Chapter Twenty-Four

Emerald

His head was throbbing still as he woke. It was at least an hour yet before sunrise, but he could not fall back asleep. Only two hours today. Even less than yesterday. Bacchus reflected as he rubbed at his face and sat up. Moving to the edge of his bed and drawing aside the curtain, he grumbled and sighed, wondering if he should ready himself for the arrival of the princesses.

Or see Cana off. He considered the notion, but stayed with the decision he made the night before to refrain from seeing her. She'd probably be able to convince me to leave with her. Bacchus chuckled at the thought of how easily the card mage was able to talk him into doing something he didn't want to. Then again, it's not as if… He shook his head of the idea, resolving that he was soon to be an engaged and married man and that he already couldn't love any one other than Mei regardless.

He rose and walked over to the water basin, looking at himself in the mirror. Cana wasn't wrong, he quickly observed. The bags under his eyes were swollen and darkening, his cheeks had sunken in some more, making his features gaunt and almost ghostly. To add to the drastic way his facial features had changed, by the way of his noticeably constant fatigue and the loose way his clothes were beginning to fit, he knew he'd also lost some of his muscle mass in the process of the past week of living in the palace. He'd tried to keep up his daily routine, but found that he was hardly able to complete more than two-thirds of it. Suspicions went directly to the magic suppressant jewelry he was still being forced to wear, but in reality, he knew they were only a small part of the whole reason as to why he lacked his usual energy. Images of blood and her broken face spun around him briefly before he shook his head and blinked them away.

His nightmares had been increasingly frequent since the night he was, enlightened, to the point of affecting him even while he was awake. He'd somehow managed to become more sleepless than he had been before embarking on his return to Yi Kai. Bitterly he frowned at himself in the mirror and went about his usual activities, trying once more to complete as much of his routine as he could.

His food came at its precise time and just as he finished most of his exercises, though he found that he had little appetite despite his activity. The serving girl asked if there was anything he wished for her to bring instead when he told her to take the food away after he had a few bites. But Bacchus shook his head and ordered it to be given to anyone else who was hungry.

"You don't have to do this alone." Cana's voice called as if she were there in the room with him as she was the night before. Part of him had wanted to make an offer to stay with him in the palace, even if it were for only a little longer, but she was already at a great enough risk still being in the palace as the two princesses returned. Though he knew little about them, he knew neither of them wouldn't dare risk their chances of becoming empress. He had however realized he couldn't count on his new authority as his only shield. After his hopes that the Fairy Tail mage would have been long gone by the time of their arrival being somehow ignored, he became anxious. Truthfully, he still believed it to be Qi Peng's responsibility for not passing along the message and getting her out sooner, but the smiling man insisted that he had given the order for her departure when Bacchus had requested it.

Something is not right about all of this. He sat at the table contemplating what he was missing as far as the unspoken desire of the empress to keep Cana from returning to Fiore. It was clear enough that he was willing to stay and that he wanted her to go, so the need for her as a hostage to keep him in the kingdom could not be questioned. They could be taking extra precautions to truly make sure that I won't change my mind. He absently traced his finger over the painted designs on the table. Or they want me to execute her to prove my loyalty. It surprised him how easily the idea came to him, but he doubted the likelihood of the latter, knowing that none of them would be willing to test him to such extent without knowing how terribly that would backfire on them. Even here Fairy Tail has a reputation. He snorted at the memory of their extraordinary performance at the Grand Magic Games. If there ever were a guild to be wary of, it would have had to be hers.

What then? His head pounded harder, making it more difficult to maintain his train of thought. He glanced out of the large window of his room out at the wall that hid the garden. From what he recalled it was at least thrice as large as the one kept at his former school and had a large pond full of floating flowers and greens and golden fish in it, making for a most serene and calming vision. Bacchus remembered how often he would sit by it the few times he was allowed a rare free day. It was usually when the royal family would attend a festival or need to make an appearance somewhere in the kingdom that he had the chance to escape his typical responsibilities and enjoy himself. The memory of how quiet it would be and how much he loved the sounds of the water lightly rippling whenever the fish would pop up to snatch a lazy bug or when the birds would wad through and pick at the small greens floating on the surface came back to him easily. He would fall asleep in the shade of the trees that loomed near the pond's edge and wake up as the sun set during those few days. During the summer, when the nights were cooled and just right, he would sit outside and look up at the stars in the sky in awe of them until the sun came back up. Even if he could hardly keep his eyes open the next day as he worked, he always felt those times were worth the scolding and exhaustion. Qi Peng would even join him from time to time. They'd share a sweet fruit that one of them managed to sneak from the kitchens and talk about what they would do if they ever managed to escape the palace.

A sudden overwhelming desire to visit the pond consumed him at that moment and so he stood from the table and dressed quickly, slipping on a plain gray tunic with black and light blue trim. He tied back only the upper half of his hair, leaving the rest to fall over his neck. It had grown, likely hardly noticeably to others, but he knew by the way it brushed against his neck and back that there was more weight to it as well, making him certain that it was yet another factor to his constant headaches.

Bacchus made his way out to the garden without any disturbance and went directly to another place he had thought would never see again. A carved gray stone bench had been put beside the trees where he would sit. With a thankful sigh, he sat and leaned back against the tree, which had grown a significant amount, behind him. The air was fresh from the early morning hour and mixed with the fine mist that was quickly disappearing by the light of the rising sun.

For the first time since he had come to the palace, he could feel a sense of peace and the heavy blanket of sleep comfortably covering his whole body. Though he wanted to continue looking at the immortal pond, his eyes defied him and became more and more difficult to keep open.

"I want to become a wizard."

"A wizard?" Qi Peng gave him a strange look and wiped the fruit's juice from his face. "Why a wizard?"

"Because then I could be stronger and help people."

The memory resonated in his head as he felt himself slipping closer toward the depths of sleep. A small disturbance suddenly pressed itself all around him before he could, pulling him from his doze. Keeping still he waited, feeling the vast, but maintained and concentrated magic signature advance. The sound small footsteps and dragging fabric came not long after he sensed her presence. Without opening his eyes, he listened as she approached and stopped to stand beside him.

"You are Jian?" She asked him. Her voice was like a lover's sigh; so light and dreamy as if she had just woken from a pleasant sleep.

"I am." He opened his eyes and stared out at the water, waiting for her to make a move or speak again.

Bacchus glanced up at her, surprised to see such a graceful looking woman dressed in a robe of white and green. She was facing out at the water as well and hid the lower part of her face behind a white-feathered fan. "And which princess might you be?" He asked when she said nothing more.

"Lang Fei Shi." She answered, maintaining her posture. There was another breath of silence between them as she looked straight ahead from atop the fan.

"Why have you come to see me Lang Fei Shi? And without an escort no less." He inquired, carefully observing her movements, but she was as still as stone.

"I had wanted to see you for myself and know if my mother had indeed told the truth about your return. Or if this was yet only another one of her foolish ploys to reunite my sister and I."

"Well here I am." He chuckled, leaning back against the tree behind him and tilting his head to look up at her. "What do you think, princess?"

"You are more… substantial, than I expected." She paused with her words, her eyes quickly glancing him up and down.

"And you are lovelier than I had expected." He complimented, mimicking her gesture and checking her out more thoroughly. He stood, blocking her view of the pond and their eyes met. It wasn't hard to notice the way her arm holding the fan slightly stiffened. A sly grin crept onto his lips as he mused to himself.

"You flatter me." She recovered and gently waved her fan, her eyes darting to look away fleetingly. He kept his eyes focused on her, catching her wandering eyes when she looked back at him. They were an unusually beautiful emerald green and large at that, he observed. She didn't look away after a moment, which surprised him. But even with the lower part of her face covered he could easily imagine the flush glowing on her cheeks.

"Shall we walk?" He offered his arm to her to hold. She paused a moment before accepting and slipping her hand into the crook of his arm and walked beside him. They strolled along the side of the pond in the shade of the trees in silence. He could feel her eyes shifting over to look at him every few steps. When he looked down at her, she casually blinked and turned her gaze to look ahead.

"Why do you hide your face from me?" He asked, slowing their pace. "Are we not soon to be engaged?" His voice had a low purr to it, making her noticeably tense again for an instant.

"Am I the one to be your bride then?" Her voice was low and almost muffled by the feathers. He stopped them both, stepping so that he was standing in front of her. Much to his surprise, she leaned in, closing the gap between them and pressing herself lightly against his body.

"Only if your sister refuses me." He moved slowly, placing one of his hands tentatively on the small of her back and holding one of her shoulders in the other.

"Oh? Would you prefer her for your bride?" Fei Shi tilted her head to the side slightly, curiously eyeing him.

"If she would have me." One of his brows quirked as he smiled coyly down at her.

"And if she would not?" Fei Shi asked, her free hand reaching up to caress a finger down his neck exposed.

"Are you so eager to be my bride, Fei Shi?" He pulled her closer against him and squeezed her arm.

The princess seemed amused by his affections and twirled a small lock of his hair in her fingers. Bacchus smirked and kept his eyes focused on hers, leaning closer.

"A handsome and charming husband like you would be exquisite, but the only thing I am eager for is to become the next empress in place of my sister." Fei Shi said, pushing back from him slightly.

"Oh? Speaking of, where is your sister?" He loosened his hold on her and took note of how the question seemed to strike a nerve. She straightened her posture once after pulling herself back even more and the mischief disappeared from her green eyes.

"Zi Yu is expected to appear at dinner tonight." The softness in her voice from before had also returned.

"Are you certain you were not impatient to get to me first?" He grinned slyly at her, pulling her close to him again.

She gently shook her head. "Zi Yu has already arrived. She returned before me." His coyness was replaced by puzzlement as he examined the princess up and down.

"But you said that she would not be arriving until this evening." His brows knotted together as he spoke.

"Your Yikani is rusty. I said she would be appearing this evening for dinner." Fei Shi waved her fan lightly. "It would seem she was more eager to meet with her lover than you."

"I see." Bacchus did not move his eyes from hers.

"Are you unconcerned of her purity?" Fei Shi's tone lowered as she resumed toying with his hair.

Bacchus snorted at that, giving her a devilish smirk. "It makes no matter to me what she does. Our marriage would be nothing more than for appearances anyway." He raised his eyebrow at her. The stoic woman stayed silent as he laughed lightly. "Besides, are not the both of you only using me to claim the title of empress?"

"I will not lie." She started, moving her hand from his neck and resting it on his cheek. "I have no love for you, Jian. But for the sake of this kingdom, I would marry you for the sake of reviving the peace of the land."

"Are those ambitions not shared by your sister?" He moved his hand from her shoulder to cover the one she placed on his face.

Fei Shi sighed and closed her eyes. "My sister is a warrior. Trained and hardened by years of discipline, battles and war have made an excellent battalion leader out of her, but only that. I admit that she is a worthy adversary and mage, as I have come to learn during our many scrimmages, and has an undisputable talent for military warfare, but she is not a monarch. Zi Yu was never meant to be a ruler, nor must she become one."

"Are you not a warrior as well, Lang Fei Shi?"

"I am what I need to be." The princess said calmly. Bacchus observed curiously as she sighed and removed the fan from her face, allowing him to see her completely. To his amazement, she was as elegant as any princess would be and admittedly, he found her delicate features to be stunning. Holding the still open fan away from her face she looked up at him with her bright eyes shining.

"I look forward to seeing you at dinner tonight." Fei Shi stood on tiptoe and pulled her face closer to his. Taking the hint, he willingly leaned in and felt her soft lips press against his. It was a brief kiss that was as innocent as a kiss to her hand might have been.

"Until dinner." He said as she pulled away from him. She smiled shyly as she stroked her thumb against his cheekbone before withdrawing her hand and fully slipping from his grasp and replacing the fan in front of her face. He stood unmoving and watched as his potential bride turned and strode away gracefully toward the palace.

A/N: Alllllrighty then! Hope you guys enjoyed your weekly chapter update!

I know I promised this one to you last Sunday, but I couldn't quite untangle a few "knots" in the plot line. So after several revisions, here you are!

Thank you to my new followers for the follows and the faves! And of course for the views!

I have the next few days off, so I will hopefully be writing fervently and FINISHING UP THIS STORY!

But we still have a few chapters left to go,

so as always,

until next week,

Betty B.