The Last Princess

by Marissa Craig

  He knows I’m disappointed, I can see it in his face. I slap his shoulder to snap him out of it.

  “I’ll speak to you regularly to check on her.”

  Chapter 38: Setsuna

  I hope he stays the same. I didn’t want to mention the public execution. I figured he had his reasons. The wind blows fiercely as he hugs his parents and they board the jet first. Kantarou-sama is staying behind too but he refuses to hug. Yumi-chan is hesitant to hug Kyoya-sama but he grabs her first and I smile at their embrace. With Kantarou-sama she walks right by him.

  “You have two weeks. I expect you back at work,” he calls to her.

  “Yes, commander.”

  “C’mon, let’s get going,” Kira-kun says taking my hand.

  I can’t go without saying my last goodbye. I pull away from him. He frowns at me but waits at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Take care, princess,” Kantarou-sama says to me.

  “You too. Thank you for taking care of me.”

  “It won’t be the last time, I’m sure.”

  “Don’t give her a hard time,” Kyoya-sama steps in.

  We gaze at each other and I feel settled. With a nod I go on my way. Kira-kun walks me up the stairs to the jet and I’m careful not to step on my robes.

  “Looks like you just have me now,” Kira-kun says to me.

  “I know I’m not alone. I have a new family now.”

  “Well, you and I aren’t really family.”

  “I would like us to be.”

  I sit down and stare out the window. He sits next to me and Yumi-chan sits across giggling. I thought she would be sad too since she’s leaving her love behind. Maybe it’s different between them. Kyoya-sama walks off with his brother. I miss him already.

  “Don’t smother her, Kira,” Tomoko-sama says to him.

  “I’m not smothering her!” he calls back.

  “Leave them be. They’ll be separated soon enough,” his father says flatly.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’ll be going off to the military academy soon.”

  “What! Who the hell said-”

  “Kira!” his father quiets him. “It’s not a choice you get to make.”

  “Both your brothers went. It doesn’t mean you have to join the service,” his mother says.

  So he’ll be leaving me too. Kira-kun doesn’t strike me as the type to fight or pick up a weapon. He’s not pleased to be going. Now that I can talk again I was hoping to be better friends with him.

  He’s always pouting when he doesn’t get his way. I better cheer him up.

  “We’ll still talk; don’t worry,” I say to him.

  “I rather talk in person. You just got your voice back.”

  “Maybe I can visit you.”

  “You’ll have to visit often.”

  His mother looks on laughing. His father shakes his head while they go into their usual embrace.

  “You’ll be a man in a few terms,” I guess.

  And I’ll still be trapped in a palace reading books. When will I get to see the world and be around people? I had thought meeting Kyoya-sama would change all that. Everyone still thinks my life is in danger.

  “If I graduate from the academy, you’ll see me as a man?” he asks me.

  “Of course.”

  “I’ll finish quick.”

  Yumi-chan starts laughing and he snarls at her.

  “What’s so funny?” he yells at her.

  “Nothing, prince,” she says.

  “He has a motivation for going,” his mother says. “How cute.”

  I don’t get what they’re saying. When we’re in the air everyone settles down. I feel like my sickness has gotten better. I think the memorial helped even though it was a disaster. I saw my palace again just like I remembered it. I saw my parent’s bodies and didn’t feel any hate from them.

  “Are you okay?” he whispers to me.

  “I think so.”

  “I’ve been trying to understand you. I would be sad if I lost my home and my parents and was left all alone. I’ll try to be more sensitive to you.”

  “But you have been-”

  “No…I shouldn’t have told you about my brother’s whore.”

  Anki-san….I was hoping to forget about her.

  “He won’t be seeing her anymore since he’s staying behind in your country. But I’m sure he’ll find some others. And no one is there to tell you about it.”

  “He wouldn’t.”

  “I should hope so.”

  He falls forward when Captain Saki smacks his head.

  “Shut it,” he says to him. “Stop putting those ideas in her head.”

  Kira-kun quickly gets to his feet to face him. He’s too short to be intimidating. Kyoya-sama loves me. I have nothing to worry about. We didn’t discuss that he would stay away from the whores but I just assumed he would.

  “Go sit near your mommy,” Captain Saki says to him.

  With a touch of his sword handle Kira-kun walks to the back of the jet. Captain Saki takes the seat beside me sighing.

  “Jealous prick.”

  “You can’t talk to the prince that way.”

  “I can. I’m special like that.”

  “Cause you’re Kyoya-sama’s friend?”

  “It’s mostly because I’m not afraid of any consequence. It’s nice that you’re talking to me, princess.”

  “I’m sorry for doubting you.”

  “Why so afraid?”

  “You remind me of the killer. I don’t know what it is but you just do.”

  “I’m an excellent swordsman, maybe that’s it. Kyoya-sama set you straight?” he asks.

  “I trust him.”

  He didn’t give any evidence but I just wanted to trust him.

  “It’s just gonna be the two of us for a long time. I want you to trust me too.”

  “I’ll try.”

  “Can you start by looking at me then?”

  I guess that’s a good start. I turn to him and in his eyes I see it. I know it’s him. Kyoya-sama says it’s not. I have to get over this or I’ll ruin their friendship with my suspicions. I have to try to see something else.

  “Um…how did you meet Kyoya-sama?”

  “Hmph, you really wanna hear that story?”

  “Yes. I wanna know why he trusts you so much. Then maybe I will too.”

  “Very well. I’ll start by saying when I was your age, I was in the same predicament.”

  What’s he mean? I don’t think he’s a royal.

  “I had my family taken from me too. Slaughtered in front of my eyes. If anyone knows what you’re feeling, it’s me.”

  “Did you see-”

  “I saw him. I killed him. And I’ve been using the sword ever since.”

  “Not a gun?”

  “You see, I liked the feeling of my first kill. I keep trying to get that feeling-that joy back again. So I keep using the sword. No one’s been able to give me that feeling.”

  He reaches to me and touches my bandage with his glove. I wince. Is it bleeding again?

  “But I’m getting close.”

  He’s scaring me. How can Kyoya-sama be friends with someone like him? He talks about getting joy from killing people.

  He pulls away from me.

  “A little too close,” he mumbles.

  He turns away from me. I guess it’s too much for him to continue. Captain Saki is strange.

  Chapter 39: Kira

  I really think father is doing this on purpose. Kyo-nii stays behind and keeps Kan-nii with him. I get the opportunity to be alone with Setsuna-san and now he wants to send me away. The military academy is four years. I’ll be great at it, of course, but I’ll miss out. I’ll miss out on her.

  It’s been about three weeks since I got separated from my brothers. I don’t miss them. They’re both a pain in the ass. There’s no one to smack the back of my head now.

  It’s my last night before I move to the academy. We already had dinner
. Father lectured me about controlling my mouth when I meet my new teachers. He says these teachers won’t do what I say. I’ll be seen as a normal student and not a prince.

  I was annoyed by it all at first but if I complete it she’ll see me as a man. I got to be with her away from my brothers since we arrived back in Han. She doesn’t seem like herself. She just stays in her room all day reading or hanging with Captain Saki.

  I can’t get any alone time with her; he’s always around.

  I stand at her door trying to decide what I should say. Confessing seems right but not if her mind is somewhere else.

  I knock on her door and wait. Regretting it already.

  “Kira-kun?”

  “H-hey.”

  “I thought you would be asleep. You have to get up early tomorrow, right-”

  “W-will you miss me?” I ask her shyly.

  I’ll miss her. I’ve known her a fairly short time but I would hope she might favor me just a little. When I go to the academy to be amongst all those teenage boys, I’ll miss her smile. I’ll miss playing chess with her and having someone on my level. Still haven’t won against her.

  “Yes, of course.”

  “What will you miss about me?”

  She hesitates. I just wanted to feel something from her before I go.

  “Your grumpy face.”

  “Huh?”

  “And that face you just made. That’s my favorite.”

  Her laugh is nice.

  “Come with me,” I say to her.

  I take her hand and walk down the hall. Captain Saki can’t be far. She says nothing as I pull her away; doesn’t tell me to stop or ask where we’re going. At each corner I look cautiously; he’s gotta be near.

  Maybe I’m just paranoid. I open the door to the outside and she stops.

  “It’s okay if you’re with me,” I tell her.

  What’s she staring at? The moon. It’s hard to believe she’s never been outside. I grab her hand again and lead her into the garden. I stop and sit in front of the big tree.

  “I gave it some time cause I didn’t want to bother him but I’m getting worried. Kyoya-sama won’t answer my calls.”

  It’s always about him.

  “I didn’t bring you here to talk about him.”

  “I figured you talked to him for advice or something. I just wanted to-”

  “I don’t care about him!”

  She looks shocked at me. I just don’t care about her and Kyoya. They should never exist together. I’m trying to talk to her and possibly tell her that I like her and she just wants to talk about him.

  I take a deep breath. She’s frightened.

  “He’s never gonna answer your calls. You already gave him what he wanted so why would he call you.”

  “C-cause he loves me.”

  “He doesn’t love you. He just loves to use you. And because you wouldn’t let him fuck you he’s over there fucking every girl he meets. That’s all he likes girls for. You’re so stupid.”

  Maybe that wasn’t the right thing to say. I said I would be more sensitive and I call her stupid. While I’m contemplating I see her running away from me through the garden.

  She can’t go without me. I get up and run after her.

  “Setsuna-san!”

  “Leave me alone!”

  The garden is getting thicker. I have to catch up to her. I don’t have a lot of experience chasing people. When she’s close enough I dive and tackle her into the bushes.

  “Get off me!”

  I didn’t mean to call her stupid and hurt her feelings. I don’t know how to talk to girls. I never had one, never been near one. I lay on top of her. It’s dark out but I can see every part of her face. Her eyes are my favorite. Her cheeks too.

  I lean down and kiss her cheek and she bites her lip trying to hold back tears. Am I that deplorable?

  “I like you,” I say to her. “Stop being stupid and be my girl.”

  I stare at her and she stares at me for another reason. It makes sense that she be with me. There’s no taking it back now. If I’m supposed to leave a boy and come back a man, I have to let her know my feelings.

  “Answer me,” I say to her.

  “That’s enough.”

  He’s always nearby. Captain Saki grabs my collar and stands me up. The princess gets to her feet and grabs hold of his arm. She’s wants to be with him over me.

  “I’ll get your answer when I come back.”

  “Let Kyoya-sama deliver her answer.”

  I don’t care if he knows. I look back at her and she keeps her eyes to the ground holding on to him. I didn’t win her this time but at least I succeeded in getting her attention.

  “I like your red cheeks better,” I say to myself.

  Chapter 40: Kantarou

  “You’ve been so quiet lately,” I say to my brother.

  “Been talking to myself mostly.”

  “About what?”

  He’s been drinking a lot. I rather him drink with me than drink by himself. We sit in his temporary office in the Capitol Building. It’s been nonstop meetings since we got here.

  “How is Kira doing? He left for the academy, didn’t he?” he asks me.

  “Surprising he didn’t whine about it.”

  “He needs to be tougher. It should bring him out of that phase of his. I don’t want him ending up like you.”

  He’s so flat lately. His eyes are always half open. He takes another drink and I reach across his desk and take it from him.

  “What’s wrong with you?” I ask.

  “You already know.”

  “You could have stopped it but you went through with it. You went through with the plan. You got everything you wanted. Be a man and accept it.”

  “I accept it. I’m a monster.”

  “No one knows except you, me and that weird friend of yours. You’re not a monster, you’re a king. Act like it.”

  I sit back down and take the drink for myself.

  “Kira made a move on her,” he says. “He confessed to her. He should have her. He’s a good kid. Once he toughens up he’ll be even better.”

  “I warned you about him. He told me he would take her from you.”

  “He’s calculating; he picked the right time.”

  This is ridiculous. I can’t stand to see my brother slumped down in a chair. We have a meeting with General Yamamoto soon. Only that little girl can fix this. She’s his woman so she’ll know what to do.

  I pull out my phone and call mother.

  “Kantarou!” she says into my ear.

  “Hello, mother. Put the princess on the phone.”

  Kyoya’s eyes finally open. I put the phone on speaker. He turns away from me but keeps his ears open.

  “The princess? She’s off with her bodyguard picking flowers.”

  What a girly thing to do.

  “She would love to speak with you. The therapist says she seems sad.”

  “Why is she still seeing the therapist?” Kyoya asks.

  “Uh-is that Kyoya? She would love to speak to you too. I’ll have someone fetch her.”

  I knew he would be curious. It’s been six months since he left. Hasn’t talked to her since. He won’t lose his strength while I’m here. If he wants to become a king before me then he better give me something to light a fire under me.

  There’s a knock at the door. It must be time for that meeting.

  “Stay here and speak with her. I’ll stall them.”

  I get up and head for the door.

  “Kyoya-sama, I missed you so much. How are you? How is your brother?” Setsuna-san says over the phone.

  I look back. He holds the phone in his hand like he’s about to talk. He bites his lip and breathes heavily. Can guilt really do this? He has the ability to make everything fine and take all her sadness away. When she’s fine he’ll stand and lead. But he won’t even try.

  “Kyoya-sama?”

  He throws the phone against the wall. He still can’t ta
lk to her. His hands are shaking. All his resolve is crushed.

  “Go on. Stall them,” he says to me.

  I open the door and step out. The princess changed him. I warned him not to care about her. Kissing her was a mistake and caring about her wellbeing was useless. For men like us women are just things for entertainment.

  “Afternoon, commander.”

  Or in my case, I have this. Not really sure what to do with her now. Yumiko-san stands in uniform saluting me. Not sure why I kept her here.

  “General Yamamoto has arrived. He’s in conference room three.”

  “Have you greeted him?” I ask her.

  “No, I didn’t plan on it.”

  “How long has it been since you’ve seen your father?”

  “Uh…seven years. I already told you, I’m nothing to him.”

  We start walking. With all the royals in the ground, the people will look for the outcasts to rebuild the royal family. Yumiko-san will be worth something soon. The general may not be her biological father but I’m sure he cares about her.

  “Nervous?” I guess.

  “A little. Shouldn’t Kyoya-sama be coming with us?”

  “He’ll catch up. Don’t say anything unnecessary. Your job is to support me.”

  Seems she’s not use to people clearing a path when I come down a hall. The respect around here has improved. I’m about to orchestrate the capture of the masked man that did the massacre. It’s gonna be big. When these hicks know Han men bring results they’ll let Kyoya do anything.

  We get to the door and she stops. One more step and she’ll see him. Too soon, I suppose. Her head stays down and I touch her shoulder.

  “It won’t take long. Have coffee waiting for me.”

  “I’ll get right on it, commander.”

  She runs off down the hall. I’ll miss her scurrying away. It’s best she leaves and find some other man to play with. She deserves better. She’s no queen of mine. I couldn’t do that to her.

  I open the door.

  “Commander Niwa, good to meet you.”

  “You too, General Yamamoto.”

  “Did you want decaf or…”

  I turn around and Yumiko-san stands at the door shocked. Her eyes stay on him with her mouth wide open.

  “Yumiko,” he says to her.