anymore or he just might lose his patience.
Having completed his work for the day, he wondered what he should do now. Thinking back to the conversation he had yesterday with Midorima, he smirked. Perhaps he should pay the Seirin Princess a visit today.
"Chihiro," Akashi called out, waiting for Mayuzumi to come in and bow before continuing, "prepare for a trip to visit the Seirin Princess. Inform Daiki, Ryouta, Shintaro, and Atsushi to come as well."
"I shall see to it immediately, my Prince." Mayuzumi answered before hurrying off to prepare.
Akashi stood up after Mayuzumi left, walking over to the cabinet and taking out one of his shogi set. He calmly placed the pieces in their places, with the king being the last piece to be placed on the board. Sitting down in his chair, he moved the first piece. By the time Mayuzumi came back, finished with his tasks, Akashi would have finished game.
Kuroko watched as everyone appeared to go into panic mood, rushing around to tidy and prepare Kuroko. She turned to ask Riko, who has been fussing with her hair for the past ten minutes, exactly why everyone appeared so tense. Riko stared at her after the question fell from her lips, as though she was an alien object, before replying, disbelief evident in her voice, "Princess, you saw how frightening the Rakuzan Prince is the first day and I'm sure you have heard the rumors. What do you think he would do if we displease him by not being prepared? None of us wants to take chances, Princess Kuroko."
"Ha…" Kuroko trailed off as she thought back to the introduction. Sure, he gave off an intimidating aurora but Kuroko did not feel like he wanted to frighten her. Rather, it felt like he was testing her, as though trying to fit pieces of some sort of puzzle together. This confused Kuroko, as he appeared to have been able to read her easily at the same time.
"Alright, I'm finished." Riko's declaration brought Kuroko out from her musing. Taking a look in the mirror, Kuroko felt like Riko had overdid herself this time. She did not place too much upon her, but simply brought out her pleasant features more. It was simple, to Kuroko's delight, yet elegant, fitting of her status.
"Just in time," a voice rang from the door, causing both girls to turn and look at their intruder.
Kagami looked a bit embarrassed at having barged in on the two females, and Riko's disapproving look did not help his case, so he gave a small cough and, using his 'formal' tone, said, "The Prince of Rakuzan has arrived, Princess Kuroko."
Kuroko closed her eyes, reigning in her emotions before reopening them and stood up. Both Kagami and Riko could only bow with a bit of awe on their features and Kuroko ordered, "Then I shall greet him immediately. Kagami, Riko, come."
As the two main servants got in line, Kagami couldn't help but question Riko quietly, "Had she always had this... powerful side to her?"
Riko quickly whispered her answer, "She told me once when she first started this pattern that she learned to develop two characters. The gentle one for friends and family; and one she shows to the public. I'm sure even an idiot like you can figure out which one she's using right now."
Kuroko made no indication she heard their conversation, even as Kagami gave a loud, "Hey, I'm not an idio-!" before Riko clamped her hand over his mouth and giving him a deadly glare. They easily maneuvered their way to the tea room, where two servants bowed and slid the doors open.
Kuroko took a step in and blinked in surprise for, ahead of her, sat Akashi, Murasakibara, and the three others she saw yesterday.
Akashi felt amused as he watched the other princes stare at the princess who returned their gaze likewise. Finally the Princess realized her rude staring and quickly gave her elegant bow and greeted, "It's a pleasure of mine that you have come to visit, Prince Akashi, Prince Murasakibara, and…" She hesitated, unsure of how to address the rest.
Midorima, understanding her hesitance, unlike the other two beside him, and introduced himself first.
"Midorima Shintaro, Prince of Shutoku." He stated, giving a small bow as a greeting. Turning to look at the two idiots, he gave a pointed glare.
Luckily, the two got Midorima's message and gave a quick glance at each other before the yellow followed Midorima's example and said, "Kise Ryota, Prince of Kaijo. A pleasure to meet you, Princess!"
Kuroko felt a bit awkward with the Kaijo Prince's greeting, as the rest in the room were so quiet you can hear a pin drop if one did. She did give a small nod of acknowledgement, not wanting to be rude before turning to look at the last of the group.
The dark-blue haired boy turned his gaze to her as well, and, for some reason, Kuroko suddenly felt an urge to call him 'Kagami-kun'. His deep voice rumbled through the room as he grumbled, "Aomine Daiki, Prince of Touou."
Noticing that it was her turn, Kuroko gave a curtsey and said, "Kuroko Tetsuya, Princess of Seirin. Tis a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
After she finished her introduction and prepared to sit, Akashi indicated for her to stop and commented lightly, "What fine weather we have, let's talk outside, shall we?"
"Yes, that would be nice." Midorima agreed. The other princes mumbled and nodded their approval as well, standing up from their seats. Akashi turned to Kuroko and tilted his head, as though asking for her approval. It irked Kuroko that he would do that, for he had placed her in a position that causes her to be unable to refuse, and he knows it too judging from the glint in his eyes.
Forcing herself to remain calm, Kuroko said, "Of course." Turning to look at Riko, she gave a small nod, signaling to her that she should go prepare for the outing. Riko bowed in response to show her understanding, hurrying off to inform the other servants.
Kuroko turned back to the rest of the group, turning her body to direct toward the door, and offered, "Shall we?"
Akashi gave a polite smile and replied, "Of course."
To say that Kise Ryota is impressed would be an understatement. Since the six of them had headed out into the garden, Akashi had never took his eyes off of the Seirin Princess as he conversed with her quietly so that none of the others can hear much of what they were saying. When Akashi focuses his attention on someone, said person usually would have squirmed and started sweating in fear. Even the others and he have a hard time keeping their composure whenever Akashi watched them. The Seirin Princess, weak as she looks, didn't bat an eye to the attention, let alone squirm or flinch.
Taking a closer look, Prince Kise noted her pale and smooth skin, mostly hidden by the kimono she wore. Her face held only a light amount of cosmetics that work to increase her natural beauty. Her hair trailed behind her, tied together by a large ribbon, gently swaying as she walked. Kise can say that she was beautiful in appearance, but it was not her appearance that would have caused people to look at her.
The posture of her body truly showed her status as a princess. Her back was completely straight, shoulders held back, and head tilted up, creating a proud and powerful image. Her eyes appeared cold and emotionless, but Kise saw flickers of light within them once in a while, too quick to be deciphered by him. One emotion he did decipher, though, for it never left her eyes, and that was a spark of stubbornness.
He felt that Akashi had chosen well, not that he ever made a bad choice as far as Kise knows. She was someone who was most similar to Akashi, yet the most different from him as well. Even with her cold appearance, she gave off a feeling of kindness and warmth, unlike Akashi who can literary kill with a glance.
Kise felt that she would make a good empress, even if she ruled by herself.
"Prince Kise?" a soft voice rang out in front of him, snapping him out of his thoughts. Looking up, he stared straight into the eyes of the Seirin Princess. He subconsciously noted her long eyelashes and pink lips, glistened with a thin layer of balm to keep it moist. Her eyes like the endless blue sky above them.
"Prince Kise, are you alright?" Kuroko inquired once more, a bit more worried.
"Eh?" the Kaijo Prince appeared confused, as though he didn't understand her, blinking a bit to clear his mind. When her question registered in his brain, he gave a sheepish grin and responded, "Sorry, I was caught up in my thoughts! Don't worry, I'm fine."
Midorima's small mumble of, "He's just an idiot. Don't worry about him," didn't register in Kise's mind at all as the Seirin Princess has yet to turn away from him. From the corner of his eyes, he caught the warning glare from Akashi, reminding him that he had overstepped his boundary.
The princess appeared to have realized this as well, for she took a few steps back and exclaimed, "I am a bit tired. Do you mind if we sit for a moment and have tea?"
None of the princes disagreed, so the servants prepared the small canopy nearby for the royalties. The six sat quietly, even Aomine and Kise, until Kuroko finally placed her cup down and turned to Midorima and said, "Thank you for helping me yesterday in the library."
Midorima pushed his glasses up a bit, and denied, "It was nothing. Anyone would have helped you had they been there."
A ghost of a smile graced upon her lips, and all of them couldn't help but notice how it brightened her presence, giving her an ethereal glow. Kise briefly wondered how she would look if she really smiled.
The clack of a cup being placed down caused them to stop their staring and turn to look at Akashi. He gently dabbed at his mouth with the handkerchief placed next to his now empty cup. Placing the handkerchief down again, Akashi addressed Kuroko, "Thank you for your time. We shall be leaving now."
Standing up, he gave a pointed look at the others, and each hastily excused themselves as well. Kuroko could only bid them farewell as they all hurried off. Akashi watched them leave before walking over to Kuroko. She froze as he bent down to her right ear, much closer than would be appropriate. While his warm breath caused her ear to burn, the words he whispered sent chills through her soul.
Standing back up Akashi bid Kuroko farewell and left. Once the Prince was gone, Riko and Kagami quickly walked up to Kuroko worriedly, asking for what had happened.
"You're right, Riko-san." Kuroko finally responded to Riko after much inquiry. Walking back into the pavilion, leaving her two closest servant even more confused than before.
Once inside her room, Kuroko sank down onto her seat, taking deep breaths to calm herself. His words still rang in her ear, the tone much more deadly than when they conversed before she turned her attention to the Kaijo Prince.
"A small reminder. You need me, but I do not need you. Do keep that in mind before letting your eyes wander."