Beneath the Stars
By Gold Sparrow
Coming on too Strong
The Day Before They Left for Zagan…
She was not one to spy, but Morgiana was curious when she spotted the fourth Prince of the Kou empire walking with the Holy Keeper. Hakuryuu's face was tense with troubles, and compared to him Asad looked a monk with his calm expression. Her ears pricked as they spoke, hiding behind a pillar.
"...Asad-dono?"
"Yeah?"
"...What's Kouhime like?" Morgiana frowned.
Kouhime?
Something tickles the back of her head, but she wasn't sure where she's heard a name like that before.
"She's...An interesting person. You've spoken to her, right?"
"Yes. I wasn't...Expecting her to be so blunt." Asad barks out a laugh, lips splitting in a grin.
"That's her style." The fourth Prince sighs, almost disappointed. "She's not as bad as she seems. You'll get used to it"
"You seem to like her" It almost seems accusatory. Morgiana can hear the eye roll in the other's words.
"Like I said: she's not as bad as she seems. Hime's actually pretty fun. She can just come on strong." He pauses, and then slaps Hakuryuu's back, laughing once more. "Like her sister!"
"Oh, sorry." Bad apologizes before she turns around, blinking when her gaze instantly hits finely made fabric. The thin, delicate flowers stitched onto the material melts upwards into a pink kimono-dress with a yellow scarf.
Her gaze travels up, and red meets pink.
…
"Hello" She grins at Kougyoku, who flusteredly gapes at the younger girl.
"H-hello" The eighth Princess finally replies, holding her sleeves close to her face as she timidly watches Bad. "Oh- yes, sorry for running into you"
"No problem" The not-quite magician waves it off, turning away.
"Oh- wait, um-" Kougyoku tries hurriedly to stop the child, going to her side. "Um, we, uh, didn't talk much back when you visited Kou a while ago, but I am aware of your position now."
"Oh?" Bad tries to stifle her grin, watching the elder Princess hold herself higher.
"Yes. And…" Resolution fills the older girl's face. "I know we'll become the best of siblings!"
Eh?
"Best...Of siblings?" Bad repeats slowly, a strange feeling of dread filling her.
"Yes!" Kougyoku's face lights up. "I've always wanted a sister to dress up, you know!"
"D-dress up?!" Kougyoku grabs her hand in a surprisingly strong grip, eyes glittering.
"You'll look so cute in white!"
Hakuryuu knocks on Kougyoku's door.
"Cousin, it's time for dinner…" The door opens, and cautiously the Prince steps inside. "Kougyoku? Are you alrig-"
Alarm was the first thing that hit the blue eyed boy when he spotted the fabrics all strewn about the room, the closet doors thrown open and dresses discarded carelessly.
"Kougyoku-!" Hakuryuu calls worriedly, rushing into the closet.
Only to stop and stare.
Kougyoku hadn't changed her clothing, but her flushed cheeks and thrilled smile made Hakuryuu raise a questioning eyebrow until he spotted the girl beside her.
Kougyoku had dug deep into her wardrobe brought from Kou and used Vinea without restraint to cut and tailor the kimonos into the right size for Bad, dressing the small girl into a floor length dress much like her own except with shades of a light pink and white. The corset was too tight for the child and a deep red that matched the spider lilies stitched onto the thin white sleeves. Bad herself had gotten her hair taken out its ponytail and put in a low bun visible visible over the right side of her neck and held in place with red chopsticks.
While she certainly looked like a Kou Princess, her expression was that of someone about to faint, her gaze latching onto the Prince and begging him to help her.
"Doesn't she look great?" Kougyoku gushes, positioning her newfound sister before their cousin. "I dressed her up myself!"
"Yes." Bad echoes in a hollow voice. "It took. All. Day."
"Y-yes, Kouhime looks very good."
"Like a Princess" Kougyoku half jokes, brushing the girl's bangs and smoothing out the wrinkles. Bad doesn't react, seemingly used to her sister's quirks. "She's so cute! Can we keep her, Hakuryuu~?"
"Keep- Kougyoku, you do realize Kouhime is a ward of King Sinbad, right?" Kougyoku pouts.
"But she's my half-sister" Kougyoku jabs back, and the Prince runs a hand over his hair.
"Allegedly" Bad quietly adds, but they ignore her.
"It's more complicated than that…" Her happy expression drops, and she sighs. Bad reaches up and tugs on the flowered sleeve of her older sister.
"Um...Let's play dress up again when I come back from the Dungeons, okay?" Hakuryuu didn't know that Kougyoku could beam so brightly.
"Yes!" The Eighth Princess claps her hands together, stars in her eyes. "Let's have a fashion show!"
Hakuryuu sweatdrops.
His cousin certainly came on strong.
Because I love sibling relationships.
And putting Bad in situations where she is at a disadvantage is freaking hilarious to me XD. I actually wrote this drabble while being plagued by writers block. I guess in times of need, all I have to do is write about fashion and I feel better (lol no). Thanks for reading, friends!
Got any questions or suggestions? Something wrong about the chapter? Grammatical errors, something you didn't like? PM me or leave it in the reviews, I will reply and see what I can do to make the story better/clearer for y'all to understand. ILY MY DARLING READERS!
BYE~~~~~~~