#planet fate

-

Your phone landed on your bed with a thump, the ringing tinny as it rang on speakerphone.

“Hey there Y/N! What’s up? Got the hot goss?”

You rolled your eyes, “Would I be calling this late if I didn’t?”

Practically feeling Kasumi smiling on the other end of the line you relented,

“We’re going out tomorrow night.”

Kasumi gasped, “Oh my gosh! He really said yes? That’s so exciting! What are you going to wear? Where are you going? Eek! I’m so excited for you, you’ve had a crush on him for like, forever.”

You took a deep breath, Kasumi was always like this; her mind ran at about a hundred kilometers a minute, fast and incessantly making your life more interesting, sometimes, like tonight, more difficult.

“Yes, he said yes. I don’t know what I’m wearing or where we’re going. And it has not been forever! More like 2 months, if that.”

She tutted at you through the phone, “You know we all see the way you two looked at each other when he came into the lounge for the first time.”

You scrunched your nose at her even though she couldn’t see it, “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I just hope it goes well.”

Kasumi’s laugh was crackly through the speaker, grating on your already frayed nerves, “Don’t worry! It’ll be fine.” A brief pause, “Well, I’m exhausted, so I’ll catch you tomorrow ‘kay? I expect you to call me with all the juicy details afterwards.”

“Yeah, goodnight Kasumi.”

The call ended with a beep and you collapsed on your bed, her words echoing in your mind.

It’ll be fine.

-

You fussed over your appearance in the staff bathroom mirror. Did you look okay? Where were you going? Did Ryha say yes as a joke? Did he like you too?

The questions ran through your mind like a swarm of bees, a low hum that wouldn’t go away.

Finally, you decided that you could put it off no longer, you needed to go outside and face the man you’d asked out on a date.

He was standing by the school gate, a dress shirt and slacks with a blazer looked wonderful on him. He still had the same bored expression on his face, but it brightened slightly as you approached.

“Hey there, you ready? You look good by the way.”

Your cheeks grew hot at his words, “Yeah, I’m ready. You… look good too.”

He extended his elbow as a gesture for you to take it and you did, hooking your arm gently through the gap.

You walked down the street for a while, light from the street lamps illuminating the pools from the rain earlier in the day.

“So,” You said after a while, “Where are we going this fine evening?”

The corners of Rhya’s lips turned upward, “It’s a secret, but it’ll be great, I promise.”

Finally, you turned a corner and stopped outside a quaint looking restaurant; there wasn’t an obvious name anywhere on the establishment, but Rhya didn’t hesitate to open the door.

You walked inside and were greeted by a woman with pink hair, a flower crown placed lightly on her head.

“Hello! I have special seats reserved for you.”

“Thank you Fana.”

Rhya smiled thankfully, and you were led outside to a patio garden straight out of a fairytale. There were trellises covered in roses of all shades, bird baths and small fountains scattered around.

Fana led you down a stone path to a table in the center of the patio, lanterns hung around tossed delicate light over the space, lending to an atmosphere that felt ethereal.

There was a single tea light candle on the table, along with a single red rose in a vase.

Rhya pulled your chair out for you and you sat down, a menu soon placed in front of you.

Once Fana left you looked around, marvelling at the beautiful garden you were sitting in.

“Rhya, what is this place?”

“This is a little restaurant owned and operated by a few childhood friends of mine.”

Your mouth opened in a small ‘o’ as you looked around once more, seeing the setting in a whole new light.

-

The meal was enjoyable, Ryha was surprisingly good at making conversation once you got comfortable. By the time you were leaving the restaurant, you were grateful that your friends had made you go through this dare.

“Want to go on a walk before we head back to the school?” Rhya asked quietly once you were outside on the street.

You contemplated it, and decided that you weren’t ready for the magic of the night to end just yet. He gave you his arm to take once more and he led you down the city streets.

Wandering aimlessly you ended up in a square, there was a fountain in the center and a musician playing for patrons. It was a charming sight, the lights bathed the square in a soft light. Rhya cocked his head in a silent question and you nodded, making your way to the small crowd around the musician.

The musician’s assistant caught sight of you and smiled brightly, “Does the lovely couple want to dance?”

Both you and Rhya faltered, cheeks warm from being called out in front of a crowd and at the assumption that you were a couple. Rhya recovered quickly though and before you knew it he was extending a hand for you to dance with him.

He was surprisingly light on his feet, and dancing with him was easy. With several cheers from the crowd you danced to a few songs, hearts thrumming from the close contact.

-

Out of breath from dancing, you laughed and chatted on your way back to the school, hands barely brushing as you walked.

The parking lot was empty save for your cars. Your keys were in your hands but you were both still, not wanting to leave just yet.

Rhya caught your lingering gaze and you mustered up the courage to speak.

“Hey Rhya, would you maybe want to go out again?” You asked, hoping your voice didn’t betray just how hopeful you were.

“Yeah, I’d like that. I think we have a lot of chemistry.”

You smiled, then it dawned on you, “Rhya did you just--- did you just make a dad joke?”

He shrugged, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, “Maybe I did.”

You rolled your eyes, “Gosh, you’re such a dork.”

Rhya cocked his head, a mischievous glint in his eye, “Yeah, but I could be your dork.”

Giggling, you gave him a swift kiss on the cheek, “Yeah yeah, see you tomorrow. Text me when you get home safe.”

“You too Y/N.”

As you drove away, Rhya stared after your car, fingertips lingering on the spot you had kissed.

“And that’s why I really really need your help!”

Julius was practically on his knees outside your door, eyes wide with desperation. Your brow was furrowed as you tried to wrap your head around this situation.

“She really gave you an ultimatum about marriage?”

Julius nodded with a sigh, shoulders drooping. “Yes, she did. And since I lied and said I had a girlfriend already I need someone to play the part.”

You nodded slowly, pointing at yourself. “And you decided to go with me?”

He nodded eagerly, “Yes, we’re already so close I figured you’d be willing to help in my scheme.”

You studied his face in the ambient torchlight from the hallway, he looked so desperate, and so cute, how could you say no?

“Fine. Just let me know when I need to be ready.”

“Oh thank you, thank you!” He pulled you into a hug, heart light with relief, “You have no idea how much of a lifesaver you are.”

You awkwardly patted his back and he let you go with a quick goodbye, leaving you to stand in the doorway alone.

-

The gravity of the situation set in soon after he left, as it often did after he managed to pull you into one of his harebrained schemes. Collapsing on your bed, you shook your head at the ceiling as you thought about what this would involve: you’d have to pretend you were in love with him, which wouldn’t be hard because you definitely already were, you’d have to do a good enough job to fool his parents, which hopefully wouldn’t be hard since your acting skills were decent, and the final and most difficult part would come afterwards. After the dinner, you’d have to come back here to the castle, and you wouldn’t have Julius’s hand in yours anymore and you’d have to pretend that you were fine with it.

You rolled over and groaned into your pillow, “Oh Julius why did you have to choose me for this job?”

-

The day of the dinner soon arrived and Julius came to pick you up. You took one last look in the mirror, smoothing your clothes before you opened the door. You’d picked out what you hoped was a suitable dress, and you packed enough clothes in your bag for a few days if need be. From what you’d heard about Julius’s mother, she was quite pushy and since it was the holiday season you might need to keep up this charade for a few more days than originally planned.

“You look lovely darling,” Julius said jokingly as he walked with you to the carriage. You smiled and hoped he couldn’t see the hollowness of it, you could already tell that this would be more painful the longer it went on.

-

You stared out the window and watched as the towns became villages became countryside, and the cobblestones became dirt roads. It’s just one dinner. It’s just one dinner.

“Can we go over the plan one more time? Just to make sure we’re on the same page?” Julius asked, breaking your empty stare.

You blinked, returning to the real world and the imposing walls of the carriage seemed to grow closer. “Sure.” You said hoarsely, swallowing even though your throat was dry.

“Okay,” Julius leaned in closer, “So we need to pretend that we’re dating, hopefully just for tonight. But if not, and we end up having to stay for longer and things get desperate I’ll call Marx and have him set up a fake emergency for us to attend to.”

You nodded, “Okay sounds good.”

He placed his hand on yours and you resisted the urge to jump. “Thanks again for agreeing to this, I appreciate it more than you know.”

You smiled softly, “No problem.”

The carriage came to a stop outside a huge manor in the countryside, it’s sprawling lawn was lush and green, and there was a rose garden that could be seen through the iron gate.

Julius squeezed your hand, “Just for tonight.”

“Just for tonight.” You repeated. Maybe that’s the problem. a pang of sadness stabbed through your chest as you stepped out of the carriage, there’s no going back now.

-

The manor had a huge oak door, complete with a brass grimoire door knocker in the center. Julius had barely touched it when the door opened, revealing an excited woman and a slightly more subdued man standing in the doorway.

“Oh! It is so wonderful to meet you.” You said, extending a hand to the woman before you. She confusedly shook your hand before realizing you had mistaken her for Mrs. Novachrono, “Oh my, I’m sorry. I’m just the maid, the lady and master are in the parlor awaiting your arrival.”

You grimaced, you’d only just arrived and had already made a mistake, this didn’t bode well for your stay. Julius escorted you to the parlor, hand touching your lower back gently.

The parlor was filled with white furniture, the walls a dusty powder blue. Two people, presumably Julius’s parents, stood when you entered the room. The woman strode over to you and took your hands in hers, “Oh, it is so wonderful to meet you! You have no idea how long we’ve been waiting for this moment. I’m Marie and my husband over there is Julian.” She gushed, heat creeping up your neck at her words.

“It’s lovely to meet you as well, I’m Y/N. I’ve heard so much about you it’s nice to finally meet you in person!”

Marie gasped happily at your words, “Oh so you’ve been gossiping about me have you Julius? All good things I hope!”

Julius raised his hands in defense, “Yes mother, all good things.”

Marie nodded her pleasure, and led you to the couch. Julius sat next to you as you shook his father’s hand.

“Shall we have some tea while we wait for dinner to be prepared?” She asked. Before anyone could nod, she was calling the maid in to bring a tea tray.

“So Y/N, I want to hear all about you! How did you meet my darling boy? Has he been treating you well? I’ll smack him if he’s not, he may be the Wizard King but he’s still my son!” Marie said, watching you intently.

Julius could sense you were overwhelmed and grabbed your hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

“Well you see, I’m an archivist that works in the castle, so that’s how I met Julius. Don’t mention this to Marx but he has a habit of sneaking off to places he shouldn’t when he’s supposed to be doing paperwork.”

“Hey! That’s an unfair judgement!” Julius protested, but there was no hurt behind it.

“It’s a true judgement Julius!” You gave him a teasing grin before turning back to Marie, “Your son does indeed treat me well, he’s one of the kindest, most caring people I’ve ever met, and I fall more in love with him every day.”

Marie seemed pleased with your answer and was soon distracted by the tea that was set in front of them. Julius and his parents made small talk until dinner was announced, giving you a bit of respite from Marie’s rapid fire questions. You couldn’t help but smile, here Julius had ditched his cloak, and you got a peek at what his childhood had been like. It was interesting, watching interact with his parents, they seemed overbearing and aloof at the same time, and you wondered how they had raised such a decent man.

Julius took a sip of his wine near the end of dinner, the taste tangy sweet in his mouth.

“So Julius, when are you going to ask this girl to marry you? If I were you I’d have put a ring on that finger a long time ago?”

Julius started, the wine hit the back of his throat, sending him into a coughing fit. Once he had suitably recovered, he took a deep breath, “Well,” He considered his answer carefully, “I haven’t thought about it yet, I don’t think either of us want to rush things.”

You swallowed, nodding in agreement. “With the state of the kingdom, we weren’t sure if it would be a good idea to jump into such a serious commitment so soon.”

Your answers were deemed satisfactory and you excused yourself to go to the bathroom. You leaned on the sink and rested your head in your hands, you swallowed down a sob. This was harder than you could have imagined, not the lying, not the acting, just the fact that this wouldn’t last buzzing around in your mind. It hung over you like a cloud, this is a lie, it’s all a lie to him.

You took a deep breath, splashing your face with cold water, before returning to the table. “I’m awfully tired Julius, do you think it’s time to leave for the castle?”

Julius gave you a kind smile, “Yes, we can make it by morning if we leave now.” Marie tried to protest, but Julius won her over and you were soon saying your goodbyes in the foyer.

“Well, it was lovely to meet you. I do hope you come again soon.” Julian said, shaking your hand once more.

You nodded, pushing down the sadness that was welling in your chest, threatening to spill over. “Yes, until next time.” There won’t be a next time.

Julius’s shoulders sank with relief as soon as you were back in the carriage. “That went better than expected!” He said brightly, sinking back in his seat.

You could only nod, fearing if you spoke it would reveal how you were really feeling.

-

You arrived back at the castle as dawn was breaking in the sky. Julius helped you out of the carriage, dropping your hand as soon as you were down on solid ground.

“I must say, your acting was impeccable Y/N.”

That was it, that was the stone that broke the dam and tears spilled onto your cheeks.

Julius was taken aback at your reaction, he’d never seen you cry before and he was completely at a loss of what to do.

“Y/N? What’s wrong? Is something the matter?” He asked, studying your face frantically.

You blinked at him, eyes narrowing. “Is something the matter?” You repeated, “Is something the matter?! Julius, you must be denser than I thought if you’re asking me that question.”

You turned on your heel, rushing down the stone hallway to your room. Julius’s footsteps echoed behind you as he ran to keep up with your pace. He truly didn’t know what was wrong, and that only made you angrier.

You paused at your door and Julius caught you, hands resting on your shoulders.

“Will you please talk to me? Was it something I said?” He asked softly, purple eyes soft with concern.

You only sobbed harder, sinking into his chest. He wrapped his arms around you gently, as if he was afraid to break you.

“Yes! No! It wasn’t something you said per se, it was this, all of it!” You exclaimed, chest heaving and hands shaking.

Julius’s frown deepened, “Oh. I’m sorry Y/N, I didn’t know this had been so hard for you.”

You couldn’t stifle a laugh at his apology, “Hard for me? Of course it was hard for me. I meant what I said, it wasn’t acting,” your voice broke painfully as you took a deep breath to continue, “I mean it, I’m in love with you Julius.”

Julius’s hands dropped from your sides in shock, his face was a mixture of surprise and sadness when you met his gaze. Of course, the realization hit him like a ton of bricks, of course, you were in love with him, and he had been too dense to notice.

“I-- I’m sorry.” He stammered, and you took your chance to run into your room, slamming the door shut behind you.

You sank against it, too exhausted to stay standing. You heard footsteps receding and fresh tears rolled down your cheeks, of course, he was leaving.

A few minutes later there was a knock at your door. “Y/N, can we talk?” A soft voice asked, it was Julius.

You weren’t certain you wanted to talk to him, but you opened the door anyway and let him come in.

“Y/N, first of all I want to apologize. I was too dense to realize that what I had asked of you may have caused you hurt, and I’m sorry for that.”

You stared at him, “Okay.”

Julius ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek, debating on whether he should say what was on his heart. “I also need to confess something, if that’s okay?”

You nodded, studying him carefully; you dared not get your hopes up, but somewhere in the depths of your heart, there was a small tiny glimmer of hope.

Julius sighed, “The truth is, I only asked you to do this job because I love you as well. Maybe this was my selfish way of getting to act like a couple without telling you how I felt because I was scared of how you would react.”

You sucked in a breath, “All along?”

Julius nodded, eyes tinged with sadness, “All along.”

“Well, it’s freezing in here. The least you could do is come and wrap me in your arms.” You said, the ghost of a smile on your lips.

Julius snagged a spot by the window after he paid, it was the spot he usually sat in when he came here. You loved to watch him read his book, or watch the rain as it fell steadily outside, or typing away at his laptop.

Your coworker Daphne nudged you with an elbow, “You’re staring again.” She teased, giving you a pointed look. You blinked, aware of the world around you once more, “Oh, I was? My bad.”

She rolled her eyes, “Why don’t you ask him out already? Everyone can see the goo goo eyes you two make at each other.”

You shook your head adamantly, “No way! That would be unprofessional of me.”

Daphne made a face, “This is a coffee shop, not a nunnery.” But she returned to her work nonetheless, leaving you to finish up the coffee order you were supposed to be working on.

You set Julius’s order down on his table with a clink. “Here you go! Black coffee with two sugars and a blueberry scone, as requested.”

“Ah, thanks so much Y/N.” He said appreciatively, setting his book down on the table.

“You’re welcome.” You lingered at his table for a moment longer, but the bell chimed, signalling that a customer had entered the store.

“Hello!” You called, “What can I get started for you today?”

-

You spent the evening curled up on the couch with a book, but your mind was elsewhere. You glanced out the window at the city lights and your thoughts began to wander. I wonder what he’s doing tonight. You wondered if he was thinking about you too, if his heart beat faster at the thought of you like yours did at the thought of him.

You caught yourself, shaking the thoughts from your brain. This is silly, you hardly know the man.

Still, you hoped Daphne was right, that he had some wisps of feelings for you as well. You wondered how warm his hands were, how they would feel in yours. You wondered what he looked like at home, what life would be like if you were with him.

As the hour grew later you glanced at your phone; you weren’t sure what you were waiting for, it wasn’t as if Julius had your number, nor you his. But still you waited, heart whispering with hope that something would happen.

-

You had the next day off but you decided to pick up a shift at the coffee shop anyway, it wasn’t so that you could use it as an excuse to see Julius, you told yourself, no of course it wasn’t. You unlocked the door to the shop and it opened with a tinkle of the bell. With a deep breath, you swept the floors and wiped down the counters, preparing for the day ahead.

As you flipped the sign to ‘open’, you frowned, it looked as if it were going to rain.

Julius came by the coffee shop, an umbrella tucked in his arm. His face brightened when he saw you behind the counter.

“Oh hello Y/N! I thought you had the day off.”

You smiled softly, “I did, but I decided the extra cash couldn’t hurt.”

Julius nodded knowingly, “Of course, a dollar is a dollar! I’ll have the same as yesterday.”

You rang him up, hand accidentally brushing his as you handed him his change.

-

Your break came soon after you gave him his order, and you asked politely if you could spend your break with him.

“Oh, of course, I don’t mind at all!” He said brightly, scooting his things over to make room for you to pull up a chair.

You chatted for a while, sharing stories, but soon your break was over. You were serving a customer at the table nearest to Julius’s when an elderly woman came over to speak to you.

“Pardon me, I couldn’t help but see you and that blonde-haired man chatting earlier. Are you a couple by chance?” She asked, sending your cheeks aflame.

“Oh! No, we’re not.”

Julius shook his head, “No, we’re not a couple.” he assured her, “In fact, I have a fiancee.”

The tray you were holding fell to the ground, clattering on the tile floor. You scrambled to pick it up, but there was broken glass and coffee all over the floor.

You quickly retrieved the broom, a rag, and dustpan, trying to ignore the ache in your throat as you cleaned up the mess.

A fiancee?

You tried not to compare your heart to the shattered ceramic on the floor, but it was hard to tell the difference between the two.

You shouldn’t be surprised, you thought bitterly, of course, he would already be taken.

You stood up without a word except for a brief apology to Julius and the customer whose drink you had spilled. You ran to the back to make another one, then gave it to the customer.

Your heart pounded in your chest as you left the coffee shop, you couldn’t hold the tears in any longer and you didn’t want anyone to see you this way.

You heard the door open and footsteps running after you.

“Y/N? Are you alright?”

You stiffened at the voice, it was Julius. Of course, he had come to look for you, he was so kind that it hurt sometimes.

You hurriedly wiped your tears, still stubborn even though your heart was aching.

Julius had a concerned look on his face, he was a smart man and had made the connection that his unexpected revelation had caused the following events.

“Please don’t cry.” The words were soft, sad, and they washed over you in waves.

Still, you couldn’t stop the tears from falling, and as if on cue the rain began to fall as well.

“I’m sorry, I never meant for you to find out this way. I thought… I thought that we were just friends.”

You smiled sadly as the rain soaked your hair, “Oh Julius, I don’t think I can be just friends with you.”

Julius nodded, trying to push down the sadness creeping up in his heart.

“Don’t worry, I’ve grown used to it.”

Too often he had had to deal with people taking his kindness as flirtation, his politeness as a declaration of sorts.

He went back inside the shop, collecting his things quietly.

He set his umbrella in your arms and left without a word, he forced himself not to glance back at you, shoved away the questions and wonderings of what could have been. This is how it has to be.

You watched his retreating form until he was swallowed by the rain, you couldn’t tell if the water on your face was the rain or your tears anymore.

-

Julius entered his apartment, his fiancee’s eyes lighting up as she saw him in the doorway.

“Oh Julius, you’re soaking wet!” She rushed to grab him a towel from the linen closet, and tucked it around his shoulders, rustling his hair to dry it.

“Didn’t you have an umbrella when you left earlier?” She asked, certain he’d grabbed one on his way out.

He nodded, “Someone I passed needed one, so I gave it away.”

Her concern softened into a smile, and she placed a warm hand on his cheek. “You’re really a kind man, Julius.”

-

Once night fell you scaled the castle wall easily, keeping to the shadows. You’d spent weeks memorizing the guards’ schedule, figuring out the weaknesses in this impenetrable castle, and now was the perfect time to act. You had managed to get a map of the inside of the castle before you came here, and by now had committed it to memory.

If your intel was to be believed, the item you were looking for was kept in Prince Yami’s desk, the second drawer from the top, right-hand side. You crept along the walls, thankful for your camouflage cloak when a pair of guards went past your position. The trip to the second floor was quick work, but now came the hard part, you’d need to make it into the Prince’s room without getting caught. You found an empty room a few doors down and snuck inside, preparing to stand on the window ledge and scale across that way.

The window opened with surprising ease and you stepped outside after making sure the coast was clear. You could only pray that there was no one awake in the rooms between your current position and the room you were trying to get to. Thankfully, it seemed as if all the lights were off in the rooms between, so you should be able to slip past without detection. You made it to the Prince’s room and crouched down, praying the window wouldn’t open too loudly.

To your relief, the window opened with ease, and you smiled. It was obvious from the wear that the Prince often used this window to sneak out. You entered the room cautiously, boots thudding softly on the carpeted floor. The desk was across the room, but based on the snores you heard from the Prince’s bed, getting there shouldn’t be a problem.

You opened the drawer and just as your intel had said, there lay the ruby bracelet, ripe for the taking. Soon, you’d be off somewhere remote with plenty of pocket change. Your only way out of here was back the way you came, so you started heading off in that direction, but there was a whoosh of steel and a sword was placed dangerously close to your neck.

“Who are you?” Prince Yami asked, voice rumbly from sleep. “Just a thief.” You replied quietly, there was no talking your way out of this one. You raised your hands in submission, dropping the bracelet. Yami released the sword from your neck and picked up the bracelet, putting it in his pocket. Before he could ask for your name you were taking off across the room, trying to get to the window before he could stop you.

“Wait!” He whispered harshly, “Don’t step… there.”

There was a loud clicking sound, you’d stepped on a trap door. The floor opened up, sending you both tumbling into the pit below. The pit was surprisingly soft at the bottom, as you patted your hand around you realized it was hay.

“Are you okay?” You heard the Prince ask. As your eyes adjusted to the darkness, you could make him out in the ambient light.

“Yes, I am.”

“That’s good to hear.” He leaned against the wall of the pit, hair disheveled from sleep and from your fall into this place.

An uncomfortable silence settled over you, only the sound of your breaths breaking it.

“Any idea when we can get out of here?” You asked, watching him with hopeful eyes.

Yami sighed, “Not until morning. My knight will come looking for me then and he’ll be able to let us out.”

You smiled sadly, “I see, and I guess after that happens I’ll be executed.”

“Probably.”

The silence fell over you again, this time a more somber one.

“What’s your name?” Yami asked, turning to face you.

You took a breath, wondering if this was a good idea, then decided to just tell him, if you were to die anyway, it would be nice to make a friend first.

“It’s Y/N.”

“I see, that’s a pretty cool name.”

You laughed, “You think so? It seems pretty normal to me.”

Yami smiled, “Maybe so. You’ll have to forgive me, I don’t have many friends.”

“Really? I’d expect a handsome prince such as yourself to be surrounded by them.”

Yami laughed, a deep rumbly chuckle that you could feel in your own chest, “I suppose it may appear that way, but really it’s just people that want to suck up to me because of my title.”

You nodded, fixing your gaze upwards, “I know how that goes.”

Yami squinted, surprised at your admission, “Really? You don’t seem the type.”

You laughed and Yami cocked his head, studying your face best he could in this light, “Even royals can become disgraced Prince Yami. I used to be in a similar position to yourself, but I ran away, needed to get out of that place.”

You scooted closer to each other as you continued with your story, Yami settled his elbows on his knees.

“I used to have dreams about leaving, buying my own house by the seaside, living independently. No maids or servants, just me.” Your voice sounded almost wistful as you spoke, and Yami thought of his own dreams.

“I want to leave this place too.”

“Is that so? Where would you go?” You cocked an eyebrow, studying him. Prince Yami was attractive in a rugged sort of way, his jaw was chiseled and covered with stubble, and even in this dim light, you could tell how muscular he was.

Yami straightened, his eyes full of a hopeful sparkle, “I want to go live in the forest and open my own Knight Training academy. I’d take in the misfits from the Kingdom, those who have no place else to go. Maybe we’d be a family of sorts, it would certainly be better than what I have here.”

You smiled, a wistful sadness overtaking you, “That sounds lovely Prince Yami.”

“Oh please, call me Yami, there’s no need for formality here. And really? You don’t think it’s dumb?”

“No, not at all. In fact, I think it’s a noble dream.”

The two of you talked for a while longer, until your eyes were bleary with sleep. You huddled together for warmth as the pit became colder.

“I’m sorry I got us into this mess Yami.” You said softly, you had scooted next to him now, your head resting lightly on his chest.

Yami chuckled softly, “I wish I could hate you for it but the truth is, this is the first time I’ve been able to be this open with anyone in quite a while.”

“I see, well that’s comforting to hear.”

Yami got the spark of an idea, “Y/N.”

“Yes?”

He sat up excitedly, and you pulled away so you could look at him better.

“What if I did open that training school, and what if you were my first recruit? If you didn’t end up being executed of course. We could find a spot in the woods near the seaside, there is such a place, I’ve seen it. And we could open that school together! You’ve already proven that you can be sneaky, you could train our knights in stealth techniques.”

Yami’s words were kind, you could find hope being stoked in your heart, but you knew it couldn’t happen. You surely would be executed for trespassing and attempted theft.

“But… how would that happen? I will surely be killed in the morning.”

“Not if I lie.”

“Lie? What could you possibly come up with that could get me out of my inevitable fate?”

“You’ll see, I am excellent at talking my way out of things.”

You wished you could believe him.

-

The trapdoor was opened sometime later, letting the harsh light of the morning into your prison.

“Prince Yami, how many times have I told you to be careful? I have pointed the spot of the trapdoor to you many many times now.” A voice from above said.

“I know Finral, I’m sorry.”

You and Yami climbed from the pit and Finral drew his knife. You tried not to panic, but the possibility of you being thrown in jail, and worse, were almost certain now.

“Who is this Prince Yami? Are they a criminal? Did they trespass into your room?”

Yami put a hand up, gesturing for Finral to put the knife down.

“No, they aren’t, and no they didn’t. This is Y/N, and the past few months we have been discussing plans for my training academy, in secret of course.”

Finral blinked, looking from you to Yami and back again. “Is this where you have been running off to then?”

Yami nodded sheepishly, “Yes, I didn’t want to tell you because you’d already warned me against such actions.”

“Prince Yami, you already know I support you fully. In fact, I have already found a property in the woods like you wanted. I’ve even cleared your plan for the school with the King.”

Yami sucked in a breath, “Is the ocean close by too?”

When Finral nodded, you and Yami clasped each other's hands excitedly, then you wrapped Finral into a tight hug.

“This is great! When can we set off?” Yami asked, chuckling as Finral took deep breaths after being let go.

“Right now if we hurry.”

“Great! I will pack my bags.”

Finral nodded and set off to pack his own.

“Well?” Yami turned to you, eyes full of hope, “Do you still want to come? If you want to leave there will be no hard feelings.”

To his delight, you smiled, taking his hand in your own. “Of course I do.”

“You know, it would suit captains to act with more decorum,” Nozel said pointedly once you sat down.

Rather than dignifying him with a vocal response, you stuck your tongue out at him, much to Yami’s delight.

“Haha Y/N got you good, Braid Face.”

Nozel glared at him, but Julius entered the room before he could respond.

This meeting was as boring as all the others but you forced yourself to pay attention, after all, you had to get through this meeting in order to get on with the rest of your evening.

The meeting ended and most of the captains left, but you lingered in the doorway, waiting for William as he talked with Julius. It was almost time.

William’s face brightened as he noticed you in the doorway and he strode to meet you.

“You didn’t have to wait for me.” He commented, your footsteps echoing in the marble hallway.

“I know.”

William narrowed his eyes, shooting you a glance, “What do you need?”

You gave him a mock offended look, “Oh you wound me! Can’t I just want to walk with my childhood friend?”

William gave you a pointed look, “I think I know you well enough to know when you have an ulterior motive.”

You chuckled, “Well I should hope so, we met how many years ago?”

William laughed, shaking his head, “Too many.”

Your footsteps paused, and William came to an abrupt halt, “I… actually did need something. Well, it’s more like a want.”

He studied your expression carefully, nodding at you to continue.

“Well… could you do that thing? The one we did as kids?”

A wave of relief washed over him, “That’s all? I thought something was wrong, or that you were going to tell me you loved me or something.”

You rolled your eyes, “Like that would happen. Anyway, is that a yes?”

“Yes, but you better buy me dinner first.”

“Deal! Race you!” You took off like a shot, legs carrying you as fast as they would go.

He caught up to you easily, and you both ignored the several shocked looks from the townspeople you barrelled past.

Stopping outside the restaurant, William opened the door for you with a cheeky grin.

“I won as usual.” He said, a hint of pride creeping into his voice.

You snorted, “Don’t get too cocky, I beat you earlier.”

He gave you an incredulous look, “That was only because you played a cheap trick!”

“Nonsense, I did no such thing.”

-

When dinner was over, the stars were out and you couldn’t help the way you were buzzing with excitement as you set off for an empty field.

William held his hands out, eyes scrunching with concentration; a tall tree emerged from the ground branches reaching high into the sky when he finished.

You and William climbed the tree, choosing branches to sit upon. Your backs rested against the tree and you fixed your gaze on the sky. The wind blew the leaves gently, creating a pleasant rustling sound.

“Remember when we talked about our dreams up here?” You asked.

“Of course, we both want to be the Wizard King,” William said. You could tell he was smiling, even though you weren’t looking at him.

“No, not that dream, the other one.” You said, your heart was beginning to pound now, you weren’t sure if this was a mistake or not.

William sucked in a breath when he remembered which one you were talking about.

“The one where we both wanted to be in love someday?” He asked softly, “Did you find someone?”

You nodded, even though he couldn’t see it, “I think so.”

He swallowed, “I see. Are they a good person?” He hoped you couldn’t hear the way his words were tinged with sadness; he’d always known this day would come, you’d fall for someone who wasn’t him, but that didn’t make him any more prepared for it.

You laughed softly, “They’re the best.”

He breathed in sharply, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. “I see. When did you realize you loved them?”

“I only realized it recently,” Your voice was soft, but he could hear the smile that was in it. “But, I think I’ve always been in love with them. We’ve grown rather close, and I can’t imagine my life without them.”

William felt a pang in his chest at your words, it was painfully obvious how in love you were.

“Well, that’s great,” He smiled sadly, “I’m really happy for you, I’m sure you’ll have a happy life together.”

“I hope so, I just hope we can work out our schedules. We’re both captains you see.”

William nearly fell out of the tree; you were in love with another captain? Who could it be? Was it Fuegoleon, Yami, or heaven forbid, Nozel?

“You’re--- you’re in love with a captain?” William sputtered, leaning over so he could look at your face.

You blinked, “Yes, didn’t I just say that?”

William blinked several times from the shock, “May I ask who it is?”

“Sure.”

He took a deep breath, “Okay. Is it Yami?”

“Nope.”

“Fuegoleon?”

“No. He’s way too proper for me.”

“Kaiser?”

“William, he’s married.”

“Right. Is it Jack?” You could tell he was trying hard not to judge you if your answer was yes to this question, but you knew your rival and friend too well at this point for him to hide it.

Sure, you could just put the poor man out of his misery and tell him the truth, but where was the fun in that?

“Yes.” You said, deadpan. William fixed you with such a shocked expression, you couldn’t help but laugh and drop the facade.

“William, I'm joking. Do you honestly think I would speak so tenderly of Jack of all people? Keep going.”

William shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts of you with Jack from his brain.

“Okay, is it Nozel?” He nodded at your look of disgust and kept going, “Rill?”

“No way.”

“Charlotte?” At this point William was beginning to panic, he was quickly running out of people to name.

“No.”

“Dorothy?”

“Not her either.”

“Then who?! That’s everyone!”

You chuckled, “Aren’t you forgetting about someone?”

William glanced around, trying to think of who he was forgetting. Suddenly he gasped, “Is it… is it Julius?!”

You erupted into an uncontrollable fit of laughter at his words, and William felt his cheeks grow hot.

“Y/N, are you messing with me right now? I’ve quite literally named everyone that’s a captain.”

Your laughter stopped as you realized he couldn’t picture that the person you were talking about could be him.

You took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of your nose to try to collect yourself.

“You know William, for a captain you’re really quite dense.”

William looked at you with a dumbfounded expression, “How am I dense? You’re the one who’s spent the last 10 minutes laughing at my expense.” He yelled indignantly, watching as you tried to stifle a snicker.

“William Vangeance! Did you really just forget that your title is ‘Captain William Vangeance’?”

William blinked, “What? No of course not, I’m the captain of the Golden Dawn!”

You flipped your hand over, staring at him, “Exactly.”

He looked at you puzzled, then, the realization hit him. The mysterious captain you were supposedly in love with... was him.

He sucked in a breath, mind racing. “Wait so… Wait… Really?”

You nodded, “Obviously you idiot,” but there was no malice behind your insult, “Who else would it be but you?” you continued quietly, fingertips gently brushing his.

The contact made him shiver, and you stared at each other for a long moment.

William looked away, cheeks dusted with an uncharacteristic shade of pink, “I… I’m in love with you too. Always have been.”

You smiled, a teasing glint in your eye, “Good, because you know Yami would have killed you for breaking my heart otherwise.”

He smiled, the picture of Yami fighting for your heart as the third member of your haphazard trio an amusing one.

He gently intertwined your fingers with his, “Do you want me to walk you back home?”

“Sure, I’d like that.”

William gently lowered the tree so you could safely hop down.

Your fingers brushed as you walked to your base, the empty streets peaceful at this hour.

“I do believe I won this time.” You commented, smacking him gently on the arm.

William gave you a sideways glance and a smile, “And what did you win this time?”

You turned, giving him a cheeky grin, “I won your heart.”

“Quit being cheesy, I won your heart too.”

You reached the door to your base and he gently grabbed your hand, kissing the top of it gently.

“Goodnight Captain Y/L/N.”

One of the saloon girls interrupted his thoughts by asking for his order.

“Just water please.” He said hoarsely, trying to ignore how much he wanted to grab a seat at the bar and talk to you.

“Yes sir! That’ll be right out.”

She returned swiftly, a cool mug of water set upon the table. “Are you stayin’ here long cowboy?”

William looked up at her, a forced smile on his face, “No, just for the evening.”

As he looked up at her, the light happened to reveal his face to her, her expression changed, and she hurried away to tend to other customers. He sighed softly, taking a sip of his water. He was used to this happening, people had almost always reacted to his birthmark this way, some people were convinced he had some sort of plague. The woman’s reaction was another painful reminder of how much he missed you; you were the only person he’d ever met that had touched his face with tenderness.

-

You were at the bar, fulfilling orders and chatting with customers when a particularly unruly man sat at the stool in front of you.

“Hello sir, what can I get you?”

The man smiled wickedly, it was obvious he was already drunk, “Are you on the menu?”

The question made your skin crawl but you forced yourself to smile, “I’m afraid not sir.”

William narrowed his eyes, that was the man he was looking for; now was not the time to act though, there were too many people around to risk getting in a shootout inside the saloon.

The man wouldn’t take no for an answer though, and when you were turned for a split second he lunged to grab your arm.

William was over in a flash, grabbing the man’s arm with a vice-like grip.

The saloon went eerily silent as all eyes were fixed on the scene at the bar, “Try that again, I dare you.” The words were dripping with such venom that William surprised even himself.

The man let your arm go, but fixed William with a defiant grin, “Or what? Is this your lover or something?”

The corners of William’s mouth twitched, “Do you know who I am?”

His smile faltered, but the man’s voice was even as he spoke, “No, why does that matter?”

William smiled wickedly, knowing his prey was about to be caught. “Maybe this will refresh your memory.”

He tilted his hat up from his face and the man instantly paled.

“Y-you, you’re him. You’re the bounty hunter, William Vangeance, bringer of vengeance.” The man’s voice shook and he tried to squirm away from him.

William chuckled, “That’s right Slim, I am. And now I’ll be taking you to the sheriff.”

Slim didn’t put up much of a fight as William led him out the door.

-

You stood frozen in place, memories rushing back to you all at once. A cold December night, a letter slipped under your door, running after him, begging him to stay.

The buzz of the bar soon returned, and you took a deep breath, trying to recenter yourself after the shock of seeing William again. You had long given up on him returning, but lo and behold he had, at least for tonight. Would he leave in the morning? Probably. It seemed as if he had only come for his quarry, but some part of you hoped that it had been more, that he had come to see you as well.

-

Hours passed, and you were closing the saloon. You swept the floors, and wiped off the tables, now all that was left was to wipe down the bar.

There was a knock at the door and you opened it to find William standing there, an uncertain look on his face. You were tempted to yell at him, take out five years worth of frustration and anger and regret on him, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do so. When you searched your heart, there was only sadness left where William was concerned, he had been your first love and he had left you cold and alone, with only the silhouette of him on his horse receding into the distance and your memories.

“I didn’t think you’d come back.” You said, your voice just above a whisper.

William glanced down at his feet, regret filling his chest, “I didn’t either.”

You lingered in the doorway for a long moment, then stepped to the side.

“Want a drink?”

He nodded and walked in, and you locked the door behind him. He took a seat at the bar as you made what he asked for, pouring water for yourself.

“Thank you for earlier.”

William shifted on his stool, “Of course, I couldn’t stand to let you get hurt.”

That’s rich, coming from the person who broke my heart. You wanted to say, but instead you forced a smile, “Well, I appreciate it.”

You and William stared at each other, both unsure of what to say.

“You look well.” William spoke up after a while.

Your lips twitched from the irony, “I’m making do.”

Silence prevailed once more, and you stared at your water glass, trying to will the dam of emotions to stay intact. You took a deep breath, clenching your fists on the counter.

“Why did you leave me?”

The question was soft, but it was filled with pain so sharp William could feel it cut him.

“You know why.”

Your head whipped up, eyes alight with anger.

“No I don’t. You were here one day and we were happy, and the next day you were riding off on that damn horse.”

“I--”

You didn’t let him finish, “I could have come with you William!” Your voice began to break, tears threatened to fall.

“Being a bounty hunter is dangerous work.”

“Don’t you think I know that? Do you have any idea how I worried for you once I found out what you were doing?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Are you?” You sucked in a breath, chest heaving, “Are you sorry for the way you broke my heart into a million tiny pieces?”

William stood, hand slammed on the counter, his voice strained, “It broke my heart too! I never wanted to hurt you Y/N.”

You blinked at him, “Never wanted to hurt me. So why did you? I would have gone anywhere with you, followed you to the ends of the earth, left all of this behind. I wouldn’t care if it were dangerous or uncomfortable, because I would get to spend my days with you!”

“I know! And that’s the problem,” He took a pained breath, “You don’t deserve a life like that Y/N! You deserve to be safe and comfortable and happy and I can’t give that to you.”

“I don’t want that, I just wanted you.”

William blinked his tears away, “I wanted you too.”

“Then why?” Your voice was soft, all the bravado and tension from before quieted.

“I’m not good for you.”

You laughed darkly, “William, that’s crap and you know it.”

William pulled a few bills from his pocket, setting them on the counter.

“Think I could get a room for the night?”

“Talk to Tracy next door.”

“Thanks. I’m sorry for the trouble.”

“This isn’t over William! Please don’t leave yet, are you leaving in the morning?”

“Goodbye Y/N.”

He walked away, heading for the door.

“Please don’t go.” You whispered, if he heard, he gave no indication he did so.

The door opened and closed, and you collapsed on the counter, for the first time that night, allowing yourself to cry.

William watched from the window, heart torn to shreds as he watched your shoulders shake.

Your shoulders instantly relaxed, Camp Director Yami was finally here.

“Hello, campers!” His voice boomed over the speakers, “Welcome to Camp Black Bull. Who’s ready for a good time?” The counselors and children whooped and hollered but it seemed not enough for Yami, who cupped a hand behind his ear.

“I said, who’s ready to have a good time?”

You cupped your hands around your mouth to yell louder, the sounds around you reverberated through you, and you felt excitement rush through you, this was going to be a good week. Yami laid out all of the ground rules, the campers should listen to their counselors, and if they had a problem, find the nearest counselor to sort it out. After a few more camp songs, Yami made the announcement that you all were due back here after lunch for more group activities.

Yami left and you glanced at your clipboard to get the day’s agenda, you wouldn’t be going to archery until 10:30 and it was only 10 now, which left you 30 minutes to fill with camp songs and games. You left the tent with your kids in tow to find the perfect spot to sit and go over the agenda for the day until it was time for archery. You spotted an area through the trees, it would be perfect for what you had planned, but you had no sooner stepped into the clearing when at the same time a group led by the boy with red hair you’d seen earlier also stepped in from the opposite side.

You frowned, “I’m sorry but I think we were here first.” The boy raised an eyebrow, “No I don’t think so, I’m pretty sure we ended up here at the same time. But there’s not enough space for both groups here.” You ran your tongue over your teeth, feeling your annoyance grow already just from the cocky look on his face, his nametag read ‘Zora.’. “Fine, we’ll settle this with a game of rock paper scissors.” You said, tucking your clipboard between your knees.

“Best of 3?” He asked. You nodded and he dropped his clipboard on the ground near his feet. You faced each other, tension palpable in the air.

“Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!” You had rock and he had scissors, but you grew too cocky from your early win. It ended in a defeat, he beat you with rock and paper. You begrudgingly shook his hand to show good sportsmanship and he smiled, showing a mouth full of sharp teeth. “Good game, see you around Y/N.”

You led your campers to a nearby picnic table and you sat, going over the agenda of the day. “Alright, we have Archery in about 10 minutes, and then we’ll go to lunch, then it’s back to the assembly tent for some games, and then we have canoeing this afternoon.”

10 minutes passed quickly and you made your way to the archery field, brightening when you saw that your friend Vanessa’s group had archery the same time yours did. “Hey you!” You waved. She perked up when she saw you, a smile lighting up her face. “Hey friends, this is my friend Miss Vanessa!”

“Hi Vanessa!” Your kids said, waving to her. The archery instructor, a man named Klaus, soon captured the group’s attention and took over. As he explained what the kids would be doing, you realized how thirsty you were. Sadly your water bottle was empty so you tapped Vanessa, asking her to keep an eye on your campers while you went to the water station.

You started filling up your bottle, not wanting to leave Vanessa with 20 campers for too long, and you heard the crunching of leaves. You rose and saw Zora standing there, water bottle in hand. “Hello again.” He said, fingers raising in a quick wave. “Hello to you too.”

Archery passed relatively uneventfully, except for some of the kids deciding that finding bugs and giving them to you was infinitely more interesting than watching their friends shoot arrows. Vanessa and yourself led the kids to lunch after you both explained that bugs were not presents.

You made sure your kids were settled in line before you grabbed a tray. The way the lunchroom was set up, you would need two counselors per table, but Vanessa had already been commandeered by Grey tugging on her arm. She flashed you an apologetic look but you waved her off, heading for a table near the back of the room. You set your tray down at the same time as Zora, who sat on the opposite end of the table. It was hard not to feel like he was following you, you knew he wasn’t, and that it was just a coincidence, but it was maddening the way you kept running into each other.

Your groups seemingly didn’t have the same schedule, but you still saw him everywhere. Why do we keep running into each other? During the after-lunch assembly, you took a moment to pull Vanessa off to the side. “What do you know about Zora?” You asked, eyes flicking over him from across the room. Vanessa shrugged, “Not a lot, he’s kind of cagey and keeps to himself. Why?” You frowned, watching as he led his kids through a group activity. “No reason.” Vanessa got a thoughtful look on her face and then started to giggle.

“Oh I see, you think he’s cute don’t you?”

“What?” You protested, face suddenly very hot, “I do not!”

Vanessa’s smile grew wider as she watched you panic, “Okay, whatever you say.”

The lake lapped at your feet as you helped your campers into their life jackets. Noelle, the instructor in charge of canoeing cleared her throat, “Now, it’s important that you keep these on, the lake isn’t very deep but drowning is still a dangerous possibility and we need to be safe so we can have fun okay? Now get into pairs since there will need to be 2 campers per canoe.” A familiar head of red hair jogged up, campers in tow.

“Sorry I’m late Noelle, several of my kids took a while to change.”

Noelle waved him off, “Whatever Zora, just get them ready, Y/N’s group is already about to head out on the water.”

After you loaded your kids into their respective canoes and helped them push off, you paced on the dock, unsure of what to do except for supervising. Zora cleared his throat, holding up two life jackets. “Want to share a canoe?” You bit your lip, considering his request, your eyes flicked to Noelle and she nodded, stating that she could handle any water emergencies. “Sure.” You took the life jacket from him gingerly. You set your backpack by the lifeguard stand and put the lifejacket on so it sat snug around you. Zora was taller than you, so you’d need to be in the front.

You sat in the canoe and Zora pushed off, rocking the boat as he jumped into it. You paddled along quietly, save for saying hello to a few of your campers. A few of the girls giggled and began singing, “Y/N and Zora sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g.” You yelled out a protest, cheeks warming at the thought; you’d known this man for exactly a day and your campers were already trying to get you together. You tried to push the thoughts out of your mind, there was no way you liked him, no matter what Vanessa said.

Suddenly a giant piece of what looked like driftwood smashed into the boat, sending you rocking. “Where did that come from?” You asked, turning over your shoulder to look at Zora.

“No idea,” He shrugged, “This is a lake so there shouldn’t be a current here.”

The boat was bumped a second time, this time from underneath and you were sent into the air. You yelled in surprise as you saw what had capsized your boat, it was a giant dolphin! You landed in the water with a splash, the cold water making you gasp. You swam to the dock and were pulled out by a pair of strong arms. Zora ran to a nearby supply shed and emerged with two fluffy towels; as you sat shivering on the dock he gently wrapped one of them around your shoulders.

“Th-thank you.” You stuttered through your chattering teeth. As you glanced at him you noticed his shirt was off, for such a slender guy he was muscular and you couldn’t help but stare. He noticed you staring and chuckled, “Wanna take a photo? It’ll last longer.”

You sputtered at his words, cheeks heating up enough to make you forget how cold you were. At your panicked expression, he chuckled once more, wrapping his towel around his shoulders, “I’m just joking.”

You didn’t have time to respond because Noelle jogged up with a concerned look on her face, “Hey you two, are you alright?” You both nodded, “What about the children?”

Noelle nodded, “All present and accounted for. I’ll take care of them, why don’t you change? You might catch cold if you’re not careful.”

You and Zora headed for the staff cabin, shoes squeaking uncomfortably on the dirt. After taking a quick but blessedly warm shower, you emerged out of one of the bathrooms with fresh clothes on. Zora emerged from the other bathroom a few moments later.

“Who knew there was a dolphin in there?” He said with a laugh, toweling off his hair. You smiled, “I know right? Maybe we should go talk to Yami about it.”

His mouth twitched, “Something tells me he already knows.” You made the short trek back to the lake and found Yami being chewed out by Noelle.

“Someone could have gotten hurt, Yami! What were you thinking, putting a freshwater dolphin in here?”

Yami rubbed the back of his head, “It’s my pet! I needed a place to put it.”

You escorted your kids back to the assembly tent and took a quick breather outside. Zora joined you with a quick wave, “Crazy day huh?”

You nodded with a slight chuckle, “I can see it now, headlines in the newspaper, ‘2 camp counselors launched into air by pet dolphin.’

You both laughed before settling back into comfortable silence once more.

Zora cleared his throat, “Say, Y/N?”

“Hmm?”

“Would you want to… Maybe grab a bite this weekend, my treat?”

You blinked at his words, but decided that it couldn’t hurt, after all, maybe having a near-death experience together had brought you closer.

“Sure, why not?”