Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Toya had never wanted things.

“Oi, Toya! Get out of bed! You’re the one that wanted to go to that stupid hero’s house, right?”

…Scratch that. He wasn’t allowed to want things.

“Akito,” He yawns, trying to pull the duvet around him tighter, sticking his head deeper into the cocoon of fluffy pillows and blankets, trying to keep the persistent sunlight out of his eyes. While finally meeting Tsukasa-senpai after the blonde’s months-long journey is amazing, the temptation of sleeping in on one of his rare free days is more than enough to make him ignore his loyal knight’s beckoning. Toya distantly feels his hair getting ruffled as he’s being lured to sleep again.

And Toya won’t blame his father… much. He’s a prince, and his father’s a king, after all. Royals were never ones to dote on their offspring. So the sudden flurry of touches Toya had gotten when Akito started as his personal knight at the age of 10… Well, it took more than just a few tears before Toya got to explain to his partner why he’d stiffen up so much, in the eyes of the stars that watched them (ironically, that was the last night they’d witnessed, before eternal day was cast upon the Aoyagi’s land). Akito’s been hell-bent on feeding Toya touches from then on. Something about, ‘I won’t let you starve, even if it’s just via touch.’

Toya’s brought back to the present with the soft murmuring of his knight.

“What, he’s already asleep again?” He hears the knight mutter. His heart aches at the blatant fondness in his voice. He tries not to fall asleep under his knight-turned-friend-turned-crush’s head pats, wanting to relish in the soft touches, but it’s hard to do so when sleep opens its arms with promised rest.

“Fine, just a few more minutes. Only because you worked hard.” Is the last thing he hears before he drifts off, feeling nimble fingers combing through his hair.

“What, are you sulking?” Akito raises a brow at the prince. He’s not sulking, but… well, he’s two hours late to the time he promised to go to Tsukasa-senpai and Saki!

He rushes in putting on his coat, opting to dress by himself today as the maids would take longer, trying to make the prince look regal and polished. They’d always gush about how he’d grown so well, patting his cheek and giving soft smiles whenever they dressed him, and he’d take it, because they were nice and warm. Although, it was slightly embarrassing. He takes comfort in the familiar presence of Akito, tutting in the back — one of his favorite constants in his life that is ever-shifting.

He huffs in bemusement at the thought, hastily cuffing his sleeves, trying to fix his collar as fast as humanly possible. He distantly thinks he can’t wait for the time where he can just magic his clothes on.

“Oh, come here.” Akito finally speaks up, uncrossing his arms and opting to help the prince, after witnessing him fumble around. “Why’d you have to turn the maids away? You look like a mess,” He teases, yet he gingerly parts his bi-colored hair in its respective colors, brushing it out in soft strokes. It’s so soft that Toya can fall back asleep to it.

“Oi, don’t fall asleep.”

“It’s fine. Akito will take care of me.” Toya yawns. He closes his eyes, feeling the lingering sleep cling to him, despite already taking a shower. Akito’s always been soft with his touches.

He blinks his eyes open when he feels the knight stop. Had he said something wrong? He stares at the mirror, seeing olive-green eyes stare back at him. He tilts his head to the side in question.

“Seriously…” Akito only huffs before going back to fixing the prince’s hair.

The path to the esteemed Tenma estate is a bit bumpy, considering it’s surrounded by woods on one side, and a lake by the other. It was more to the capital’s west, nearer to the outskirts. It was quiet and peaceful here. Although… Toya feels that his legs had turned to jelly, with the justling and shaking he’s sat through in the past half hour.

“Are you okay? Do you want the driver to slow down? We can try another route if it’s too uncomfortable.” Akito says beside Toya, as he holds the prince’s hand, slowly massaging it. Toya offers a smile.

“It’s fine. I want to see Tsukasa-senpai and Saki again.” He hears his knight’s bemused, unimpressed huff.

“You know, for all that you’ve spoken high about him, he seems…”

“Hm?”

“Urgh. You know! Like a weirdo.”

“Akito,” Toya frowns at his knight with slight disapproval, though he’s not really upset. He can never be, truly, when it comes to the ginger.

“What! You can’t even deny it!” He fumbles around, trying to justify the mild bullying he’s done to their blonde senior when they met. Toya’s lucky Tsukasa-senpai thinks it’s just Akito’s way of showing he cares and considers the knight his friend…

“Tsukasa-senpai’s helped me through a lot of things.”

“Humph.” The knight harrumphs. “With what? Showing you what not to do? Hey, Toya, ow—!”

Toya lets go of the pinch he has on Akito’s cheeks, letting the ginger rub it, pouting. “Why are you so against him, anyway? Jealous?” Toya attempts to joke the same way he’d seen Shiraishi do with Azusawa.

“Wh— What! What even is there to be jealous about! He’s just some prophesied hero! …Who happened to meet you before I did— Ah!” The carriage jostles again. Toya stumbles and Akito falls back.

“Oh…” Toya breathes out, after he pinned his arms on the carriage seat in front of him for stability. Akito’s underneath him, on the carriage floor, in between Toya’s arms. Like this, their height difference is accentuated.

Silence settles in between the two, unsure what to do. They stare at each other’s eyes a bit, and Akito turns red.

Akito looks beautiful. His ginger hair is splayed down on the cushion of the seat, a crown of sun-dropped hair that frames his perfectly red face. Toya can make out slight freckles in his cheeks — connecting them the way he used to do with stars — that he’s sure is from training underneath the sun for a long period of time. His beautiful olive-green eyes are blown wide, like he can’t quite fathom the position they’re in right now. His left hand is braced on the carriage floor, and the other is holding onto Toya’s arm. Their faces are close enough that he feels his knight’s breath fan across his pale face. Toya wants to kiss him.

He hastily stumbles back when a bump on the road breaks the moment, clearing his throat. That seemed to have snapped Akito out of it, as well, having him fumble around as he stands up and pats Toya down, making sure the prince isn’t hurt.

“S— Seriously! I’ll try to tell the driver to slow down…!” Akito stammers, muttering disapprovingly, as he was quick to turn away from the prince.

And, well, Toya tries not to think too much about the blush on Akito’s face, and how he feels his face grow a bit hot too, with the implication that his knight was jealous of Tsukasa-senpai meeting him before he met Akito, and the… incident.

“I apologize. But, as his royal knight and right-hand man, I cannot allow him to be left in someone else’s hands so easily.” Akito stubbornly says in that polite tone of his. Toya always found it amusing when he’d use his sweet and polite talk to other people. Funny, how he isn’t shy to insult the prince’s friends and tease the prince himself, but wouldn’t drop his faux politeness around others.

“What? Why not?” Saki asks, pouting as her brows furrow. “Onii-chan’s really skilled with the blade! He can take care of Toya just fine, if anything happens!”

“I have sworn my utmost dedication and care to Toya since I was young. You have to understand. He’s my prince— I, I mean— The prince of our kingdom, and I’ve sworn my life to him.” (Toya blushes at his words, and his protectiveness. Even if, logically, it’s technically part of his job. He tries to turn away before Saki catches a whiff of the slight pink on his cheeks.)

“Right, Toya?” Akito turns to him, expectant. Saki looks at him too, and he sees a knowing glint in her eye, as if saying ‘I know what you are.’ (Look! It’s not his fault Akito’s so— Akito!)

“Well… You’re my knight. Just as you swore to protect me, I swore to care for you.” Akito nods in approval, taking it as a sign that he’ll stay.

“…So, as your prince who swore to care for you… Don’t you think you’re due for a break?”

“Toya!”

It takes a lot of promises for Akito to finally leave them. Toya’s already preparing his pockets for buying as much of the ginger’s favorite pancakes by the hidden shop just on the outskirts of the capital when he sees the knight brooding and walking away. He gives a lopsided, hopeless smile to Saki when they see Akito keeping a worried eye on them even from a distance.

“Jeez. He’s like a leech!” Saki laughs as she ushers Toya into her — their, a part of Toya’s mind provides — home. He can’t help but chuckle and agree. “Still… you like it!” She squeals as they enter the estate, and he’s in her domain. He’s now under the beckon and call of her whims, and he’s pretty sure she’ll tease him as much as she can.

“Saki…” He blushes, and she coos at him, laughing.

“What! I’m telling the truth~” She sing-songs, and he flushes even more. “Tell me, tell me! While onii-chan’s still asleep! It’ll be our little secret!” She looks around before leaning in.

“Onii-chan’s loveable and all, but he’s got the emotional capacity of a teaspoon when it comes to love!” She whispers. “So! Let’s talk. He needs to rest, so you can tell your story while he does!”

Now, Toya can’t deny her anything. The same way Saki will stop at nothing to care for him and Tsukasa-senpai and keep them in good health; the same way Tsukasa-senpai will do everything, even reweave the strings of fate from the cosmos above, as long as he could keep Toya and Saki smiling genuinely; he, Toya, won’t deny the siblings anything as long as its within his power. So… naturally, he starts speaking. Saki’s an amazing listener, after all. And he admits he needs to let it out to someone before it drives him mad up the wall.

“Oh, you’ve got it bad.” Saki laughs as Toya ends his rant (that, he admits, is less of his troubles and more of him putting his poetry classes to good use on describing Akito’s very essence), though she doesn’t say it in a mean way.

“Alright, first off! Have you ever thought that… I don’t knoooow…” She says, dragging the ‘o’ and playing with the end curls of her hair.

“That?”

“Possibly, just possibly!”

“…Go on?”

“Akito likes you too?”

Silence.

Toya’s burning red up until the roots of his hair, contrasting his rather pale and cool appearance.

Saki laughs for the nth time that day. “It’s just a thought! I mean, why else would he be so clingy? Sure, he’s your knight, but his reasonings seemed much more personal than work-related. And the way he treats you? What was that, about always ruffling your hair and boasting about you to his fellow knights?” She gushes, eyes sparkling and her voice getting more and more excited by the second.

Honestly, Saki’s probably too good of a listener, if she remembers all of that with how much he’s said.

“W— well…” He starts, clearing his throat. “Why hadn’t he made a… move… on me yet, then?”

“Are you serious Toya!” She jumps off her seat. “Maybe you’ve spent too much time with onii-chan. Your knight’s basically doting on you twenty-four-seven!”

He blushes all over again.

“Now, now, Saki.” Mama Tenma swoops in with steaming hot pancakes. He thinks of Akito. “Why don’t you go wake up your brother? He’d be upset if he slept in more than he has already.”

Saki pouts but agrees, standing up from her seat at the table and ascending the steps of the estate. He hears the creaking of Tsukasa-senpai’s door, distantly, as Mama Tenma places the plates of pancakes on the table in front of him. He offers her a content smile in return to her apologetic one.

Tsukasa-senpai descends down the steps with Saki shortly after, a bit groggy from sleep, but he brightens up at the sight of Toya. The rest of the day goes without incident, if not counting the slight bickering.

It’s warm in the presence of the siblings. Much like the pancakes that left his stomach warm long after Tsukasa-senpai enacted his recent adventure.

“Bye, Toya!” Tsukasa says with energy as he waves. Toya smiles, hand in Akito’s for assistance as he gets into his carriage. He feels Saki’s teasing stare when Akito had taken out an umbrella, something about the heat of the sun being unforgiving despite the late time.

“Good luck on your magic lessons! Show us sometime!”

“Will do, Tsukasa-senpai.” He smiles. Admittedly, he’s excited to finally start learning magic, too. Just as Saki showed them her music, and Tsukasa-senpai showed them his amazing blade work, he’s excited to show his magical abilities.

“Have a good day’s rest!” He bids as he gets seated in the carriage, pushing the curtain aside to wave at the siblings.

“And you too!”

And just like that, he’s off to the palace again, with the promise of more lessons and work tomorrow. He quickly shut the curtains, not wanting to be subjected to the sunlight for more than he has to be. Akito stays seated beside him, still slightly brooding.

“…What did you do while away?” Toya reluctantly starts the conversation.

“I visited my sister. Didn’t get to see her though. Seems like she’s away on a journey again. Heard recently that she’s taken to magically animated paintings, and she’s seeking a certain rumored vampire…” Akito replies, trailing off.

“Oh. I’m sorry,”

“It’s fine. She can take care of herself.”

There’s a lull in the conversation, and Toya yawns. Today was quite the ride, despite being an enjoyable one.

“You weren’t hurt?” Toya briefly smiles. Of course Akito would still be worried.

“No, I’m fine. The estate’s protected too, you know. Since Tsukasa-senpai’s also an important public figure.” He says, reassuring the ginger.

“Don’t worry, Akito.” He said with another yawn. He lays his head on his knight’s shoulder and closes his eyes.

“I won’t leave you. We’re going to be together…”

(The “forever” remains unsaid.)

Toya wakes up to the sight of Akito’s back. The knight’s shoulder is comfortable from the cotton cape, a violet that matched the Aoyagi family’s crest, and he can feel Akito’s hands hooked under his knees.

Looking around, he notices they’re walking down a familiar hall. Pristine marble-carved pillars arc around them, and windows with intricate designs showcase the castle’s royal garden. He can see the maze that he and Akito had gotten lost in, once, in the distance.

Toya watches the passing sight with grogginess.

“Dinner with King Aoyagi is scheduled by eight o’clock, by the way.” Akito speaks up. Toya only hums, voice still a bit hoarse from sleep.

“Your oldest brother came home from the Ootori Kingdom, too. Last sighted with Hinomori County. There seems to be something they want to discuss with you, but the meeting’s pushed back because there’s reported tension in the north. Something about the demon king.”

Toya resists the urge to heave out a sigh, or groan from frustration. He’s still out in the open, after all. Akito offers a sympathetic chuckle, when Toya wraps his arms around the ginger’s neck and nuzzles his nose on his nape for comfort.

They end up reaching Toya’s bedroom in no time, the prince lowered on his bed gingerly. Akito walks to the grandiose windows to close the curtains.

“If you want,” Akito starts when he sees Toya’s drooping eyelids. Truly, Toya probably slept the most today than he has the whole month. “I can wake you up at 7 o’clock for a bath. It’d be just enough time for you to get ready for dinner. It’s only around 6, anyways.”

“That would be—” A yawn. “good, yeah…”

Akito huffs out an almost-laughter, a fond thing, and walks up to the prince.

“Yeah, get as much sleep as you can now.” He hears his knight mutter, tucking him in. Then, he combs through his hair softly again. It helps Toya go to sleep quicker. His bed feels like heaven, after the long, rocky ride to and from the Tenma estate. Toya’s only glad there weren’t any… pinning… incidents, the second time around.

The days continue to go on, then. There weren’t many interesting things that happened — life in the palace was, in the end, routine and maybe even a bit boring, if it weren’t so loaded with all sorts of tasks.

The fighting for the crown continues on, his older brothers stubborn and relentless. If he could only manage to say he has no care for the crown, he wonders if they would stop trying to be on guard against him too…

But, well, it doesn’t matter too much. Not as much as the current happenings anyways, considering how right now he’s trying to will an animal (sorry, a magical animal) out of nothing in his seventh magic lesson in the past week. He managed to learn basic shielding and offensive spells — even managing to somehow summon his pillow while he was trying to summon the rock in Haruka’s hand! — but this was new territory.

“Prince Toya…” His teacher speaks up, frowning. “Have some water, please. Sweets as well, if you want.” She gestures to the table with snacks that Akito insisted to put in there with them, muttering something along the lines of ‘Toya’ll need as much energy as possible so he should have some sweets with him.’ There’s quite a handful of uniquely-shaped cotton candies in the mix… He can tell Akito tried to make shapes with them but ultimately failed. Toya resists the urge to burst out into a smile.

“Magic should come naturally.” Haruka speaks up, and he feels her magic — something that was cold, but not overwhelmingly so, unlike his father’s; more like air conditioning in the midst of a hot summer — accumulating around them. “I can understand that you probably think you’d need to will something out of nothing, but it’s truly not as you imagine it to be.”

Haruka was charismatic, although she’s bent on not straying farther from the lessons than necessary. She’d be stern when needed, and Toya appreciates it, in the past week he’s had lessons with her. She’s part of one of the strongest magical councils, Magic Magic JOY!, both making magical shows around the world, and helping allied kingdoms with their magic skills. He remembers hearing that she had also taught the Ootori Kingdom with their magic.

He’s brought out from his thoughts when a penguin emerges from the air, slightly translucent, waddling around the room. She smiles at his wonder, as it goes near him to slap its arms at his feet, and he actually feels it.

“It’s not something you pop into thin air, your familiar.” She says. “It’s more of a… structure. Build on yourself, yeah?” She taps on her chin, and he can hear her head’s cogs turning, trying to think of an example that he’d understand easier.

“Familiars aren’t ordinary animals. They’d appear as any form you will them to, much like how Guin is translucent right now, but could turn into an ordinary penguin—” A quick snap of her fingers makes an air-written spell that wraps around the penguin and turns it into a normal one. “—if I want her to. But they’ll only appear as one, singular animal species, and only you can communicate with them. You’ve imprinted on them, made them from your own essence and power bank, so it’s natural that they’d follow only you and the people you’ve trusted enough to consider as part of yourself. So think of it less as… plopping an existing being from an empty space, and more letting your essence flow out of you, out of your magical nerves, into your fingertips, out of them, and in front of you — think of it as talking about yourself and laying yourself bare to someone.”

The lessons end without much progress, and Toya dejectedly slumps on a cushioned chair once she waves and exits the room, off to go to her guest room or wherever (he tries to turn a blind eye to a tuft of brunette hair that he catches in the corner of his eye, as he sees Haruka rush off with a blush, obviously trying to hide the person — Minori, he supposes). He trusts Haruka, when she said that it’s normal for new magic users to be stumped on summoning familiars on their first week of learning, but he can’t help but feel a bit down about it, still.

But then something cool touches his forehead and he hisses in surprise, turning to see Akito smiling down on him.

“No progress?” He groans, and shakes his head.

“You’ll get there.” His knight sits down beside him.

“I highly doubt it.” Toya stuffs an almost bunny-looking cotton candy into his mouth to cope. “I can’t understand what she means about… building on yourself.”

“Yeah, magic has a lot of bullshittery in it,” The ginger laughs at the stare Toya gives him. “What! I’ve heard my sister whine about it for long enough.”

“Oh yeah, how’s she?” Toya says despite the candy in his mouth, if only to hear Akito talk more. (His voice is calming, okay!)

“Well… In the last letter she sent me, she said she was in the Asahina Kingdom. She said she feels confident in getting nearer to the vampire she’s been having dreams of — dreams seem to be a big part of her magic. She ended up meeting the Ootori Kingdom’s princess, and… well, yeah. Apparently your hero friend was supposed to be there, too, but ended up ditching in the middle of the night.” Toya makes a questioning sound. Tsukasa-senpai running away in the dead of the night? He only hopes the blonde keeps himself safe… He wouldn’t want to have a wild goose chase with the royal doctor again, if he comes home all bloody, again.

The two ended up chattering with each other for a while longer, before a maid came in to check in on them. And then Toya’s swept up yet again in another series of work he has to accomplish… He can’t wait to get to bed later.

“Toya!” Akito’s voice cuts through the silence in Toya’s study, startling the prince, effectively disrupting the easy flow of Toya’s magic in the room, and making a splatter of ink appear on the parchment he had been writing on. The closed curtains behind him billowed when he jolted. He refuses to admit that he almost jumped 3 feet in the air. “Toya, Toya!!!”

The door bursts open, and he can hear Akito’s heaving breath as he breaks into the threshold. The adorably excited look on his knight isn’t lost on him.

“Akito, you made me—” His sentence is cut short when the ginger grasps his wrists and positively bolts without explanation. He stumbles, and while he isn’t in any way physically weak (quite the contrary, he believes), his knight is… well, fast. “Akito! Hold on!” He can’t help the bubbling laughter when he almost fell face first onto the floor before they even got out of the door.

…Well. Now Akito’s sweeping the prince into his arms, strong even with their difference in height. Toya’s breath is caught in his throat.

“We have to hurry!” Is Akito’s only form of explanation, his cape billowing behind him as he rushes down the hall, past the grand staircase, ignoring the stares of maids and butlers.

Akito looks beautiful. His eyes are sparkling, and he’s very clearly containing his excitement. His grip on Toya’s knees and back are gentle, if holding a bit tighter than he usually would when carrying him, but it only forms a comforting sensation. He’s confident that the ginger wont drop him, at the very least. He’s staring back and forth at Toya’s face and where they’re going, but Toya’s only looking at him.

He really wants to kiss him right now.

“We’re here!” Akito says, breaking his sprint and grinning, despite breathing heavily. Toya reluctantly goes out of his knight’s arms and looks around to find what they’re here for.

He realizes quickly, why Akito had sprinted for him — they’re in the garden.

And the sun is setting.

“It’s beautiful…” He breathes out. The purples and light blues finally bleed into the sky, the light of the setting sun being much more forgiving than the burning yellow that they’re used to now, and for the first time in years, the sun had finally set.

The pair watch it in silence, and watch on even when it’s long gone, and the first night in forever comes to them. They watch on, as the stars appear in the sky one by one, and they watch as the pale moon finally graces the Aoyagi’s land with its presence.

“It’s been a while,” Akito breaks the silence with a small whisper.

“It’s been much more than a while.” Toya agrees with a snicker.

“Yeah. It’s about time that hero-senpai put his prophecy to good use,” The prince rolls his eyes and pinches his knight’s cheek, though it’s more out of habit than anything.

“I missed seeing the night with you.” Toya whispers after another silent moment of staring at the stars. “The moon is beautiful.”

And… He hadn’t really intended to summon his familiar at this time, but…

“Toya! Look!” Akito’s excitement comes back a hundred fold, holding onto Toya’s sleeve and pointing at a small blue bird.

“C’mere, you!” The knight beckons the bird without even thinking about it, and just when Toya was about to explain that familiars are unlikely to listen to him — the bird perches itself on Akito’s waiting finger.

He should’ve expected it, really.

A little later, Toya heard everything from Saki over tea. The afternoon sun is warm, but not overwhelmingly so, now that it isn’t frozen in one place. They had a pleasant chat — that was luckily free from any teasing on Saki’s side, considering Akito’s lingering in the back, this time unable to be ushered away since they’re in the palace — and Toya’s pleasantly surprised to hear of Tsukasa-senpai’s development with his lovelife.

And, that’s what led to him writing in his bedroom, Akito long gone, thinking Toya’s already in bed and sleeping. His familiar is perched on his shoulder, shining lightly so that he won’t have to light another candle, as he writes on parchment.

He gets Tsukasa-senpai’s response the next morning.

Dear Toya,

Thanks for taking time to write to me!!! I’m glad you guys can finally see the stars there, too. Me and Rui’ll be looking around and stopping at random places on the way there — home, he already calls it — so it might take a while until our next meeting, but I look forward to introducing you to Rui! He’s a bit unhinged, but I think you two’d get along well.

As for your favor — Oh! My dearest little prince’s grown up! I cannot fathom the time when I’ll have to wait beside you at the altar! Please, not yet!!!

I jest, of course! But it’s true that I’m proud of you for taking the initiative. While I may be a bit dense, even I was slightly dying from the slowburn!

Anyway, sorry for my messy writing — Rui’s getting more and more impatient by the moment. So, I’ll try to keep this short and precise!

Operation — Steps To Wooing Your Knight, A Guide Made for the Prince!

“Oh— Good morning, Prince Aoyagi!” Azusawa greets him by the palace garden. She’s carrying a pot of unidentifiable flowers. “What brings you to the palace gardens so early in the morning?” (Where’s Akito, goes unsaid. And even if she did ask him, he’d just ask for Shiraishi, as well. Saki’s long since given him the lesson on teasing.)

He doesn’t quite know how to explain his predicament. He’s a bit tired, after waking up earlier than he normally does, and he honestly feels like he’s having Akito withdrawal. Does that exist? Having withdrawal from not seeing the person you usually see everyday??? Akito’s like his coffee in this sense, after all.

Anyway! He’s getting sidetracked… “I um— Roses?”

Azusawa tilts her head at him. “Do you… want to see the rose garden?”

“Apologies. Yes, I do.” She only nods and leads the way.

The sun had barely risen yet, which is a testament to how early it is. Akito wakes up early for his sake a lot, so he has to wake up even earlier. The morning air is cool, though, and Toya looks forward to appreciating one of the first few sunrises in forever.

“Here we are, Prince Aoyagi!” Azusawa breaks the silence, and he’s in front of the royal rose garden. It’s cased in a glass dome, almost looking like it was framed, an art piece by his oldest brother. It had been built by him, a gift for his betrothed when the couple was still in their courting phase. Inside the dome is a mini make-shift river, and the rose bushes are separated by color, a bridge connecting to the middle where a little clearing hosts a table and two chairs. Overhanging plants and vines decorate the upper part of the dome, and not a single place looks boring in there. It’s romantic and beautiful.

“What do they mean?”

“In the language of flowers? Well… pinks are generally for appreciation and gratitude. Yellows mean friendship, while reds are, of course, romance. Peachy ones are sort of like… Talking about the joy someone brings you. And whites symbolize loyalty!”

“I see. Can you help me? Pick out the best roses. I want all of those— except the yellow ones.”

If Azusawa suspects anything, she doesn’t say it and only picks the best rose of the bunch.

The silence is comforting, and Toya likes sniffing the different colors of roses, as he tries not to shiver from the morning air. He listens to the tune of the running water, and jumps every time a stray hanging vine accidentally grazes his shoulder. The silence wasn’t tense at all, rather comfortable, as Toya wandered the small garden, and Azusawa clips the best roses she finds. He’ll be sure to drop by and give her a book for thanks later.

“Alright! Here,” Azusawa smiles softly, if a bit nervously, at him as she hands him the flowers. There are an abundance of large, red roses, with the other colors serving as its side pieces for the makeshift bouquet. His eyes sparkle with wonder as he takes the flowers from her hands.

“Toya!” Akito breaks the silence, the door to the garden bursting open, relief clear in his voice. The knight’s not fully clothed in his knight-clothes yet, wearing a simple black top that shows off his arms, hair still slightly tousled from sleep; it’s because he’d have to wake Toya at least five times before the prince actually gets out of bed, so he dresses himself rather slowly, dressing in pieces as he goes back and forth to Toya’s room. He forgets, sometimes, how worried Akito gets when he isn’t with Toya like usual. The prince breaks his gaze from the flowers and looks towards his knight.

…Who’s eyes are twitching, looking back and forth from Azusawa to Toya.

“This is what you got out of bed early for?” Akito says, clearly annoyed. Toya can’t put his finger on why, though. “Come here, you’ll catch a cold. It’s early, the sun hasn’t even risen yet.”

Akito doesn’t pay Azusawa any mind, but his grip on Toya’s wrist tightens when he nods at the girl. She wavers slightly, but she only ends up hiding her giggle behind a hand, waving at the prince. It feels like she knows something he doesn’t.

… But that isn’t what matters. He turns to Akito who's grumbling and walking down the path of the garden, dragging them back to the palace. He gives the roses to Akito.

“What?”

“You can keep it.”

He only sees Akito’s eyes twitch.

(Toya ends up dragging the knight to their favorite spot in the royal garden — the end of the bush maze they got lost in once — a quiet, hidden place that faces the sunrise. He plucks the roses from the brooding knight’s grip and tries to weave flower crowns, the same way he had seen Tsukasa-senpai do.

The two of them failed miserably, and only ended up messing the flowers. But they had a good laugh, and got to watch one of the first sunrises together. He’s glad Akito’s sour mood seemed to be washed away.)

“You want to do what?” Shiraishi asks, wiping her hands on the apron on her skirt.

“I want to learn to cook,” Toya repeats, seated on the high stool in front of the bar area of the restaurant the Shiraishi family owns. He managed to slip out of Akito’s careful care, managing to convince the knight to let him ‘train with his magic.’ (Really, he just wanted to learn to cook for Akito… without him spoiling the surprise.)

And though she has questions at the start (an incredulous, ‘aren’t you a prince? Don’t you have like, millions of maids and cooks?’), Shiraishi gets to teach him, and he follows dutifully, even if he’s never even been in a kitchen before. Pancakes were easy enough to make, though he found out very quickly how oil can burn.

“It’s like a battle scar! You’ve got something to prove that you can cook,” Shiraishi had laughed as he accidentally raised his voice in panic, when oil flicked itself onto him while cooking bacon.

It was fun. Shiraishi was bubbly and talked enough, all while guiding him kindly.

They end up eating the food they’d cooked — a simple breakfast containing pancakes (that he knows Akito likes), bacon, some sausage, cooked mushrooms, beans, and a piece of homemade bread (that Shiraishi had made a promise to teach next time) — and it was good. Toya doesn’t know if it’s the food that was good, or the fact that he made it that made him enjoy it more.

Nonetheless, he summons his familiar to play with Shiraishi as thanks, and promises to give the gifts to Azusawa as she’d asked.

… And maybe Shiraishi had done more than he thought she’d done when they collaborated.

“Prince Toya!” One of the older maids had pulled him aside when he somehow managed to make a raging campfire on the kitchen’s stove. He doesn’t quite know what he’s doing wrong, because he’d done it right with Shiraishi before!

“Goodness, are you alright, Prince Toya?!” The maid pats him down, while the others make a move to put out the fire he set.

“Ah… I’m alright, thank you,” He ducks his head, embarrassed. A blood-curdling scream from the maids makes him look over and notice the fire isn’t easily put out. The bacons he tried to cook is now looking a lot like turds.

“What is going on here?” A groggy Akito makes his way into the kitchen, wearing another loose top and eyes still bleary from sleep. A quick glance to the clock tells Toya it’s still 4 in the morning.

Toya (tries to) hide behind the old maid.

“R— Royal Knight Akito!” One of the younger maids stutter out, flame still raging behind her, and her eyes dart to Toya, the fire, and back to the ginger in a split second. “There’s… There was a mistake!”

“A mistake? The breakfast for the royal family isn’t to be cooked yet.”

“I, Indeed! But, you see, there was a new servant, and she wanted to, uh—”

“Don’t blame them, Akito.” Toya shakes his head and retreats from behind the maid. “They were trying to help me,”

He places a hand on the maid’s shoulder and offers her a kind smile as thanks. The others make a move to get a bucket for the fire.

“Hah? Toya?” Came Akito’s incredulous voice, marching from the doorway to the prince, looking for any possible injuries. “You aren’t hurt?”

Toya couldn’t help the grin that came to his face, although a bit bashful. “No… I just— wanted to cook.”

“What? Why?”

“…For you.” His voice was small, and he could feel the heat emanate from his face. He knows his face is burning, and this time, it’s not because of the fire he started, or because of the heat. He ducks his head again, if only to shield his face from further embarrassment.

“Oh.”

Toya looks up to see Akito… whose cheeks are also a cute shade of pink. Oh.

Oh.

The two remain staring at each other, Akito’s hand still holding onto Toya’s forearms, frozen from when he was checking on possible injuries. The two are blushing, and they don’t really know what to say.

Toya really wants to kiss his stupid knight. Wants to kiss him stupid and red, like he is right now.

He can’t, though. Not yet.

“…Do you want to, um, cook with me?” Toya tries to scavenge the situation. While he can’t woo his knight with breakfast in bed, he can try to have a cute little cooking-together-moment.

“Sure,” Akito speaks up, clearing his throat. He’s still blushing (it’s adorable). “I’ll supervise you. Don’t want the palace to burn down because of its own owner.” Toya can’t help the helpless laughter that escapes his smile.

(The two set out to make pancakes, Akito often having to yell Toya’s name, preventing the prince from doing something potentially dangerous. They don’t set the kitchen on fire this time.

It does look like it has snowed there, though. He’ll have to apologize for the flour-hurricane that happened between him and Akito later. For now, they’re eating pancakes, full body coated in flour, laughing hysterically on the floor.)

Toya had felt stumped on this step for a while. His brother made the rose garden for his husband (a beautiful place that, while famous and well-known, was a place made just for the two of them. A place they can call their little escape), his father had made his mother a whole other castle before she passed away (“The Music Manor,” they’d called it. Toya can barely enter it without breaking into a panic attack, and it pains him to know that he can’t even visit the place his mother loved so much), and he hears that the demon king had frozen the night and day cycle for Tsukasa-senpai (there’s ballads and love stories of them accumulating once the drama of the demon king settled down, and honestly, who knew the demon king was such a romantic? What was it he heard once? ‘I made this castle of stars just for the singular star I want in my arms,’?).

But he doesn’t quite know where to take Akito, where there is a place made just for the two of them. A place only they will know.

“Toya,” Akito calls, entering his study. He walks up to the prince, who’s resting his cheek on his left hand, elbow crushing into some of the papers he’s working on. He couldn’t care less at the moment.

“Akito,” The prince replies, smiling. Despite the pounding migraine that seems to sear itself into his temples and grows hot around his eyeballs, Akito’s presence is much like cold ice on his nape, cooling down the significant pain and tiredness he feels.

“Tired?” The knight places cotton candy on the prince’s table, which visibly makes the prince happier.

Toya only hums, eating the candy piece by piece. Akito ruffles his hair, peering to look at the papers. The prince lets him.

“Hey,” Akito starts, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Do you have anything to do today?”

“No, I already finished my magic lessons. I’m trying to wrap up the paperwork so I can be free tomorrow, but…”

“You’re stumped?”

“Yeah.”

“That means you need a break!”

“…And what do you suggest?”

Toya drinks medicine for his migraine — as his knight bullied him into — before he gets changed. He pulls on the commoner clothes he had bought in his first expedition with his knight, something he had to work weeks on convincing the ginger, before he finally caved in and only allowed it if the prince promised to not run off alone. They’d figured out a system over the years, and the little escapades they do calms down the prince and gives him life. Even if it only happens, at most, five times in the span of a year.

“Ready?” Akito asks, as Toya finally pulls on the hood that covers his signature two colored hair. The prince nods in agreement.

They sneak around the castle gardens, doing little parkour (Akito often pauses to help the prince, as if he’s some damsel in distress, which makes Toya’s eyes roll, but he indulges his knight), and avoiding guards on duty before they make it to the walls. They enter one of the watchtowers, the one that Akito has the key to, and they easily slip out of the castle. They’re at the back, so there are significantly less guards, however they still keep vigilant.

Toya finally lets himself breathe freely once they reach at least 100 meters away from the castle walls. He still keeps his hood on, just in case.

“It’s been a while since we did this,” He hears Akito’s grin rather than see it, as the ginger wraps an arm around his shoulder. He feels that Akito becomes much more casual when he isn’t in his prince attire.

“Yeah,” Toya smiles. “I missed being around the townspeople. I wonder how Akiyama’s potions are developing,”

“We can visit them! And An and Kohane, too! If they’re not on a date, I mean. They’re so mushy it pains me,” Toya laughs at the grimace.

They strolled around town together, enjoying themselves. They found silly trinkets in the market and tasted the delicious samples of the stalls (“We have to recommend this shop to the chefs one day,” “And risk getting caught? Are you crazy?”), they visit Akito’s favorite pancake shop to eat (“You’re getting frosting all over yourself like a kid, Akito,” “It’s our day off, it’s fine!”), go to find Akiyama (“Mizuki-san? Oh, they went out on an urgent call from Countess Kusanagi’s daughter like a few weeks ago, they’re not around.”), and just mess around in general.

It was fun. It was free.

And by the time the clock hit 5 pm — officially stating that they’ve been out of the castle for 2 hours now — Akito drags Toya out of the main areas of the city, and heads somewhere near the Shinonome’s humble family home. He says he’d rather not visit his father right now, but he does want to show Toya his childhood. So they end up in their backyard, sneaking around. It has various training equipment — most of which are magical ones, Toya notes — but they went farther, into the woods behind the house.

They wander in silence, hands loosely interlocked together. Toya’s slightly sweating under his hood, but he’s never been more content. The feeling always seems to grace him whenever he’s with Akito.

“We’re here,” Akito whispers, as they near the mouth of a cave. It was dark there, but Toya felt faint magic in the air. The trees loom around them, birds chirping. He instinctively summoned his familiar.

“Hello there, little one,” Akito grins, reaching his hand out. Blue follows, perching herself on Akito’s hand. “Do you think you can light up the way for us?”

And, once again, she follows. She seemingly nodded, too, before she started to glow and went to enter the cave.

Toya doesn’t think he’ll ever stop feeling breathless whenever he sees his own familiar, something that should follow only him, following Akito, too. He feels… reassured, and happy.

The pair follows Blue, entering the cave. It started large, room enough to do jumping jacks with two people side by side, but before long, it started to grow narrower, and Toya now has to duck to fit in.

Before he can ask Akito what they’re even here for, the cave grows wider again, and there’s an opening.

“Wow,” He breathes out in awe. It’s… a magical reserve.

“Yeah,” Akito nods as if reading his mind, answering the prince’s unsaid question. “It’s the Shinonome’s magical reserve. It’s been handed down for generations. We’ve only ever shown our family, and I think it’s due time I showed you. I don’t use magic all that much anymore, which enraged dad — something about legacy — but I’m sure this can be helpful to you.”

Toya chokes on his words, “Y— You knew magic?”

“Yeah? It’s the Shinonome’s sort of… heirloom. I never went too far, though. Just flashy things like light shows and using magic to amp up my physical qualities.”

Ah. So he hadn’t known about the familiar thing. Thank god.

“Well? What are you waiting for? I know you’re itching to look around,” Akito grins. “Don’t be a stranger, now.” He ruffles Toya’s hair, before moving forward.

The area was magical. Not only in terms of the accumulated magic over the decades this place has been alive, but also in terms of how it looked. The flora had mutated and started glowing with the grown magic of the past Shinonomes, and there were growing mushrooms and high grasses and low crystal-like water streams and — it was filled with things to look at and admire. Above is a slight opening in the cave, letting sunlight spill in, but it wasn’t enough to steal the light of glowing flowers. They were wild flowers, and grew beautifully chaotic, and Toya’s never felt so much like a kid before.

Glowing dust particles would come to touch him and would bounce off, but not before feeding into the magic in him. Butterflies would float around his hair, as if forming a crown on him, and he finds that some mushrooms are bouncy, like a trampoline, and others are one of the softest things he’s ever touched. In the streams, there’d be some koi-like fishes swimming, but they weren’t quite koi, and the water was as clean and cold as can be.

But he finds that the best place of it all was in the middle, where a larger stream of water encircles a small island-like area, where Akito lay, wild flowers around him, bed-like mushroom cushioning him. Toya doesn’t waste any more time exploring, and goes to his knight.

(And, well… while he hadn’t particularly done this step for his knight, he’s pretty sure he’s found a haven only they will know of. He should have known that if he’s having a hard time, his knight would help him out, always — even if said knight didn’t even know he was helping.)

And… Okay, this is the hardest step so far. Toya’s much more of an actions over words person, after all. But he knows the significance of this step, knows that this is arguably the most important one. If he were being wooed by someone, he would appreciate being let known of it, after all.

But hints don’t quite work on his knight. And it’s becoming infuriating. (Albeit adorable. As his knight always is.)

For example, last week, Toya had said —

“Akito, you’re the only one I want to spend the rest of my days with.”

And what had Akito said? He said— “The same goes for me, Toya. We’re partners, after all!”

And Toya’s tried, he really has! Time and time again, he’d offer a sort of hint to the knight, something that could point the ginger to the right direction of how the prince feels about him — but it flies straight above Akito’s head! He’s not even being discreet about it anymore!

“Akito, you’re my most precious person.” “Akito, you mean everything to me.” “Akito, you’re my reprieve from all the stress and work in my life.” Akito this, Akito that! And nothing.

Toya’s beginning to think his knight may just be purposely avoiding his hints. That his knight doesn’t like Toya back, and is pretending to not notice as a way to let the prince down slowly.

And this had been weighing on his thoughts for a long time now, distracting him more times than not. Like how at the moment, he couldn’t even understand the mush of words his adviser has said to him.

Just a fleeting, “ball,” “Hinomori County,” “trade routes,” and “strengthening ties.”

He just waves the other off.

Which led him to not quite getting what he’s even supposed to do in the ball the night after. He wears a pristine tailored suit, colors complimenting his hair and making his eyes glimmer like silver under moonlight, making small talk with passing nobles. He wears a barely-seen smile, but to those who know the third Aoyagi prince, they’re grateful to even see the slight uplifts of his lips. But he doesn’t know what the ball was even for.

It was held in the open garden, a beautiful thing. Lights hang around, making the area look magical, and an orchestra plays — which grates on Toya’s nerves, but at least he’s not the one playing on stage. He can’t even begin to think about the drama that would occur, if his father had berated him into playing in the ball, and he broke out into a panic attack in front of all the important nobles that attended.

But he shakes the thought away, flute of champagne in hand. It’s more of a prop than anything, since he can’t even drink alcohol, but he enjoys swishing it around when he finds himself bored.

The night drags on, Toya continuing to mingle, until it’s finally time for the party-goers to dance with one another. In the corner of his eye, he sees Akito go hand in hand to the center with a brunette knight. He feels his eye twitch, and an unfamiliar feeling pools at the pit of his stomach.

“Ah, Toya! There you are,” His oldest brother greets before he can make a move to go near Akito. His husband is hooked by his arm, a soft smile ever-present, and the eldest Hinomori daughter trails behind him. She looks beautiful, features graceful and soft. “Meet Shizuku-san, the oldest Hinomori daughter. Why don’t you two dance together?”

Toya reigns in on the unfamiliar feeling, and opts to greet the other noble.

Dancing was a rather boring affair, his left hand on the girl’s small waist, and their hands interlocked together. Toya has the itching feeling to be anywhere but here. He recognizes it in the girl’s face, too.

Around them, whispers of ‘how good they looked together’ passed around, as they danced around the center. Hinomori’s blue, billowy dress expands as he spins her, and he offers her a kind smile when she accidentally steps on him when they meet each other again. He supposes, if basing only on pure aesthetics, he gets why those around them are in such awe. They would make quite the aesthetic together, with both graceful features and soft faces. But he doesn’t find her appealing in the way he does with Akito, and besides that; he sort of feels kinship towards her, when he notices that her eyes kept drifting to a certain pink-haired girl, in the corner of the bar.

“Thank you for the dance,” He bows, the song ending. He kisses the hand in his out of courtesy, as is taught to them, and she offers him a smile. He smiles in return.

“Your friend seems to be glaring holes onto me,” He comments.

“Indeed, I think… I should go to her,” Hinomori laughs back, although nervously. He nods and walks away from the center with her, before they part ways. He waves at her as she does with him, and watches her crash into the pink-haired girl. They seemed to discuss something before they magiced away from the ball. He decides he likes her and tries to think of an excuse for her, should the nobles look.

But the amusement doesn’t last for long, as he catches Akito’s eye in the crowd. They make a split second of eye contact, before the knight hurriedly looks away, and peered into the eyes of the one he’s in the arms of.

The man spun Akito around, and they danced erratically and freely. Akito looks happy.

The ugly feeling returned a hundredfold.

“You’re pretty handsome, yourself.” Akito off-handedly comments, as Toya nears the pair after their dance had finished. The prince had thought that maybe, just maybe, they’re just friends and he’s misunderstanding it.

“You flatter me. How can I compare to beauty such as yours?” Obviously, that was not the case.

“Akito.” Toya says, once his shoes clack onto the floor, stopping in front of the pair. The night was coming to an end, and only a few nobles were left. He couldn’t care less about how it may look to those around them anymore, as nobody would listen if they started rumors, anyways.

“Toya?” Akito pauses, raising a brow. The other man looks at him as well.

“Who is this?” He tries not to cross his arms, though one can tell from a glance that the prince was upset. He wasn’t glaring, per se, but he was definitely cold.

“Oh.” Akito says eloquently, obviously still confused. Hah. “He’s a new knight! He’ll be under my training. He just so happens to be funny and easy to get along with, too!”

And… Well, before Toya could do anything stupid, he only hums and turns on his heel, beelining for the castle. His eldest brother only stares as he storms (silently, like dark clouds that hover, but never thunder) away.

“Wait, Toya!” He hears his knight call out as he continues down the beaten-path, ignoring the beauty of the palace garden around him. He couldn’t bring himself to care, right now, when the ugly feeling is eating at him. Akito can’t seem to catch up to the prince’s hurried, large strides.

“What are you even so upset about?!” His knight says, not without frustration, as they make it to the outside colonnade, the moonlight slipping through the spaces in between the hand-carved pillars. Toya takes a deep breath. He can’t let his pent-up frustration take hold of him like this — not in front of his knight.

“Toya!” His knight grips his wrist.

He pushes the ginger against the nearest pillar and pins him there, in between his arms.

It looks much like the incident in the carriage weeks ago, but this time, it wasn’t an accident.

Toya peers down at the ginger with a carefully blank expression. Akito stares back at him. He can’t see his knight all too well in the darkness.

Toya wants to kiss his frustrations into his Akito, right now.

“You like playing with me,” He whispers instead. He knows Akito can feel the breathiness of his words, with how close they are. Their noses are almost touching. He fears his knight might feel his racing heartbeat, with how close they are.

“But you never try to understand.”

“Do you really not notice? Or are you disgusted with my advances?”

“Toya, wha—” Akito looks up, and… he sees Toya’s tears.

He’s seen Toya cry before. Seen how silently he does it, how pretty he looks as the tears caress his cheeks. But it breaks his heart all the same, after all these years, and he can’t begin to fathom that he was the reason for it.

Toya’s beautiful, crying in the moonlight. And Toya’s crying, hurt, because of him.

“I wished you’d told me you’re not interested in me, instead. I wish you’d let me know instead of turning a blind eye. Tell me, Akito, do you find me annoying?”

Akito doesn’t know what to say.

(Toya flees the next morning, to the Tenma estate. He’s sent a formal letter to let his father know he’s staying there indefinitely. He also urges them to not send knights or guards. His father allows it.)

And maybe Toya’s just feeding into his own misery, as he rereads Tsukasa-senpai’s letter. But he thinks he’s allowed to throw himself a pity party, if only right now, because the man he’s pined for for the past years doesn’t even like him, and probably knew all those years that he liked him. He’s probably so pathetic in Akito’s eyes right now.

He supposes he executed this particular step perfectly. And got the worst, most wordless rejection of the bunch.

“Toya,” Saki chides as she takes the parchment from him, and he whines. He isn’t even ashamed of it anymore. He can’t bring himself to, not when his heart’s heavy with the unsaid rejection.

Silence hurts.

“Toya.” Saki calls again, pouting. He drifts off easier these days. He tries not to think too much of Akito lest he burst out crying again. But it’s fine. Saki’s always been there to hug him through his crying sessions.

“Do you wanna… I dunno…” She says, obviously just rattling off what comes to the top of her head as she glances at the clock. Toya stays in the cocoon of fluffy blankets that Saki had graciously let him borrow for the time being. He closes his eyes. If he tries to, he can probably will himself to pass out.

“Hey! Don’t fall asleep yet!”

“What… Why not?”

“It’s important! Anytime now…” Saki trails off, apprehensively looking at the door to his bedroom.

For a split second, he’d been afraid that Saki had called his knight over. (Afraid and hopeful, a part of his mind whispers to him.)

But it was just…

“I’m here!!! Ha! Ha! Ha!” Tsukasa-senpai bursts through the door, a ball of energy as always, and behind him trails the demon king. A magical light show then plays behind Tsukasa-senpai for special effects.

Toya sits up, and attempts to stand up and bow to the demon king — he hadn’t bygone all of his manners, although he was close to it — but the blonde was quick to stop him.

“Just stay comfortable, Toya! Rui’ll understand! Right, Rui?”

“Fufu, but of course, Tsukasa-kun! He’s your family, is he not? By default, I’ll be giving him my utmost consideration and protection.”

And he tears up at that offhand comment — as if it was natural for the two of them. He’s glad that Tsukasa-senpai got his happily ever after, at the very least.

“Oh, Toya…” Came his brother-figure’s whisper. It’s the tone of voice he’d use whenever Toya cried as a kid, when he hadn’t known Akito yet, and Tsukasa-senpai was the only comfort he had in the midst of his… father. He’s glad the old man mellowed down over the years.

Saki had ushered the king out of the room, leaving only the two.

So Toya lets himself undone, this time in the arms of Tsukasa-senpai. It’s comforting, to be reassured by the person he finds to be most inspiring.

He’s not unlike silk ribbons, when Tsukasa-senpai’s mere presence pulls at his tightly sealed emotions, allowing him to fall delicately; the hero’s arms a secure safety-net for the prince to fall into. He lets out all the sobs and incoherent noises that he’d held in, and Tsukasa-senpai hums, as if he understands all the words he doesn’t — can’t — say.

And it is pathetic, if he thinks about it, as he cries his heart out to the blonde. It’s simply idiotic that he’s crying over a man he isn’t even together with. And he knows that Akito doesn’t owe him anything — Akito never had, and he should never feel like he owes his feelings to Toya — but knowing it doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.

It hurts, no matter what he tries to think.

And maybe Toya would have to suck it up soon, maybe he has to just shove aside his feelings like he had so many times before… He is a prince — one with duties and people to lead, even if he’s not an heir or the king… But right now, he thinks he deserves to weep and come undone.

Akito fucked up.

And not just a “whoops I made a little mistake, whoopsie” fuck up.

No, he’s somehow hurt Toya. Somehow made the prince feel like he can’t be trusted enough to flee from the palace — his home. That he can’t be comfortable with the knight like he had been before, so much so that he doesn’t even want any knight’s protection while away.

So, yeah. He fucked up.

“Tell me, Akito, do you find me annoying?”

Toya’s silent tears and pleading words still haunt him at night, in the days that pass without Toya in the palace.

He remembers having to strain to catch up to the prince, the other’s long legs helping in his fast strides. And when he had caught up to Toya, he’d gotten pinned to the wall by his wrists.

He hadn’t dared look up at the prince, lest he let himself hope.

And maybe he’s stupid.

Because he isn’t oblivious, contrary to what others may believe. He isn’t.

What he is, though, is stupid.

He had convinced himself so much that Toya wouldn’t like him — that Toya deserves a princess that would help him flourish, like the Hinomori daughter he’d heard Toya’s older brother talk about — and he doesn’t want to hope.

(Any maybe Toya’s brother had been right. That night, at the ball, with Shizuku in the prince’s arms… Her pale blue hair was pleasing to look at, flowing like silk while Toya had spun her. Her off-shoulder, billowy pastel dress complimented Toya’s perfectly tailored suit. Her beauty mark just under the lip made her look even more graceful, matching the beauty mark Toya has under his eye. Her dainty hands on Toya’s shoulder and in his other hand; the prince’s elegant and long fingers holding onto her waist; his soft gaze watching her own; the smile they shared as if they could understand each other… It punched Akito in the guts, because they looked perfect together. And that meant they don’t have any place for the likes of him.)

If there’s one thing Akito’s learned throughout his life, it’s to not hope. He learned it, when his father had cursed him out for choosing to train as a knight instead of a magician; he learned it, when he saw his older sister get crushed under his father’s expectations and ideals and hurtful words.

So he dared not hope for anything from the prince. He dared not try to cage such a brilliant, kind, amazing person in his arms. What would the world say, after all? He can’t selfishly let Toya’s standing in society be tarnished because he wanted the prince — ached so bad for him that it hurt — to be his.

So Akito didn’t hope. He didn’t look. He forced himself to stay content. Forced himself to stay oblivious.

And in his process of fighting for his ideal… He hadn’t noticed the very person he wished to protect from hurt — get hurt because of him.

Because of his selfishness. Because of the way he’d shielded his eyes and turned himself blind. Because of the way he didn’t hope, even when Toya had been persistently trying to give him hope— no, more than hope, because it was genuine and real.

And he doesn’t know what to do to fix it.

“You’re an idiot.” Ena says through the mirror. Through the foggy glass, Akito guesses she’s near or in the woods. “Like, a grade A certified idiot. If there’s an academy for idiots, you’d be the top one. You’d also have an honorary title; The Dunce. Or, y’know, maybe even be suspected of being blind. Are you sure you haven’t gone blind, Akito?”

“Argh, I get it! Like you aren’t an idiot yourself. What are you even doing? Have you finally fried your brain from all those spells you’re trying to pound to memory?”

“Hey, watch your words! Not everyone can be naturally gifted at things, you little—”

And maybe his sister’s not the best person to call for these types of things. They’re at each other’s throats more often than not, and they fight each other more than they show care. But Akito also knows, deep deep down, that Ena loves him. She cares for him, even if she shows it in an unconventional way. Besides, their father’s mere presence interfered with their ability to bond during childhood, so he can only be glad their relationship isn’t as wrecked as the ones he’s heard of.

“Just stop,” Akito pinches the bridge of his nose, squinting at the glass. It’s been 96 hours and 47 minutes since Toya’s last been in the palace (not counting the ball night), and he’s on his last nerve. “Are you going to get a move on and give me your stupid advice or what?”

“I’ll have you know, that my advice isn’t stupid at all.” Ena sticks her tongue out. A breeze blows at her, if the frenzied way of her short brown hair is flying can be of any indication. She looks up panickedly before running away for a moment. It’s as if she forgot he’s still connected to her via the magic mirror.

He feels a sudden course of worry for her.

“…Ena— are you in danger?” He starts lowly, barely above a whisper. Her eyes snap back down to the small mirror. And she nervously laughs — which does nothing to calm his nerves.

“Let’s just say… Me and the vampire got off on the wrong foot. I might not come home for a while. But I’ve got the whole situation under control!” She hurriedly says before he can interject.

“So, that prince of yours?” She says again, as she settles inside a hollowed tree trunk, curled up. He swallows down his worries for her for another time — she’s not stupid enough to not ask for help when she knows she needs it… he hopes.

“Yeah… uh.”

She snorts, “Seriously, you’re hopeless.” Her tone suggests that she’d be hugging him if she could. He tries not to dwell on that, because he can’t let himself cry in front of her; his pride won’t allow him to.

“Akito. It’s simple. Communicate, you idiot. Tell him about it. Tell him why you didn’t… notice his advances. Tell him you like him back. This’ll all be patched up if you tell him. He’ll listen. I know he will. But you better repay him for it! You can’t trample on someone’s heart like that again, you hear me?”

He smiles, but doesn’t say anything yet. He doesn’t want her to end the connection yet, even if she might have more important things to do.

Ena stays on the line. She doesn’t stare at the mirror, rather looking out of the tree trunk. He appreciates it — like she isn’t pressuring him into talking faster. He imagines they’re sitting side by side in his childhood room again, like those many times they’d spend time together in silence after a particularly harsh argument with their father. He likes the comfort her presence brings.

“What if he doesn’t like me any longer…” He pipes up after a few minutes of radio silence, just the occasional blowing wind from Ena’s end.

“Akito,” Ena had started sternly. It’s the tone she uses when she tries to be a good older sister, or when she tries to imitate what she thinks is a good adult figure. He thinks she sounds like a kid trying to sound responsible (he doesn’t pay any mind to the way his heart feels tighter at the thought, because it implies that she’s trying, for him). “You really are an idiot. But listen — for all your idiocy and sheer stupidity that can rival even a rock, you’re lovable. You hear me? You better be, because I’m only saying it here and now and never again. You’re lovable, and you cling. Your personality lingers even after months of talking with you. Your prince won’t give up on you so easily. But you have to understand that the boy’s hurting, and he thinks you rejected him — probably. And rightfully so. So, you’ll have to swallow down all those insecurities if you want a shot at him and you, you hear me? You have to push out all your knightley courage onto this one task, okay, Akito?”

He only nods at the mirror, throat too tight to verbally respond.

“Anyway, I really got to go—” The magic vibrates and distorts the image in the glass, and he clutches at the small mirror when Ena disconnects for a moment — the two enchanted it so you can’t disconnect unless you truly mean to, or if a magic stronger than the accumulated Shinonome magic reserve was put out. So, it only spelled danger.

He calms down when he sees Ena sprinting, reconnected albeit barely. “Hey, you still there?”

“Y— yeah,” He manages.

“Alright. Good luck on your knightley mission, Royal Knight Shinonome!” She still has the galls to tease, even if seemingly in a dangerous situation. It helps him calm down. “Don’t chicken out like a dunce, now, alright?” He can see her vaguely pause to cast a spell, and moments later, he feels slight ruffling on his hair.

“Alright, alright! Go focus on your stupid situation now. Call me if anything, okay? Bye,” Akito hurries to say, and disconnects. He tries to bat the spell away, but the stupid magical hand continues to ruffle his hair and pet his head. Stupid Ena.

Stupid Ena, indeed. And Akito. Maybe the Shinonome siblings are doomed to be stupid forever.

It’s been 107 hours and 23 minutes since he last sighted Toya, and he feels jittery as he ties off a palace horse on a tree. He’ll have to go up to the Tenma estate by foot if he wants any chance at talking to Toya.

He can’t believe he’s doing this. He swallows his pride and shame as much as he can.

“And to what do we owe the pleasure?” He hears Saki before he sees her, as he nears the gate. He isn’t even anywhere close to the manor yet!

He laughs nervously, “You must have good eyesight. To have seen me from so far away. I apologize for my abrupt presence.”

“Mm, you could say that. And it’s not like I can do anything now that you’re here, yes?”

Silence. She won’t budge.

“Toya’s here?” He tries.

“He is. He’s with onii-chan right now.” She says offhandedly. Since when did the hero come home? If nothing had happened, then he’d be one of the first to know, with Toya excitedly talking to him, the cute starry-eyed look would be on his face that effectively makes him look like a cat that got its favorite treat without having to ask for it, and Akito would say something playfully snarky about the blonde… He shakes the thought away. “Is that all you need? I already told you, he’s safe here.”

He knows that. He knows that the bond the three of them have is precious — it’s tight-knit, something woven out of spending several years together as children and as teens, until now when they’re barely adults — but he can’t let Toya think he doesn’t like him at all for longer than necessary. Heck, Toya shouldn’t even be thinking that Akito doesn’t like him! He should be holding Akito in his arms, as they cuddle in the Shinonome magic reserve; he should be pulling Akito along the garden maze they’d long since memorized; he should be kissing Akito behind a pillar, trying to be discreet. He should be doing anything at all except thinking that he doesn’t like him back!

“I want to speak to him.”

“Toya’s not in the mood right now.”

“I don’t care!” (Akito tries not to think about how he dropped the polite act out of frustration. He’ll beat himself up over it after he apologized to Toya properly.)

Saki raises a brow at him, unimpressed. She opens her mouth to say something discreetly snarky, but Akito beats her to it.

“Look, he probably told you what happened— and it’s a huge misunderstanding! I can’t let him think I don’t like him back any longer! I was stupid and idiotic, I know — but you can fight me over it after I explain it to Toya. I can’t let him keep being hurt because of me, and the misunderstanding between us!” He gulps in air after he said everything in one breath, and flushes red from slight embarrassment. Still, he adheres to his older sister’s advice, and stands his ground — if he wants a shot at Toya again, then he has to work for it!

Saki stares at him, sizing him up. Then, she smiles. “Hm. I guess I should’ve known. Well! In that case, I’ll tell Toya you’re here. But it’s up to him, you hear me? Not you, not me, him.” He nods aggressively, releasing a nervous breath as he enters the gate after her. The walk to the manor takes at least two minutes.

Akito sits on the couch as he waits for Saki to either kick him out or lead him to Toya (he really wishes it’s the latter). His knees bounce out of pure nerves, and he swears if he were to let go of the tight grip he has on his thighs, his hands would be shaking. His heart is pounding faster than the sound of a galloping horse, which is pretty fucking fast. He’s sweating more water than he’s drunk, and he’s really worried about his odor if this goes on for longer. He swears he sees his vision swimming from the sheer fear he’s feeling.

What if Toya won’t let him in? He’ll probably learn teleportation magic just to do it. Or try to find Toya’s familiar, if that’s even possible. He could even ask Ena to use one of her spells to send a letter from Akito to Toya. Or maybe he can just climb the window…

“Fufu, I never thought I’d see the day where a royal knight looks like he’s going to puke,” Akito jumps from fright when he realizes the demon king sits in front of him.

He looks… annoying. His hair is tied into intricate braids and is full of wildflowers, his horns looking much like fancy twigs with how much flora was curled around it — no doubt the hero’s doing. He wears a lazy smirk, and he’s clothed in stupidly intricate robes. Well, he muses, at least the hero got someone who could match his weirdness.

Before he could be subjected to the demon’s further eccentricities, Saki goes out of Toya’s room with her brother in tow. He nods at him before beelining for the king’s lap, and he tries not to visibly cringe — not when he knows he’d do the same with Toya if given the chance and opportunity. Truly hypocritical of him, but that doesn’t matter if he can’t even do it.

“He says you can go in,” Saki breaks the silence, pointedly not looking at the couple. He heaves out a sigh. She laughs at his visible nerves. “It’s the room me and onii-chan just got out of, by the way. Just up the grand staircase, second door to the right.”

He nods, and stands up. His knees feel like they’re going to give out, but he fights through it and ascends the steps.

His hand hovers on the knob, and he ghosts over the closed door. Beyond it, is Toya… And… He doesn’t know if he should be doing this now.

But he can’t chicken out.

He swallows his saliva and takes a deep breath before opening the door.

It’s still morning — around 10 am. The morning sun is softer today, and it shines down on Toya sweetly. His sun-dappled skin looks soft to the touch — and Akito knows it feels softer than it looks — and his eyes have a faraway gaze to it. He gazes out the window, staring at the backyard of the Tenma estate. He’s sitting up on the bed, but a fluffy blanket rests on his lap. Akito sees how tightly he’s holding onto it. The ginger lingers in the doorway, and his throat closes up when he realizes that Toya’s eyes are puffed up in the way it looks when he’d just finished crying.

He doesn’t quite know what to say. But nonetheless, Toya is beautiful.

“You know they forgot Pegasus in the Ootori Kingdom,” Toya starts, as he clears his throat. It’s raspy, awkward. He sees the other’s thin fingers clutch tighter at the blanket. “Tsukasa-senpai says he forgot. Had spent a night cuddling to console him, and then he had to console Kamishiro-san because they didn’t get to spend the night cuddling.” He says with forced laughter.

“They’re really weird,” Akito settles for a response, as he enters the room and shuts the door. He then lingers there, unsure what to do now.

“I suppose.” Toya replies, with a hopeless smile. Silence settles between them again.

Toya stares out the window, and Akito stares at him.

“Father sent you to get me, yes?” Toya pipes up after a while. They still didn’t make eye contact.

“Huh?”

“I mean, why would he allow his son to stay out of the palace for longer than needed for something that isn’t even official business, right? It’s been five days, too.”

“What— Toya, no. I came here on my own.” Toya finally looks at him. Akito feels his breath get stolen all over again, as they make eye contact after the longest they’ve spent without each other for the past years they’ve been together. “Your father didn’t send me. I came for you.”

“So you can tell me flat out?”

“Yes!”

“Oh…” Toya looks away again, this time at his lap.

Silence.

Akito takes a deep breath and marches up to the prince. He cups the other’s face in his hands and tilts it up gently, so that they can see eye-to-eye, and Toya can know that he’s genuine about what he’s going to say.

“Yes. I came here to tell you flat out.”

“Akito… Please, don’t rub salt to—”

“Let me finish! I’m here to tell you that— I like you, Toya. I like you so much. Like doesn’t even capture what I feel for you. I love you! We’ve spent years together. We spent years getting to know each other, spent years setting a rhythm where we can’t go for long without the other. And Toya— You’ve told me before that you want to spend the rest of our days together, and I meant it when I replied that I do, too!

“I want to spend the rest of our days together. I want to spend the rest of my days devoting everything I can for you; I want to spend the rest of my days going to wake you up for five times and more before you even begin to get out of bed; I want to spend the rest of my days having to scold you over accidentally cutting your finger while doing simple chopping, or somehow managing to put all of the eggshells into the batter, while the egg goes everywhere but the bowl; I want to spend the rest of my days with you!

“I’m stupid sometimes, I know. The same way I’ve got my hands full with you, you’ve got yours full with me, too. And I want to keep it that way. I want us to keep holding each other for the rest of our days. You told me, before, in the carriage— 'we’re going to be together' you said. You trailed off and fell asleep. So I’ll finish it for you! We’re going to be together, forever.

“I overlooked your advances, yes. But I didn’t do it on purpose! You’re not annoying, nor are you pathetic — I’ll beat you up the next time you think of yourself like that– okay, I won’t, but I'll smother you with all the care I can and metaphorically beat your ass! — but your advances just really did fly over my head. I told you, I can be stupid! And… And—!

“I have, so so so much more to say, but I love you, I really really do, and I wish you’d stop thinking that I don’t and— please say something—”

Akito cuts off his rambling, once he sees Toya’s jaw dropped like he’s heard the most shocking thing he’s heard his entire life, and it made Akito panic and— he really needs to breathe. Air is delicious.

“We’re so stupid,” Came Toya’s amused response, before he tugs on his knight’s waist so he’s seated on Toya’s lap — ironically, he thinks, as he remembers the weirdo couple — and he’s hugging Akito, nuzzling his nose on his neck.

He thinks Toya looks happy. He hopes Toya’s happy.

“I love you too.” Toya smiles, before tugging on Akito’s nape and pulling him into a kiss.

And, well, he supposes they’ve got their happiest ever after.

“Will that be all?” Came the king’s bored response to Toya revealing his plans of not entering a political marriage, and his… plans — only plans for the moment — with Akito.

“Wh… That’s all you have to say?”

“Toya, your brother married the heir of another kingdom! The paperwork and debating on who will marry into whose family was enough to strip me of any future protests. At least this time, it’s just a royal knight that you’ve chosen and not a prince. You’re both failures, yes, but frankly I don’t think either of you care anymore.” His father says, and waves them off.

If Akito bursts out laughing in the throne room, nobody cares anymore. Especially not the king.

“Hey, what happened to that knight you flirted with?”

“Huh? What knight? What?”

“You know— The knight at the ball?”

“Oh, him? I wasn’t flirting with him! What do you mean?”

“Huh… So you are just dense.”

“What— Toya!”