Fastidioso

A month ago…

“Good work as always, Your Royal Highness,” The Marshal says, hesitantly giving the purple knight a pat on the back. Though, the latter winces away slightly, clearly the gesture was unwanted. With a sigh, the older man walks away. “Go wash up. You'd want to be presentable for Her Majesty.”

Her eyes glare at the figure below her: one of the Generals of the opposing Kingdom… What was its name again? She didn't care enough. Withdrawing her black and silver sword out of his chest, she stands up while kicking the white-uniformed man. With her fingers she slides the dark red blood off her sword.

This man was absolutely pathetic. He underestimated Asahinas’ defenses. Each side of the territory had a designated troop ready to fight. A small group of scouts stood no chance. His greed cost eight lives, including his own. Now here he was.

In a puddle of liquid red under her boots.

Could narcissists even stop to think for a second?

She eventually meets with the rest of her troop, noticing all bowing their heads in her presence. That was… going to take a while to get used to.

“We are planning a celebration for today's victory at the local bathhouse. May you wish to join us, Your Highness?” One of the men offers, though nearly squeaks as she turns her attention to him. Maybe the blood dripping down her hair made her presence menacing.

An instinctive smile creeps on her face. “I will unfortunately have to reject your invitation. I have other business to attend to,” she replies with a low voice. She nods at them before climbing upon her trusty steed: a black broad-shouldered horse that was once her father's. Lightly tapping on its neck, the horse gallops away, towards the river just outside the palace.

The river was always cold. It makes her new wounds sting as the water licks the dried blood off them. However, the icy water was nothing compared to the coldness she felt inside. She flicks back her purple hair, sighing as the sunlight burns her forehead. Yet the cold, it's still there. Taking a deep breath, she submerges under the water.

She likes the feeling under here. It's like she's flying. She has to think of nothing but not inhaling the water, as tempting as it could be.

But she has a mission, she can't stay here forever.

Mafuyu gasps as she rises back over the surface, watching the water drip from her bangs. She swims to the edge, grabbing an old cloth and begins to wipe the water off her skin. She bandages her hands and her ankles before tossing on her black embroidered pants, cyan and black boots, and gray gloves. She carefully bandages her chest, recalling her warnings from her previous mentor on how doing it incorrectly could be damaging. Yet, she couldn't care less. The flatter she was, the more convincing the lie would be.

Then, Mafuyu pulls out a small bag of dye from her pockets, carefully pulling a singular stand of hair and applying the dye to it. She's been doing this for years now; however, she wished it appeared more white instead of blonde.

Throwing on her gray blouse and vest, she considered herself ready to… face her new task at hand. She had heard vaguely what it was about from the Marshal. She would be lying if she said was thrilled at all. But she wasn't opposed to it either. In fact, she didn't know what to think of it.

Considering herself clean and ready, she climbs on her horse again and begins to head to the palace gates.

On her stroll through the capital city, she finally gets to lean back and just watch the life out of the palace. Though, her eyes search everywhere. She can see several vendedores setting up stalls for the night life. Several peasant children run around frantically, squealing in histeria as one of the older ones chases them all down. She can see several mosqueteros patrolling the dusty streets, all slightly bowing their heads at her presence. Despite the sunlight basking her, the knight can't help but shiver. She's so cold. After looking around the city for a while, she gives up on her usual search. Disappointment fills the woman's chest. Her gaze returns forward, watching the guardians bow before opening the gates to the grand palace. Its name: Palacio Mañanita.

Morning Palace. Though its figure conveyed nothing of a sunny morning. Its brick walls were a black darker than the midnight sky, faded dark red on a few specifically where the spikes were. On all floors ran a purple carpet, specifically to keep royals from touching the dirty ground. Guards were everywhere, making it impossible for outsiders to sneak in. Many lamp posts held bright purple banners with the Asahina symbol printed in a marigold color. It slightly resembles the sun if you stare long enough. Though, as bad as it may be, it was a symbol that means power and business.

She climbed off her horse and handed the leathery lead to one of maids that had been assigned to greet the knight today. Her glaze falls to the carpet floor as she makes her way to the throne room. It takes everything within her to not have her teeth chatter as her skin begins to feel like ice.

Her heart starts thumping against her binded chest, though she's unsure why. All she had to do was act, just like she had been doing just now. So why was her throat closing in on her? She ruffles her hair; perhaps something messier would resemble masculinity better. Did she bind her chest tight enough? She should have checked in a mirror before arriving. Yet why was the thought so-

“Sir Asahina Mafuyu, Prince of the Morning and General of the royal guard, has arrived!”

“¡Mi hijo! My son, you're back home!”

Mafuyu winces at the words as arms begin to wrap around her muscular body. They stung. A kiss lands on her cheek, a reminder that this act was the one worth of acceptance she so desperately craved. That this act was for the best of the Kingdom. Somehow, she manages to force a smile on her face. She prepares her low voice. That voice that she's prepared and refined for years now. “I missed you too, Ma.”

“I've heard from the Marshal how well you did in battle. Oh! You also killed a General today too, didn't you?” His mother tells her with full admiration as she begins to lead her down the hall.

Wait. Not her… him.

Mafuyu lets her his mother drag the knight down the hall, hugging the honorable prince tightly. The Queen was saying things, likely praises, though nothing Mafuyu's ears could pick up. Her His gaze falls to the ground yet stares at nothing. She He sinks more into the Queen's frame, hoping that it would relieve her him of the cold inside. After all, the knight's been told many stories on how there's nothing warmer than a mother's embrace.

Yet, Mafuyu could still feel the icicles clinging into her his body.

“Finally, we've gotten to meet the man himself,” A few nobles say, which snaps Mafuyu back to reality, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness.”

Mafuyu only nods as a reply; however, a tap into her his side forces the knight to speak. “No, the honor is mine, my lord,” The purple-haired heir replies with a bow. The Queen laughs, picking Mafuyu up while cupping her his cheeks in adoration.

The nobles seemed surprised at the prince’s demeanor. A prince bowing for others was definitely never a sight seen before. “My son's amazing, isn't he?” The Queen says. The words make Mafuyu's stomach churn.

“Mafuyu had just returned three months ago. I must thank King Shinei for raising my boy all these years.” “Mafuyu… such a strange name for such man, yet suitable,” another noble says, “It is good to have you back, Your Highness.”

Mafuyu feels acid making it's way up her his throat. “I'm glad to be back,” the woman man replies with a slight rasp.

“Too bad you never got to meet your sist-”

Mafuyu feels the grip on her his shoulder tighten. “We'd love to stay and chat; however, Mafuyu just got back from battle and is very tired,” The Queen says, pulling the heir away, “If you excuse us.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Queen continues to drag Mafuyu to their private dining room. It's a huge porcelain table, giant seats for both royals on each side and a singular small one in the middle just for the purple-haired knight. “Sit here, I'll go command your favorite from the chefs,” She says as she pulls the smaller seat back for Mafuyu to sit, who obliges. Mafuyu can hear her chuckle in a motherly warmth, pushing the seat back in before leaving another kiss on the back of her his head. “I'll be back soon. You may rest your head down if you need to.”

Mafuyu cracks another smile as the two make eye contact. “Thank you, Ma.”

The Queen's eyes were similar’s to Mafuyu's own: a dark violet that faded into a nearly pale blue. Mafuyu's dearest had once described it as a beautiful snowy night landscape. Though throughout the years, Mafuyu's purple seemed to have become dull and slightly taken over the icy blue, only leaving a washed out gray behind. Her His purple hair became darker too, sometimes appearing black in cloudy days. It was one of the first things her his mother pointed out when she he returned back to the Kingdom three months ago, aside for the dyed streak of hair. Mafuyu had a few suspicion why; however, they were all disproven as her his father suggested it might have just been Mafuyu's body adapting to the drastically different environment of the Kingdom she's he's been living in for the past ten years.

After a minute of sitting alone in silence, with the only light being a small window behind the prince, Mafuyu's head falls flat on the porcelain table, though the shock from impact was not painful enough. The silence has made the sickening feeling in her his chest reside.

Wait, the act can die for now.

Mafuyu exhales sharply as she pulls out a small map of the Kingdom from her vest. She had stolen it from the Marshal’s office when she first arrived. It was brand new at the time, up to date with the Kingdom's current locations, something Mafuyu herself was not familiar with. Now it was crusty with dark stains from Mafuyu's battles and wrinkled in some places. The ink of the text and drawings had faded a bit, but not enough to make it ineligible. She revises each city and town, majority having a more recently scribbled “X” over them.

Seeing the map nearly covered in “X’s” twisted Mafuyu's heart. But she can't give up on her search.

After all, she hasn't searched the main city completely. It's too big to explore within a week or two. And she's only searched within the smaller towns and less populated cities. It makes sense why her dearest wouldn't be there.

So she can't give up. She can't give up searching for-

“My son, I have returned with your favorite! Beef stew!” The Queen announces, making Mafuyu slightly joint in surprise. Mafuyu’s hands twitch, wanting to hide the map, though it was too late. The bowl is settled besides the map and hands fall on the purple-haired’s shoulders. “What's this Mafuyu?” The Queen asks curiously.

The act creeps back on her his face as Mafuyu turns to meet the older woman's eyes with a welcoming smile. “You see, I want to catch up with my Kingdom after being away for so long… I thought I'd explore every single place to catch up and know my people,” Mafuyu explains, quickly rolling up the map and scooting the bowl of strew towards herself himself, “This smells delicious, gracias Ma.”

“How thoughtful of you, Mafuyu,” The Queen says as she leaves Mafuyu's side and sits at the edge with her designated seat. Mafuyu watches her rest her elbows on the table and placing her hands on her cheeks. She has a smile on her face, though her gaze does not leave Mafuyu. “I'm glad you're my son. I've always wanted a son. Seeing how you've turned out, I feel like the most blessed woman in the world. So thank you for becoming my son.”

Ah. The constant reminder that only he was accepted. Only he was loved. Mafuyu opens her his mouth to speak, but no words come out. Instead, the purple-haired only opts to nod with her his best attempt at a grateful smile. Without thinking, her his shaky hands reach for the spoon and twitch into the bowl and bring some of the stew into her his mouth. The woman man slightly gasps at the shock, having forgotten to blow onto the still steaming beef and vegetables. Though the pain was quickly over after she he swallowed, coughing slightly.

The Queen is back at her his side, somehow have gotten a fan and used it to blow Mafuyu's flushed face. “Are you okay?” She asks with absolute worry.

Mafuyu nods. “I'm okay,” She He replies back with words quivering, returning the spoon back into the bowl. It was indeed steaming. The smell was nice, though so faint.

“Be careful, Mafuyu,” The Queen says with a slight chuckle, “You must be more tired than I thought. I'll go ask the maid to prepare you a warm bath.”

“No thank you, I've bathed just before arriving here,” Mafuyu interjects.

“In that case I'll have them leave your nightgown and bed ready.”

“I appreciate it. Thank you, Ma.”

There's another kiss on Mafuyu's cheek which slightly manages to enchant the knight. “Very well. I'll discuss your mission tomorrow morning instead. Good night, hijo. I love you.” Mafuyu watches her leave, closing the doors right behind her. Mafuyu takes in the silence, the only sounds being the wind whistling as it entered the room through the small window. The act slips off, along with the pain in her chest in the form of tears.

She looks back down at the beef strew, it's faint smell was now for some reason stronger and revolting. Her stomach flips once again at its sight. It doesn't look delicious or inviting. The meat was too squishy and the vegetables looked a little off. She gags.

But, how will she able to look for her dearest without any energy? If anything, this stew was perfect to keep her going throughout her planned search in the night. And, it would be a waste to dispose of her mother's act of love, even though it was for him.

Mafuyu gags again, feeling saliva begin to fill her mouth. But she won't throw up. She can't throw up. Her shaky fingers reach for the spoon but refuse to get a firm hold on it. She feels sick and disgusted with herself. It's just stew! Why is she overreacting? Both her hands grab the bowl. Maybe… she could just chug it down like water. Maybe, she won't have time to think about how ill it will make her feel. It doesn't matter that it's still hot.

Mafuyu brings the bowl to her mouth. She need to do this.

She needs to find her dearest.