Akashi's POV :

She asked me to marry her. I couldn't get her off my mind. What has she done to me? Maybe she said it all because she wasn't sober. My mind was flooded by a million questions. I wanted to say yes. But it's of no use. She wouldn't remember any of this when she wakes up anyway.

On the other hand, The King is sick.. Maybe I should go back to the castle. He is my father after all. Mother always wanted me to respect and obey him. But...
Fine. For once now, I'll put my ego aside and visit him.

We reached the hideout, and I was out of breath. I carried her inside, down the stairs and into her room. This was the first time I entered her chamber. I was surprised to see that the room was spotless and clean. [ A/N: Levi, anyone?]

I laid her sleeping form down on the bed, and pushed her hair off her face.

" Sei.. " she mumbled.

It made me smile. I continued to remove her shoes off her legs, and threw them aside. I pulled the covers over her, and touched her cheek.
Her heart thumped in accordance with slow, shallow breaths. Serenity was plastered across her face as she slept. The only movement was the slight rise and fall of her chest.

I bent low and pressed my lips on her forehead. I stayed that way for a few seconds until a quiet moan escaped her lips.

I pulled away with a smile still playing on my lips. I was about to walk away, but she spoke again.

" Don't go "

She sleep talks. I found it adorable . I sat down beside her sleeping form, and held her hand in mine. In sleep, she was angelic, her face as fresh as a dew drop, making gentle snuffling noises as she breathed.

I stared at her face, while my fingers drew patterns on the back of her palm.

My gaze shifted off her, and scanned around the room. Other than the cot, there was a tall and wide wooden cupboard, a side table beside the bed, and also a huge rack full of books.

I stood up and made my way towards the book rack and scanned through her collection. She had many novels and religious books. I found a few scrolls with maps on them, and also a book ' How to rule', which made me smile inwardly.
One book caught my attention more than any other. I pulled it out.
The book was old and heavy, the leather felt soft and delicate as I ran my fingers over the faded blue bindings. I fingered the gold lettering carefully before I opened the cover, paper rustled as I thumbed through the book hoping to find something interesting. Words appeared and disappeared as my eyes flitted across the pages, quickly picking out anything of importance from the jumble of sentences that littered the world I had become immersed in.

It was her personal diary.

Should I read it? Isn't it wrong to invade her privacy?
My eyes were focused on the book, curiosity building like a cat fixated upon its prey. I sighed and opened it.

Page 1:

' This book is the property of Ishida Akira. '

Her last name struck me. My heart rate increased, I flipped a page.

Page 2:

OWNER' S PROFILE:

'Ishida Akira, daughter of King Ishida Kichiiro and queen Ishida Masaaki.
Princess of Kingdom Kyoto. '

I flipped through a few more pages as the tension built up.

Page 23:

Dear diary,

Today mother and father are throwing a ball in honor of my 17th birthday. I'm so excited. I'll make sure I write more about the ball tomorrow.

Love,

Akira

I kept turning pages and read random entries.

Page 155:

Dear diary,

I trained for an hour extra today. I'll kill him! I'll have my revenge. I hope I'll soon be strong enough to kill the person who is the reason I lost everything. I will not let you live Akashi. Never!

Page 200:

Dear diary,

I searched the hideout again for someone to speak to. Nobody was there as usual. Am I going insane? Why does it hurt so much? I don't want to stay alone anymore.

Love,

Akira

Page 240:

Dear diary,

I love him. I love him. I love him. I love him. I'm so glad I found Seijuro. He cooked me dinner today. He is training me to get stronger. Learning from Sei will definitely help me kill Akashi.

Love,

Akira.

I couldn't read further. She is his daughter? What am I even supposed to think? She loves me and hates me. She hates Akashi but loves Seijuro?

I killed the king of Kyoto, so that I could save Rakuzan. My soldiers took away the whole Kingdom and destroyed the palace as per father's orders. I didn't know this would have such a tragic effect on someone's life.

Should I tell her who I really am?

Father is sick. He wants me to return to the kingdom too. I can leave right now, without a trace of my existence. But won't that make me a coward?

Should I stay?

Or leave?

Stay?

Or leave?

I'll tell her the truth tomorrow and wait for the consequences. I deserve her hatred, not love.

I closed the book shut and pressed it to my forehead. I inhaled deeply and left to my room (carrying the book along with me) so that I could get some sleep. I collapsed onto the bed and soon drifted off to sleep.

~~~~

Next Morning ~

Akira's POV :

I raised my heavy eyelids half way only for them to fall shut. I raised them again and swung my bare feet down to the carpet.
From the pounding head, vomit taste in my mouth and dehydrated feeling I figured I must have been drinking heavily last night. My throat felt like sandpaper. It hurt to move. My eyesight struggled to cope with the light and I fumbled tying the belt on my dressing gown. I found a glass of water on the side table, I quickly drank it.

I walked out of the room, stumbling on my way. I walked to the kitchen to get some fruit juice . As I entered, I noticed Seijuro sitting on the dining table.

I must have been such a pain. I only remember entering the bar and ordering my first drink. I would have passed out and... Wait! He carried me home?
A blush crept onto my cheeks at the thought of him carrying me back home. I smiled to myself, inspite of the excruciating pain in my head.

I walked towards him with two glasses of juice. I placed one in front of him on the table as I sat down, beside him.

" Umm.. Ohayo. " I gave him a tired smile.

He nodded.

I took a sip of my juice, but he didn't touch his glass yet. I pushed it forward in his direction with my index finger. He pushed it back, away from him using his index and middle fingers. It was too awkward. What did I do last night, that made him behave this way?

' Why don't you just ask him? ' questioned my inner goddess. I hope I didn't do anything insane. I summed up all my courage and,

" Sei... " I trailed off.

I looked at my hands and played with my fingers.

" What's my name? " he asked. I looked up at him. His eyes were fixed on the table. He wouldn't look up at me.

" huh? "

" What's my name, Akira? " His voice sounded much more intimidating and serious than usual . It sent chills down my spine

" Umm.. Seijuro "

" No "

That's not his name? What's he saying? I frowned and looked at him with a confused face. He looked up at me. His left eye was glowing. It looked like fire. It made me shiver a bit. I couldn't move.

" It is, Seijuro... " he gave a pause. A long pause. I longed to hear his last name. I waited for him to continue.

" Akashi " he finished.

His words struck me like daggers. The nausea swirled unrestrained in my empty stomach. My head swam with half-formed regrets. My heart felt as if my blood had become tar as it struggled to keep a steady beat. It felt heavy. I wanted to wipe away my tears which were unformed. I didnt know what to say. My heart was broken into a million pieces.

He.. He killed everybody. He is the one? The one behind my struggle, pain, heartache and loneliness. Why? Why does it have to be him?

Tears flowed down my cheeks as I gritted my teeth and clenched my hand into fists. I stood up and took a step away from him. He stood up and walked towards me.

He took my right arm and placed a dagger in my hand.

" I'm here Akira. Go ahead and take your revenge. " he said.

Burning rage hissed through my body like deathly poison, screeching a demanded release in the form of violence. I tightened my grip around the knife.

He knew this all along, didn't he?
I hate you, Akashi! Oh no.. I hate you Akashi Seijuro..

____________________

A/N:

I can't believe that this story is almost coming to an end. Sorry for the late updates guys. Thank you for all the support.

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See ya all!