Chapter Text
Golden sunlight filtered through the small windows of the clothier's room. The soft rays reflected off the piles of elegant fabric and spools of thread as she delicately poked her needle in and out of the thick black fabric she was working on. It used up all of her patience when working on the young prince due to his incessant need to raise his arms and cough. Luckily, a distraction came in the form of a young woman.
“Excuse me, Your Majesty.” Ryunosuke tiredly rolled his gaze to the blonde woman standing in the doorway. His clothes were tight where they were being hemmed causing his movement to be restricted, though he was relieved to see that the adjustments were practically finished.
“What is it, Higuchi?” The woman, Higuchi, straightened up at once. She kept her eyes focused on the young prince with a sort of soft admiration.
“I was sent to make sure you knew about your appearance tonight.” Ryunosuke wanted to die just from the thought. Tonight, a small festival was being held in the kingdom centre to celebrate his coming of age. It was an exaggerated way of letting everyone know that the king would now be searching for women suitable to marry his firstborn. The last thing Ryunosuke wanted.
“Yes, I remember.” He huffed out, stepping away from the seamstress and fixing his waistcoat. “It’s pointless, though. Father knows I have no interest in marrying anytime soon.” The sentence was punctuated with the cough he had been trying to suppress the entire fitting session. He left the small sewing room and began his walk back to his corridors. Higuchi hurried close behind, clutching her long skirt as she picked up her pace.
“I’m afraid his majesty is becoming impatient, Prince Ryunosuke,” She tried to explain carefully as she was fully aware of the young prince’s temper. Ryunosuke paused with his hand on the doorknob to his room, his soft knuckles practically white from how hard he was gripping it. His next words were spoken without turning to face Higuchi.
“I can run this kingdom myself. I don’t need a queen.” With that, he entered the large bedroom and let the heavy door shut in her face. He was done with such an annoying conversation. He didn’t need a queen. He’d always known that and constantly being told he did was a cruel and unusual punishment in his mind
Now alone, Ryunosuke paced the room. His thoughts were racing about what would happen if his father found someone he deemed suitable for Ryu to marry. He knows he wouldn’t be able to fall in love with someone that quickly, but was it even for love? It wasn’t, was it? It was just a power thing. Disgusting. Even so, it made him angry and sad. The responsibility, the expectations. Would he be expected to have kids of his own? He’s only twenty after all. And the thought of being that intimate with a woman made his stomach drop. Ryunosuke felt faint.
He decided some fresh air would probably do him well. The flowers of the balcony greeted him as he stepped through the doors. They were sad and wilted. Ryunosuke had fired all of the groundskeepers who tried tending the poor foliage. He didn’t like having anyone that close to his personal space. He found it invasive. As if they weren’t just doing their job.
He waited there a few seconds, looking over to his view of the castle gardens. It never interested him. Moving back into the comfort of his dwellings, Ryunosuke pulled his thick curtains closed and collapsed on his bed. It was nearly evening. He had a few hours before he was expected to appear in front of the kingdom’s subjects.
With a groan, Ryunosuke pulled one of his books from his bedside table. It was thick with words he had read before. Lessons and rules filled the pages. Each chapter instructed him on how to be a better ruler.
Ryunosuke’s bookshelves were lined with texts of this nature. It’s all he read as of late. After living under his father, the king, all his life, Ryu was determined to be a greater ruler than he ever was. Even if he didn’t deserve the crown in the first place. It’s not like anyone had to know. He tried to focus on his studies. Flipping from page to page until-
Ryu snapped to attention when three precise knocks sounded from his door followed by, “Prince Ryu, I am here to help you get dressed for tonight's events.” Kouyou. He trudged to the door to greet her.
“Appreciated, but I don’t need help,” He answered, but was met with a sour look. The woman pushed past him into the room, her dress flowing behind her.
“But Ryunosuke, you’ll want to look nice tonight. There may be eligible young ladies there.” She informed him as she began removing clothes from the box she brought with her. Ryu made sure she wasn’t paying attention before huffing a sigh. With anyone else, he wouldn’t hold back but Kouyou was practically his mother figure. And though he wouldn’t admit it, a small part of Ryunosuke was a little afraid of her.
He took a seat on one of his plush chairs, mindlessly pulling at the decorative tassels of the throw pillow. “I’m not interested in any young ladies,” he groaned. Kouyou remained focused on her task at hand. She began to lay more and more garments on his bed, his newly tailored jacket among them.
“A young man then?” She didn’t even look at him when she asked. Ryunosuke’s breath caught at how casual Kouyou was about something rather taboo. Quickly, he shoved his embarrassment down. His grip on the cushion in his hands tightened.
“No, not a young man either. No one.” He wanted to sound definite but when all Kouyou offered in return was an amused laugh, he felt that he had failed.
“Either way you’re going.” She turned to face him with a smile, clothes in hand. “Jacket off now.”
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Lanterns illuminated the festival grounds, the mingling scents of food stalls wafted through the streets, and children's laughter sounded as they danced to the band that played cheerful tunes through the night. It was truly magical.
And then there was Ryunosuke. Seated in silent observation. A frown painted his face. He had been sitting there for what felt like hours. He didn’t enjoy these things. Especially when it was about him.
Practically on display, he waited for anything interesting to happen or to be allowed to leave. Neither of which seemed likely. He looked out into the crowd. Townspeople danced happily and Ryu could make out the joyful faces of some of the castle staff. Dazai was making conversation with a young maiden, the head groundskeeper seemed to be scolding him from behind. Over at the food stalls, a young man was practically buying out every vendor. They all seemed to be having a good time with the event. Ryu just wished he could do the same.
A few women came up to ask him to dance to which he politely declined. This only earned him a stern look from the king along with a slightly amused yet concerned expression from the castellan. He couldn’t help it. All of the women just seemed dull and he wasn’t interested anyway. They all revered him like some deity when he was just a person. He would bet any of the women would do anything he asked of them which was just boring. All of their smiling faces seemed artificial. They didn’t even know him nor did he know them. And whatever feeling he was supposed to get when they curtsied, showing off their shining dresses and painted faces, he never felt it. Perhaps he just wasn’t cut out for these things. Honestly, he was doing the women a favour by rejecting them. He wouldn’t meet their wishes anyway.
Ryu kept his gaze focused distantly on nothing in particular. That was until a certain something, or someone caught his eye. Making his way into the kingdom was a man Ryunosuke had never laid eyes on before. He had a blue and red cloak over his head and a green satchel slung over his shoulder. Ryu tracked him as the mysterious man came closer and closer to the festivities. Eventually, his eyes caught Ryunosuke's. The man seemed to be taking in every detail of the prince from where he stood. His gaze was unwavering for what felt like hours but Ryu couldn’t bring himself to look away first. Eventually, the man seemed pleased with whatever he found and offered a small smile to Ryunosuke. As he continued on his way, Ryunosuke got a better look at him. He seemed to be a traveller of sorts, but Ryu couldn’t think of why he would be here. He dismissed the thought and returned to sitting in absolute, dreadful boredom.
Some more time passed and the prince was about ready to call it a night and excuse himself back to his room. He stifled a cough as he rose from the decorative chair he had been placed upon the entire night like some fragile porcelain doll. He turned to speak with the king but his father was absent from his throne which overlooked the event. Ryu mentally thanked whoever got him to leave as it made his exit that much easier. Only, the moment he stepped down from the platform, out of nowhere, a pair of gloved hands grabbed Ryunosuke’s own and he was yanked forward. He only caught a glimpse of the traveller he had noticed earlier before he was pulled deep into the crowd of dancers.
The traveller began leading Ryu in an energetic dance and he took this opportunity to fully grasp his appearance. He was similar in height to Ryunosuke, perhaps slightly shorter and he wore a sparkling pendant around his neck. The hood of his cloak had fallen off, revealing silver hair that practically glistened in the lantern light and each of his eyes held two strikingly different colours. Ryu had never seen anything like it and wanted to inspect the peculiarity in further detail, but his attention was broken by the music picking up pace. Tambourines, fiddles, and flutes all grew louder and louder around them.
The traveller spun Ryunosuke before catching him once more. His hands on Ryu were sturdy and secure as he pulled the young prince this way and that in a dance Ryu had never seen before and suddenly he was lost in the moment. Dancing joyfully with the young man who was surprisingly light on his feet. With each step, twirl, and beat Ryu grew more entranced. He could see now why people enjoyed this. The chilling air of a Spring night contrasted greatly with the way Ryu’s chest burned, but he couldn’t stop now. Interspersedly, he would catch glimpses of the traveller’s stunning and bright smile as they danced around and around the town square. The song seemed to last forever, but he wasn’t complaining when he had the chance to see those sunset eyes staring right at him as the music faded out.
Once the song ended, the mysterious man took Ryunosuke’s hands in his own one last time and gave a small bow before disappearing into the crowd without a single word.
Ryu was left alone and speechless among the other festival-goers. All eyes were on him. Any other situation, that would make his skin crawl, but Ryu only had one person on his mind. His hair caught the wind as he stared in the direction the man had gone but there was no sign of him at all. What a fool.