"She doesn't realize what a powerful position she's in does she?" I wondered.
"She lived a life never knowing she was of royal background. She appreciates life and for what it is, precious. It can be taken away from you in the snap of your fingers. Many royals don't think of life that way. To be honest, I'm impressed that Marcus and the others are humble. They're all powerful individuals who may rule one day. But, they respect one another and the people they meet. Rare to see in the realms."
"Will I notice? When I visit Feminara one day?" I whispered, letting my eyes close.
"Maybe. But, your grandma is an excellent ruler and I know when you're ready to face that stepping stone, you will be just fine. I can always hide a few bodies if anyone bothers you.”
"Christian."
"A few. Just anyone who bothers you," he defended.
I let out a soft giggle, trying my best to stay awake. "Thank you, Christian," I whispered.
"For?"
"Just being you. I'm glad to have you and the others in my life."
"We're happy to have the opportunity to share you, Scar. We wouldn't want it any other way," he consoled; his hand continued to play with my orange locks.
I relaxed, enjoying the slow rhythm of Christian's heartbeat and the gentle tugs of his fingers playing with my hair. Before I knew it, I was asleep.
MAKOTO
"Kai, I can feed myself," I mumbled.
"Princess, you can't even keep your eyes open."
"Yes. I can," I argued, opening my heavy lids for three seconds before they closed again. "See..." I mumbled.
Kai sighed. "I doubt I'm getting any food in ya. I pray to the gods you don't lose weight, or Karen's gonna lecture us," Kai exhaled.
"Hmm. No, she won't," I mumbled.
"Uh huh," Kai retorted.
I heard something cling before the squeak of the bed. I relaxed against the headboard, trying not to doze off. I think I failed, opening my eyes again to find myself nestled in Kai's arms; my head relaxed against his bare chest. The night lamp was on, and his sketchbook rested on his right knee. I silently watched him sketch away – an image of Ryuu holding Lexi in an embrace; his lips pressed against her forehead. In the background was a beautiful red and orange dragon on Ryuu's side and a purple dragon with a mixture of black scales on Lexi's half; the two dragons had their foreheads pressed against each other as the sun began to set in the background.
"It's Lexi's dragon. Is that how Marcus and Ryuu look in dragon form?" I whispered.
Kai paused drawing, looking down at me; I lifted my head to meet his gaze.
"Hey."
"Hi."
"Yes. That's how Marcus and Ryuu look when they shift. It depends on his mood though. They sometimes alter colors," Kai revealed.
"Because he can use ice?" I wondered.
"Marcus is a rare breed. He's a mixture of fire and ice dragon. I think it's due to his mom being an ice dragon and his father, a fire dragon. Either way, his fireside is strong enough to do major damage with little effort. I wouldn't want to see what his ice dragon could do," Kai admitted, continuing to shade Lexi's dragon.
"Kai." I paused as he looked back down at me.
"What's wrong?" he asked, giving me his full attention.
"Why are you so accepting of me? Like...not to say the others aren't...but, we had time to understand one another. With you, it's only been a little over three weeks, yet you treat me like we've known each other for cycles. Why?" I asked.
Out of all my knights, he seemed to be the one who dove right into this relationship with no hint of hesitation. It always lingered in the back of my mind if it was due to our bond or if he was truly okay with sharing me with the other knights.
"Should I not be so accepting?" he countered.
"Well...Ryder knows me from when we were kids. Daniel...is struggling with his past, Marcus confessed he was interested and cared about me, and both Elias and EliaseAnne have been forthcoming. I just...don't get how from day one, you were fine with everything about me. I'm weird...or I guess unique, but not everyone can accept such a change, let alone be willing to date or share that person with four other people," I explained my thoughts.
"Makoto. Your uniqueness is one of the many qualities I love about you. I come from a family where everything you did had to follow a set of rules laid down before you. I didn't have the freedom to do as I pleased. Even your partner is chosen for you, who you'd have to cherish and care for regardless if you loved them or not," he began.
"An arranged marriage?" I asked.
He nodded. "My parents were arranged and though they eventually put away their differences and genuinely loved one another, I didn't want to be put in the same situation. When I was called to be a star knight, I was scared. Not only would I be appointed to protect someone I'd never met, but I'd have to protect them while dealing with the reality of being forced to marry someone when my time of leadership came."
I laid there quietly, wanting to know more.
"I guess you can say, I put the idea in the back of my mind for the longest time. But, when we began the search for you, training day by day, I wondered what this Princess would be like. I could sense Ryder's love for you, even as children. I couldn't fathom how he'd known you for such a short period of time, yet, he adored you and was working till he'd collapse just to get stronger."
He paused, turning his sketchbook to a blank page and started sketching aimlessly while he continued.
"As time went on, and we continued our quest, I wondered what you were like? Of course, we'd seen a picture of your younger self, but I still didn't understand what kind of a child you were. So, I started asking around. It began with the boys, each of them thinking of how you'd be like, then I talked with the staff, the maids, Matthew and Karen, even Winterlya had a memory of you as a child. Anyone I asked had only positive memories and as I gathered more and more information, I began to picture you in my mind and wished to meet this wonderful Princess who was able to warm the hearts of many in the castle."
I turned back to the image on the page – a little version of me with big turquoise eyes, brown hair and a little crown on my head. She was in a puffy pink dress and Nightmare was in my arms, looking up at me.
"It's me?" I asked.
"Yes. There's an image of you in this pose with Nightmare in the castle. It's in the private section where your parents and close family members stay."
"How did you get in there to see it?" I asked.
"Catherine Heart, your mother. I guess she'd heard of my little investigation and decided to show me around the private corridors of the castle. Kade joined in and had tons of stories of all the mischief you'd caused, and he and Xavier would get blamed for it." Kai chuckled as I blushed.
"I was an amazing child," I mumbled, attempting to defend myself.
"Of course. Your sleepwalking self managed to wrap half the castle in toilet paper one night."
I gasped, looking up at him. "No."
"Yes, Princess. They have photos." Kai laughed at my astonished expression.