Chapter Thirteen

A/N: This is the last chapter I have saved in my drafts. Hopefully after I finish my Gratsu story I can finish this one and Pastel Punk before I go starting new ones. Enjoy this chapter!! xx 

Nothing happened for over a week; not in the sense that there was a sudden sparsity of exciting things happening, but life had just become a boring replay for Yuu. It's gotten to the point where he wonders why he's not making a rut in the places he walks every day.

Although, the unwarranted detail of Shiori-san breathing down his neck at all hours of the day has been somewhat degrading, but Yuu's been doing his best to carry on like she's not there.

The day was Saturday, meaning Shiori-san would be with him all day - at least during the week he could escape from her watchful eye. Not like he didn't enjoy the maid's company from time to time, but the whole "for your safety" thing becomes an issue when he's trying to bathe or get dressed.

Shiori-san stood at the foot of his bed as he pulled on combat boots. "Alright, Yuichiro-sama, here is your itinerary for the day..." Shiori paused to unravel a small scroll with his schedule printed on it. "As you know, you have your weekly horseback riding in a half hour, then at seven to eleven in the evening you have Hiragi Shinoa-san's birthday celebration."

Shit, Yuu mentally cursed. "That's today?" He asked aloud. In the thick of the chaos of the events previous, it had slipped Yuu's mind to get Shinoa her present.

"Indeed it is, Yuichiro-sama," Shiori-san asked, slightly confused. "Is there some sort of problem?"

Yuu hardly heard her; he was already lost in his thoughts. What was Shinya's advice again? He racked his brain in a state of panic. Jewelry... Diamonds, yes, that's right. He would have to ask his mother about her opinion, knowing it would please her. He came back down to reality, realizing Shiori-san was staring at him with a mix of worry and curiosity.

"No, there's no problem, Shiori-san," Yuu shook his head, standing up. "I'm ready for the horseback riding lesson." That itself was a total lie, considering Yuu dreaded riding lessons. His horse, Chi, a present on his fifteenth birthday, hated him since day one. No matter how much he fed her sugar cubes, brushed her fur, or brought fresh apples from the apple tree in the garden, she still seemed to loathe his presence. Unfortunately, he didn't have much of a choice in the activities he did. His parents wanted him to be the most well-rounded student, to be the fresh, charismatic face of the kingdom, and to follow in their footsteps as a perfect Ichinose.

"Alright, Yuichiro-sama, I shall be directing you to the stables now," Shiori bowed her head out of respect and opened the bedroom door for him.

"Thank you, Shiori-san."

"It's my pleasure, Yuichiro-sama."

"You know, Shiori-san," Yuu smiled at her, "Just Yuu is alright with me."

"Of course, Yui- er, Yuu." Shiori-san's cheeks burned with embarrassment, and she turned her head to hide her profile as they headed down the hall.

Yuu always remembered to thank Shiori-san, even for the smallest of things. Besides Shinya, Shiori was the one who bothered to consider his feelings. He trusted her like he should a parent, as she has been there by his side for longer than he can remember. He will never forget to say thank you, even if it's not necessary, because he never wanted her to forget his gratitude.

It was the least he could do.

- - - -

Horseback riding lessons were, in short, a disaster.

Yuu was currently deciding whether getting off the ground was worth the struggle. Just ten seconds previous, Chi had decided to buck up and throw him off her back. Yuu, not properly sitting in the saddle, flew to the ground. The dust had collected into the air from the impact, getting dirt all over his dumb riding outfit and into his lungs. Yuu wheezed and rolled on the ground, having the air knocked out of him.

"Yuichiro-sama!" Narumi Makoto, the stable tender and Yuu's riding teacher, shouted in surprise. He rushed to Yuu's side, offering a hand to the fallen prince. "Are you alright, my prince?"

"There's no need to call me that," Yuu grumbled as he took Makoto's hand. Makoto pulled him up to his feet, and Yuu brushed dust off his pants. "And I'm fine. Thanks."

"I honestly don't understand why Chi doesn't like you," Makoto began, stepping towards the chocolate-brown mare. "She's usually so kind and calm whenever Yayoi and I feed her..."

"I swear, Makoto, I've told you a million times," Yuu said bitterly. "Chi just hates my guts."

"Never thought I'd hear a royal family member speak like that," Makoto commented, amusement glinting in his eyes. "Then again, it's not like I really see your parents much, they're much too busy for me to occupy their precious time..."

Everyone gets on Yuu's case for how he speaks, and Yuu doesn't really get why. Part of it is he just doesn't sound prestigious enough; instead of sounding like a haughty noble, Yuu talks quickly and brashly, not thinking before he speaks. He'll exaggerate and use commoners' modern Westernized dialect as opposed to old-fashioned Japanese. His mother hated it, and his father hated whenever Yuu annoyed his mother, so they would always call Yuu out on his "atrocious speech". Since he got enough lip about it from his parents, when others criticized his speaking it annoyed Yuu to no end. However, Yuu held his tongue at the stable master and instead offered a meager shrug.

"Do you want to try again?" Makoto asked Yuu, trying to sound positive (even though at this point it was hopeless for Chi to like Yuu). "I can distract her with sugar cubes while you get in the saddle."

Yuu sighed, already knowing it wouldn't work. Still, he found himself nodding and moving towards the horse again. "Let's do it."

Makoto fished in one of the pockets of his jeans for some extra sugar. He retrieved the powdery white cubes and held them out towards the horse, making a clicking noise with his tongue. Chi trotted towards his outstretched arm slowly, tentatively sniffing Makoto's hand before chewing them right out of his palm. While Chi ate, Yuu put his left foot into the stirrup and swung his other leg over, quickly situating himself into the leather saddle.

"There we go!" Makoto beamed. He rubbed Chi's fur, making her exhale contently. Yuu grabbed the reins, holding on to them so tightly his knuckles began to turn white. He dug his boot into her side softly, ushering her to move. Chi snorted, and it almost sounded sarcastic, like she was saying yeah right, like I'd move for you.

Yuu scowled at the horse, wondering why she had to be so goddamn incompetent. Makoto, noticing Yuu's growing impatience on his features, gave Chi another sugar cube. She tilted her head to eat it. Yuu tried again, harder this time, and Chi began to walk. "Yay! Great job, Yuichiro-sama!" Makoto cheered.

"It was all thanks to your sugar cubes!" Yuu called back, smiling. He pulled the reins a bit, egging Chi to go faster. He heard her neigh, but she complied, picking up her pace. Yuu bounced up and down as she ran, feeling the breeze of the windy morning whip through his tangled hair.

The winter chill was giving him goosebumps and the leather reins were rubbing uncomfortably against his soon-to-be-blistered fingers, but in the moment, it felt like he was flying, and it was so liberating, and that made it worth it.

Then Chi, who clearly was not feeling as liberated, dumped him on the ground again.

"God damn it!"

- - - -

After Yuu's horseback riding lesson, which was a pain in the ass (literally), Yuu quickly went back to his bathroom to clean himself up to be presentable to talk to Queen Kaori. After riding lessons, interactions with his mother seemed not as bad. At least Queen Kaori wasn't kicking him in the shin and bucking him to the dirt (Although, he wouldn't put it past her. She was perfectly capable of doing those things.).

Figuring he could just change again later, Yuu dressed up in casual attire for the rest of the afternoon, and saved his party tuxedo for later. If he spilled something on it before the party, both Shinoa and Shiori would murder him. That is a situation I definitely want to avoid, he thought with a shudder.

Lunch was quick, nothing too special. One of the cooks had prepared egg salad sandwiches and Caesar salad, which were both extremely delicious. Yuu always loved anything Fujioka-san cooked. He was the best of Drelacia, which is why he was the head chef for the royal family in the first place. After Yuu finished eating, he asked Fujioka-san if he knew where his mother was.

"Queen Kaori ate early so she could make her spa treatment at one this afternoon," Fujioka-san directed him. Nodding, Yuu thanked him for the delightful meal and headed towards the spa.

God, he couldn't believe how rich he sounds. Having a spa in the comfort of their own home was just a trivial luxury at this time. They really did have more money than they knew what to do with, and instead of improving the kingdom's poverty rate or economical status, they built pointless things like spas in the castle. On his way to the spa, Yuu wondered what the commonfolk of Drelacia thought of the royal family, anyway. Did they have resentment for their massive wealth? Respect? Fear of their power? Yuu didn't get to interact with commoners that often; his life consisted of exclusively school and home activities.

Yuu didn't knock on the door when he reached the spa, and in hindsight, that was probably a dumb decision. Upon entering the facility, his mother, who was situated in an oddly-shaped chair receiving a massage, perked up. "Who is that?" Queen Kaori yelled, voice muffled by the hot towel she had her face in.

"It's your son, madam," The masseuse explained, kneading between her shoulders.

"Yuichiro?" Queen Kaori called out, as if she didn't only have one son. Yuu resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and took a step forward.

"Yes, 'tis I, Mother," Yuichiro coughed. "I've come to ask for your assistance on a pressing topic."

Queen Kaori told the masseuse to stop for a minute and fetch her her robe. She rose from the chair, sitting up just as the masseuse brought her fluffy white robe. She raised her arms to put them through the sleeves, and Queen Kaori tied it in the front. "Whatever is the matter, my child?"

"Um, well..." Yuu stuttered, clenching his fists behind his back nervously. He dug his toe into the ground, avoiding eye contact. "I want to buy a nice piece of jewelry for Shinoa, however, I wanted your opinion on what kind of jewels to buy. I know you have the most excellent taste in jewelry."

Queen Kaori brightened considerably, and Yuu knew he made her day. "Oh, yes! I'd love to help you, Yuichiro!" She stood, padding barefoot to walk close to him. Without all the makeup, fancy dresses, and too-tall heels, Queen Kaori looked like a normal young woman, still beautiful in her late-thirties. Her shimmery black hair hadn't seen a single grey hair, and the youthful glow of her face shone (or perhaps it was just a face mask that made her look so rejuvenated). She guided him to the chairs in the room, presumably used for manicures and pedicures.

"Alright, let's see..." Queen Kaori tapped her chin as she thought. "Shinoa's birthday is in December, which means her birthstone is a zircon. However, I know how much she loves diamonds..." She paused, silent for a minute. Yuu sat, hands clasped together in his lap tightly, watching her expression change from thoughtful to excited. "I know the perfect thing! Oh, it'll be magnificent! Come with me, Yuichiro."

She led him out of the room and towards her and King Ichinose's bedroom, which was on the first floor. Their bedroom was a place Yuu had probably been in about three times in his life. He was never allowed to disturb his father if he was in there, unless it was an emergency. About the size of an average house, the room was decorated with shades of cream, deep velvety reds, and sparkling golds. Their king-size canopy bed reminded Yuu of a cloud due to the curly-cued plush headboard. Sheer sheets of fabric were elegantly draped around the tall bedposts, matching the curtains that hung around the gigantic window. The white marbled floor had gold accents swirled into patterns that Yuu stepped on as he crossed the room to follow his mother. She headed towards the closet, which was a space about the size of his room. Yuu could immediately tell which side belonged to Queen Kaori; her most exquisite dresses were modeled on faceless mannequins and the rest were color-coded on hangers. She had a wall of shoes that reached the ceiling, showing off pumps, flats, and wedges of every color imaginable. In the corner, she had a giant, dresser-like piece that held all her jewelry.

Queen Kaori took a minute digging through the drawers, opening boxes and searching for the supposedly perfect present. Yuu busied himself by taking in the amount of stuff in the closet. He wondered why one woman needed all these expensive dresses. He guessed that as the queen, she was an icon to the kingdom and had to look her best. Still, the amount of money these dresses cost could feed so many starving families, and that saddened Yuu.

"I found it!" Queen Kaori shouted joyously. She stood up and whirled around, holding a small black box. Yuu stepped closer to see what was inside, and was mystified by its contents. Inside the box was a heart-shaped turquoise stone, about the size of a coin. The heart was outlined by small diamonds and on a dainty silver chain. "It's been passed on through the family through generations," She explained, even though Yuu didn't ask. "Giving it to her will be our own little welcoming of her to the family."

Yuu couldn't stop staring at the necklace. It looked like it was worth thousands of yen. Holding it made his hands shake, like he was afraid to even touch it in fear of breaking it. "It's beautiful," He muttered, twirling the chain through his fingers. "You really don't mind if I give this to her?"

"Of course not, Yuichiro!" Queen Kaori smiled proudly as she waved him off. "I'm sure my future daughter-in-law will love it. She deserves something truly special for her birthday. Speaking of, mustn't you be on your way, post haste? I'll call a carriage."

"No, I can do it," Yuu insisted. "You've done enough, Mother, really..." He felt some indescribable emotion in his chest, something unfamiliar, yet nice. In this moment, he almost felt close to his mother. A brief moment, flashing by as quickly as it came, connecting two souls. Yuu squeezed the pendant before placing it back in its case. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Yuichiro." Queen Kaori reached out to hug her son, and although it felt forced and awkward at first, Yuu allowed him to relax and hug her back for what felt like the first time in years.