Chapter Text
...It had been 7 years since the first Floral War,
For now, Flantasia was safe, and all had peace.
Near the Middle East of Flantasia, there resided the Willow Kingdom.
The Willow Kingdom has existed for about 80 years and is currently ruled by Harumichi Aoyagi, living alongside his wife and his three sons.
It wasn't exactly known for being... A great kingdom; the King's leadership was great, but most kingdoms were afraid,
Inside the Willow kingdom—
" Your Highness,
The king is calling for you.
...The prince immediately woke up and groaned as he sat up. Rubbing his eyes and tried to get rid of his tiredness.
Home life wasn't... Peaceful. He didn't like it at the Willow Kingdom; after all, his relationship with his father was...
Complicated.
It'd be an understatement if he said he didn't like him, but it'd be an overstatement if he said he hated him, which made things absolutely confusing, but in the end, what could he do, really? He was stuck with his father till he died or his oldest brother took the throne.
... Although,
it was bearable.
Ever since they hired the used-to-be-prince of the Petunia Kingdom as the knight that guarded him...
His days were filled with joy and delight. He finally felt comfortable around someone and wanted to live alongside someone, so he did his best to live through days without any trouble.
After taking his time to think, he made his bed and stood up, tilting his head at the ginger-haired knight in front of him.
He looked down; despite not really wanting to know what it was about, he had to prepare.
"...Do you know what it's for?" Toya asked, hoping it was nothing bad. His trustworthy knight, Akito, just shook his head. The prince sighed,
"Well, I suppose there's only one way to find out..."
The prince helped him get out of bed and left the room to let the Prince get ready.
He changed his clothes and went outside, nodding at his knight to signify that he was ready to go, and steadily walked towards the throne room; Akito followed after him, holding his sword tightly.
As soon as they got to the throne room....
...The tension had risen as he saw the serious look on his father's face; what in the land of Flantasia could this be about?
Especially since the last time he saw that look was...
( ...No, probably shouldn't remember that. )
Toya eventually managed to keep himself composed as he stood in front of his father, trying to mentally prepare himself for every possible thing that he was going to say.
"Toya,"
Harumichi said, his voice stern. Just the tone of his voice made the prince shiver. Even though it was probably nothing, it still scared him.
Akito, who had been standing by his side the entire time, noticed this and was going to try to comfort the prince, wanting to ground him, but then Harumichi continued.
"...We have a meeting with the Sunflower Kingdom in two hours."
As soon as Harumichi said that, Toya felt... Relieved, all of his fears— his worries... They were gone in an instant,
The knight watched as the shivering prince beside him slowly stopped shaking and took a deep breath. It made him relieved as well, glad that the prince was calm, yet he still planned to comfort him even if it turned out okay.
To the Knight's surprise,
The usually stoic and serious Prince actually had a small smile on his face, one that no one had ever seen before in a meeting with his father, and was also somehow interested in what his father had to say.
"What's it for?" Toya asked.
"Well, we need to set up a trade, as we are currently running out of food, and I decided to bring you since the King of the Sunflower Kingdom mentioned that she missed you."
...Those words surprised the knight,
The Princess of the Sunflower Kingdom missed the Prince of the Willow Kingdom? It bewildered him, though he hid it, hoping to ask the Prince about it as soon as he was dismissed.
Once they got out of the room, the knight put a hand on his shoulder, offering silent support. He was allowed to do such stuff like this with the Prince, as they were close with one another.
"...You okay? You were shivering back there." He asked, wanting to hug Toya as soon as they were alone. The Prince was someone he actually cared for, and didn't want to let him down.
He nodded, "Don't worry, I'm okay,
Toya crossed his arms, trying to figure out what to do next...
"...We should get back to my room." He whispered, and the knight agreed; they both rushed back into the prince's room.
They got in the room, and the knight locked the door for him.
"... Sorry, my father... He terrifies me sometimes." Toya leaned on the wall. "I fear you feel the same about your father, so I get that you get me. He continued, a solemn look on his face.
Akito put his hand back on Toya's shoulder. "No matter how horrible our 'fathers' may be, just know that I've got your back, no matter what, okay?"
"...Thank you." The prince smiled. Certainly grateful to have a Knight like Akito, he leaned his head onto the knight's shoulder,
"Wait- are you allowed to do that?!" Akito panicked, extremely flustered. That was definitely something the prince usually wouldn't do,
"Aha- Seriously...? Of course I'm allowed. You're not getting executed for that."
"...Ahaha, right..." The knight sighed in relief, finally being able to relax.
... It was silent for a moment, making things go suddenly awkward. Usually, Akito had something to say all the time, so the prince waited for what topic he could bring up today.
As moments passed, Akito finally gained the courage to ask Toya his question,
"...Would you... mind if I asked something?"
"Not at all, go ahead," Toya replied.
"...I thought the Willow Kingdom was enemies with the Sunflower Kingdom? Or well, I thought. My...
...Ena mentioned that this kingdom was completely different from the other, so..." Akito's voice trailed off as he saw the surprise in Toya's expression.
"...Did I... say something wrong?" He asked, but the prince simply shook his head. "No, although it's sort of funny.
I'm childhood friends with the Prince and Princess of the Dahlia Kingdom, as you already know... But I'm also childhood friends with the Princess of the Sunflower Kingdom."
"-No way!" Akito impulsively blurted out, and covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he said. "-Sorry—
Seriously though? You two are so different from each other... Though, the Tenmas are different from you as well...
...How'd you two meet?" He asked out of curiosity; this didn't feel possible. It felt like a River and Fire somehow mixing instead of the former putting the latter out...
After all- he knew the Willow Prince well, and he had seen the Sunflower Princess. Even the Willow Kingdom didn't get along with the Petunia Kingdom.
Toya thought of what to say and how he could explain it. It was confusing to him too; he didn't get how he met someone like... Her, but he was grateful,
It took a moment, but he finally figured it out.
He sighed and let out a silent chuckle as he reminisced. "...Well,"
...Aoyagi Toya is the youngest prince of the Willow Kingdom. He's always been known as very polite and considerate of his peers and his subjects, but.
He wasn't known to be a talkative kid; he never spoke out, barely told anyone anything, even with his mother encouraging him to have fun- he couldn't. How could he with his father around?
His one safe place was in the Dahlia kingdom, the kingdom where the Tenmas lived. He knew that they wouldn't get mad at him for messing up or laughing too loud; he wasn't being forced to train every single day there... But in the end, he stayed the same.
...What could he do? Really, what could he do? If he ran away from home, he'd be facing a bigger punishment than he already did,
Was there really nothing but having to live the same routine over and over again, just to survive?
One day... He did well during training, and he saw his father smile for the first time.
...Was he... Finally proud?
He didn't know; what he did know was that– He was allowed to go outside the Kingdom by himself for the first time. He could visit the Tenmas- he could do anything.
...He finally felt joy.
He prepared everything he needed to explore and held his umbrella because...
...It was raining that day. Or so he thought. It was a long time ago, so remembering the weather for a guy like him would be the hardest challenge of them all. His intelligence was rich, but his memory, oh so poor.
He had walked to a field of dandelions; it was the first time he'd seen them. He usually heard about them from Tsukasa, and how you could blow on them; the only myth he had heard about was that the remaining seeds would be how many children you had, or how many hours were left in the day. He didn't believe silly stuff like that, but he enjoyed hearing it from a person he admired.
....The dandelions were beautiful, he felt so mesmerized to the point he could stay by the field for hours, but he shouldn't take his temporary freedom for granted,
He wss gonna continue walked when,
...Many parachute-like seeds flew in the air, as a little girl beside him had been blowing on them. She looked like she was having fun...
He wanted to join her, but...
He realized something, and immediately, he hid his face, hoping not to be seen,
Was he an idiot...? How did he not realize it immediately...
This girl looked like she was a royal like him- he didn't want the possibility of starting a fight between their kingdoms, and so he stayed put, trying not to notice her.
He still held his umbrella, unsure what it was for, and plucked out one of the dandelions, holding it right to his face and prepared to blow on it before...
"... Hey!"
...He sighed as the girl called out, and he immediately glanced over at her,
"Did you make a wish yet?" She asked, seemingly ecstatic for some unknown reason.
Toya shook his head. "Mm... No,
Are... you supposed to make one?" He asked back.
"Yeah, yeah! I'm pretty sure you're supposed to think of a wish, then blow on it! If all the seeds fly, that means it'll come true! Kana-san told me that!" The girl said excitedly, "That must've been why she was blowing on every Dandelion she got a hold of."
"...I see..." He gripped the Dandelion, shaking a bit– He shouldn't have gotten in this situation, yet he somehow did.... And now he had to deal with it.
He looked over to the girl who was extremely excited to see him make a wish for some reason, a sight he'd never see come from his father.
He took a deep breath.
"I'll give it a shot."
As he held the dandelion, he trembled a little. He didn't know what to wish for; he knew it was... Childish of him to be doing something like this, and he knew it wouldn't come true either way.
(I... I wish for this girl to be safe and happy as she grows up, and to live a peaceful life.)
...To be honest, He was... jealous of this girl. She was living carefree, and, of course, he shouldn't be assuming one's life based on their personality, but...
...He could've wished for anything, yet he wished for that.
He knew that it'd all be pointless, as he blew on the dandelion.
...He could've wished for his father to become a better person, a better king, and start loving him; he could've wished for an escape from the kingdom, but he knew it wasn't true. How could it?
He's already accepted his fate anyway.
...That girl deserved to keep her happiness and innocence for as long as she lived. She shouldn't become a miserable being like him...
...To his surprise, all the seeds actually flew.
"... Wow!" The girl was absolutely amazed. "...Your wish must've been powerful then!"
"... I guess it was." He smiled, but was still shocked that it happened.
"With that out of the way," She offered her hand to Toya, and they both shook each other's hands.
"I'm Shiraishi An. It's nice to meet you!" She said as she smiled brightly; it was a bit too bright for him, but even the Sun gave light.
He tried to give a faint, small smile back.
"...I'm Aoyagi Toya,
It's nice to meet you too."
They both wanted to know more about each other, so they agreed and took a stroll with each other to find more fascinating flowers,
"...Sooo, which kingdom do you come from?" An asked. Toya didn't really wanna reply to that, but he didn't want to leave her with no response either. It felt... Embarrassing; he was supposed to honor and admire the Willow Kingdom, yet it was so hard to even mention it.
He took a deep breath,
"... I'm... the youngest prince of the Willow Kingdom."
An stopped in her tracks,
"...Why do I feel like I'm gonna be pestered about this for the entire day–" Toya cut himself off as he saw An's expression; she was definitely in awe.
"... Whoa, you're a royal too?!" She squeaked. It seemed his suspicions were right all along. "I'm from the Sunflower Kingdom!"
"The Sunflower Kingdom...
That's the Kingdom near the Nightshade Kingdom, right?" He asked, "You're so far away from your home... Your parents just... Allow you to roam freely around these lands...? Without any knights either?"
"Ahaha, well... I'm allowed to go outside, yes, but...
I'm not supposed to go this far..." An chuckled nervously.
"...So you're a rebel?" He raised his eyebrow at her.
"Wh- No!-
I promise I don't usually do this; besides, the land of Flantasia is safe, isn't it?" She smiled.
"I'm also here to gather flowers to make my parents a bouquet! We rarely see other flowers that aren't sunflowers, so it'd be a nice surprise, right?"
"...Yeah." Toya awkwardly replied; he... Absolutely could not relate to what she just said. It was nice, though; her parents cared so much for her that she was doing stuff like this just to give them a lovely gift... He probably should've wished for a life like that back at the dandelion field.
She took off her hat and gently pulled each flower that she could find,
"I should get Kana-san one of these..." She muttered to herself,
"...Mm... I should probably get some too... Tsukasa-san and Saki-san would probably like these." Toya spoke his mind without realizing it. Before he knew it, the girl took out a handmade pin made using a sunflower and gave it to him.
"Here!
Well, this isn't exactly for who you were talking about. If you're allowed to have this, then keep it." She said, giving him the biggest grin he had ever seen come from someone.
As he accepted the pin, he felt... Conflicted, should he really keep this?- No, better question: would his father even allow him to keep it...?
The girl in front of him was so kind, though, so giving- surely he had to accept this, right? She was giving it to him after all-
Thinking about it more and more made him dizzy.
"...You don't have to accept it, you know..." An said; she wasn't sad or anything, at least. She looked understanding, but...
God, this was just so complicated.
"I'll... Take it." He sighed.
"Ehe, great!
...I should probably get home now; it is getting late..." She sighed, a bit worried since the entire Kingdom was a worrywart about her.
"I see... Well then, see you soon." Toya waved,
He watched as the girl left, giving him one last smile before she went off into the distance.
Days had passed since he met her,
Toya just couldn't stop thinking about An for some reason; he made sure to train well just to get another chance at seeing her.
They met every single time he did, and soon, they became really good friends, despite being long-distance.
And so, they had become good friends for 2 years before the Sunflower Kingdom and Willow Kingdom decided to have a secret alliance with each other, and that was the first time they were allowed to meet each other regularly.
Toya had reached the end of their story. He couldn't believe it had actually been that long, but... He was super grateful.
He hugged Akito as he rested his shoulder on Akito even more, feeling extremely comfortable. "...Uhm... Yeah, it's a bit anticlimactic... But it's a good story in my opinion."
"We haven't talked in a few months, actually; we deliver letters to each other, though." He added.
"...That girl seems like a good person," Akito commented, secretly smiling at the Prince. He was glad that the Prince had someone else to talk to...
"Why is this the first time you've talked about her, though?"
"...It's a secret alliance, so I wasn't allowed, but...
You get to meet her later."
"...I look forward to that," Akito said,
It was quiet again, and both appreciated that.
Toya wasn't really sure what to think... It felt like he hadn't thanked An enough for everything she'd done for him; she was the biggest reason, alongside Tsukasa, why he had managed to live on. He was able to meet Akito cause of this-
(...Well then,
I gotta make our first meetup after a long time the best. )
He promised as he slowly slept on Akito. He still had plenty of time, and he was gonna make sure he was in perfect condition to keep the promise he'd made to himself—the promise to thank her for everything.