Be Careful What You Wish For

"Karla and Layle," the teacher partnered me up with that kid.

Both of immediately stood up from our chairs with sour expressions.

"I don't want to be working with that thing!" I protested desperately while glaring at the scowling blonde.

Layle scoffed. "Don't worry, the feeling's mutual!"

Ms. Clive frowned as our heated argument intensified and before you know it, we were screaming at each other at the top of our lungs. Everyone was just enjoying the free show until the teacher shouted, "Karla! Layle! If you don't stop yelling at each other, you two will both have detention after school at 3:15 sharp!"

We both shut up and muttered, "Sorry, Ms. Clive..."

The blondie and I aren't exactly two peas in a pod. We're mortal enemies. Legit mortal enemies. We have never had a civil conversation since grade five. Yeah, unfortunately, we've also been classmates for ten years. Holy cow, that made me feel quite old.

After class, I was casually walking to my locker until someone with blonde hair shoved me to the lockers. All my papers and textbooks fell down. He was towering above me and I was cornered. Trapped behind this thing.

Layle's blue eyes narrowed at me as he seethed, "Thanks to you, I almost got a detention today!"

"Looks who's talking... And who was the person who yelled at my simple comment?" I glared at him.

Now, he was glaring at me. "I bet you're just doing this to raise your self-esteem. Well, I'm gonna break it down by saying this. You are the ugliest girl I've ever seen. Seriously, my eyes are burning from the mere sight of you. I wish you would get married to a guy who doesn't love you with kids!" The blonde smirked triumphantly.

I kicked him in the privates and he let me go as I shouted, "Well, I wish you would get married to a girl that hates your guts and somehow you two make a family!!"

Suddenly, I blacked out and fell to the ground.

~ <> ~ <> ~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <>~ <> ~ <> ~ <> ~ 

I don't know where the heck I am, but I was lying on something very soft and warm. Almost like a bed... Among the peaceful atmosphere, a soft snore echoed in the bedroom. I blinked and rolled to my side. There was somebody else on this bed. The blanket was wrapped around the unknown person so I couldn't see him/her but a human sized caterpillar shaped thing.

"Hey, wake up!" I softly said as I poked the 'thing'.

It groaned and mumbled something incoherently before turning over and put an arm directly on me. I blushed. It was a pale white arm. Pretty muscular for a girl, so I'm guessing it's a guy. Or a female Olympian for weights. 

"Hmm... five more minutes..." It grumbled and shifted its position.

Sounds like a guy too. No normal girl would have such a low voice. So, for some odd reason, I'm lying in this bed with some guy at the moment. What would a normal girl in this situation do? Scream and accuse the guy of being a perv?

I yawned and stretched. I was wearing dark red silk pajamas. Since when did I wear these pajamas? Normally I'd just get some random over sized T-shirt and shorts. And more importantly... who is this guy?

Suddenly, I heard something rustle behind me. I slowly turned around. A scream escaped my mouth as I saw who exactly the 'mystery guy' was. It was not pretty.

"What the hell? Short stuff, did you really want me that bad?" Layle Cross questioned incredulously.

My brown eyes narrowed at that assumption. "When pigs fly," I said seriously while locking eyes with the blondie.

"Seriously, Carl-"

"Karla!"

"Whatever. What did you do to me? How come I'm in your bed?" He arched an eyebrow in question.

"I should be asking you that, blondie!!"

Layle stood up and so did I. To my horror, he was wearing matching dark red silk pajamas. I think I'm gonna throw up. I was about to add an insult until the door swung open. 

A little boy with Layle's hair ran to me and hugged me. "M-mommy... I had a bwad dweam..." 

I blinked. Layle looked as if he was about to vomit. Since there was a crying child hugging me, I softened and said softly, "Sh... It's gonna be alright... I'm right here."

"I dweamed that daddy and y-you separated... Pwomise you won't leave daddy?"

Knowing no idea who the heck 'daddy' was, I smiled gently and promised, "Of course, sweetie. Would you like to sleep with here tonight?"

The boy who was apparently my 'son' pulled away and smiled brightly. To my shock, my brown eyes were staring right back at me on the child's face. Could he possibly be...?

"Yay! Thank you, mommy!" He grinned and jumped on the bed and called, "Daddy, aren't you gonna sweep too?"

Layle's face was sickly white. It looked as if he was about to faint and vomit. Ha, that would be fun to record if this kid wasn't here. The boy frowned but I quickly said, "Oh, Daddy's still half-asleep! Right, honey?"

I nudged him hard in the ribs as the blondie recovered, "Uh, yeah!"

He yawned cutely. "Mommy, daddy, what are you waiting for? Aren't you two sweep too?"

"Of course, sweetie." I smiled and begrudgingly dragged the shocked blonde into the bed.

"I love you, mommy... daddy..." He trailed off sleepily and instantly fell asleep.

"CARLA WH-"

"Shut up," I softly yelled, "he's sleeping."

I swear, his blue eyes softened for a second at the sight of him and continued in a hushed tone, "Explain to me why this kid looks like a love child of you and I? Why did he call us his parents?! Don't tell me... that we're..."

"I don't know, idiot. Maybe he is. Maybe we are," I quietly stated after biting my lip.

"How the-"

"Language, blondie. We've got a kid here."

"How in the flipping world did we end up here? I mean, you look older! We're sleeping in the same bed. We have a son for crying out loud," he muttered.

"Do you think I have all the answers?" I rolled my eyes and pulled the blanket up our 'son'.

"Yeah."

I sighed and jumped off the bed, silently. "Let's just explore this house. Maybe we'll find some answers. Family photos right?"

Hesitantly, he trailed behind me. Layle gagged, "Are you telling me that we made a family?"

"Grow up already! Face it. We have a son. We are older. We are family. We may be married."

"Why would I marry someone like you?!" The blondie choked.

"Hmm... good question. The feeling's mutual, blondie."

"Stop calling me that, short stuff!"

"Then," I glared, "stop calling me short stuff!"

We walked into the living room. I was right. There were numerous photos hanging on the pale red wall. What's with all the red in this house? Ignoring Layle, I walked closer to the photos. One of them showed the three of us - Layle, our 'son', and I - smiling before the Eiffel Tower. Another was a baby boy in my arms and Layle smiling while hugging me affectionately. I gagged at the sight of one particular photo.

"What's the matter, midget?" Layle hollered and shoved me out the way so he could also see.

It was a wedding. I was wearing a beautiful white dress and Layle was in a classy suit and tie. His spiky blonde hair was gelled back and my black hair was fixed into an elegant bun. However, that's not what disturbed me the most.

The fact that we were kissing did. 

My arms were wrapped around his neck and his arms around my waist. It even grossed me more that we both seemed to enjoy it! Now, I'm gonna get nightmares, honestly. I shuddered.

"You're right. We... are married..." He stated with disbelief.

There was a mirror and I rushed to see myself. I did not look like my fifteen year old self. More like twenty-five! Now that I notice it, Layle does look taller and more mature, physically. He was at least five foot eleven and a half. His whole face looked more mature! No wonder his arm looked muscular... Meh, I didn't remember his arm looking that fit. 

"What do we do, Layle?" I groaned, "Our kid thinks we're still married and love each other yada yada yada! Does that mean we have to pretend to love each other?!"

"I guess so," a frown appeared on his face.

"Wait a second... What did you say to me at school after that episode in Ms. Clive's class?" 

"Um... You are the ugliest girl I've ever seen? Seriously, my eyes are burning from the mere sight of you?" 

Facepalm. I sighed heavily. "No, idiot, I meant after that!"

"I wish you would get married to a guy who doesn't love you with kids!" Layle grinned mischievously. 

Another sigh. "At least we know who we are and how we got here. Question is... how do we get back?"

Layle grinning as he remembers what he said.

"I dunno."

"That was a hypothetical question, blondie!"

He rolled his eyes. "Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed today..."

"I literally did, Layle! Actually, I woke up on the wrong bed! Why did I have to be here with you! I would be happier if you were someone else! Heck, anybody but you would have been great! It's all your fault, blondie!!" I yelled.

Layle remained awfully silent and stared fearfully at me. "There's something behind me, isn't there?" I asked before turning around.

Ms. Clive was tapping her foot impatiently in front of us. I blinked several times and even pinched myself. How did she come here?

"Ms. Clive, how are you here?" I inquired after I recovered from my initial shock.

"Karla, I sent you here. I thought you two ought to be taught a lesson," our teacher mused with a thoughtful expression.

"I learned my lesson already," the blonde growled, "send me back!"

She shook her head in disapproval. "Not until you two stop hating each other. Your arguments always distract the class!"

"Ms. Clive, I promise that we'll be good! We will never yell at each other again, right, Layle?"

"Yeah," he eagerly nodded.

The teacher narrowed her green eyes. "Then, if you wish to return back to the present, you two have to survive in this future for one day and convince everyone that you're the same people of this reality."

My brown eyes widened. "In only twenty-four hours?!"

Ms. Clive smirked. "Yes. Or you two could just kiss right in front of your friends in the present."

We both scowled and yelled, "Hell no!"

"I thought so," she smiled, "have fun, students."

Then, she disappeared. We have only one day to convince people that I'm Karla Cross. Not Karla Takahashi. Man, it really sucks to be me at the moment.

"We have the worst teacher ever."

"True..."

On cue, we both sighed. Yep, that's the Ms. Clive I knew. Sneaky, mischievous, clever, and all that. 

"Still couldn't have you been anyone else? Why did my 'wife' have to be so ugly, weird, strange, disturbing, creepy, stupid, and lifeless? Perhaps it was an arranged marriage. I would never marry someone like that. Ever."

"... that actually hurt!" My voiced cracked and he could tell it was evident with hurt.

Water started to build in my eyes. Aw hell no. Not now! I sprinted to the nearest room and locked the door. I heard Layle curse and he tried to open the door. It appeared that I was in the guest bedroom. He pounded on the door.

"I didn't mean that, Karla, I swear!" The blonde said through the door.

My vision was blurry as I yelled, "G-go away! Leave me alone!!"

I leaned against the bed post and brought my knees to my chest.

While hugging my knees, Layle shouted, "Damn it, Karla, unlock the door!"

I remained silent as fat tear drops rolled down my cheeks. I dunno why, but I always was a silent crier. Nobody at school would realize that I was crying in the bathroom since it was dead quiet. Then, to my dismay, the door swung open. I buried my head on top of my knees to hid my tear-streaked face.

Footsteps approached me and I heard him crouch down in front of me. Layle was deadly silent. Too quiet in my opinion.

Then, he did the most unexpected thing to me.

Layle Cross was hugging me. Hugging his mortal enemy, Karla Takahashi. It was kinda awkward because my head was still resting on my knees and he was hugging me from the back. His arms were wrapped around my shoulders. 

Two crucial words escaped his mouth. 

"I'm sorry."

His words made me cry harder. I know I'm definitely not 'ugly, weird, strange, disturbing, creepy, stupid, and lifeless' so how come I'm crying? It hurts. It stung. This feeling of dejection was tearing me apart from the inside and slowly outside. 

"I was lying."

Layle forced me to look at him as is thumb pushed my head upwards to face him. He flinched at the sight of my flowing tears. His eyes were drowning with guilt as I stood there frozen as a statue. Layle softly brushed my tears away with his finger.

"It was all lies. Lately, I've been scared..." The blonde's blue eyes wandered to the floor.

I stared at him expectantly for an answer and he sighed. "I've been having these... strange... feelings lately. I.... I just can't explain it. It's just that whenever I see her, I get this fluttery feeling in my chest. Almost like butterflies."

Layle chuckled and I observed his dark eyes soften in a sad manner. "But, I know that these feelings are forbidden. She hates me and I 'hate' her. Everyone knows that," he bit his lip, "I don't know where it came from. These feelings. It just... happened. I try to deny it, but I know it cannot be erased."

At this point, I stopped crying completely. Who would have imagined Layle Cross confessing about a girl Karla Takahashi? His enemy? 

I smirked. "So even the blondie can have feelings."

"S-shut up!" A faint blush shaded his cheeks.

Then, the ultimate surprise happened. Layle Freaking Cross smiled. Like legit smile. Not some playful or mischievous or evil smile. A genuine smile. My heart raced. I can't believe I'm registering this info but... Layle actually looks pretty cute when he smiles like that. 

He brought me into a tight hug again and apologized profusely, "I'm so sorry, Karla. I didn't mean a thing I said. I'll understand if you don't forgive me and your hatred for me greatly increases..."

I laughed. "No, actually, I'm starting to like you more, Mr. Cross."

"R-really?" Layle sputtered with disbelief and shock deep in his voice.

"Of course! Maybe we can even be friends!" I hug him back for the first time.

I could feel his firm chest against my head. I blame the silk pajamas for being so awfully thin. Well, I guess Layle got more fit over the years.

"Will you hate me if I say this?" He quietly asked in the embrace.

"I don't know. Idiot, how do I answer that if I don't know what you're gonna say?" 

"You know, how I was talking about those 'strange feelings'? Well, um..." Layle mumbled something very quickly at lightning speed.

I laughed and pulled away from the hug. "Layle, speak properly! Be a man!"

"I was talking about you," he muttered quickly.

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I like you. I like you a lot, short stuff," his blue eyes remained glued on his feet.

That escalated quickly. Shock registered on my face as I laughed, "Haha, you're kidding, right?"

"No. Of course not. I really like you, Karla. In classes, I can't stop looking at you. When you caught me, I'd just pretend to be glaring at you when I was gazing at you. I'd pretend to seem like I found you disgusting and ugly when I genuinely thought of you the opposite. Karla... you're not ugly, you're the most beautiful girl in the world," he confessed.

I swear, my jaw was so wide open that I think it was touching the wooden floor. Now, Layle Freaking Cross is confessing to me?! What has happened to the world?!

"Layle... I-I just give me some time to register all this new info in my tiny brain."

So, all those times when I thought he was glaring... Were just pretend? Layle was actually smiling at me? What mockery is this? This is like Level: Bruce Lee. Was he the one that found my lost jacket and placed it on my desk the next day?

"I haven't quite reached that point yet... but, I like you, Layle. Just that my feelings haven't developed to be that strong..." I trailed off awkwardly.

He grinned. "I'll make you love me, short stuff. Watch me."

Before I could do anything like blink, he leaned in and softly brushed his lips on mine. I gasped at the sudden change in behavior. This is not the Layle I know. The Layle I knew was mean, arrogant, rude, uncaring, and unfeeling. The Layle I knew hated me to the core.

Finally, Layle pressed his lips fully on my mouth. My eyes were wide open while his were shut close. My mouth was frozen but slowly I responded. My hands somehow got caught in his spiky blonde hair that was shockingly soft.

"OOOH SOMEONE GOT A CAMERA?!"

We both jumped off each other. All of our classmates were intently watching us. Some had their phones out snapping away or recording us. Ms. Clive was smiling playfully from her desk and she winked.

"Looks like I won the bet, Daniel! Hand over the cash!"

Alternate Universe

When I woke up, I had this terrible feeling in my stomach. Maybe it's because of that extremely buttery popcorn I last night for that depressing movie... Meh, who cares? Even the bed felt weird as I turned to the side.

I sat up and yawned lazily. While stretching my arms, I jumped off the strange bed.

I blinked.

Since when did my room look like this? There were red walls and a shiny honey coloured floor. A white door was in front of me and looked like it was taunting me to open it.

Where am I?

I clearly remember my room had white walls and brown wooden floor. Not this fancy bedroom. I scratched my black hair streaked with dark blue.

"I'm just half-asleep," I mumbled and trudged to the door.

Hesitantly, I slowly turned the cold golden knob. The hallway was dark beyond it. I swear, if this is all a prank, I am gonna kill everyone involved in planning it! You do not want to see that side of me, trust me when I say that.

Even the house looked different. The hallways looked strangely wider and cleaner. Normally, there would be random toys scattered thanks to my little brother. That kid can be really annoying sometimes.

It was quiet.

Too quiet.

Where is everyone? There's at least six people in my house! Mom, dad, my noisy brother, grandma, grandpa, and finally me.

"Oh, Alicia, I see you're finally awake!"

I whirled around to the noise and saw a woman smiling warmly at me. I have never seen her in my whole life. What is she doing in my house? She had brown wavy hair and emerald green eyes.

"Um, yeah," I mumbled.

"A real lady does not mumble! Speak up!" She said crossly.

"I said yes, I am awake," I spat out each word.

"Alicia, I have great news!" A new voice called for me from another room.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" She arched an eyebrow, "go to your father! He obviously wants to tell you something."

I don't like this lady, that's for sure. I sighed and walked in the direction of the voice. It was actually my father. He looked exactly the same. Maybe I was just dreaming about that other lady.

"Did Madeline wake you up?" My father questioned while flipping through the newspaper.

Madeline? Who the heck is that? The lady I just talked to?

"No, I woke up by myself. I was just talking to her," I rolled my crystal blue eyes, "dad what did you want to tell me, anyways?"

He arched an eyebrow. "Since when did you call me 'dad', Alicia?"

"I've always called you dad from the beginning of time," I laughed lightly.

"This is the first time I have heard you call me 'dad'," he replied seriously with worry etched on his aged face.

"No, dad, are you feeling alright? You're starting to worry me."

My father chuckled. "I could say the same thing. There's something different about you today, Alicia."

This is so weird. My father was always the serious one in the family. Why is he acting so happy then? Is he actually my father?

What in the world is happening to me?!

"Anyways, I wanted to say that Kyle wanted to meet you at the park in a few minutes."

I blinked. "Who's Kyle?"

My father's mouth fell open. "Daughter, are you sure you are feeling okay? How can you not remember who Kyle Ember is?"

"I do not remember meeting or talking to 'Kyle Ember' whoever that kid is," I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion.

"Alicia Celeste Haruno, you have been in a relationship with Kyle for three months now," he raised an eyebrow at my blank face.

"Eh, maybe it's just one of those mornings. Perhaps I fell of the wrong side of the bed," I laughed nervously.

Okay, something is definitely wrong here. That man looks like my father but he isn't. Apparently, I'm dating this Kyle Ember guy who I do not remember meeting or dating!

Before he was about to say anything, I quickly said, "Well, I'll be going now to see Kyle. Love you daddy!"

"Since when did my daughter call me 'dad' and 'daddy'..." He muttered in confusion before I ran outside.

Why is the house painted red? It was blue! I clearly remember that the house was painted blue, not red! Am I going insane or mentally unstable?!

Before all these jumbled thoughts would penetrate my confused mind even more, I sprinted to the park.

I don't even know what Kyle looks like. Let's hope that he finds me. Please, fate, be good to me this time.

"Hey, Alicia, over here!" Someone called my name behind me.

By instinct, I turned around. A boy my age with red spiky hair and green eyes was waving at me, happily. I never thought I'd be the type to date a red head, honestly. Redheads remind me of Ron Weasley.

"Hi Kyle!" I call back, happily.

I have a master plan. I'll pretend to act happy like any normal girlfriend would be and such to find out more about what happened. Yeah, like that's totally gonna be a fool-proof plan, Alicia.

I sat beside him on the bench and he put his arm around my shoulders like he did that every time we met. I couldn't help but blush at the immediate contact.

Kyle smiled. "Every single time, you blush. It's cute," he commented with a smirk.

That comment made me blush harder. Why does this guy have this effect on me? This is technically the first time I've met him for me.

"It's not like I can control it, Kyle!" I protest.

He chuckled at my reaction. "Well, I can."

I don't know why, but these words immediately blurted out of my mouth, "Don't expect everyone to be able to be like you, Mr. Ember!"

Kyle laughed. "You know how much it annoys me when you call me that. Yet, you still are determined to use it."

"Yep, that's just me."

"Yeah, that's just my girlfriend," he crookedly smiled.

My heart was racing when Kyle smiled like that. This is so weird. I am certain that I was single and forever alone yesterday.

Do I have a case of partial amnesia?

Then, suddenly, Kyle got in front of me and fell on one knee. Oh no, oh no, oh no... Please tell me he isn't doing what I think he's doing. Without me knowing, I gasped.

"Alicia Celeste Haruno, I know we've only been dating for a few months and you hate being called by your full name. But, I'm certain that you are the love of my life. I don't know what I'd do with my life without you. Will you marry me?"

My eyes got watery because of several reasons.

1. Kyle Ember just proposed to me.
2. I don't know what to say.
3. I don't want to be honest and say, "Sorry, I've never seen you in my life, Kyle Ember."
4. It was such a sweet proposal.

"Oh, Kyle..." I said in a sweet, confused, sad, happy tone.

He smiled at me and patiently waited for my answer. It's almost as if I'm living someone else's life seriously....

What a second! Living someone else's life! That's it!

What if I am living another girl's life? Maybe, just maybe, this is the alternate me in some other universe! But, how did I even get here? Does that mean this girl is living in my life?

Well, I'm certain about one thing.

I have no idea of how I'm gonna get back home.

Fate's Ways

"You little brat! You're not getting away this time!" A soldier yelled as he chased me through the busy roads of  Celestiano.

"Watch me!" I shout through the immense crowds.

He was hot on my trail and I could hear him yell at me. People were complaining about me as I pushed my way through the crowd. It was strange. Normally, there wasn't this huge crowd in this area. Maybe there's an event?

"Excuse me. Sorry!" I repeated as I continued to shove people out of my path to escape from the raging soldier.

"Someone help me get that boy! There's a reward!!" The soldier shouted.

Darn, now everyone will try to grab me since I'm apparently worth money.

"Don't listen to the oaf! I'm just a peasant boy worth nothing!"

Even though I said that, hands were still trying to grab me. At one point, I got fed up so I started to get on my knees and crawl. This way, nobody including the angry soldier will be able to see me! This is where my short height comes to an advantage.

Around my neck hung a fancy, ruby necklace with a pure gold necklace. Okay, I need this necklace so I can have food, clothes, and maybe a room to stay in! So, it was completely necessary to steal this expensive necklace.

Maybe it was kinda rude to just yank the necklace off one of those rich guy's girlfriends, but hey, if this gets me money, it's worth it. That girl probably has tons of jewelry anyways. It was pretty funny to see her expression and her boyfriend's.

Priceless.

Suddenly, the necklace began to hover out of my shirt. Don't tell me one of the wizards or witches are trying to catch me too? Jeez, perfect, I've got a mad soldier, a pissed boyfriend, and a magical wizard chasing after me.

What else could possible go wrong?

As I magically hovered in mid air, the soldier proclaimed, "Thank you, kind sir! You have my gratitude for catching this pesky stealing peasant! You wouldn't believe how much this little boy has stolen..."

The wizard or witch made me land in front of the soldier and I groaned. This is not going as I planned. I probably stole a whole ton of items from the market, palace, and people!

Did I forget to mention that I'm a skilled burglar?

The soldier smirked smugly as he carried me by the collar back to the royal palace.

"Let me go! Get your filthy hands off me, you disgusting creepy old man!" I screamed loudly and bit his hand.

He swore under his breath and said, "Rebellious. I hate rebellious peasants, especially you. Lucky for you, his Majesty himself as requested to see the culprit who was stealing all the food."

My violet eyes widened. No way. Even the King himself knows what I did! This does not sound good. It's like my whole life is getting more worse by the second.

The soldier looked smug. "Normally, people would be glad that the King of Celestiano would request to meet them."

"You very well know," I glared at him as he dragged me in the direction of the grand building, "that this is a completely different case, old man!"

"Exactly, peasant."

We entered through the main entrance and I observed the palace with my narrowed violet eyes. I already knew what it looked like inside, since I 'visited' the palace several times. By visited, I mean I sneaked inside.

Clever, right? You gotta give some appreciation to this peasant because this peasant worked pretty hard to eat those delicious food items made by palace cooks. Trust me when I say this, it's the most heavenly food I have ever tasted.

I gulped as the soldier opened the doors to the throne room with an evil expression.

"Bow to your king!" He yelled as I stood speechless before the sitting king.

I wouldn't admit this to anyone, but I was scared. Really scared. In a split second, I bowed and my violet eyes were glued to the silk red carpet. Beads of sweat were forming on the side of my face. You see, our king is not some ordinary king.

He's psychic. The king can read our minds. This ability is really helpful to see if they're lying or if they're traitors.

That's why I'm scared.

He would know instantly if I'm lying or not. Lying won't help me out here. However, there are some people that figured out how to block the king from reading their minds. At this moment, I wish I knew.

"Rise," the king ordered to me.

Stiffly, I stood up and just stared at his forehead. I didn't want to see his brown eyes stare directly at me as he reads my mind.

"Commander Leon has brought you here for a reason, correct?" His tone was gentle, but I knew, that he was just doing that on purpose to make me feel more 'comfortable'.

While ignoring the urge to roll my eyes, I nodded and muttered, "Yes, your Majesty."

A smile graced his facial features and I grimaced at the sight of it. "If my sources are right, you are Talon Haru. Son of deceased Aaron Haru and Krystal Yue."

I gritted my teeth at the mention of my parents and grumbled, "Yes, I am, your Highness."

"According to Commander Leon, you have been stealing food and valuable belongings of the royal palace for quite some period of time. Is this information true?"

Knowing there was no point in trying to hide it, I sighed. "Yes."

I swear a smug smirk was on his face for a second before he continued, "If that is true, then you, Talon, do not deserve to go on your way without some... consequences."

The way he said consequences made me shiver. The soldier, Commander Leon, was grinning in the corner as he offered while stroking his long black beard, "What shall we do with this peasant, your Majesty?"

Ooh, I think my hatred for the old man has grown even stronger. I didn't even think that was possible until now.

"Now, now, Leon, this 'peasant' is a mere boy," the king pointed out.

I smiled and nodded happily. Yeah, I'm just a peasant boy!

"Your Highness," his tone was on the verge on yelling, "this 'mere boy' has stolen at least the value of hundreds of gold coins! Hundreds of gold coins wasted by this peasant when they could have been used for the government and unselfish reasons."

My smile turned upside down. I'm liking Commander Leon less and less by the second.

The king sighed. "Would it satisfy you, Leon, if I made this boy work as a servant in the royal palace for a years?"

After that sentence, my whole body froze in fear and my violet eyes widened in disbelief. He can't. I... I can't work in the palace!

Apparently, I said that out loud since the king said, "And why can you not work as a servant here? You shall be granted with food, shelter, and a place to stay. It is a win-win situation for you, Talon."

My fists clenched in irritation. "I belong outside in the streets. Not here in some royal palace as a servant. Besides, I can't do anything here! The only thing I'm good at is stealing!"

Commander Leon added, "And fighting against soldiers."

The king stared at the commander in disbelief. "What do you mean by that, Leon?"

"Well, your Majesty, as I dragged this peasant-"

"I do have a name and it's Talon," I interrupted.

His beady eyes narrowed at me. "Before I was rudely interrupted by a certain boy, I was about to say that this peasant fought against me as I took him to the palace. He even bit my hand!"

A thoughtful expression clouded over the king's face. "Let us test his fighting abilities. Warriors assemble!"

Five warriors walked inside the throne room and waited respectfully for orders. "Hand some of the training weapons over to this young man."

Their expressions were shocked and one of them said, "But, your Highness-"

"An order is an order," the king strictly said.

Hesitantly, all five of them laid a variety of weapons in front of me. There were five in total. Dual swords, a bow and arrow, a dagger, a spear, and an ax. Meh, I've never used a weapon of this before.

"These five warriors will test your fighting abilities. In this test, you shall use all five of these weapons before you to defeat the training robots that will try to harm you. First is the dual swords test. Pick up the swords, Talon."

Hesitantly, I picked up both of the swords. It felt kinda heavy in my hands. Suddenly, a gray robot came hurtling at me with the exact pair of weapons of me. By instinct, I defended myself with one sword and the clash of metal was heard.

It managed to cut my shoulder lightly before I shoved it away with a sword. Some blood dripped from the wound and it did hurt, but I didn't care.

I dunno why, but it felt natural fighting.

Fighting always came naturally to me for some reason.

The robot tried stabbing me in the side, but I blocked it with my other sword. It was a good thing I took fencing lessons when my father was still alive. It continued that way, the robot attacking me and me blocking every hit.

Then, in one swift move, I swung my left sword at the robot's neck since it was open. Nothing was blocking it.

The head when flying off the body and it landed right in front of the speechless warriors. The robot seemed to still be 'alive' since it still attempted to assassinate me, headless. Easily, I cut a huge hole in its chest and it feel sideways on the ground in defeat.

I was breathing heavily.

Whoa, did I actually do that?

"And that robot was specifically designed to train the elite soldiers in the army..." One of the warriors mumbled in shock.

I smirked in triumph. The old man's jaw was wide open in disbelief. The king clapped and announced, "Congratulations, Talon. You have passed the dual swords test. Judges what do you have to say for this young champion?"

I'm guessing the 'judges' were the five warriors because the one equipped with dual swords commented, "It's almost as if he knew how to fight with dual swords, your Majesty. Young man, have you ever fought with dual swords before?"

I shook my head and answered, "No, sir. Actually, this is my first time ever to fight with any weapon."

He replied with a grin, "Looks like we have a natural fighter on our hands. You fight precisely and seem to think before acting. I like you, Talon. You seem to have the same dual swords ability as my students."

While smiling, I scratched my black hair and mumbled, "Aw shucks, thanks, sir. I'm just a peasant."

His gray eyes immediately widened as he sputtered, "W-what? No peasant could fight like that!"

I shrugged my shoulders in response. The king smiled. "Next is the bow and arrow test."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It continued like that for every weapon laid in front of me. I aced the dual swords test, the dagger test, and the spear test. I had a bit of trouble for the bow and arrow and barely passed. I failed the ax test since I couldn't even lift the heavy thing. I'm just a 'mere boy'!

After the numerous tests, I was exhausted. My body felt tired and sweaty and dirty. It was shouting at my mind, "I need to rest! And take a shower!"

The judges looked impressed, well, minus the giant ax guy. The king properly introduced each and everyone of them. I found out that they were actually master warriors.

Ari was the master of dual swords. He had strangely white hair and gray eyes. He wore a black cloak with a hood. This guy couldn't believe that I was just a simple peasant and kept on questioning about my fighting experience after the tests.

Katrina was the master of the bow and arrow. She was always smiling for some reason during the test. She had long wavy blue hair that ended at her hips and warm dark brown eyes. Katrina seemed nice and pretty. She said I was an average archer with average accuracy.

Master of the dagger was Jem. This woman is the complete opposite of Katrina. She was glaring at me throughout the dagger test. What did I do to piss her off, huh? Jem had straight black hair and suspicious amber eyes. She thought I was lying when I told Ari I was a peasant. Actually, Jem still thinks I'm lying. She was glaring at me as she told me that I was 'pretty good'. Jem quickly continued with a 'you should be more careful of where you stab your enemy'. Yeah, the robot thing almost stabbed my neck since it dodged my first attack.

Master of the spear was Shadow. He said that he was impressed of how well I was capable of handling a spear with a straight face. This certain master seems to be the most serious of them all. I've never seen him smile or smirk. Just frown and glare. Shadow had black hair and matching black eyes. His name really does suit him. He wore black armor as well.

Finally, Miko was the master of the ax. This guy is at least eight feet tall and full of muscles. He laughed at me when I attempted to lift the ax. I think it was made of pure silver or something because it really was heavy. Gotta give more credit to the big guy. Miko had spiky red hair and dark green eyes. He kinda reminded me of a troll.

Jem muttered with a glare, "I still cannot believe this young man is simply a peasant..."

Miko laughed. "That boy couldn't even carry the ax! What a wimp!"

His loud laughter echoed in the throne room as I glared at the laughing troll giant. Shadow stated straightly, "I believe this 'peasant' as capability of being a great warrior one day."

The master of the ax snorted. "Yah, right. That'll happen the day when I can't lift an ax!!"

Ari cleared his throat. "I agree with Shadow. The way you fought with dual swords for the first time... Without even being taught like me... I can tell you are talented, Talon. I hope one day, we'll be able to spar when you reach my level."

I smiled. "That would be nice, sir."

"Call me Ari, I hate formalities," he rolled his gray eyes.

Katrina added, "With enough training, you can become a talented archer as well. But, I think your strengths are dual swords, daggers, and spears."

The black haired woman scoffed. "Please, that boy isn't capable of daggers. That was just one test."

The master of the bow and arrow smirked. "Did you forget already, Jem? That test was designed specially for the elite soldiers in the army. Technically, this peasant can fight as skilled as an elite soldier. Not only is Talon talented in one area, but three. That was also his first time using any weapon, correct?"

I nodded. "Yeah... the closest thing I've done to fighting is punching a guy in the face and biting the old- I mean, Commander Leon."

Miko and Ari howled in laughter. Jem blinked her eyes in disbelief and asked, "You had the nerve to... bite... Commander Leon?!"

I chuckled. "Apparently so."

Katrina smirked. "I'm starting to like this kid more and more by the minute."

"Agreed," Shadow and Ari chorused.

"I guess he's alright. Just needs some serious training," Miko commented.

Everyone stared expectantly at Jem. The black haired woman sighed. "Fine. I admit, this peasant's got some potential."

Katrina arched an eyebrow. "Some?"

She sighed again. "He's got potential, alright?"

The king smiled. "If Jem thinks that Talon's got potential, then I'm certain he'll be an excellent Royal Guard here at the palace. What do you think, warriors?"

"Meh, I don't care."

"... sounds fine to me..."

"That's splendid!"

"Great, now, I have to see that kid's face again," she cleared her throat, "I meant, I'm glad to welcome him to the palace."

"Now, Talon, we can spar someday for sure!"

His Highness declared, "Then it is decided by me, King of Celestianos, that Talon Haru will officially become a Royal Guard!"

Miko cheered while everyone else applauded. The old man was grumbling unhappily in the corner and stormed away. I smirked. Guess my life didn't get worse, it just got better!

The giant patted my head, hard, and said, "Welcome to the family, little one!"

"I'm not that little, seriously..." I muttered under my breath.

"What?"

"I said that I'm happy to be here," I partially lied.

Well, I'm happy that I wasn't chosen to be a servant here for two years cleaning and cooking. So, technically speaking, I didn't exactly lie, right?

Ari happily showed me my new room and I promised I'd spar him one day.

My new room looked way better than the tent I was living in for the past years as a peasant orphan. There was a dark blue king sized bed in the center, a matching wardrobe on the left, and a door on the right. I think that door lead to the bathroom.

I smiled.

Maybe it was the right decision to get caught stealing the necklace by the old man after all.

Immediately, I took a hot shower. Man, it's been so long since I've taken a hot shower with hot water. My showers were the rain for me. It was always freezing cold. I even used the shampoo and soap. To my dismay, it smelt like some kinda cologne. Oh well, as long as it cleans me. I wore the same rags after the relaxing shower.

Curiosity got to me and I swung open the wardrobe doors. Wow. Inside there were all kinds of clothing that looked like they were my size. Heh, maybe I should change out of these torn, dusty old rags I'm wearing now.

I discovered that there was a formal suits and ties, pants, shirts, vests, cloaks, sweaters, training attire, and even nightwear clothing. It took me some time to find something that I actually wanted to wear.

Finally, I pulled out black pants and a white T-shirt polo. Since I'm actually residing in the palace, I don't think the king would like it if I just strolled around in casual attire of brand jeans and designer sweaters like normal rich teenager boys do. Guess I'll stick to informal?

In the mirror, a reflection of me stared back. The white polo made my slightly tan skin seem darker and complimented my violet eyes nicely. My dark blue hair was sticking up in random directions like usual. I sighed. Maybe I should try to fix it with something.

In the bathroom, I found this gel bottle thing and hesitantly put the stuff on my hair. I fixed my hair a little, but still kept the natural spikes. I liked it that way. The gel smelled weird so I instantly washed my hands afterwards.

I bit my lip. I knew nothing about fashion or clothes. I've been wearing these rags for as long as I can remember.

A sudden knock on my door cut off my thoughts. "Hey, peasant, the king wants to speak with you. Don't let his Majesty wait too long."

I opened the door outside and found Jem glaring at me. Why am I not surprised? She eyed my new clothes and stated, "Well, at least you don't have bad taste in clothing. Pretty good for a peasant."

I narrowed my violet eyes. "Please quit the peasant talk, Jem. We're practically in the same age group, right?"

She still glared at me. "I'm eighteen, you idiot."

"Same."

Jem looked not convinced. "Liar."

"Actually, I'm seventeen too! It's just that I look like a fourteen year old because of my short height..." I mumbled.

The black haired woman smirked. "You realize that everyone thought you were a 'young man' or a 'boy'."

"Yeah. I know already, jeez," I sighed.

"Wait until the rest of the masters hear this," she laughed.

I glared at her. "How old are the rest?"

"Shadow and Ari's twenty. Katrina's the same age as me and Miko is twenty-two, I believe."

I nodded and walked off to the throne room. "Thanks, Jem!"

"That's Master Jem to you, peasant!" She yelled before disappearing to one of the hallways.

Something tells me that she doesn't exactly like me.

"Talon, here are your guard armor and weapons. You looked like you enjoyed using the dual swords the best, so I am giving you them. It does not matter what you wear inside since the armor is guaranteed to protect your body from any physical damage. You shall be assigned to guard my daughter's door from noon to midnight. Her door is the red one that is directly west from the throne room. There are strictly no breaks before and after dinner. Dinner is the only time you do not guard. It shall be at 8:00 sharp every day. Also, your job as a Royal Guard starts now, Talon," the king handed me over the armor.

"Thank you for everything, your Majesty," I bowed and put on the armor.

He smiled warmly. "It was my pleasure."

Since when did the king have a daughter? I reached the red door and awkwardly stood beside it. So, is this all I do? Just stand here and wait?

I sighed.

This was definitely gonna be a long day.

Hours pasted. I got so bored that I started counting how many tiles there were on the floor. In total, there were five hundred ninety-one from the end of the hallway to this door. I really have no life, huh? The sun was already set and it was getting pretty dark.

The clock read that it was 6:35 PM. I sighed again. Just one and half more hours to go and I get to eat!

Suddenly, the door swung open the my surprise and it startled me. Immediately, I straightened my posture and prepared for the unexpected as my instincts were telling me.

A girl that looked my age with long red hair with almond brown eyes sprinted outside the room. Her sudden running didn't surprise me as much as the tears streaming down her face. She looked beautiful despite her tear streaked cheeks and reddened eyes.

What the heck did I just think? I blame it all on you, brain.

I blinked multiple times. Before I could figure out what the heck was going on, a blonde boy with gray eyes came running after her yelling, "Wait, Gwendolyn! I can explain!"

Without thinking, I shouted, "Hey, you! What's happening here?"

The boy skidded to the stop and stared at me in surprise. "Oh, you must be the new Royal Guard. I'm Dante Cloud. Son of the King of Yale."

"Talon Haru. Royal Guard. So, are you going to tell me what just happened?"

Dante smiled sadly. "You see, Princess Gwendolyn and I are close friends. Today, her father, the king, had decided that it's time that she chooses her future husband. Starting tomorrow, suitors from all over the world will come here to try to win her heart. The king wanted me to tell her the news. She didn't exactly react that well..."

Sarcasm leaked out of my tone as I answered, "Of course, the princess would be happy to marry some random suitor from some random foreign country."

He laughed. "You're not like the ordinary guards! I like you!"

I grinned. Dante ran a hand through his blonde hair. Then, he suddenly smiled as if he came up with a brilliant  idea.

"I know! How about you go find Gwendolyn and I'll guard here in your place! I'm certain that you'll be able to convince her! You're a good guard, Talon."

My violet eyes blinked. I sputtered, "B-b-but, why me? Um, shouldn't a prince like you confront the princess? I'm just a guard."

"Exactly! Gwendolyn knows my father sent me to try to convince her! You're just a guard! She won't suspect a thing! Please, do it for me? The Prince of Yale?"

I sighed. Nothing's going to stop this guy. "Fine. Promise not to tell his Majesty about this?"

"I promise. You have my word," Dante solemnly swore.

With those words, I ran off to the same direction the princess did. It lead to the door. I opened the door. A garden came to view. Sounds of a crying girl were heard.

Slowly, I approached the sound I saw familiar red hair.

She didn't seem to notice me. I scratched my head. How exactly am I supposed to do this? I can't just be like, "What's up? The name's Talon and your friend Dante was worried about you and I came in his place."? Hopefully, these 'natural fighting skills' of mine comes in handy for communication too.

"Hello." I said quietly.

The princess immediately turned around and wiped her tears away at lightning speed. "Who are you? How did you find me?"

"Your new Royal Guard, Talon. I was just touring around the palace by myself."

I felt like punching myself in the face for such a lame lie. Seriously, Talon? Stupid me.

To my surprise, she smiled. "I'm Princess Gwendolyn, but you must have already known that. You're pretty young to be a Royal Guard."

Heat rushed to my cheeks as she observed my face from a close distance.

I coughed. "Um, yeah, I'm eighteen."

"I see. I am the same age as you then."

My violet eyes widened in shock. "You're not surprised at all? Most people think I look fourteen."

"Believe me, your height is not as surprising as..." She trailed off.

"I'm not usually the type to nose into other's businesses, but why were you crying, Princess Gwendolyn?"

The princess was unusually quiet. "My father... the king... wants me to choose someone to marry tomorrow."

The tears started to fall from her brown eyes. I didn't know what to do. Honestly, this is the first time I've talked to a girl my age. She suddenly ran into me and just started crying on my armor.

A girl is crying in front of me and I don't know what to do.

So, I listened to my instincts. I awkwardly wrapped my arms around the crying princess.

"I think I should remove my armor," I blurt out.

Shoot, did I say that out loud? The princess stepped away and looked at the ground.

"I'm sorry, Talon..." Gwendolyn said quietly as she attempted to pretend that she wasn't crying even though tears were still coming out of her brown eyes.

After removing my armor, I was only in my black pants and white polo. So, I did what most normal teenager boys would do when they see a crying girl.

I hugged her.

This time, the princess freely cried into my polo and rested her hands lightly on my chest. I would have been blushing if she wasn't crying. She buried her head deeper into my shirt.

I know one thing about hugs. They make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, alright.

"I-I'm s-sorry, Talon... I-I just d-don't want to get m-m-m-married yet... I... don't know w-why I feel this way right now..." She whimpered in my arms.

I replied in a soft voice, "You'll be okay, Princess Gwendolyn. I'm sure you will find the prince you love."

"I don't want to!"

Her yell and change in tone made me flinch. "What if I, a princess, don't want to marry a prince? What if I fall in love with a peasant boy instead? I cannot control feelings of love. Father said I'll have to marry someone that he approves. B-but what if-"

After wiping her tears with my thumb, I gently pushed her chin up to force her to look at me. "Calm down and listen. It's your life. You should be able to marry the boy you love. So what if the king doesn't like him? Would he rather have a miserable daughter married to someone she doesn't love? Or a happy daughter married to someone she loves?"

"H-happy daughter," her lips quivered.

I laughed genuinely. "That was just a hypothetical question, but who cares, right?"

Her laughter was like music to my ears. "You're a funny guy, Talon."

I grinned. "Yeah, I know that already. Can I call you Gwen for short, princess?"

"Sure."

"Well, Gwen, maybe you'll meet your dream guy tomorrow. Who knows what fate has in store for you?" I smiled.

The princess gazed at me, longer than necessary. "Um, Gwen? Earth to Gwen? Helllloooo?"

"Sorry," she blinked, "I was just thinking."

I tilted my head to the side. "About what?"

Gwen mumbled something I couldn't hear. "What? Pardon?"

"That a smile suits you," she muttered quickly.

I blushed and stuttered, "W-well, um, I could say the same about you."

The princess's face lit up. "Actually?"

While scratching my hair in embarrassment, I answered, "Yeah."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Months passed and she still didn't marry a prince or a boy. We became pretty close friends and always talked in the garden in the late afternoon.

One day, Jem suspiciously questioned, "Are you secretly courting Princess Gwendolyn, peasant?"

I blushed scarlet and shouted, "No! Why would you think such a thing?"

Ari laughed. "You two have been getting along quite nicely."

My violet eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by 'nicely', Ari?"

"Nothin', nothin' at all!" He sang.

Something was up and I knew it. Even Katrina added, "You've always been having your daily dates at the garden with the princess."

"They're not dates!" I exploded in irritation.

"Whoa, calm down, little boy," Miko said loudly.

"And I am not little either!"

Shadow emotionless stated, "Even if those two were courting, the king wouldn't mind. Talon has already proved that he is worthy of using dual swords, daggers, and spears."

"And, Shadow, Talon and Gwendolyn would look so cute together!!" Katrina pointed out happily.

"Even I have to agree on that," Jem sadly stated.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I took a deep breath, "I'm not even courting Gwen!"

"Awwww... you even call her Gwen!!" She sang.

"We're just friends. I don't think we would be courting anytime soon."

Jem corrected, "Wrong. Peasant, you two are probably too shy to confess your obvious feelings for each other! Seriously, you two are always 'secretly' stealing glances at each other during dinner!"

"Yes and I also noticed that two of them look more happier when they see each other," Shadow observed.

"Guys, just stop it already!!"

Little did I know that all of them were correct.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Hey, um, Talon, do you promise not to laugh at me if I tell you something?" Gwen twirled a red lock in her dainty hand.

I smiled. "Of course I wouldn't laugh. I thought you knew me better, Gwen."

She bit her lip. "You know how I'm still not married yet? Well, father is getting impatient."

Well, that's a first. I arched an eyebrow. "Since when did the King of Celestianos get impatient?"

"Since today," she sighed, "he's only giving me one more week, Talon. If I still can't choose, then he'll choose for me."

"But, I'm sure that the perfect suitor will come one day! I mean," I chuckled, "there's at least two suitors that ask for your hand in marriage every week! That's like eight suitors a month!"

This time, Gwen raised her eyebrow. "Since when did the Talon Haru do math?"

"Ouch. That hurt," I pretended I was hurt by that comment.

She laughed at me as I grinned. "I know, why don't you just confess your feelings to the guy you like? I'm pretty sure a girl your age as a crush on some lucky boy."

Gwen blushed scarlet red. "Well, erm, you see, it's not as simple as you think."

"What? Just confess to the boy you like! How hard can that be?"

"What if he doesn't like me back? What if he likes someone else?" The princess questioned.

"You'll never know until you give it a shot. I know, go right now, and tell the guy you love him! Go on, don't be shy! I know that he has to be somewhere in this palace! It would explain why you would always reject every single suitor from who knows where."

Gwen sighed. "Do I have to, Talon?"

"Yes."

"I never thought I'd see the day where I would take orders from a Royal Guard."

"Hey! I'm a special Royal Guard, you know," I joked playfully.

She smiled. "Do you still remember that day when we first met and I was crying?"

"It's crystal clear."

"Well, ever since that day, we've gotten pretty close as friends and um..." The princess trailed off.

I smiled softly. "Where exactly are you going with this, Princess Gwen?"

Gwen mumbled something very quickly under her breath with a faint blush painted on her cheeks. I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. 

"I have absolutely no idea of what you said."

She sighed, a tired sigh. "I love you, stupid."

I blinked multiple times and even pinched myself. "Am I dreaming? Someone tell me this isn't a dream."

Gwen giggled at me. "This is reality. Normal people would answer the person who just confessed to them."

Heat rushed to my cheeks and my hands suddenly became sweaty. "Um, yeah, good point," I nervously nodded, "I love you too, Princess Gwendolyn."

She smiled and tears began to fall from her brown eyes. "Normal girls wouldn't cry when their crush loves them back," I chastised playfully as I wiped her tears away with my thumb.

Gwen wordlessly hugged me out of the blue. I stood there, stupidly, frozen in the tight hug. Then, she did something even more shocking.

Her lips brushed lightly against my mouth.

She was blushing and I was grinning like an idiot. "Hey, that wasn't so bad, was it, princess?"

Gwen laughed. "I guess the idiot was right in the end."

"Yeah, I was- Hey! Talon Haru is not an idiot!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Father, I decided."

The king smiled and asked, "Which suitor did you choose?"

"None."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I chose a Royal Guard named Talon Haru, father. I love him. I'm sorry that I didn't choose a suitor as you wished."

The king was grinning. "No, Gwendolyn, I actually prefer him over the suitors. He's a fine boy. Have you decided who is the best man yet?"

The surprised princess stared at her father in disbelief. "You knew this was coming along the whole time, weren't you, father? You probably had this all planned out from the beginning when you made Talon guard my bedroom door."

His eyes mischievously twinkled. "Perhaps so."

Behind the walls, five certain masters were smirking to themselves. They were right from the start that the weaponry test was a test of worthiness, not a Royal Guard test.

"I can't wait to see the peasant's reaction when he discovers it was a test of worthiness that suitors normally endure," a smug feminine voice commented.

The End.

Dreamland

I was drowning.

Drowning in fire.

"Help! S-someone help me!!" I screamed as flames encircled me and I inhaled a lot of smoke in the process.

This was it. I am actually going to die. Desperately, I fiercely attempted to escape from the intense heat. Realization dawned on me. Something was yanking me by the ankle into the red waves. Even as the mysterious force pulled me deeper in the fiery depths of flames, I tried to kick my way out.

Hopeless.

My vision became even more fuzzy from the heavy smoke and my body finally gave in to the sweet temptation of exhaustion.

Darkness devoured everything and it was pitch black.

Suddenly, one tiny light ray cracked through the darkness. The sounds of cracking echoed as dark pieces of glass shattered on the ground. Light was dominating the dark. As soon as the powerful light shone on me, I instantly opened my eyes.

My wide gray eyes stared at a white ceiling, scared. I laid there so perfectly still that a rock would be envious of me. Slowly, I turned over, afraid of what my already frightened eyes might see.

Gold eyes started back at me.

Without a second thought, I screamed and almost fell off the bed I was lying still on.

I am not alone.

"Please don't be scared of me," a husky voice softly murmured.

By instinct, I turned to the source of the sound and a pair of gold eyes stared back. I could detect a hint of sadness and hurt in the voice. It sounded almost like the person was offended and depressed that I screamed once I saw those odd eyes.

The mystery person pulled open the curtains.

A boy was staring at me with hard gold eyes. His red hair gleamed in the sunlight and reminded me of the colour of the fire that I nearly died in. He was wearing a white polo and strangely, a red collar encircled around his neck. 

If you looked closely, you could see a bit of his black undershirt showing.  Snow white fangs sparkled from his open mouth. However, his eyes did not shock me the most.

The scar below his right eye did.

It looked as if someone tried cut his eye but missed. The scar looked as if a cat clawed me. 

Who gave him this scar? I'd not be that surprised if it was a cat, honestly.

"Who are you? Why am I here? What did you do to me?" I questioned fearfully.

After taking a step towards me, he answered, "Hisoka. I found you along the shore of this island. I simply took care of you while you were in an uncounscious state."

I blinked. "How long was I out?"

Hisoka avoided my burning stare. "Two months..."

My gray eyes widened drastically. "Two months! What are you? I've never met a human with gold eyes..."

"The banished prince from Atlantica," he solemnly answered.

Immediately, I stood up and growled. "You're the prince who ordered the attack on my country! You don't know how that war has affected the people! Me personally! I lost my mother during the war!! I hate you, Prince Hisoka," I glared at the red head.

"Stay away from me. I would have been happier if you just let me die instead of you, the banished prince of Atlantica, nursing me for two months! Go die."

    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

It seemed like an ordinary day. Everything was normal. Mom was cooking my favorite macaroni in the kitchen as I walked outside in the garden. The pink tulips had blossomed and pink dots were scattered across fresh soil. 

Suddenly, I heard screams and yells from our neighbours.

 I rushed inside and screamed, "Mom! The neighbours are screaming!"

I skidded to a stop and my mom frowned. "That's strange. I'll go outside and see what's happening. Honey, just stay inside."

A pout appeared on my face. "But, Mom, I wanna see too!"

She smiled with gray eyes. "No, for your own safety, stay inside. We don't know what's happening out there."

On cue, a high pitched scream reached our ears. The sound echoed from outside. Is there a monster outside like in the fairy tales Mom reads me every night?

"Mom, I won't get hurt! Please let me come with you!" I whined as I tugged on her arm.

"No," her gray eyes narrowed, "my decision is final. I'll be back soon, Miyuki. Don't worry about me. Oh and look after the macaroni, okay? Love you!"

"Love you too, mom," I grumbled unhappily as she shut the door behind her.

With crossed arms, I watched the cooking macaroni. Just because I'm nine, she thinks I'm some helpless child! Well, I'm not that baby girl anymore! I can take care of myself. Once I turn sixteen, then I'm officially considered a woman. 

An adult.

By that time, I'll be able to marry (not that I want to or anything) and move out! Imagine that, me living somewhere in the Capital working in one of those cute tea shops. 

A familiar scream interrupted my thoughts. 

Mom.

I sprinted as fast as I could outside. There was fire everywhere. It was burning the whole neighbourhood down. Even the hills far away were decorated with red fiery flames and dark gray clouds. The intense heat was tickling at my skin as I tried to look for my dear mom.

"Mom! Mom! Where are you?! Mom!" I yelled frantically.

Then, I saw fire soldiers burning down another home down. Tears welled up in my eyes from the smoke and the thought of my mom being gone.

"Stop it! Stop burning everything!!" I cried out to one soldier.

He turned around. Once he saw I was only some kid, he ignored me and continued burning. "Kid, you're mom's gone. Dead. Go home! Actually, never mind," a dark laugh escaped his mouth, "your home is already burnt to ashes. Since I'm feeling content today, I'll let you go. Run! Run before I burn you too!"

A whip of flames came out of his hands as he almost struck me. It missed me by a couple of centimeters. So, I ran. 

Ran away as far as my legs could take me.

Eventually, I arrived at the next city, Natashu, and found my uncle's house. I just couldn't believe that my mom was gone.

Forever.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I stomped to the opposite end of the room. The wall was better company than my mom's murderer. I should have realized it was the banished prince when I saw those gold eyes! 

Pathetic.

"I... I'm so sorry. That's something we have in common," he stated.

In only those two sentences, I heard remorse, regret, anger, grief, and hurt between the words. Genuine emotions from the monster who practically killed my mother. He is playing tricks on me.

"I used to think that this was the mark of the banished prince, cursed to run away forever. But, lately, I realized I am free to choose my own destiny. This scar just marks my mistakes in the past. I can still change the present. Thank you."

I stared at the prince in confusion and boldly walked right in front of him. "Why thank me?"

Hisoka looked embarrassed for a moment. "... you talk in your sleep. For these past two months, I told you about basically my life. One day, you yelled at me, 'Get a life and make your own decisions!'. I took your advice and stopped hiding. Fire Lord Tekken, my father, knows I reside on this small island."

"I might be able to heal your scar."

Hisoka looked not convinced. "It's a scar. Scars cannot be healed."

"See this," I held out a pouch of water, "is magical water from the mermaids. It can heal just about anything."

My hand lingered in front of his cheek as I stared at him for permission. The prince nodded and closed his eyes as I touched the scar. His once tense facial muscles relaxed and a tiny smile replaced his frown. The scar felt rough under my trembling hand.

He sighed. I was about to pull away my hand until Hisoka quickly put his hand on top of mine. I could literally feel him lean into my gentle touch.

"Sorry if I scared you. I just... Was actually excited to talk and meet the person who I talked to for the past months. I miss this human contact," he explained in embarrassment.

A smile creeped on my mouth. "Don't be humiliated, I think it's quite cute," the words blurted out of my big mouth before I could stop it.

His gold eyes met mine. "A-actually?"

I smiled and awkwardly stated, "Um, you can let go of my hand now."

His cheeks heated as quickly removed his hand. "...sorry. It's just that your touch felt... um..."

"Good? Comforting? Pleasant?" I offered.

Hisoka smiled for the first time in front of me. "Yes. I didn't want that pleasant feeling to leave yet."

This time, it was my turn to blush.

Suddenly, something crashed through the wall. Broken pieces of wood were flying from the impact.

Startled, we both jumped away from each other.

My eyes shot open. The alarm clock was ringing like crazy and I slammed the off button. Beads of sweat rolled down the side of my face. I was just in my bedroom.

Looks like I visited Dreamland again.

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That particular short story, Dreamland, was inspired from Avatar: The Last Airbender. It's an awesome cartoon show and I recommend everyone of all ages to watch it! You won't regret it~ To be more specific, the scar part reminded me about that part in one episode where Katara and Zuko are stuck in a cave. Then, Katara's still mad at him for trying to capture 'the world's last hope', but she starts ranting about how she hates the Fire Nation or something like that.

Later, Zuko says he's sorry and that's something we have in common. He was referring to the fact that they lost their mothers to the Fire Nation. Well, Ursa, could still be alive like the last episode suggests. But, Ozai could have just gotten some assassin to kill her when she left.

Anyways, Zuko starts opening up and says, "I used to think this scar marked me. The mark of the banished prince cursed to chase the Avatar forever. But, lately, I realized I'm free to determine my own destiny, even if I'll never be free of my mark."

Pretty deep for Zuzu. I mean, Zuko. I kinda stole that quote and changed the words a bit if you actually read Dreamland. Just like Miyuki, Katara also offers to heal his scar with water from the oasis that Pakku of the Northern Water Tribe gave her.

Yeah, I think it's kinda obvious that I ship Zutara at this point. I was so sad and mad when Katara ended up with Avatar Aang. Even though Aunt Wu said that she'd marry a powerful bender, (which was most probably Aang, but I wished it was Zuko) Katara said something about wishing he was tall and handsome.

Tall and handsome.

Does that ring a bell? Who's tall and handsome? Not Aang because frankly, he's quite short. Maybe, just maybe, she meant Zuko!

Also, that Ember Island Play or whatever it was called, had a bit of Zutara hinting in it. The actress, Katara seemed to have a liking for the actor, Zuko, because she was always like, "Oh, Zuko, you're so cool!" Okay, she's not like that in the cartoon reality... But, you gotta admit, it was pretty funny when Katara and Zuko moved away from each other at the scene. The real Katara and Zuko.

Technically, it's Water Tribe tradition to propose with a betrothal necklace, correct? So, technically, that would mean Zuko accidentally proposed to Katara when he handed back her necklace! Ha, maybe the writers did that on purpose or simply forgot. I hope they did that on purpose.

Fortunately, there's a Zutara like couple in Legend of Korra, the sequel to ATLA. If you haven't guessed it yet, it's Mako and Korra. Firebender and waterbender Avatar. Hehe, it's Katara and Zuko in the next generation! I feel bad for the brother though... He liked Korra, but Korra liked Mako, and Mako first liked Asumi (or something like that, I forget honestly) but eventually liked Korra back.

It's like an Avatar love triangle!

Anyways, before I get even more talkative about ATLA or Legend of Korra.... The name Hisoka actually is one of the characters in my WWYFF quizzes on Quizilla called Stuck in Virtual Reality. 

Originally, I first wrote this on my bio on FictionPress. (by the way, I'm iAnimeDarkAngel if you're wondering) Currently, I am spending most of my time editing Kidnapped and posting new chapters on Fantasia. Yeah, I kinda stopped writing for two months or so... To be fair, I'll work extra hard now to update quicker! 

I'm thinking on making a sequel to Kidnapped, but I dunno if I'll have enough time to even make one. Perhaps in the summertime when there's no school... It all depends upon the situation.

Also, these stories aren't literally scrumptious. For your own safety, don't try eating these stories. Nothing good will come out of it. I guarantee it. It's 100% guaranteed.