
Chapter 20: Messages Unsent, Words Unreceived
Just as they exited the meadow, Izuku had been curiously staring at the pouch in his hand. He couldn't really focus his vision on it, for the world still seemed blurry due to his ignorant act not too long ago. He turned his gaze to the prince who still had his arm around him, and had been carrying him along the new path that had been drawn out for them on the map. The knight coughed, this time in an attempt to catch Shoto's attention, however, it still came out in a hoarse and rough tone.
"I can carry you instead. You still sound pretty bad, and if walking, even with my support, is making it worse, then I don't want you to be doing it." His eyes came off of the map and onto the greenette, who was contemplating what to reply with. He sighed, "Don't overwork yourself."
"N-no h-hey, I promise, I'm n-not trying to. It's just uh... well.." he trailed off, but then his eyes landed on the pouch again, remembering something quite vaguely. "H-hey, didn't Shoji s-say th-that we have to expose this flower to the sunlight once we are out of the meadow?"
He blinked with realization, and put his steps to a halt. This startled Izuku, however, he tried not to show it. "You're right. Go ahead and open the pouch."
Nodding, the knight did his best to loosen the knot that Fumikage had made, though it was fairly hard for him to see where it was. The felt pouch dropped down onto his palm gently, a flower that had been hiding its petals within each other, looking as if it weren't fully bloomed quite yet. Once the sunlight hit directly on the top of it, the petals opened slowly, almost as if it were waking up from a small slumber. It's petals were generally pure white, but had streaks outlining the inner form of the petals, that were changing colors in a rainbow and prismatic pattern.
The knight was in awe. It was one of the prettiest things he had ever laid his eyes on. He didn't peel his eyes off of it, he wanted to admire it for a bit longer, "W-wow! It's beautiful!"
The prince smiled, but not at the flower. He was seemingly looking at the smile on Izuku's face. "Beautiful indeed." He cleared his throat and finally started to stare at the flower for reals. He had a thought, but immediately let it pass, as he got a whiff of the fragrance it had let out. "It smells like..."
"Candy! And caramel? Wait, roses? Vanilla? Strawberries...?" Izuku attempted to finish his sentence, and kept on trying to pinpoint what scent it had been giving off, but it kept on changing with each few seconds that passed. "Wow! The scent keeps changing, but it's so sweet!"
"A flower of mysteries. She wasn't lying when she read that to me. But there's still one thing that puzzles me...." He put his hand on his chin, as his gaze was locked directly on the flower.
"What puzzles you, Sho?" He blinked, and tried to move his gaze toward the other male, though he wasn't quite sure if it was actually him. He only was able to think it was him due to the red and white colors on the top of his head.
The prince shifted his gaze toward Izuku, staying silent. He assumed he had heard the legends about the flower too, but he guessed that his mother didn't have any stories to tell about it. "Never mind. I was just thinking out loud."
He nodded, "Okay, if you say so." He looked back at the flower, "Hey, we should probably get these back to Aoyama and Hatsume. N-not t-that I don't l-like being w-with you... uhm it's just Iida and Uraraka-San will probably get worried for us...."
"You're right. You can't stay in those torn clothes forever either." He smiled sweetly before getting an idea. He let Izuku hold onto him as he crouched down a bit, "Climb on, if you can, that is."
He himself thought he was maybe a bit too heavy to be carried on the back. However, if the prince could carry him bridal style as well as move a large rock on his own, then carrying him on his back shouldn't be a problem at all. He did his best to climb on the prince's back, wrapping his arms slowly around his neck, trying not to choke him. He snuggled his face into his shoulder and closed his eyes, shamelessly sniffing his hair. "You smell like peppermint." He liked his scent better than the scent of the flower itself, and sunk into his shirt more.
Shoto hoisted him up, and stood up, holding him gently by the legs. He blushed a bit at his comment, "Peppermint?"
"Yeah... you look and smell like a peppermint. You're... the Peppermint Prince."
He laughed silently, "I guess that makes me the Peppermint Prince." He began to walk again, him looking at the map to guide his footsteps.
Izuku mumbled something into the ruffles of Shoto's garb, however, he didn't make his voice audible.
The prince, assuming that it wasn't important if he hadn't heard it, shrugged it off, and continued on the path.
◇——◇————◇——————◇——————◇————◇——◇
"Oui, we cannot finish sewing these up quite yet, Mademoiselle! If we want to put the finishing touches on, then we need the flower. Which I'm afraid we do not have just yet." Yuga shook his head holding up a finger in front of Ochako.
She sighed, looking around the shop, noticing something was off, "Hey, wait a second... where's Deku and Todoroki-Kun?"
Mei took her goggles off her eyes, moving them up to her hairline, and spoke before the blonde haired male could open his mouth. "Oh! They went off to get the rainbow lotus for us! All the way up to the Dueling Peaks!"
The witch's eyes dilated, "THE DUELING PEAKS!?!?! THAT PLACE IS SUPER DANGEROUS! AND YOU LET THEM GO!?!?"
"Well they said they could handle it, just as long as they had each other. What a fine couple of gentlemen those two are." Yuga was writing something on a sheet of parchment, yet he had still been paying a little attention to the brunette.
She thought that them saying that must have been cute, but she shook the thought away. "I need to go after them! What if they die? I need to get Iida! We must go up as soon as possible!"
"Non! They left hours ago. My guess is that they are probably already dead if they haven't gotten the flower by now." He made an 'as a matter of fact' face.
"Was that supposed to calm me down!?" She wanted to punch him, approaching him with a fist in her hand. Her face still had a smile, but she looked kind of aggravated and strained.
Tenya then opened the door, sensing tension coming from the inside of the shop. He made sure to tie Guinevere so she wouldn't run off and cause chaos around town. He pulled the brunette away from the blonde, "Is everything alright in here, Uraraka?"
She struggled to get away from the knight's grasp, but gave up after a mini or so. "Apparently Aoyama here let Deku and Todoroki-Kun go to the Dueling Peaks by themselves."
He looked a bit perplexed, but he let the thought sink in. Once he realized Yuga's mistake, he pushed his glasses closer to his face, and began to give him a lecture, "What? You let Prince Shoto and Midoriya go off to the most dangerous mountain range out of all the Great Nations? With no regard for their safety and whether or not they had the right materials to make it out alive? Did you even supply them with the proper details and supplies to climb up?"
He was blank for a second, as he was internally dying. He responded meekly, "Excuse me, monsieur, did you say... prince...?"
"Yes. The red and white haired male that spoke to you earlier is the youngest prince of the Land of Fire, Prince Shoto Todoroki."
He looked as if his stomach was hurting him, and like he was about to puke. This was only because he felt like he disrespected a high authority figure, though he hadn't known it at the time. "Monsieur, please start with that next time.... um... pardon me." He grabbed a spare map and stood up, "I will search for them, and hopefully be back with them as requested." He stood up and opened the door, only to see that Shoto was standing there, Izuku held on his back. He shut the door immediately, a little startled for some reason.
The blue haired male folded his arms, "What was that?"
He took in a deep breath, "Not to worry. I was just scared..." Heopened the door slightly, peeping through the small crack. He was now scared of Shoto, now that he knew that he was actually the son of King Endeavor. "Uhm how may I help you....?"
The half and half male had reached to the top of Izuku's head and gently caressed his curly green locks. "Izuku and I have returned. We would like you to finish our outfits now, if that's not a problem."
Izuku, now able to see clearly, showed the flower to Yuga, him smiling brightly as he liked the feel of Shoto's hand through his hair. "And we brought back the flower. Here you go!" He held it out for him gently, reaching his hands over Shoto's neck. He still didn't want to leave Shoto's back, as it was comforting.
He smiled and opened the door all the way, "Oui!" He snatched the flower out of the greenette's hands, forgetting about the prince for a split second. He scurried back in, and made his way all the way to the back, a bunch of random sounds being made from inside.
Shoto walked both Izuku and himself inside, politely closing the door behind him. He went up to Mei and gave her the map he had received from Mezou, "Here. Shouji said that this would give you two a safer route."
The pink haired female took the map and smiled, "Thank you! Boss never wanted to change his map because he's obsessed with his glitter aesthetic." She opened a drawer and shoved it in, saving it for when they would need it.
Yuga came back, a strained smile plastered on his face. "Monsieur Midoriya, Monsieur Todoroki! Please handle these with care." He walked over to the prince, two pairs of folded garbs in his hands. "These are for you. It didn't take that long to get them finished since I had begun creating them after you left." He then gestured to a doorway that they hadn't noticed before, "If you wish to get dressed, there is an empty room right over there."
"Thank you. We will get these on as soon as possible." He carried Izuku with him to the room and placed his feet on the floor, closing the door and turning on the light. He handed him the brand new outfit, "Here. I hope that he made it to your liking."
Izuku took the garb and began to take off the one he already had on. He stopped, noticing Shoto staring at him. "U-uhm S-Sho...?"
"Is something the matter?" He started removing his own outfit, revealing his body to Izuku.
The greenette's face became red, as he turned around, and began to change as quickly as possible. "S-sorry! It's n-nothing! Nothing at all!"
The prince himself was a bit puzzled at his antics, but he made no comment about it. He finished getting dressed, putting a hand on Izuku's shoulder, "Does that feel better? I know it was a strange journey up and down that mountain, but was it all worth it?"
He gulped, his heart racing. He was still facing the wall, trying to get more flustered by his handsome stare. "Uhm... y-yeah o-of course!"
Shoto got closer, resting his head on Izuku's shoulder from behind, "You said I looked like a peppermint. But you know what? You remind me of broccoli. Not in a bad way. A very adorable broccoli." He put his hands around Izuku's waist, not expecting to get any reaction from it.
"AHHHHHHHH SH-SHO!!!" He covered his mouth. That was a loud scream, but he didn't expect it to come out at all.
He flinched a bit, and whispered, "Sorry... that was a little unnecessary..." He pulled away, and patted Izuku's head. "We should probably go back now. Iida and Uraraka will be... concerned." He gestured towards the door, leading Izuku back out and into the main room.
"I— uh... Prince Shoto...?" Tenya looked horrified, as did Ochako and Yuga. The only one who wasn't affected by anything was Mei, who had been working on something in the corner.
"What is it?" He blinked, wondering why their faces had such a bluish color, while the rest of their bodies looked as white as a ghost.
The witch watched the flustered Izuku walk out of the room, his cheeks redder and more nervous than usual. "DEKU?? I THOUGHT YOU WERE INNOCENT!!"
"Wh-what? Wh-what d-do y-you m-mean, Uraraka-San? I-I j-just uhm..." he wasn't sure how to explain what he wanted to, but he didn't know what she was implying either.
Tenya and Ochako both blanked, before they turned to each other. They shook off their weird thoughts about what happened in the small room, and proceeded to exit the shop without another word.
"....okay then." Shoto turned to the blonde and the pink haired female, "Thank you for the new outfits."
"O-of c-course Monsieur Todoroki. Have an extravagant day." He proceeded to push both male's out of the shop, closing the door behind them.
A few seconds later, Mei came back outside, a small box in hand. "Here! You two may need this later! Just don't use it now, it'll take a while to activate, six days at the minimum!"
Izuku looked at it, taking the box, "Oh! Th-thank you, Hatsume! U-uhm we'll use them when we need them!"
She had a huge smile on her face, as she went back inside the shop with a nod. Shoto and Izuku joined back with Tenya and Ochako, ready to head back down the path, and off to their next resting place.
◇——◇————◇——————◇——————◇————◇——◇
The fire began crackling, Shoto finishing up his meal after everyone else. He hadn't been that hungry, but he knew if he didn't eat he would regret it later. He watched as Tenya and Ochako wished him a goodnight.
Izuku was a little hesitant, but he watched as the prince took out his usual paper and pen. He shook his head and sat down next to him. "Hey, Sho? C-can I t-talk to y-you?"
The prince looked up from writing for a second, and at the greenette. "Sure."
He took in a deep breath, remembering his dream up at the summit. "So it's been on my mind for a while..." He trailed off and then stopped himself. He changed his mind, "Uhm how are you planning on getting those letters to the receiver?"
He looked down at his page again. "I don't know. I... when I find my mother again I will give them to her. I know I will find her. But... will she want me back is the question."
"...of course she will! I mean, I don't know what happened, but I can promise you she'll want you back, Sho."
Shoto put a hand gently on Izuku's thigh, rubbing it gently. "Yeah... hopefully..."
He paused, looking down at his thigh. "I should go to sleep now..."
"Actually, if you don't mind, can you stay out here with me until I'm done?"
He blushed at his statement, rubbing the back of his head, "S-sure! A-anything for you, Sh-Sho."
He smiled a bit, "Thank you." He went back to his sheet of parchment, and began to write once more.
◇——◇————◇——————◇——————◇————◇——◇
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro