Chapter Text
The kingdom was like no other you’d ever seen before. The noise of birds and people soared through the air. The thrilling mountains stretched so high, they broke through the clouds – snow dripping down the sides, streaking the rock as it fell in the blazing hot months of summer. The castle stood stark, tall. No one ever doubted the greatness of the structure, even from just its silhouette — visible from the forests abroad.
Villagers told stories about the mighty journeys and adventures of the Shinonome’s. The royalty, and how they descended from years upon years of war between their neighbors. Enemies, friends… nobody ever knew the difference. Nobody would. For alliances were corrupt, yet they were stronger than ever all the same.
That’s how the royalty functioned – albeit dysfunctionally. It was impossible to tell left from right, up from down, right from wrong, friend from foe. All they had was the hope to keep them going, the hope of trust... that dwindled day by day.
Akito Shinonome would soon need to take on that fate. The fate of a king. The fate of everyone’s eyes shining down on him, all filled with greed yet hope, disparity yet ambition.
“It’s nothing to worry about.”
Akito stood in his quarters – a fine, delicate place at that. Servants day-in and day-out had to track whenever the prince left his room, and whenever he did, they’d wipe away even the smallest piece of dust that had gathered on his pristine bookshelf or his beautiful linen sheets.
His outfit was already hanging on his closet door, specifically woven by the seamstress two floors down. An immaculate, jet black suit, with orange flowers to match his ginger hair. The brown tie made the colors fly right into his eyes – though they weren’t exactly brown. They reflected a mixture of that and orange, perhaps a shade of yellow with a hint of green. The combination of the stars and the trees; the mixture of ‘go’ and ‘yield’. A mixture, no doubt, that would make an excellent leader someday.
“Father just needs you for something important.” He looked at himself in the mirror. Straightening his back, broadening his shoulders – anything to make him look perfect. Because that’s what he had to be.
Right?
“Do it,” Akito mumbled. “If not for yourself, then for them.”
He took a moment, glancing at his reflection. Maybe he was searching for some last hint of wisdom. A spark of an idea – but all he was left with was nothing. There was no guiding light for him, no angel from above. Now, he was alone. Alone led to focus – alone led to precision, to strength, to independence, but it also made one lost, and… simply that. Alone.
But he didn’t need anyone.
He left his quarters, entering the hallway that led toward the grand staircase in the center of the castle. Those stairs led from the basement – the servant’s quarters, the castle’s imports, and more lower-class routines, up into the upper-floors. This was where the prince stayed; the King and Queen being the only ones above him. Though, it wasn’t as if Akito had his floor all to himself. That would’ve been a blessing, but sadly, not all things desirable came so easily in his world.
“Hurry up, lil’ bro!”
Enter: Ena Shinonome. Akito’s older sister by a few months – one of the two siblings he had. She had more guts than anyone in the family, which even included their father, and that was saying a lot. Her brown hair and short figure made it questionable how they were ever related, seeing as the two shared practically no features, except their fair skin.
“Stop calling me lil’ bro!” He couldn’t stop an unimproving sigh from falling out of his mouth, but it didn’t even phase Ena. She never stopped running down the stairs, disappearing as fast as she came.
It was easy to be blinded by her.
Akito made his way down the stairs.
Once he reached the ground floor, he was surrounded by butlers, servants, seamstresses, advisors, and plain old regular citizens doing their business within the castle. Akito clearly took several villagers by surprise, as he typically didn’t do anything on the ground floor all day. Typically, he’d be in his room studying, or in the courtyard training for whatever battles there were to come. The last thing he’d ever be doing was striking conversation with commoners, for he had other matters to attend to. That didn’t mean he never wished he had. He wished he could understand his people better, but he didn’t have the time. A prince had their own princely duties. A future king must set an example, and that was respecting the people who worked hard to get to their social standing. Not treating the poor with gratitude for them slacking off.
That’s what they were all taught. That’s what Ena believed; she so blindly followed their father.
He wished it was that easy for him.
Akito continued his way to the throne room, a room lined with golden plates and badges. The tile may as well have been painted in gold, seeing as that’s all his father seemed to care about these days: Money. Wealth. Power.
“Did you hear what he said?” The villagers continued to converse as Akito walked by, paying no mind to the wandering heir. “Thirty-seven hundred Roe! Can you believe that? Thirty-seven hundred Roe for one plot of land. I could start five different businesses with that amount of money, but the second a farmer tries to contribute to the kingdom? You get hit with a price tag of thirty-seven hundred Roe!”
The nation’s currency: Roe. Akito couldn’t help but feel regretful as he listened to the villager. The price just a decade ago was only thirty hundred. Who knew land prices could go up so fast?
“I’m sorry, Hana.”
The villager took a shaky breath, emotional as she glanced down at her wrinkled, dried hands. “I want to give those kids somewhere to work, Takashi.”
Takashi took a step closer to Hana, eventually wrapping his arms around the woman. Could they be a couple in their late 50’s? Akito could only assume.
“I know, honey. I know.”
He wanted to step in and say he’d give them a discount. He wanted to do something, but underneath the power of the king, Akito was powerless. All he could do was be a persuasive token – a secret weapon to use in a bargain. So he gave up, walking past the two, powerless.
He finally made it into the throne room. Inside, his father sat on his throne, polished in that same gold color. The color reflected the light off of it, hitting the center of the ceiling, lighting up the entire room with a singular ray. Stained glass windows shone in a similar light, however, lighting up the room in wonderful colors of blue and violet, along with some other, minor colors of the rainbow. Inside, Ena was standing, her head bowed to her father. Beside her was Akito’s other sister, one that was younger than him by a year and a half. An. An Shinonome, the youngest sibling, and also the most caring. She had an open heart everyone in the kingdom could learn from. Relentlessly selfless, always trying to be the best version of herself.
“You are late, my child.” The king glanced down on his son, and all Akito could do was bow.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I will not make the same mistake again,” Akito said. “I’m afraid I woke up late.”
Ena simply laughed at her brother, as if he made the most ridiculous statement in the world. “As if! You were too busy staring at the mirror.”
“What?” Akito glared at her. “I was not!”
“Was too!”
“Settle down, you two!” The king’s raised voice could quiet up any room in a mere matter of seconds. It was no surprise his own kids would shut up as well. “I didn’t call you here to listen to your bickering.”
Akito nodded, deciding not to reply as he awaited his father’s request for the three of them. The king knew that the three couldn’t get along, or at least, Akito and An couldn’t get along with Ena, so why did he invite all of the three together?
“Today, we have a foreign guest. His name is Rui Kamishiro. He is an important member of the Tenma Kingdom. I would appreciate it if you treated him with the utmost respect, and kept your bickering to a minimum.”
An seemed to light up with recognition when their father mentioned the Tenma Kingdom. Akito couldn’t tell if that light was out of optimism or pessimism, but Akito would assume optimism, as it was An, after all.
“Why the Tenma Kingdom, if you don’t mind me asking?” An asked.
The king simply smiled, “You’ll see soon enough. My children, follow me outside. He’ll be arriving shortly.”
With that, the king swiftly got up from his chair. Despite his old age, he was in perfect physical condition, thanks to the nutritionists and other health-related professionals scattered within the castle. An was quick to follow him. Her long, black hair dangling to the bottom of her back. She dyed the tips of her hair blue once, but Dad was furious. He demanded her to take the dye out immediately and never dye her hair again. It wasn’t formal; not suited for a princess. Her eyes were amber – a combination between Akito and Ena. It reflected her role as the peacemaker; the one who wanted to make everyone happy.
Akito never understood it.
Truly, everyone couldn’t be happy at the same time. It didn’t make any sense. Because if everyone was happy, was there any happiness at all?
Thoughts like that raced through Akito’s mind as he questioned what he’d do as king, but he supposed it didn’t matter. For now, he must walk outside and meet this ‘Rui Kamishiro’.
Something was wrong about this. He didn’t know why he felt that way, but it felt off. Like it was all a scheme of some sort — Akito wouldn’t have put the possibility past his father. See, his father was always respectable, but something that the kingdom didn’t know about him was that there was another layer of selfishness and greed over everything he’s done, like the Plague of 1943. People tended to just call it The Plague. In fact, it was never named to honor the ones who died from it. In order to forget. At least, that’s how his father justified it.
He didn’t do much to help the poor back then. All he did was say it would pass away, and that only the undeserving would truly get The Plague. Morbid. Completely and utterly morbid. Dad said that it would help the kingdom prosper. A plague. Helpful?
“How do we know this is a good idea?” Ena asked. She seemed almost nonchalant to any negative reaction her question might have caused.
The king was quick to reply, looking at his eldest daughter. “Since when have I ever not had a good idea?”
Ena took that as a challenge. She took out her hand, raising a finger every time she came up with an answer. “The Plague of 1943, The Tenma War of 1942, The Famine of 1945…”
“Quiet, daughter!”
She didn’t even flinch.
“For you and me only, I’ve done some questionable things, but it’s all been for the betterment…” He put his hand on her shoulder. “For you.”
Ena looked absolutely disgusted, moving away as if she was repulsed at the mere thought of her father consoling her. “If that was the case, a lot of things would be different around here.” She scoffed, the summer breeze blowing her hair back as she stepped outside.
An and Akito took places on their side of the two, staying quiet as their sister decided to bicker. An couldn’t help but let out a sigh as they glanced down at the street below the gigantic staircase they stood on top of. Maybe one day they’d get along, or maybe they never would.
Below was a street, paved in cobblestones — the lush forest was almost a graceful, green cloth that separated the castle from the villagers, and that same cobblestone path wove its way through it like a needle. The sun was set right in the center of the sky, the heat exhilarating, yet there was still that breeze, blowing through the air. A comfort.
Akito’s suit had never felt warmer.
“He will be arriving in a carriage, just down the cobblestones.” That’s what he called the path to his people. Cobblestones. Tiny rocks that were a pain, tiny, little steps that he wasn’t willing to take.
“…What should we expect?” Akito glanced over at his father, hoping to read some kind of answer on his face, but alas, there was none. Just a stone-cold poker face.
In fact, that almost made it even more suspicious. The king, trying out Ena’s nonchalant routine? No, the king was passionate with every decision he had ever made. “You can expect a graceful man. About your age, Akito.”
Akito’s eyes squinted ever-so-slightly. “Why do I need to know his age?”
“No need to ask so many questions.”
That was conspicuous.
Out of the corner of Akito’s eye, he could see a shadow of an object in the forest, but it was coming closer, growing bigger with each step. As it formed into a carriage led by two horses, it was clear that this held the Rui Kamishiro the king spoke so highly of.
So what was he? A bargaining chip? This honored guest wasn’t a Tenma, so was he an advisor? A family friend of the royalty? These were questions that couldn’t necessarily be answered — not by the king or Akito’s sisters, at least. For now, they were just that: Questions, theories, hypotheses.
When the carriage arrived at the steps, the king began to walk down, and so did his children in unison. Walking together, all a part of their own choir, their own orchestra, but the second they were done performing, they abandoned the others to go do what they did best. Which was… well, that was up for them to decide.
A royal guard was quick to stand up from their position in front of the bottom step of the staircase — one of the two walked toward the carriage while the other stood guard, eyes forward as they watched for anything suspicious.
Ena mentioned it earlier: The Tenma War. While that did happen 20 years ago, people were still cautious, and rightfully so. It wasn’t everyday a kingdom went to war with their neighboring kingdom, throwing themselves into even more debt than they were originally in. Friend or foe. It was difficult to tell.
Akito watched as the man stepped out of the carriage. His suit was graceful, handsome — a nice white. It had a great contrast to Akito’s black, but it looked nice on him. He had light brown hair, and when you looked at him, he had a white streak on his right side, matching his suit. He had a smile, a handsome smile that could clearly light up a room; that was, if Akito cared enough to notice it. The only reason he was paying any attention was in case this ‘honored guest’ wasn’t so honorable.
“May I present to you, Rui Kamishiro of the Tenma Kingdom.” The guard bowed his head after he spoke. The other one bowed in kind, and eventually, Kamishiro bowed as well. It was a sign of respect. The girls curtsied in kind, and Akito took that as his sign to bow. The king didn’t budge; however, as he was the powerful one. Power doesn’t need to bow, only inform and order.
“We’re honored to have you in our kingdom,” The king said. “Before you enter, would you mind if we asked you some questions?”
Kamishiro nodded. “Yes, of course. Tenma and you did discuss the matters of my arrival, correct? My deepest apologies if anything about the matter was troublesome.”
Akito watched as the two interacted. Something was off. It was that same feeling as earlier. The king didn’t just look into Kamishiro’s eyes; he also kept glancing back at Akito, as if he was looking for a reaction— a glimpse into Akito’s first impression of the man. That, along with the remarks from earlier, was starting to grab a hold of him. Was his father just toying with him? Trying to judge his son’s actions as a test of if he was worthy to the throne once he passed? Or was it all just in his head, lingering and building as he sat in that darkness with his own mind?
“I can ask him the questions once we’re inside, right?” Akito wasn’t expecting that to slip out, but it did. An and Ena were taken by surprise, but that didn’t stop him. “The heat is blazing. Surely we can go inside, get some water… show him his quarters.”
Akito didn’t know the questions or where Kamishiro was staying, but he didn’t care. He had his own, personal questions to ask the man.
“As if you’d be comforting. You’re going to start an interrogation.” Ena let out a scoff, and before he knew it, Akito was glaring at her, sending a message for her to not say anything.
Akito took Kamishiro’s hand, prepared to drag him inside the castle if he had to. Heck, the poor man hadn’t even said anything to Akito, yet Kamishiro was still being pushed around as a pawn, as if he was a mess that had been there forever.
“Water sounds great,” Kamishiro said, looking somewhat thankful at the man who took his hand, though in a way, that creeped Akito out.
Akito nodded in reply, walking away from the staircase and heading toward the door. Just as he put his free hand on the door handle, he heard his father’s voice from behind him. “I can’t say I’ve told you the news, Akito.” Akito didn’t turn toward his father. Instead, he stared at the door, awaiting his finished thought. “You two are now in an arranged marriage.”
Beat. Think. Beat. Breathe. Beat. Think. Beat. Breathe. Think. Drop. He dropped his hand from Kamishiro’s. Or should he say Rui’s? How formal was this anymore? Beat. Beat. Breathe. Calm. Down. Can’t. Think. Can’t. Breathe. No. No. Think.
He slammed the doors to the castle open, a loud crash filling the space as the door smashed into the stone. He ran away, speeding straight to the grand staircase in the center, climbing up and up, in a sprint faster than he’d ever ran before — right onto his floor. The gold was rotten. His suit was black out of his father’s poor decisions. The gloves, white with peace — all the peace that should’ve illuminated the walls — his eyes. Green and yellow. Green and yellow. Go yet yield. Go yet yield — go… go…
He couldn’t even take off the suit. He rushed straight to his bed, burying his face in his pillow as he just sat there. Maybe if he stayed there, he’d think it was all a nightmare. A quick, little nightmare, and his father actually needed him for something different that morning. There was no way an arranged marriage actually happened, right? The Tenmas and Shinonomes never agreed on anything! All the more reason to establish peace between the marrying off of an ‘honored guest’.
Guess it was nice that it was a boy and not a girl, though. No… no, there was nothing nice about this. At least if it was a girl, they could both be on their ways and not be involved romantically at all. What did this ‘Rui Kamishiro’ want out of him, anyway? It didn’t matter what he wanted; he wouldn’t get anything of it.
His eyes finally lifted out of his pillow, and they landed on his closet. On the side, a black hoodie hung up with some jeans, the same color as the top. A hoodie in the peak of summer. A hoodie… to blend in?
No, he couldn’t leave . Leaving would be cowardly. Oh heck, he already left just a second ago. But out into the village? Just because of an arranged marriage? What kind of ruler would he be then?
What kind of ruler would he be if he was married to a random guy? What kind of person would he be if his heart was sold off at only seventeen? It was too late. It was too late…
Maybe if he ran off into the village, he’d be able to find someone. Someone better, just… someone that he actually cared about. Yes, Akito didn’t know Kamishiro yet. He might’ve been a great guy, but it wouldn’t have been the same. Could he just run off? He took a deep breath, taking a moment to recollect himself. An attempt to.
Maybe it wasn’t too late.
Akito took a step out of bed, going closer to the closet. His movements were restricted as he reached out for the hoodie, as if it would be a curse to even touch the object. But he did. He touched it, and once he did, it wasn’t too hard to make his decision.
If he got punished for it, oh well. But at least this way, he might’ve had a chance to obtain what he was looking for. Maybe this way, he could be normal .
When he slipped the hoodie over his head, he watched as a piece of paper flew out from the big pocket at the bottom. Curious, he bent down, grabbing it. It was dusty somehow, clearly old. It read as followed:
Akito,
You’ll always be my little angel. Go, explore the world. You belong in the village too. They’re your people. See where your mother grew up.
I bought you this hoodie. Once I got sick, I knew I had to. I wanted you to have the opportunity.
Go. You’ll be okay. I knew you’d need this eventually.
I love you, and still do, with everything I have,
Mom
Akito felt a tear come to his eye, but he quickly wiped it away. “Of course she thought of this. She thought of everything.” He quietly chuckled under his breath, placing a gentle kiss on the paper before putting it down on his desk, folding it up so no one else would read it. “I love you too, Mom.” He looked up to the ceiling of his room, as if she’d somehow be up there, looking down at him. “You know I’d never forget you.”
A small smile formed on his face as he looked in the mirror now. Black hoodie, black jeans — same green and yellow eyes. Go. Yield. Go. Go.
He wasn’t too late. He was right on time.