The Prince and the Pauper (15/24)
Author: ryosukekoibito
Pairing: Ariokamoto
Rating: PG-15
Genre:Romance
Disclaimer: I don't own much of anything.
Summary: Keito was a common citizen of the South Kingdom until the night his family's house burns down. Without anywhere to stay, they end up moving into the servant's section of the royal castle. There, along with his best friend Yuto, Keito meets the five royal princes...and catches Prince Daiki's eye. This is a spinoff of The Prince's Princess, by my sister ai_ai_gasa2 . It's basically a retelling of the story from Keito's perspective. I would encourage you to read that fic first if you haven't. You can find the prologue for that fic here. Please, enjoy!
Previous Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14
He woke to a crash. It startled him, and he jolted up in bed, eyes wide. There was a low rumble, like a large beasts stomach was growling, and his eyes flitted over to the window. It was dark, the sky a deep gray, and rain was beating furiously against the glass, obscuring any comprehensible view. The sun was nowhere in sight, and he had no clue as to what time of the day, or night, it was. There was a flash of lightning, and his room went white for a moment, before returning to its previous darkness. He swung himself out of bed, quickly changing into new clothes and padding out the door, down the hall, his bare feet cold on the wet cobbled stone floor. To his surprise there was a large group of servants running frantically back and forth, and after a moment he realized that they were retrieving all of the laundry from the clotheslines outside. He immediately joined them, pushing open the door to the courtyard, the ran beating harshly against his body as he ran with the others out to the lines, grabbing bundles of garments and sheets and yanking them from where they were whipping in the wind, stuffing them into his arms before following the others back into the castle, running through corridors to the large practice room the Princes used to fence. A group of maids were setting up lines, stringing them across the room. There was a pile of wet fabric in the corner. He placed his with the rest, before turning back and running outside to get another load. On his fifth run, just as he was coming in from the rain, he heard his name being called
"Keito?!" His head whipped around, and as he crossed the threshold into the dry corridor he felt a hand on his forearm. It was Daiki.
"What's going on?! Why are you guys out there? It's terrible out there!" Daiki was wide eyed, looking confused.
"It's raining. We need to get the laundry." Keito told him, adjusting the dripping clothes in his arms and beginning to back up, toward the direction of the fencing practice room.
"But it's not safe!" Daiki was adamant.
"It's okay. We need to get the laundry." Keito told him before turning around and running back down the hall, following the trail of water left on the floor to the practice room, returning just as quickly. Daiki was still there, waiting for him.
"This is madness. Stay inside." Daiki said, and Keito shook his head.
"I have to help them." He opened the door, rain pouring in. Daiki reached out, taking a step forward, but Keito looked down at him, not wanting Daiki to go out there.
"Stay." He said, before taking off back into the rain, not giving Daiki a chance to argue. When he got back, Daiki wasn't there. Once they had gotten all of the clothes in they began hanging them up, a process that took much longer than Keito had expected. By the time they had finished it was almost lunch time. Despite this he was still dripping wet, his clothes clinging to him, his hair in his eyes, dripping down his chin. He sighed, tired, wet, cold, and hungry, and with the others slowly made his way back to his room. There waiting for him was a towel and some thick, fancy looking clothes that he knew belonged to some royal family members. A note was left of top of it all.
Keito-these are for you. Come meet us in the library once you're all finished, okay? I love you. A grin grew on his face, and without a moment’s hesitation he peeled off his wet clothes, laying them out on the stone floor, and scrubbed himself with the towel, trying to use the friction to heat up his cold damp skin. Once his body was dry he moved up to his hair, throwing the towel over his head and rubbing and scratching at his hair through the thick fabric, working the water into it and off of his head. Once he was satisfactorily dry he slipped on the dry clothes, and he immediately found that they were thick and warm, fitting him very well. He wandered up to the second story, finding the royal library and making his way to the back where sure enough all of the royal princes and their guests were sitting around a crackling fire, Yuto curled up next to Prince Yamada, with trays of food sitting around the carpeted floor, everyone eating and chatting. Daiki immediately stood, eyes wandering over Keito's body and he asked
"Are you okay?" Keito was confused.
"Yeah, of course." Daiki grinned, murmuring
"Good." and leaning in for a kiss. Keito panicked slightly. Should they really kiss here, right now, in front of everyone? He pulled back slightly, and Daiki got the hint, awkwardly drawing back.
"You gonna let him eat?" Hikaru called from his perch on the arm of the couch. Daiki blushed, and he too Keito's hand, pulling him to where the rest were sitting. Yuto handed him a plate full of food, and Keito dug in, listening to the chatter. Yabu sighed.
"What are we going to do today? We can't go outside..."
"Oh! Inoo, you should play piano for us! Piano goes good with the rain!" Chinen declared, and Inoo raised a skeptical eyebrow.
"That's silly Chii."
"Awww....please? We could listen to you play, and we could....draw! I have lots of paper! I'll take it down to the music room. C'mon!” He grabbed Prince Ryutaro's hand, pulling the younger boy to his feet, and the two flounced out of the room. They all watched them go, and after a moment Takaki said
"It sounds like we don't have much of a choice. Where's the music room?" He stood, the rest following suit, and they moved in a mass through the halls to the second floor, pushing open a large polished wooden door to see a huge open space, instruments in their cases or out and ready circling the room, and a grande piano in the center, it's lid propped open, ready for use. They all stood there by the door for a moment, before Chinen came up behind them, brushing past, his arms full of papers and pens and ink, and he walked out to the middle of the floor, spreading his arms contents about the once clear surface, and beckoning them over. They all gathered in a circle, plopping down on the floor, and Prince Inoo took to the piano, a light, calm tune pouring from his fingers. Keito sat there, listening to the ever constant sound of the rain pounding into the roof over their heads, and Prince Inoo's music, and he felt at peace, despite being surrounded by royalty he found himself comfortable, and he took his designated page, sketching the scene, all of them in the music room, and he got lost in his picture, time whirring by, rushing past in the music and occasional whispers of the other boys, and he was drawn out of it when Prince Ryutaro nudged his shoulder, catching his attention.
"That's really good." The comment had him blushing of embarrassment, and he murmured a little
"Thank you." He looked around. Everyone else had finished, their pages scattered all over the floor, and they were doing quiet things so as to not disrupt Inoo; playing hand games and poking each other, or, in Prince Shintaro's case, napping. Daiki had his head resting on Keito's back, and he was humming softly the tune Inoo was playing on the piano. Keito's eyes found Daiki's picture. The prince had written a capital letter D and a capital K in English, and then decorated the negative space. Keito grinned. He had once tried to teach Daiki the English alphabet, but all the prince had remembered were the two letters their names started with. As he contemplated this, Inoo let his hands drop from the piano keys, saying
"I'm done! My hands are worn out. And I've been through all of my happy sounding pieces. So unless you want get into the depressing and angry I have nothing left to offer." He stood, some of the others following his lead, and soon Daiki was helping Keito to his feet, Keito slipping Daiki's drawing under his arm before they left, vowing to attach it to his wall in some manner. Daiki slipped their fingers together as they followed the group up to Prince Hikaru's room, where the future king pulled out chess and checkers boards. Soon a tournament began, Yabu drawing up a little score sheet, and Keito made it to the third round before losing to Prince Hikaru. The games kept them entertained all the way to dinner, and when Keito made to go his separate way Daiki pulled him close, surprising him with a sudden, passionate kiss that took his breath away. The other boys all whistled and giggled, and KeiTo left with an amazing blush on his cheeks and a discreet grin on his face.
The next day continued much as its predecessor had, the storm still strong. Keito and Yuto were 'requested' by the mob of princes, and therefore spent another day in their company. The day after however, the skies cleared, and the servants went into full repair mode, everyone able being assigned duties. Keito was put into a group of strong looking guys, and their job was to drag the fallen trees to a woodpiles and chop them into firewood. It was difficult, and his bruises just made things worse, but it was rewarding, and he felt useful. He went in for dinner sore, with tired muscles and splinters in his hands, but he had a sense of self satisfaction that physical work always brings, and he found himself smiling when he sat down next to Yuto. Yuto had been assigned the task of running-delivering messages and supplies all over the castle all day. He was halfway through a story about getting a hammer to the group working on the roof when Keito’s mother tapped him on the shoulder.
"Keito, have you seen your father?"
"No, I haven't seen him all day." At that she frowned, and worry crept into her voice.
"I sent him out with a shopping list this morning and he's still not back...and it's getting late."
"We can go look for him." Yuto piped up, and his mom smiled gratefully.
"Thanks boys."
With that he and Yuto stood, returning their dishes to the kitchen for washing, and exiting. As they walked, Yuto said
"So, where do you think we should look?" Keito thought about it. Where would his dad be?
"Let's go by his office really quickly, and if he's not there then we'll split up...you cover the north side and I'll cover the south side, and we can meet at the front entrance." Keito proposed. Yito nodded, stating
"It's an adventure!" with a lighthearted grin. Keito couldn't help but smile back. However to Keito’s surprise his father’s office was empty, and he and Yuto went their separate ways, each wandering their own half of the castle, searching for his father. He was starting to get slightly concerned. He'd thought for sure that his father would be in his office. He wandered the ground floor, and then the second floor, and then the third without any human contact, much less his father. Once he had arrived at the front entrance he found Yuto sitting in front of the main doors, playing with his bangs idly. Keito was on his way down the steps when he tripped, and the next few seconds were disoriented, painful, and slightly scary, and the next thing he knew he was in a pile at the bottom of the stairs, Yuto running over.
"KEITO?! Are you okay?!" Keito just blinked up at him, trying to regain himself. He felt his already bruised flesh throbbing where he had hit himself on the stairs as he had toppled down. He groaned, pulling himself to a sitting position, feeling tears stinging the back of his eyes at the pain, and he took a few shuddering, deep breaths, regaining himself before smiling up at Yuto.
"I'm fine." His friend looked down at him skeptically, before offering a hand up.
"So, any luck?" He asked, taking it and pulling himself to his feet. Yuto shook his head. Dang it.
"Me neither. What should I do? I could stay here until he comes back home. Keep watch, you know." Even as the words let his lips he felt they were unrealistic, but if it was for his family, for his mother, then it was worth a shot. Yuto frowned, brow furrowed, thinking.
"Keito, that just doesn't seem...you need your sleep. If he's still not back then you can look for him tomorrow. Besides, I bet he'll be back by the morning."
Keito nodded. Yuto's statement was logical. He sighed, and the two of them walked back to the other side of the castle, where they chatted for a while before returning to their own rooms for bed. When Keito got to his however, he found Daiki sprawled out on his bed, waiting. When Keito came in Daiki grinned, sitting up.
"What are you doing here?" Keito asked, surprised. Daiki stood, and as he walked over he said
"I wanted to see you. You weren't there today and I've gotten used to you being around." He was warm looking in the light of Keito's oil lamp, and his deep voice was rich and soothing, and Keito couldn't help but smile despite his weariness. He pulled Daiki into a hug, feeling his small frame warm and relaxing against his own, and it was just so comfortable...it was when he yawned that he realized just how tired he was. His eyelids were heavy, his limbs extra weight hanging from his body, and he knew that if they just stood there like that he would fall asleep. He stepped back, pulling away and going over to his dresser, quickly slipping on his pajama pants, his torso bare. When he turned back to Daiki his boyfriend had a sad expression, and he sighed, his eyes sweeping over Keitos bruises and shaking his head. Keito frowned.
"I'm fine." He mumbled, and Daiki gave him a kiss on the cheek, having to raise up on his toes to reach.
"Come and lay down over here, I've got cold presses." Daiki gestured to a bucket and a stack of washcloths sitting by the side of Keitos bed. Keito grinned slightly and followed Daiki’s direction, laying down on his stomach on the mattress, folding his arms and resting his head on them. He was just thinking he could fall asleep in that position when he felt something ice cold on his lower back. He jumped in surprise, and too late Daiki voiced
"It's kind of cold..." There was a small silence, during which Keito could hear the sounds of Daiki dipping another cloth into the bucket of water. He lay another freezing cold piece of fabric across Keito’s right shoulder blade, crooning
"You have knots in your back, baby."
"Baby?" Keito asked, propping himself up on his elbows and craning his head around to give Daiki a look. He tried not to show it, but the pet name sent shots of warmth across his limbs; there was something...sexy in that name. Daiki was grinning embarrassedly, his hands fiddling with a third strip of fabric.
"Yeah...I thought I'd give it a shot." Keito smiled, sitting up, the wet cloth sticking to his skin as he shifted, taking Daiki's hands and lacing their fingers together, leaning forward until their foreheads touched, and they were nose to nose.
"Say it again..." He whispered, and Daiki grinned, murmuring
"Anytime you want, baby." Keito tilted his head, pulling their lips together, and he could feel Daiki's surprise, the delayed reaction before he started kissing back, but once he did it was fierce, their lips crashing together, breathing becoming labored, hands entangled in hair. Keito could feel himself becoming more aroused, want trying to take over, and he broke away, chest heaving. Daiki let out a small noise like a whine, and he leaned forward, trying to pull them together. Keito took one hand from where it had crept up Daiki's shirt and put it on Daiki's chest, motioning for him to stop. Daiki did, and Keito could feel his chest rising and falling as his lungs expanded, his mouth gulping in air. He was hot to the touch, a light sweat hinted on his skin, and it reminded Keito of how good he had felt only moments before, and it made Keito want to keep going.
"I need to...just...give me a second." Keito breathed, and Daiki nodded, both of them regaining themselves in silence. After a few moments Daiki giggled a little, saying through his giggles
"So...I'll be keeping that reaction in mind for further exploration....baby." Keito felt the embarrassment wash over him, and he bit his bottom lip, hiding his eyes with his bangs and bowing his head. His silence alerted Daiki that something wasn't right, and he leaned forward, bending down in an attempt to see Keito's eyes.
"I'm sorry about that...I didn't mean to..." Keito forced the words out, and Daiki immediately protested the apology.
"Keito, that's not what I was trying to imply...I just meant...I really really liked that. A lot. Too much, maybe." Keito felt relief, and a bit of pride that he was affecting Daiki in that way, and he leaned forward, pulling Daiki in for a lazier, long, assuring kiss. Somehow that kiss eventually turned into another hot, passionate, lengthy meshing of mouths and tongues, and Keito maneuvered Daiki so that the prince was on his back, Keito over him, and it wasn't until he felt Daiki's lips trailing down his neck that he had any presence of mind to stop. He became aware of himself, and what exactly they were doing, and he pulled away, crawling off of Daiki and sitting on the edge of the bed. Daiki propped himself up, his hair and clothes all disheveled, a stupid grin on his face, passion burning in his eyes, and Keito could feel the older boys gaze raking across his figure, and once he had regained himself he glanced up and Daiki announced
"You're so amazing. You're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
Keito felt love for the prince wash through his veins, and he curled up next to Daiki on the bed, using one arm to draw the shorter boy close, and he kissed him gently on the head, before his exhaustion took hold and he fell into sleep.
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