The Last Princess

by Marissa Craig

  “I care for you, there’s no question about that-”

  “Kantarou-”

  “I know you’re still young and exploring the world and yourself. But when you’re ready…please consider me seriously. I’ll be waiting.”

  He turns away from me and goes down the hall.

  “You idiot,” I say to myself. “You big idiot.”

  I hold my eyes and try to stop myself from running after him.

  “Kantarou, you idiot.”

  I wipe my eyes and go the opposite way. My head’s all messed up again. They’re probably all wandering around the palace. I don’t want to run into any of them. I step into the dining room and close the door behind me.

  “Yumi-chan?”

  “Uh?”

  She’s here.

  “Why’re you in here?” I ask her.

  Setsuna-chan lifts her head from the table. Maybe she has stuff on her mind too. She only gets one wedding day; I’m sure she’s nervous.

  “Tomorrow’s the day,” she says.

  “The day you always wished for.”

  I clear my tears and walk over to her. She should be happy but she looks scared.

  “Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts.”

  “I know what I have to do.”

  “But what do you want to do? Never mind what people expect from you. What is it that you want?”

  I sit down next to her and try to look in her eyes.

  “All this time I wanted choices and I realize it was easier not having them.”

  She’s still thinking about the captain.

  “Choices are hard,” I tell her.

  I have one to deal with.

  “But it’s a part of being free. Kyoya-sama helped you be free, right?”

  “Ayato-san did,” she says softly.

  She touches her hair and pulls out an ornament. That one looks new. It’s modern.

  “Where’d you get that one?”

  “Ayato-san gave it to me.”

  I want to help her. I know it’s wrong of me to interfere but I have to.

  “You will marry Kyoya-sama tomorrow. Do you understand?”

  I grab the flower ornament from her. Things like this are just confusing her. It’s just a pretty flower. She’ll forget about him if I get rid of it. I leave out the dining room and she follows after me.

  “Yumi!”

  “You don’t need things like this. You don’t need to be confused. You have a perfectly good man-”

  “He’s not perfect!”

  I stop and look back at her. She always said he was perfect.

  “Give it back to me,” she says.

  “You better know what you’re doing.”

  I drop it and she runs to pick it up. I don’t know what to do for her. I don’t know how she let the captain get in her head. She cradles it in her hand, the same hand that has her engagement ring.

  “I know what I’m doing,” she says. “You’re the one who doesn’t.”

  “Don’t go thinking-”

  “I know what I’m doing! I’m not lost like you. I know what I want and where I want to go.”

  “Setsuna-”

  “I know who I want to be with.”

  “I was with the captain. He’s-”

  “You think you know him cause you slept with him. All you were was my replacement.”

  Something is definitely wrong with her. I feel like I’m talking to one of the girls from my school. Her eyes are like daggers. She’s really jealous that I slept with him.

  “He loves me. He saw nothing in you. And don’t ask if I’m really getting what I want if you’re gonna force me to do things your way.”

  “You’re jeopardizing everything! You’ll ruin this palace if you don’t marry him tomorrow.”

  “Don’t talk to me like you’re my mother,” she says deeply.

  “You obviously need to cool down. I’ll be in my room. You have the house to yourself.”

  I leave her and go towards the stairs. I wouldn’t steer her wrong. Kyoya-sama is perfect. She doesn’t know how easy she has it with him.

  Chapter 85: Setsuna (Final)

  My whole life I’ve been conditioned to be one man’s wife. A man I only met about three years ago. He’s wonderful in every way. Responsible, respectful, a good leader. He protects me without owning a weapon.

  Today is my wedding day and my thoughts are so jumbled. So much has happened since I met him. I lost my parents; they created me and maintained my world. I didn’t think I could make it without them but I prayed for guidance. I heard my parents tell me to hold on to Kyoya-sama and hold him tight, all the while the captain was loosening my grip.

  I look out the front door window and shield myself from the light. The guests have already arrived. There are cameras, and microphones set up. It’s gonna be a spectacle.

  I convinced everyone that’s it’s a tradition for the bride to prepare herself. Really it’s the exact opposite. I just wanted some time alone. I still don’t have it all figured out.

  I’m so used to this house. It’s easy for me to avoid all the frantic people.

  “Mother, can you stop. I’m capable of dressing myself,” I hear Kira-kun say.

  “Your hair’s not laying right,” she chases after him.

  “Mother!”

  When they pass I continue upstairs. I haven’t been back to my room yet. I spent the night in father’s office looking at his pictures. Didn’t get much sleep. I wonder if Kyoya-sama was able to sleep.

  I open my bedroom door. Something’s amiss. Things were touched in here. The bed is unmade.

  “Hello?”

  Someone slept in my room. I step in and walk around. The bathroom’s empty. Now I just gotta check the covers. Approaching slowly makes my heart race. I stand back as far as I can and tug on the blanket.

  “Geez.”

  No people. The blanket falls completely and I see a book resting in the middle of the bed. My heart beats faster. I know what that is.

  Kyoya-sama must have stayed here last night. Oh gosh. I know what that is and I’m so afraid of it.

  “Kyoya-sama’s journal.”

  All his intimate thoughts are in there. I’ve read his earlier years; it’s extremely detailed with his feelings for people, his frustrations and joys.

  I should return it to him. He can’t be without it. But…somehow I can’t bring myself to touch it. If I touch it, I’ll open it. If I open it, I’ll know what he really thinks about me, about this wedding, about Ayato-san’s feelings for me and my feelings for him.

  I’m just staring. Have to get out of here.

  I run to the door and see Yumi-chan down the hall. She’s already dressed. She’s in her royal robes although she hates them. Last night I was mean to her. She was just trying to help and I yelled at her. It always bothered me that she had a causal relationship with the captain. So much was bothering me and I lashed out at her.

  “I’m sorry,” I say aloud.

  I know she can’t hear me but I want to say it. She spins in her clothes and locks eyes with me. Even though I said I wanted to be alone I figured she could push her way in like she always does. Chiyo-san emerges from the room and they walk away. She ignored me.

  That’s the first time she’s ever ignored me. She’s going her own way; she doesn’t need to be affiliated with me anymore. I hear their giggling and run back to my room and slam the door.

  I’m back staring at that book again. Maybe there are positive things in there. It could help my indecisiveness. I walk along the wall and approach it cautiously.

  “Just one page. I’ll read one page.”

  I hear someone in the hall and pull away. I don’t have the guts to do it. He told me not to read his journals. He stayed here last night. Maybe he left it for me to find. Or maybe this is a test.

  “I’ll pass it.”

  I throw the blanket back on the bed and head towards the bathroom. I have a wedding to get to and I’m the last one ready. I bathe a
nd wash my hair.

  Sitting at my vanity I sort through my hair ornaments. Mother wore this one on her wedding day. I’ll add it to the bun. And….the jeweled cherry blossom pin. Ayato-san gave this to me. I want to wear this one too.

  Time to face everyone and be seen as queen. I put my hand on the door knob and look back towards the bed. I can’t go through with this without knowing what’s really on Kyoya-sama’s mind.

  I run to the bed and hide under the covers with the book at my chest. I have to read it. I have to know if we belong together. I have to know what kind of guy he is and what he has in common with Ayato-san. I have to choose one of them and I know this journal has all the answers.

  Okay, page one. It’s five years ago when Kyoya-sama was eighteen.

  “I’ve been thinking about where I should go after graduating. I don’t want to join the military and I don’t want to run a department or bureau. I’m supposed to be king at some point. Whatever career I start will be interrupted. I’m hoping he won’t dismiss my plans again. When Ayato-san comes back I have to run this by him seriously.”

  He’s making plans but for what. I close the book briefly and take a breath. I have to read on. I keep turning pages and see notes about my parents and me. He added to it multiple times; I can tell by the different pens.

  “Setsuna Asahina: twelve, black haired, brown eyed, speaks five languages…huh?”

  He wrote down everything he knew about me. Things I said in letters or told him are all here. I guess that’s sweet. I kept a similar chart on him. This isn’t so bad. I keep flipping the pages and skimming the words. He admits how he wishes he was as tall as his brother so he could command a room like him. I had no idea he was jealous of Kantarou-sama.

  I stop after glancing over one word.

  “Murder.”

  I take a breath and read on.

  “Ayato-san agrees with the plan. After I meet the princess and Kantarou talks to the security guards, we’ll make our move. We’ll need to know how they move and when if this is to be successful. He’ll….”

  I hold my mouth. I can’t believe this.

  “He’ll…”

  I can’t speak anymore. They couldn’t have done this.

  “He’ll kill them all and leave the princess safe.”

  I cry into my blanket. My throat is hot. I scream into the blanket and hold it tightly. They’ve been responsible. I ran to Kyoya-sama for help and it was all his doing. And Ayato-san…he was the masked man the whole time.

  “She’ll cling to me,” I read on. “She’ll allow me to do anything. She’ll give all her power to me cause I’ll be the only one she trusts.”

  How could I love either of them when they’re monsters. This whole time they’ve used me. Played with me and manipulated me. It’s hard to move but I keep reading. He talks about how he fell in love with me and about his regrets. He talks about not going through with it but convinces himself it’s for the best.

  “Setsuna-san has the prettiest smile. Her cheeks get so big. And she’s so sexy when she takes her hair down. I could go on and on describing all the things I love about her.”

  I read on and he talks of his jealousy for Ayato-san and his struggle with keeping his best friend as his rival.

  “No!”

  No matter what he feels today it can’t fix what he did, what his true intentions were. He struggles with greed and love. That’s why he stayed away so long. So today I’m suppose decide if he has more love than greed in his heart. I can’t forgive him.

  And Ayato-san…he became my friend and said he would protect me from my parent’s killer. It was him the whole time. Scaring me to push me closer into his arms. What’s his angle in all this?

  I pull the blanket away and continue crying.

  “What’s wrong?”

  I shriek seeing Kyoya-sama. I hold his journal on my lap under the blanket. He’s in his suit with his hair slicked back. Just like I pictured him on our wedding day. He’s supposed to be my hero. All I see now is a shady wolf.

  “Why are you crying?” he asks.

  He takes a step forward. Which words are lies? Which words are genuine?

  “Don’t come any closer!”

  “Setsuna-”

  “Don’t…don’t say my name.”

  “Everyone is waiting for you,” he speaks quietly. “Will you be coming out?”

  I can’t look at him. This monster took my family away all so he could stand in my father’s place. My father respected him. If Kyoya-sama wanted to take his place as king, my father would have stepped aside. He told me so!

  “Setsuna-”

  “Just go!”

  He looks at me shocked. I can barely see him with my blurry eyes. He walks away and closes the door behind him. I keep wiping my eyes on my sleeves and they never dry. My wedding dress is all covered in tears.

  I turn to the last page he wrote on. It’s from last night.

  “I sit in her room and I wonder if I should tell her. Tell her everything. I’m a coward so I don’t think I can. I just want to make her happy. She’ll never look at me the same again if she knew. He wants to tell her too. I told him we can’t. We have to keep the secret. I bet she looks at him with those big eyes too. It’s unbearable to have her smile and love a me that’s one sided. Can’t she just let me take care of her and make it up. I think that’s what both of us are trying to do. I love her so much that it’s killing me to keep lying.”

  Is there more love than greed in his heart?

  “If she leaves me, I’ll understand. I won’t go after her. Ayato-san says the same. He admitted everything to me. He told me everything that went on between them. How he stayed at her bedside during the lightning storms; had no idea she was afraid of lightning. He told me about their time at the movies. Can’t believe she kept that from me. He says I should give her choices cause she was raised with such a rigid path. Who do you want to be with, Setsuna? Are you willing to live the same life once the past has been cleared up for you? I want to give you at least one choice cause afterwards you won’t have any.”

  I rub my eyes and hide under the covers. Which one of them left this for me to find? The music starts outside. What am I supposed to do? They’re both murderers but do I want to live captured by one or living free with the other. Or should I abandon both of them. Abandon this name and this county.

  “Would you be alright if it stayed like this?” Ayato-san once asked me.

  I’d be living like a fool if I didn’t know the truth.

  “Then I’ll work hard to make you fall in love with me all over again,” Kyoya-sama once said.

  I can’t get in his grasp again. I’m too afraid.

  “What am I supposed to do?”

  I get up and go to the vanity. I straighten my hair and makeup. My hand pauses when I touch the jewel cherry blossom. It still belongs there. I gather his journal in my hand and my bouquet in the other.

  The house is empty as I walk through it. I check in each room feeling for the people that use to occupy them. I’m a princess; I know what that means. It was instilled in me since I was born.

  The guard at the front door looks over to me and I hide behind a corner. I can’t go through with this. I hear his boots coming closer and I run away to the back door. Soon everyone will be looking for me. They’ll stare at me like I’m a conspirator. I have been happier ever since they all disappeared.

  With all the attention on the guests out front I dart across the back yard towards the crypt. I trip over my white robe and lay still in the dirt. I pound the bouquet on the ground until it crumbles.

  How could he do this to me? How could he trick me? We’re supposed to be in love.

  I get to my feet and continue running. I make it to the crypt and collapse in front of my parent’s statues.

  “What do you want me to do now?” I scream at them. “Kyoya-sama is your murderer.”

  “They knew.”

  I get up and hide behind my stone father. Ayato-san emerges from t
he shadows. He’s just as dangerous. The sword he protects me with is the same one he takes innocent lives with.

  “I told them Kyoya-sama’s plan before they died. They knew and accepted it.”

  “What?”

  “A man that did what he did is ambitious. That’s how your father saw it-”

  “Don’t speak for him. I won’t believe a word that comes from you.”

  “Just wait-”

  “Don’t come any closer!”

  He takes a step away and leans against the wall.

  “I knew you would come here. You’re always seeking answers from someone other than yourself.”

  I hate him. I hate both of them. Only webs and lies comes from their mouths; I’m tangled in all of it. I have to keep my eyes on him; he’s incredibly fast. Eyes are getting blurry again. It’s the dang mascara. I reach up and wipe my eye and he’s gone.

  “No.”

  I step out from behind the statues and there’s nothing. So he’s gone; does that really fix anything.

  “It’s easy for you to hate me but feelings of love don’t easily change.”

  Where’s that coming from?

  “Ahh!”

  He wraps his arms around me from behind.

  “I’m sorry,” he whispers.

  The grip is so tight. I was right about him from the beginning and he made me like him so I would forget. I knew I was right when I looked in his eyes. He’s a murderer.

  “So much is wrong with you,” I say to him.

  “Just the other day you said I was “good.” You gonna go back on your words now?”

  “You cut me and hurt me. You took everything from me.”

  “You wouldn’t listen.”

  “You almost killed me-”

  “I also saved you.”

  When I was in Highland Row he did come for me. I refuse to weigh out the good and the bad. But….I said I loved him. As much as I hate him right now it’s not going away.

  “Let go of me,” I say to him.

  “You’ll just run.”

  “Let go! I don’t want to be anywhere near you.”

  “That’s not true. When you saw me in mask you talked of forgiving me. We sat inches from each other and I know you wanted to kiss me.”