Band: Kagrra,, Alice Nine
Pairing: Isshi&Nao, Izumi&Shin, Tora&Akiya
Rating: 16+
Genre: fantasy, AU
Warnings: violence, blood, injury and some kind of cheating
Note: Long ago in the White Kingdom, there were two clans ruling the land - Silver and Golden Dragons. Silver Dragons wanted the power only for themselves and started a war, which they didn't win. The Golden Dragon Clan leader became the king and ordered to kill the defeated clan members. A lot of time passed since then. But did the silver people were all murdered?
Let's start with the fact that I'm a prince. If you think I'm living my life, you're mistaken. I'd rather be a normal teenager like you. Meanwhile I have to listen to my strict parents, who won't let me do anything. So what if I'm living in a golden cage? It's still a cage. And you are free. Like butterflies flying above the horizon.
In truth, everything I want to tell about starts one spring day, when I was almost seven years old. Me and four of my friends went to the lake. Ah, those childish minds, who cannot tell where's the thin in between bravery and foolishness.
By the lake shore there was a child playing with their wooden boat.
"Wanna play with us?" asked one of my friends, a boy with round cheeks and happy eyes.
He didn't change much.
Child shook their head and went back to playing with their boat.
"I'm sure I can jump on those rocks to the other side." I said, putting my leg on the first stone.
I mentioned the foolishness of the kids. Well, none of us knew how to swim. Even me, the prince, wasn't taught this yet.
Yes, you guessed right. I fell into the water. Since it was in the middle of the lake, I didn't have ground under my feet and sunk to the bottom.
I woke up on the grass. The child in white, wet robes was leaning over me. When they noticed I woke up, they smiled and ran away. I never saw them again. I remembered one thing about that child. Golden necklace with silver dragon. Colors inverted from my royal necklace.
* * *
Ten years have passed since meeting that child. I was sitting with a book in the garden, when I've heard the voice of the being I hate the most in the whole world.
"Hello, my sunshine!" Shiya ran towards me, almost killing herself in her slippers.
She sat next to me and started talking.
"You know, my parents say that some dutches told them that they want you to marry some noble girl. I am a noble girl and you love me so maybe..."
"Shiya, you're mixing up love with disgust." I replied, closing the book.
Shiya fluttered her eyelashes, throwing her hair behind with her hand.
"One day you'll love me and we'll have three children - two girls and one boy." she stated, getting up. "See you later, honey."
The noble lady got into the carriage, yelling about the pink scarf she wants or else she'll fire her people. By the way it's good to know that:
a) Parents are looking for a wife for me.
b) This incompetent human being planned all out our future together.
c) She knew of a way to change the gender of the child, since in our family no girls were born in ages.
"Young master, your parents want to see you." said my butler, one of the few normal people in my parents' castle.
I hesitantly got up, hoping I won't have to listen to them again. Especially since everytime I meet Shiya, I am annoyed to the point of one bad look away to explosing from the rage.
"I won't marry her!" I yelled, as those incompetent people I call my parents stated that Shiya is a perfect candidate for my wife. "She's mean, not intelligent and wan't three children. Two of them being girls. I don't have the power to change the baby's gender."
"But I do!" said the father of one of the boys I knew since childhood.
"Son, Hiroshi is our court wizard." explained my father. "Because of him there are only boys being born in our clan. If miss Shiya wants daughters, so be it."
"You're a wizard?" I asked. "Magic is real?"
"Yes." Hiroshi shrugged. "I use it for many years. But don't worry, I didn't have to change your gender."
"That's good." I muttered.
Then my mother spoke.
"You want it or not, Shiya will be your wife. She's beautiful, young and fertile." she said.
"And rich." added my father. "A few more gold inglots won't hurt our land's wealth."
"Am I speaking in some different language?" I said, biting my lip and causing it to bleed. "I don't wanna get married. With some nice brunette with brown eyes and IQ higher than zero? I could. But not with the porcelain doll who only wears pink dresses and doesn't know how much is 2+2!"
"If this continues, you'll be old and no woman will want you." said my father. "And don't raise your voice like that."
"I'm leaving." I said through my teeth, running out of the chamber and slamming the door.
"Isshi, come back here!" called my mother, but I didn't listen.
I ran, not watching my step. I grabbed my bow and arrows, then jumped on Horase, my loyal steed and ran to the forest. I needed to let off the steam.
* * *
"Why my parents lack so much of logic thinking?" I growled, firing the arrow into some three.
I chased away the flock of birds.
My mother knew how to be nice. She was able to hug me, call me by my shortened name, tell me she loves me. But more often she yelled at me for no reason. Just to make herself feel better after another day wasted with my father and her husband. He and Shiya were a perfect match. I never met a bigger clutz in my life. He remembered about my existence only when he needed something from me. Just like now. He want's only gold. And nothing else is more important to him.
I got off Horase and sat by the pond in which I almost drowned. I took out my necklace and looked at it. Golden dragon on a silver background. Coat of arms of our lineage. The lineage of murderers. I never believed the legend about the big war until I didn't meet that child. And that child saved my life. Did they know my ancestors almost killed all of their family? Probably not.
"You're here again?" I heard a well known voice.
Then the sound of footseps broke the silence.
"Hello, Izumi." I smiled, when my friend sat next to me. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm looking for Shin." said Izumi, crossing his fingers. "I need to talk about something with him. But Akiya and Tora probably went with him somewhere. And why are you here?"
"Because my parents want me to marry." I explained. "With Shiya."
"With her? What for?" wondered Izumi.
"She's young, beautiful and fertile." I repeated after my parents, looking at the water.
Then I heard a laugh.
"And dumb like mushroom joke Tora told us." said Akiya, leaning on my arms. "Man, you're shaking. Like some prince scared of the idea of getting married to a witch."
"Akiya, you weren't supposed to tell him that." sighed Tora.
"He could think of it as a metaphor, but now it's to obvious." said quietly Shin, sittng down next to Izumi.
"She's a witch?" I asked, looking at Tora.
"Yeah, sadly." said Tora. "That's why her hair is so bright. Naturally it's red but she changed the color with a spell."
"Sooner or later she'll probably try giving you a love potion, so watch out." said Izumi.
"How cool." I sighed and got up. "Don't follow me."
I got on Horase and ran towards the more dense part of the forest.
* * *
After a while I heard the sound of twigs getting broken, I put the arrow on my bow, ready to fire and listened.
"Why always me?!" I heard some voice.
I got off Horase and tried to find that person.
Let's say he found me first by falling on me and making me hit the ground.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it." he said, getting up.
His arm was injured.
"Me... Oh, you have a weapon! Kill that bear or else he'll eat both of us."
I instantly got up and looked at the large animal running in our direction. I fired one arrow, which disoriented the predator. Then I got on Horase, pulling the bear's future victim behind me.
"Sit and hold the reis." I told my new companion, who had no idea how to ride a horse. "Horase, go!"
The horse galloped, slaloming through the trees. He was loyal as a dog. He even behaved like one smetimes.
Suddenly a new problem appeared. A gap, which could be jumped over but it could also not work out.
"Calm down, Horase, we'll make it." I said, turning around.
The bear still wanted to murder us. How nice.
"You're calming him down, when you should calm down me. We're going to die!" yelled my companion, covering his eyes with his hands.
I grabbed the reis and I also felt like closing my eyes.
Horase's hind legs touched the edge of the gap. My heart went to my throat, but luckily, we managed to survive.
"Hey, you can open your eyes now. We're alive." I whispered straight to my companion's ear.
He flinched and moved his hands from his face.
We got off the horse as soon as we reached some glade. We sat on the grass and I ripped of his sleeve to make some kind of band-aid for his arm.
"I'm so lucky." sighed the guy. "First I'm being chased by the bear, who should be more interested in a fawn running in opposite direction. Then I fall on some squirrel hunting archer, who puts me on a horse and almost kills us while jumping over the gap in the ground, because he's crazy like my aunt, who has only one teeth left and jumps into the ant mound because it tickles. And now this weirdo rips apart my official shirt and tries to take care of my wound, but he fails miserably. I shoud've stayed home."
"I'm trying to help you, so shut up." I growled, looking at him, which made him go pale as a wal.
"Crap, the necklace." he whispered. "Royal necklace. I yelled at a prince. I'm dead."
"And I'm Isshi, nice to meet you." I introduced myself, successfully bandaging his arm.
"You won't kill me, your majesty?" he asked with shaky voice, looking me straight in the eye.
"Isshi." I repeated. "Will you tell me your name?"
"Nao." he replied quickly. "Why are you helping me?"
"Because I am not some insensitive aristocrat." I answered and gesturing to him he should get on the horse.
I got the feeling, I saw Nao somewhere.
Shin's father was a doctor. He took care of Nao's arm and said I'm more incompetent than my father. Oh well, it's his genes anyway.
Nao thanked me and disappeared. I wondered where he lives and why I never met him before. My friend said I think about him too much. But it's because I felt we've met somewhere before in some important moment.
* * *
A few weeks later everything was back to normal. Shiya bothered me even more, blabbering about out future life, parents almost didn't talk to me. Akiya worked on his painting skill, Izumi looked at his father at work in the bakery, Shin helped his father in healing people, Tora practiced his magic and I was stuck in a place. I knew I have to become next emperor, Shiya will be my wife, we're gonna have three kids, eight cats and a dog... But I couldn't stop thinking about two people that appeared in my life for a short while - Nao and that kid from the pond.
It was snowing. My birthday was next week, the wedding was in a month. I sat on the stove, when my butler went into my chamber.
"Master, painter's son asks if you'll go with him to the city." he said calmly.
"Tell Akiya I'm coming." I said, closing the book.
Akiya stood in front of the gate, smiling lightly.
"Hello, Isshi." he said, grabbing me by the sleeve of my coat. "Listen. You won't believe who we've met today."
"Who?" I called.
"Someone you know." said Tora, joining us. "He's quite nice, when he's not yelling about his arm pain."
"Nao." I whispered, standing in front of Izumi's house.
Akiya knocked the door quietly. Shin opened the door.
"Good morning." Shin smiled, letting us inside.
Nao was sitting on a sofa, holding a cup of tea in his hands.
"Hello, Isshi." he smiled to me.
"Hello, Nao." I smiled back, taking off my coat and putting it on a coat hanger.
When I talked with him, it felt like we knew each other since childhood. Just like the rest of my friends. All this time I tried to remember where did I meet him before.
During one afternoon we learned a lot about Nao. His family lived on the other side of the forest, where I've never been before, which explained why I haven't seen him much. He had an older brother, who fell in love with a young blonde woman and completely lost his head for her. He could follow her all day and try to hit on her, which always resulted with his face beaten up by her bodyguards. When I asked if he at least knows the girl's name, Nao started thinking.
"I think it's Shiya." he said quietly. "Do you know her?"
You probably know, why he asked that question. Or you at least have in your mind a picture of me turning pale as a ghost.
"It's his fiance, who he hates and would love to murder her." explained Akiya for me.
"But he needs to marry her anyway and have with her three children - two girls and a boy." added Tora. "Don't look at me like that. He says this so often I remembered that."
"All because Shiya is rich." said Izumi, pouring some tea into the cups.
I don't know why, but I got the feeling Nao's expression became a bit sadder, when he heard that.
* * *
This time Nao didn't dissappear. For the next months we were meeting almost everyday, but then came the day I'd gladly erase from my memory.
Do you know how it is to wake up next to a beautiful woman and think she's your worst nightmare and you're married for twelve hours now? You don't know? I know.
The following day I decided I don't care that I have a wife now and should take care of Shiya. I took my bow and arrows and went on Horase to the forest.
"You're here again?" Nao sat next to me, when I looked at a frozen pond. "How's your wife? My brother is in a despair, but he'll live."
"Mean like always." I said, playing with my fingers. "Why it had to be her?"
"I guess you're as unlucky as I am." laughed Nao. "But at least any bad thing that happens to me turns out to be lucky. But it's so bad that..."
"What?" I asked, when Nao suddenly stopped talking.
"No, nothing. Nevermind." he said, getting up.
After a while he just went his way.
* * *
Shiya said there will be time for kids. Now she needs to take care of her birthday ball. I didn't like the idea. I hated any kind of ceremonies with a lot of fools called "people".
When the witch's birthday came, I only sat on my chair and watched how guests dance and play without a care in the world. I wanted to feel like that too. Free from all my problems. That would be so nice.
Then I had an idea.
"Hiroshi, can you do me a favor?" I asked, grabbing the wizard by the hand. "Can you do something that would make me indistinguishable to everyone except for the people I care about?"
"You and your weird ideas today." Hiroshi shook his head and cast the spell on me. "Now everyone will think you're some count from the other side of the river. Unless you like someone. Now excuse me, I need to find someone."
I saw Hiroshi dissapearing among the people and walked towards the table. Then I heard some woman's voice.
"Princess Shiya made an excellent ball, am I right?" woman in mask sat next to me, leaning her head on her palms. "How do you like it here, mister?"
"I think princess Shiya is a mean witch." I said, sipping some wine from the glass.
The girl laughted. I had a feeling, I've heard that laughter somewhere.
After two hours of small talk, I asked her to dance. For people I didn't like, I was just a count, who didn't matter in the sea of all those people. If that girl starts caring about me, will she recognize me?
She was delicate as a feather. Her purple dress was flowing in the dance. I got a weird feeling I know this girl.
Then I noticed the necklace on her neck. Silver dragon on a golden background. Then I know from where do I know her.
"You saved my life back then?" I asked, embracing her with my arm.
I looked her in the eye.
"So now you know we're even." she said calmly, putting her hand on my cheek. "You thought you were the only one using magic today, Isshi?"
I froze for a moment. I felt something like a gust of wind. The spell stopped working. Well, at least for me.
"Nao." I whispered, being unable to move away from him. "Your medal, but..."
"Did you know back then I had no idea I'm saving a child prince?" asked Nao, hugging me. "But back then, when you were taking care of my wound... After I noticed your necklace I looked you in the eye. I recognized you right away. The sadness in the eyes of a drowning little boy. A boy older than me, as I learned recently."
"You're in a dress." I noticed.
"Isshi, I'm pretending to be a woman, I'm not gonna run around wearing pants." said Nao.
"Hiroshi could turn you into a woman, but couldn't make an illusion of a dress?"
"He said it's too much for him." explained Nao.
"Anyway, why did you want to look like a woman?" I asked.
"It was the only way for you to notice me." said Nao.
"Oh, you're so blind." I sighed and kissed him.
For a moment time has stopped. There were only us. Gold and silver dragon in loving embrace.
* * *
Next day I woke up slightly confused. The sun was shining and Shiya was laying next to me. I needed to go back to reality. But I didn't want that, because what for?
I left the castle taking my weapon just in case. Horase wasn't in his top condition lately, so I went to the forest by foot.
"Isshi." Nao fell into my arms when I didn't expect it.
"Do you know what we're doing is wrong?" I asked and Nao only noded his head. "It makes me somewhat excited, though. Like I've broken out of my cage."
"Isshi, you know what I cannot believe?" Nao looked me in the eye. "Your ancestors murdered mine. Isn't it a bad thing to do in relation to them?"
"I have no respect for my family. They are nothing to me." I said. "Maybe if Silvers won that war, things could be better."
"Then I would be the prince." wondered Nao.
Then I heard a familiar sound. The sound of an arrow being shot out.
"Nao, duck!" I made both of us fall over and sat up.
I saw guards from my castle. Great.
"Master, this is Silver. We were told to kill him." said one of them. "Please move away, Master, or we'll have to use force."
"I'm not going to move away. Nao, run!" I yelled, pulling my arrow. "Go away and you won't get hurt."
"Prince, you're causing..." the guard didn't get to finish, because my arrow hit him.
We were running away, chased like some criminals. I tried to kill all of them, but it wasn't easy when you're by yourself against twenty people.
"Nao, we have a problem." I said, throwing away my bow. "I'm out of arrows."
"I don't want to..." Nao stopped, tripping on a tree root.
I helped him get up and did something mechanically. I covered him with my body, since royal archer apparently still had arrows.
Nao's scream. Hand on my cheek. Two joined hands. Another scream. Darkness.
* * *
I woke up in my bed. Shiya sat next to me, holding my hand.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Silvers wanted to kill you." explained Shiya. "Don't worry. Almost all of them are dead and the rest is in the dungeon, waiting for their execution. One is wounded, so they'll probably won't be alive when it happens."
"They didn't want to kill me." I disagreed. "Shiya, I tried to save one of them. The guard..."
"Honey, your mind is playing tricks on you." said Shiya, leaning over me. "Tomorrow you'll feel better."
She left. After five minutes Shin and his father showed up in my chamber.
"Don't tell him." asked his son Shin's father. "How are you feeling, prince?"
"Can someone sane explain the situation to me?" I asked, sitting up with some troubles.
"The Silvers, who tried to oppose, are dead. The rest awaits their execution." Shin's father repeated what Shiya said.
Shin looked at me, then at his father, then his hands and muttered something to himself.
"What are you saying there?" asked medic, changing my bandage.
"I can't do this." said Shin, then looked me in the eye. "If Izumi were dying and I didn't know about it, would you tell me?"
"Yes... I think..." I replied.
Then I understood what he meant.
"Why?"
"When you covered him, the archer got mad, took away another guard's sword and stabbed Nao. That's all I know." said Shin.
His father shook his head.
"Oh, that loyalty of yours." laughed medic. "When you'll get up, I'll give you the poison, prince."
* * *
About an hour later I heard some knocking on the window. My friends were on the balcony, waiting for me to approach them.
"How's Nao?" I asked them.
"My father says it's looking bad." said Tora. "He's looking for a spell that would help to free all of them."
"I've got it!" Hiroshi suddenly appeared next to us, waving a small bottle in our faces.
"You need to drink this. Then the time will stop for all of you for an hour. You'll be able to free all Silvers from the castle, hide them and drink some tea with them. But remember - the spell will work on every person you touch. So anyway." he gave the bottle to Tora. "If only you'll drink it it's enough. I'll be on my way now."
The wizard teleported, leaving us with the serious task.
"Go." Tora touched my arm.
Akiya looked at Tora and his fingers, like he didn't understand something.
"Aki, go." Tora hurried him, which made Akiya touch his lips, smile and run after him.
Then I realised why Aki was so suprised.
I sighed and followed my friends slowly, to avoid my wounds opening up.
* * *
I entered the dungeon, where some prisoners didn't move. Izumi approached me, seeying my fear, when I saw Nao laying on the bed.
"Wake him up. Go." Izumi pushed me, which made me enchance one prisoner.
I sat on the edge of the bed and put my hand on Nao's arm.
"Isshi? How did you...?" Nao looked at me and noticed my bandage. "You didn't have to protect me back then. It wouldn't change a thing."
"At least I've got a clear conscience." I said, helping him get up.
Like a blind person leading another blind person.
"Hurry up, there's forty minutes left." said Akiya.
We left the castle. We had to reach the other side of the forest. I went into the stable and touched al the horses.
"It will make our runaway easier." I said, putting Nao on Horase, who wasn't happy to move.
"Isshi, why are you so sure they won't find us on the other side?" asked Nao with a weak voice.
"Hiroshi cast a spell causing people hostile towards Silvers to fall into the chasm." I explained, hurrying Horase.
"That's good." said Nao.
There were a few meters left towards the border, when Horase stopped, almost throwing us off his back.
"What's going on, Horase?" I asked, then I saw Hai - Shiya's maid, who looked at me with anger.
"You idiot." growled Hai. "This is a strong spell and I cannot take it off, but killing you will be easy."
Hai snapped her fingers. Horase turned into a cat and ran away to some tree.
"I didn't know you're also a witch." I said, covering half-conscious Nao.
"You can't cheat on my Master. Not with something like this." Hai smiled moclingly. "You will die, prince."
"Hey, come here!" I heard Akiya's voice. "Fight me, you stupid blonde."
"Shut up." Hai snapped her fingers again.
Akiya froze and fell on the ground.
The witch laughted, then looked at her chest, surprized.
"How...?" she asked, seeing arrow sticking out of her body.
Then she looked at me, holding my bow, and dropped dead.
Tora, who gave me the weapon, when Akiya talked to Hai, ran to Akiya, to see if he's okay.
"It's only a paralysing spell, run!" he called.
"Nao, get up. We have to... Nao?" I looked at him with fear, when he didn't even move. "Nao?"
"Isshi, I can't go on..." whispered Nao.
"What are you talking about Nao?" I asked, trying to lift him.
"I'm sorry..." Nao's eyes started to close. "Forgive me, Isshi..."
His body became inert, his eyes closed completely and his short breathing stopped. I felt like holding a porcelain doll, who fell off the table and shattered into pieces.
"Isshi, there's only a minute left, move!" called Izumi. "Isshi?!"
I looked at Nao like I was hipnotised. This couldn't be happening. I leaned over him. My tears fell on his necklace, which shined with a silver light. I looked at my necklace, surprised, discovering it was glowing with a golden light. It attracted Nao's necklace and both of them joined into one.
Nao looked at me, shocked.
"Isshi, I'm alive." he said, looking at our necklaces.
We crossed the border together. Horase followed us in a shape of a cute kitten, which made us keep him that way.
* * *
"Isshi, are you aware that Shiya is gonna look for you?" asked Hiroshi, sitting in front of us in an armchair.
"Change Nao's brother into me." I requested. "He's in love with Shiya. Don't you think it's a good idea?"
"And you'll stay here? Well, your mother is not really your mother anyway..." Hiroshi stopped, when I looked at him with shock. "I mean... before you were born, the queen said she doesn't want to waste her life with such an idiot, so I swapped her body with some noble lady, who fell in love with the king."
Hiroshi got up and called Hayao, who after hearing that Shiya is just a cruel witch, shrugged his arms. He crossed the border looking like me, joining forever the person he truly loved. Just like me.
"Anyway." started Hiroshi, before he came back to the castle. "Remember how I told you I didn't have to change your gender?"
"Yes, what does it have to do with the present?" I asked.
"I didn't have to change yours, but Hayao really really really wanted to have a little brother and his mom asked me to do something about it." explained Hiroshi. "So now he's got a brother."
Nao looked at him.
"Yes, on that party you were your... real self." Hiroshi laughed, making it hard for me not to laugh too.
The wizard left, before Nao got out of the shock enough to react in any way.
* * *
To this day no one ever learned what made Nao come back to life and why our necklaces joined togheter. Hiroshi called it "some higher level magic" and refused to explain it any further and we didn't feel like pushing him.
Fifteen years have passed since then. Hayao and Shiya became rulers of the nation after my parent's death, my friends took their fathers' jobs, to whom they "sadly" didn't give any grandchildren, living in their happy relationships and we are living in a house on the other side of a border. And every day we're visiting the pond where everything started.
The End
