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"what if i don't even have a soulmate?"
the youngest hoshidan princess found herself worrying about her future, time after time. the soulmate system was a simple, yet frustratingly complex one: a soulmate would have a personal compass of sorts, eternally pointing in the direction of the partner fate has chosen for them. occasionally, there are individuals who find themselves without compasses, left to wait for their soulmate to find them. princess sakura just so happened to be one of those individuals.
"are you still worried about that, sakura?" near princess sakura stood hana, her loyal retainer and childhood friend. hana attempted to lend sakura some support. "i'm sure that there's someone out there who's meant to be with you, and i'm sure they'd absolutely adore you!"
"how can you be sure?" sakura asked, with an air of insecurity and worry. "what if whoever it is...uh...finds me and...um, gets disappointed?"
"there's no way that could happen!" exclaimed hana, truly believing and meaning every word she said. "you're not a disappointment, sakura, you're the loveliest girl i know! you've just gotta believe in yourself!"
sakura smiled at her retainer, grateful for the support. the two friends hugged each other for a moment, their bond unbreakable. "um, hana, i'm kinda curious..."
"about what?" replied hana. "you can ask me anything!"
"well," continued sakura, "i was just wondering...do you have a compass? and, uh...do you have any idea where it might be leading you?"
hana was silent for a moment, looking toward her liege, then looking at the compass which pointed right in sakura's direction. this could possibly be the moment hana's compass was leading her to, the moment of her confession.
"yes, i do have one!" hana's words didn't seem to come out quite as easily as usual. she had suddenly become nervous, stressing over which words to say, struggling to not stumble over them or mis-speak.
"and it's pointed...well," hana said, her voice getting softer. "it's been you the whole time, sakura."
and it was true, and hana did have feelings for her best friend. she started blushing as a silence filled the area.
princess sakura was the one to break the silence with a happy exclamation of "oh, thank you, hana!"
she held hana in a hug once again, and then asked, "why didn't you tell me sooner?"
"well, i wasn't sure how you'd react...but yes, i love you, sakura!" replied hana. "i've always loved you!"
"um...i feel the same way about you, hana!" sakura exclaimed. "i just...couldn't tell you. i was...um...i was worried that your soulmate might have been...someone else..."
hana smiled at her soulmate. "it's always been you, sakura! and it sounds like you didn't even need a compass to point you towards me...we've been so close for as long as i can remember, and no one could ever break this bond!"
"promise you'll stay with me?" asked sakura.
"i love you, sakura! of course i will!" answered hana.
and their bond remained unbreakable for their entire lives, rarely even getting into disagreements. sakura and hana were meant to be together, and both of them knew.