Past and Present { Pigeon and Yukio Takamiya} (private)

[Yukio Takamiya]

 

 

Name: Deniz Bedfordshire

 

Age:19

 

Ability: Darkness(unawakened, doesn't know he has them.)

 

Description: Jet black hair, pale skin and red eyes of the Eligerand clan

 

Likes:Books, Hunting, Cats, His father figure(blacksmith), Adventure

 

Dislikes: The prince's brother, The castle's guard dogs, Stupidly annoying people(absurdly dense individuals)

 

Personality: Deniz is extremely particular about his history and prefers not to let anyone know about it. He is rather cold due to his tragic past. He especially enjoys the thrill of hunting, it is about the only thing that could make him smile. Perhaps not the only thing, Deniz also smiles at the sight of any feline.(p.s. he is not Sebastian Michaelis).

 

Bio: Deniz is of Royal blood. His father, the previous king led the country well but was uncapable of creating a strong military. Thus, like any other unfortunate country, the land was invaded and conquered by the current king. Deniz who was only seven years of age then had been smuggled out of the castle by the royal blacksmith. After the war, the royal family,like any other royalty of a conquered country was publicly executed. The survival of Deniz, the last remaining member of the Eligerand family, was not discovered. Raphael Bedfordshire, the royal blacksmith and good friend of the previous king took Deniz and changed his last name to Bedfordshire. Deniz assumed a new identity and lived life normally in a busy town. The country prospered under the rule of the new king and the people were happy, soon the previous king was forgotten. Deniz who witnessed this backed down and ceased all thought of revenge. However, much changed when the king announced his upcoming retirement to let his oldest son ascend the throne. Deniz had seen the crown prince once and that was enough to convince him that the prince was an excellent candidate for the next king. However, there were also people who opposed his ascension of the throne. if the crown prince ascended the throne, it would foil their plans for power. Whereas, the younger and useless prince promised them glory if they aided him in usurping his brother's position .Assassins were hired to kill the crown prince but Deniz had taken matters into his own hands. He protected the crown prince every night in secret and would continue to do so until the crown prince had bore an heir.

 

 

-----------------------------------

 

Opening Post:

 

 

"Deniz! Get me the hammer!" Raphael Bedfordshire, the town's best blacksmith shouted over the roar of the furnace.

 

"Coming! Here it is," Deniz Bedfordshire called back and came running from the back room with a large hammer. Raphael and Deniz had the same last name but they were not blood related. Deniz had been adopted by the older man when he was just seven years old. Raphael used to be a good friend of the previous king and the royal blacksmith who made weapons for the military. His skills were the best of the best and his products were sold at high prices.

 

Raphael threw down the hammer and stretched," ahhhhh, we're finally done for the day. Me gettin' too old for this, with ma' bones creakin' every now and then." He gave Deniz a tired grin and went into the back room. The apprentice nodded and the blacksmith's retreating figure and started to gather the equipment and prepared to close for the day. After closing the shop, Deniz changed his working clothes into his all dark night out fit, consisting of a black cotton-neck, black tunic, dark pants and dark boots. Grabbing his sword, he was about to head out when Raphael called out,"you're goin' again tonight?" He nodded in response. Raphael sighed in defeat,"i don't like this, Deniz. You're protecting the son of the man who killed your father. i didn't train you so hard for this. i wanted you to avenge your family and take back the throne. But you're doing the complete opposite."

 

"Can we not go through this again, Raphael?" Deniz grumbled and left. he was running late. Usually, he would be inside the castle by now. Deniz had gotten used to the routine of getting into the castle by now. First, he would scale the wall of the castle as the guard dogs started to bark. Then, the dogs would be reprimanded for making so much noise at night by night guards who had failed to detect him. By the time they had retired into the guard house, Deniz would have been on the roof of the prince's quarters. Deniz landed on the balcony outside the room and leant against the wall beside the door. The crown prince would have been asleep right now, Deniz could hear steady breathing and sighed in relieve. He had been late, but not late enough for anyone to have arrived before himself.

 

Deniz was particularly cautious this night. His gut feeling told him that an assailant would pay the prince a visit. His gut feeling had never been wrong and Deniz had learnt to trust it to not risk any chances. He waited patiently for another hour or two, soon enough, his sharp ears picked up the sound of footsteps on the roof. Deniz pressed himself against the wall right underneath the roof as the assassin landed right in front of him. Fortunately, the assassin's back was facing him when he landed. Deniz quickly and silently lifted his arm and elbowed that special spot behind the neck. The latter grunted in pain and blacked out too quickly to realise what had happened. And as usual, Deniz would drag his victims to the back garden where the man would die by his sword. He left the body behind a tree, his usual spot where the guard would later find when dawn broke.

 

When dawn approached, Deniz left the castle and made his way back to town. At first light, he was already in bed, sleeping for the next four hours, after which he would prepare for the day's work.

[Kotorichan]

 

Name: Yuusina Riepenti Konnorha

 

Nickname: Yuu

 

Age: 20

 

Ability: Able to move his move freely once it's left his body. Only knows how to use the power for ceremonial purposes and nothing practical.

 

Appearance: 7'2 and very thin. Long white hair alwats put up in indtricate styles that takes hours every morning. Pure white skin, bright red eyes and markings on his face and back. White wings that have a total wingspan of 14'. Wears long white, red, and gold robes that make it difficult to move around.

 

Likes: Quiet, playing music, sunlight, birds

 

Dislikes: Dark, small spaces, heat

 

Personality: Yuusina is very quiet and reserved. He always keeps his feelings hidden and acts like a proper prince. Actually very intelligent but doesn't speak his thoughts so people think he's just a pretty face. He almost never shows genuine smiles, just polite smiles.

 

Bio: Yuusina's mother was very peaceful and gentle and she was the one who mostly raised Yuusina. His mother died giving birth to his younger brother, Miuksi. After she died Yuusina's father became more aggressive and raised Miuksi to be the same.

When they moved to the new territory Yuusina noticed that more people were trying to push Miuksi into power. Although he did his best to pretend not to notice.

 

---

 

Another body was found in the palace grounds. No one told him, but Yuusina could tell from the worried whispers of the servants and the stiff reprimands the last night's guards were receiving. There didn't seem to be any explanation. The bodies found seemed to be those of assassins, but none of the guards would pass up the opportunity to take credit for defending the prince.Although most of the guards were probably paid to ignore the assassins, so it could be a problem if they admitted to kill one.

 

Whenever this happened Yussina would try to wander the palace grounds, listening to conversations and examining expressions in an attempt to figure out who in the castle had tried to kill him this time. Almost everyone with any power wanted him dead. They knew that Yuusina wanted to change a lot of things, which would take their power away.

 

The prince's day went on as usual. He was proper in his lessons and at meals. But that night, just before bed there was a loud knocking at his door. Yuusina slowly stood and went to his door.

 

Before he could even open it, the door was thrown open by the head of the guard. "Prince Yuusina Riepenti Konnorha, you are hereby under arrest for the attempted assassination of your younger brother Miuksi Urrikui Konnorha. Please come quietly, we have no desire to harm you" The guard stepped towards Yuusina.

 

A sharp gasp escaped his lips at the words. Of course... Of course something like this would happen... If the entire court was against him there would be no one to stop him from being framed for a crime he didn't commit.

 

There were two choices, go with the guards and probably be executed, or attempt to escape and try to come up with some plan to fix things. The answer of course was obvious.

 

Yuusina turned and bolted towards his balcony, if he could just make it outside then he could fly off. It was so close but he could already feel the men grabbing at his robes.

[Yukio Takamiya]

The town was bustling with activity with vendors specially bringing out their wares onto the streets. It was the day that the traders came and the vendors wanted to sell a good deal of their wares before the day was over. Raphael was no exception, he brought out his best weapons, a variety of swords, crossbows and muskets. Naturally, his weapons sold well with the fine workmanship and quality materials used.

 

Deniz stood outside the shop rearranging the weapons on the wooden table when the sales had stopped for a short while. It was the only time when he could categorize the weapons and at the same time take a short break. Times like this were the most tiring blame Raphael for being the best blacksmith around. Deniz sat down on a wooden crate that had been flipped upside down and wiped at his brow. He could still hear the roar of the furnace and clonking of metal and knew that while he rested, Raphael was still hard at work. Deniz closed his eyes and sighed deeply, Raphael wasn't getting any younger. If he got too old to work, Deniz would have to take over his shop.

 

He turned to the left and looked at the castle which seemed so near yet was an hour's horse ride away. That was how large the castle was, it stood on a hill of greenery surrounded by a large wall and four gates. Deniz thought of the crown prince that was always in the castle, studying away his youth just to take over the crown. He couldn't help but feel uneasy everytime he worked during the day. Even in the day, the prince was subjected to all sorts of danger and it was extremely disadvantageous that Deniz was unable to protect him. Deniz could protect the prince from assailants at night, but he was unable to do so during the day or at close range. Prince Yuusina could have been poisoned and Deniz would have been unable to do anything. It was important that the prince had someone test his food and a personal bodyguard. But the king did not assign any of those to the prince. Deniz pinched his nose in frustration. The king was a great ruler but he didn't know how to protect his family, especially Yuusina who was soon to be crowned king.

 

"Hey there! How much are you trading these for?" A flamboyantly dressed merchant stood in front of the table analysing a musket.

 

Deniz snapped back to reality and stood up," five sovereigns, sir", he replied.

 

"Wow! That is a really good deal for such a fine musket. I'll take two of them." The trader handed over ten coins and left.

 

------------------------------------------

 

Word travels fast in their town. It had only been about an hour of the prince's dilemma did the news reach them. Upon receiving the news, Deniz headed straight back to the castle.

[Kotorichan]

As soon as Yuusina was on the balcony he spread his wings and took off into the air. He only made it a few feet before a guard's arrow hit his wing, making the prince plummet back to the floor with a cry of pain. His pure white feathers slowly turned red from blood.

 

"We don't want to hurt you your highness..." The head of guard said firmly, his men moving in towards Yuusina. "You have nowhere to run, please just come quietly."

 

Yuusina stared at the men for a moment, forcing himself to regain his composure. He wouldn't show any pain or fear. He stood up straight, pushing his shoulders back and raising his head. After a moment of direct eye contact with the head of guard he turned and walked towards the edge of the balcony.

 

"You are too injured to fly your highness. Don't try again or we will have to shoot again"

 

There were no guards on the ground around his balcony. The archers were merely standing behind the rest of the guards.

 

A soft sigh escaped his lips. He really couldn't fly... At least not very far. Without a word Yuusina hoisted himself up and over the balcony railing.

 

Despite his best efforts to soften his fall by flapping his wings, Yuusina still felt his ankle twist painfully under his weight. Now wasn't the time to rest though. The prince forced himself to stumble through the garden towards the castle wall.

 

He had no idea how he could get over the walls. But there was no other option, he would have to figure something out.

[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz ran as fast as he could without stop towards the castle. Considering that he was just in the neighbouring town, it didn't take him very long. He didn't understand how the crowned prince could have planned an assassination on the younger prince. Or did they think the assassin he killed was meant for the younger prince? Deniz was well aware of what was going on within the castle, of how the king was trying to push the younger prince into power. They definitely knew that the assassin was meant for Yuusina, perhaps even the one who hired him. Deniz only left the corpses in the garden to let them know that whatever danger they sent to the crown prince, he would get rid of them all. Who knew they would resort to turning the tables on Yuusina.

 

Deniz quickly reached a tall tree outside the castle walls and used it to get it. He didn't avoid the guards this time, there wasn't time to go the longer way. Deniz reached the garden, running in the direction of the Yuusina's balcony where he lft from the previous night. There, on the ground, he saw the prince, limping towards another part of the walls. From the opposite direction, Deniz spotted a multitude of guards heading for the prince. He cursed and ran towards Yuusina. "Your Highness, this way!" He said grabbing the prince's arm, wrapping them around his neck and hoisting Yuusina over his back, he headed for the stables. The guards would no doubt start chasing them with horses which would get them caught in no time, Deniz needed a horse to get them both out.

 

Deniz ran into the stables alarming every horse in the structure with the presence of an unfamiliar face. With the panicked stampeding of hoofs and approaching barks, Deniz could feel an incoming headache. He looked around the stables, desperately hoping that it was still here and had not been gotten rid of. There was only one horse that would warm up at the sight of him. The last cubicle...Deniz walked towards it and opened the gate.

 

"Hey there Finn, haven't seen you in a long time. You've grown a lot." Deniz said. The black stallion whinnied softly and gave Deniz an affectionate nudge. "There's no time to waste boy, I need your service now." Hurriedly, he pushed Yuusina atop Finn's back and saddled the horse himself. He assumed that Yuusina would know how to hold onto the horse himself and shot off at full speed towards the gates.

[Kotorichan]

Yuusina gasped as he was grabbed by a stranger. This person wasn't a guard, and he didn't look like a servant either. So who was he? The prince didn't bother struggling. It's not like this could get any worse.

 

The blood loss was starting to make Yuusina dizzy. It was becoming difficult for him to understand what was going on around him. He could hear dogs barking and guards shouting, but he couldn't make out any of the words. His ankle hurt terribly, somewhere in the back of his mind he wondered if it was broken or just a sprain.

 

By the time they reached the stables Yuusina's wing was almost completely soaked in blood. It hung limply behind him, the feathers dragging along the ground. His vision was blurry and he couldn't understand the words being spoken by the stranger. Was he talking to the horse...?

 

The prince didn't resist when he pushed up onto the horse, glad to have the weight taken off his ankle. He gripped the horse's mane with weak hands. He didn't know if he would be able to hold on for much longer.

[Yukio Takamiya]

Finn was easily the fastest horse in the castle, pity he never let anyone else ride him thus no one ever knew. One could imagine how shocked the guards were when they saw how a stranger was riding that horse. Even with two riders on his back, Finn outran the others, trampling and kicking at the guards who tried to block the gate. "Good job Finn, keep running till we get out of here," Deniz instructed. He had one arm around the crown prince's waist and the other held onto Finn's mane seeing as they had no time to secure a saddle onto the horse.

 

By the time they were out of the city, in the country side, the guards could no longer be seen. Deniz calmly urged his horse to slow down into a trot so that he could check on the prince's condition. Yuusina had lost much blood and frankly, Deniz didn't know if he could make it through the night. He removed his cloak and tied it around the bloodstained wing, hoping to stop the bleeding and buy him enough time to find a place to rest. Finally, they reached a barn that seemed to have not been in use for a while. Deniz got off but left Yuusina on Finn's back, opening the doors of the barn and urging Finn to go in.

 

The barn, fortunately, had plenty of hay. Deniz laid Yuusina on a thick stack, careful to let the man lay on his side to avoid the damaged wing. The prince's body temperature was getting colder and Deniz honestly didn't know what to do. If the wing got infected, it would speed up death's process. The most effective way to prevent it would be to burn the wound but Deniz didn't think the prince would be able to handle that kind of pain. For now, he needed alcohol to clean it.

[Kotorichan]

Yuusina drifted in and out of consciousness throughout the ride. He was only faintly aware of what was going on around him as the city turned to countryside. Who was this man? That was the only thought that stayed in the prince's mind. Why was this stranger going so far to help him?

 

When he was put down on the hay Yuusina forced himself to sit up. His vision was blurry, he couldn't even make out the face of his savior. He was losing too much blood. With some effort he was able to remember the medical books he had read from the royal library.

 

"Sir... I do not know who you are or why you saved me..." Even close to death like this Yuusina kept himself as proper as he possibly could. "But no matter what your reason you have my eternal gratitude" He bowed his head slightly in thanks.

 

"I believe... I am about to bleed to death... The only thing that could prevent that is if you burn the wound closed..." His words were staring to be a bit slurred as the bleeding continued. "You would have to cut away... The feathers nearby... Or they may get in the way... And the arrow head... Is still inside... I do not think... That... I will be conscious long enough... To even... React..."

 

With those final words he collapsed into the hay, unable to force himself to stay awake any longer. His eyes closed as he blacked out completely.

[Yukio Takamiya]

The barn didn't have any alcohol, he should have known. But there wasn't any harm in being hopeful. Yuusina was running out of time and here he was still weighing his options. Just then, he heard the prince speak and flew back to his side. Deniz could tell that he wouldn't be conscious for long either. The prince suggested the method he thought of before, before losing consciousness. Well...since he was the one who wanted it, Deniz wasn't going to waste anymore time. He drew his dagger from his belt and began to slice at the bloodied feathers surrounding the arrow. Next, he separated a bit of hay from the pile and dumped a few sticks together to create a fire, in no time, the fire was up. Deniz held his dagger above the flame for a while before wiping it with a fold piece of cloth.

 

Deniz returned to the unconscious Yuusina and brought his attention to the injured wing. Just in case, he stuffed another piece of cloth into the unconscious prince's mouth to prevent him from biting his tongue should the pain get too unbearable. Finally, Deniz took a firm hold on the arrow and use his dagger to pry it out from the flesh. The wound bled more but Deniz Deniz gave the arrow a final pull, separating it from the wing before he once again applied pressure on the wound. Deniz cleaned the blood off the dagger and once again held it in the fire. he hoped the prince, unconscious or not, would be able to take it. He didn't want to drag this out for too long either. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the blade to the wound, holding it there and almost retching at the smell of cooked flesh. But with this, the prince would be fine with a little rest.

 

Deniz took time to cut his cloak into strips to properly bandage the wing unlike how he carelessly tied it previously. He glanced at the wing and almost felt sorry for the unconscious man. That spot would probably never sprout feathers again but it was fortunate that it was an arrow wound, though deep, rather than that of a sword's. The wound area wasn't big if he considered the wing's size. The barn was getting stuffy, Deniz put out the fire in case the smoke attracted unwanted attention and proceeded to dress the wound.

[Kotorichan]

Yuusina's body struggled weakly at the pain, but not enough to actually make it difficult to treat the wound. Once the man had finished burning the wound shut Yuusina went almost completely still, barely even breathing.

 

After a few hours he began to stir. Before anything else, he was aware of the horrible pain. His wing still hurt from being burned, and his sprained ankle had swollen and was throbbing. But somewhere in the back of his mind it was a relief. He had survived, this pain was proof of that fact.

 

Of course there was no telling how much longer or in what condition he would survive in. He still didn't know what his savior wanted with him. But it couldn't be money or power since the prince had just been stripped of both those things.

 

Yuusina's eyes slowly cracked open and he tried to sit up. His vision had returned for the most part, although he was still dizzy from the pain and blood loss. He looked around the barn, trying to get his bearings. The urge to call out to the man who had saved him rose in his chest, but he had no idea how safe this location was. He had no idea how safe any location was... Did his people know what had happened? And more importantly, whose side did they take? There must be a bounty on his head, but was that enough to turn the citizens against him?

 

"Sir..?" The prince kept his voice soft, barely loud enough to be heard even by someone nearby. "Are you awake?"

[Kotorichan]

((I finally finished drawing Yuu

 

))

[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz had been leaning against a wall, eyes closed and listening for the sound of soldiers. Finn lay on another pile of hay, resting from his long run earlier in the day. Dusk was quickly approaching but the guards wouldn't rest. Deniz wasn't sure if he could safely take Yuusina to the town. But fortunately, he had covered his face, no one knew it was he who took the prince away.

 

When the prince called, he opened his eyes and got up. "There isn't a need to address me as such Your Highness. My name is Deniz." Deniz walked over to the prince's side and aided him in sitting up. That was when he noticed the large swell on Yuusina's ankle. "Forgive me for not noticing sooner," he mumbled, lifting the long robes slightly. Deniz gently took Yuusina's ankle, careful not to alarm the prince. After all, he was a complete stranger to him and the prince wouldn't know if he had any ulterior motives or not. It would be natural for him to be cautious. He slowly, gently started to massage the swell, hoping to reduce its size. "Let me know when I can press harder."

 

 

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[Kotorichan]

Yuusina let out a soft gasp of pain as his ankle was touched. "A-ah... Y-you really don't need to do that, I think it's a sprain so i-it should just heal with time." It was true, but he also just couldn't take much more pain. His wing hurt terribly and he had a pounding headache.

 

The prince moved his ankle under his robes in an attempt to protect it. "I... If you don't mind my asking. Why did you risk your life to help me? You could have been killed when you came to help me, even now you're endangering yourself by keeping me here." He looked up at Deniz with a frown. The man's name sounded familiar, but where had he heard it? It was probably just a name that the stranger shared with some sort of historical figure, but he felt like it was more important that that. He lightly rubbed his forehead, trying to remember. If he wasn't so tired and in so much pain he would be able to remember...

[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz stopped touching Yuusina's ankle the moment the prince gasped in pain. A moment later, he lifted the robe again and proceeded to wrap the swollen ankle with the remnants of his torn cloak. When Yuusina asked his question, Deniz hesitated to answer. The prince didn't have the power to claim the throne right now. And if Deniz wanted him to be king, he had to help him directly. Over the years in hiding, Deniz and Raphael had reformed an army, ready at Deniz's disposal should the time come for him to reclaim the throne. That was their desire, for Deniz to become their king. But Deniz didn't really care for that. His only concern was his people, if there was someone capable of letting them live contently, Deniz didn't feel the need to usurp the throne. That brought them to the current dilemma. The only person that Deniz felt would be able to accomplish his goal had lost his power. Still, it would be much easier for the current crown prince to take the throne rather than the prince of the previous reign.

 

The barn was eerily silent and in a corner, Deniz heard Finn snort. Finally, he spoke. "I saved you in hopes that you will one day return to take the throne." Deniz stood up and headed towards the barn's large doors. It was dark outside and Deniz could spot no soldiers. It was highly possible that they had ventured further to search for them. Deniz walked back to Yuusina. "Now is probably the best time to leave. The town I live in isn't too far, let's hurry." On cue with his words, Finn seemed to understand and stood up from the pile of hay, ready to be saddled.

 

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[Kotorichan]

Yuusina still had many questions, all this made no sense. Even if someone wanted to see him in the throne, why would they risk their life like this? Even if Yuusina survived there was no guarantee that he could ever take the throne again. He was seen as a traitor. His chest tightened as the events of the previous night started to sink in. He couldn't help but wonder if his brother believed all that had been said.

 

Miuski was only 13, and he truly loved his older brother. The people around him liked to manipulate his young mind, so most of the country believed Miuski himself to be a cruel, cold hearted creature. But Yuusina knew that his younger brother was just young and innocent. Tears pricked his eyes as he thought about what must be going on at the palace right now, and what Miuski might be told.

 

He was snapped out of his thoughts as Deniz spoke again. Now was no time for tears or worry, he needed to survive more than anything. The prince rose to his feet as gracefully as he could with an injured ankle. He steadied himself against the wall, biting his lip to hold in the pain. "Yes... But won't my clothes stand out?" The once luxurious silks were now torn and stained with blood, someone might stare for a moment too long and recognize Yuusina.

[Yukio Takamiya]

As Deniz was preparing Finn to be saddled, he took a moment to glance at Yuusina. It wasn't difficult to spot the conflicting emotions flashing through the prince's eyes, but Deniz's expression remained emotionless. He wasn't one to comfort others and wasn't about to do so for Yuusina. After all, his decision to protect him was strictly business.

 

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[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz's red eyes flickered back to Yuusina when the subject on his appearance was brought up. He took the mask which he previously wore to enter the castle and handed it to Yuusina. After which, he started to look around the barn for something large enough to wrap around the prince's body. He finally settled on a large rag that was probably used to cover the windows, preventing sun light from entering the barn. Deniz walked back to Yuusina and wrapped the piece of cloth around his body. "It's a little dirty, I hope you don't mind since my cloak has been used for your wounds."

 

Finn let out a soft impatient whine and lightly stamped his hooves. Deniz took that as his cue to help the prince onto the horse. When both of them were saddled properly, Deniz led Finn back to the town.

 

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[Kotorichan]

Yuusina shook his head at the questions. "I do not mind at all. I value my life as well as yours far more than cleanliness." He put on the garments he was offered and bowed his head to Deniz. "Please lead the way Deniz, sir. I can walk if your horse is too tired to carry two."

 

Now was not a time for pride, Yuusina was willing to humble himself as much as necessary to get through this. It wasn't as though he didn't respect Deniz, he owned the man his life. Whether Deniz had been a knight, a fellow prince, or a commoner, it didn't change what he had done for Yuusina.

[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz kept a sharp eye on their surroundings as they rode. His eyes shifted to Finn's head when Yuusina mentioned walking. "This is nothing to him," he mumbled," though he used to be able to run much faster." The stable boys probably hadn't let Finn out on a run for quite some time, probably never at all. Since Finn never let anyone else ride him, they probably thought that he couldn't be used and stopped letting him out. This led to Finn's lack of exercise and became slightly slower than before. He was the country's best horse, none could outrun him. Finn didn't get tired easily even when running at his fastest, he had to let the horse run more in future. But Deniz was eternally thankful that the palace didn't decide to sell him, or they wouldn't have been able to escape today.

 

After a few minutes, Deniz could see the town's entrance. He urged Finn to go a little faster till they reached the town. There he got off Finn's back but allowed Yuusina to stay seated. They moved at a slower pace this time, Deniz walked while pulling at Finn's reins. After all, he didn't want to wake the while town with Finn's stampeding. They arrived at the shop shortly and Deniz proceeded help Yuusina down. Deniz unlocked the shop's entrance and led the prince in. "Sit here while I tend to Finn," he instructed quietly.

 

Deniz went out of the shop and brought Finn in, he couldn't risk the soldiers spotting him when they visited the town. Fortunately, the lounge area of the shop was more than enough for Finn to settle down. Just then, he heard yawning and footsteps coming down the stairs. "Deniz? Is that you?" Raphael's voice asked tiredly. Then..."HOLY MOTHER OF GOD, FINN, HOW DID YOU GET HERE?!!"

 

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[Kotorichan]

Yuusina didn't know why Deniz knew so much about the horse, he felt like it was something incredibly obvious but he just couldn't think of it. Every time he felt close he could be set back but a sudden sharping of pain. When they reached the town entrance he pulled the ragged cloth over his head like a hood, making sure both his wings and his hair were completely covered.

 

Dismounting the horse was painful, it bumped his wing and ankle, but he couldn't do anything besides grit his teeth. He sat on the floor, not wanting to get dirt from the rags on any furniture. For a moment he closed his eyes, trying to collect his thoughts for a moment.

 

But he was immediately torn from his peace by the sound of unfamiliar footsteps. He re-positioned himself so that he could stand up if necessary, glancing at Deniz for any indication of what he should do.

 

The prince jerked back in shock at the shout, his already panicked mind was brought even closer to the edge. It was almost too much for him to take, he was barely able to hold back tears tears of terror. As much as he tried to keep himself together he was still a sheltered prince.

[Yukio Takamiya]

Deniz didn't bother to hide his irritation at Raphael's uncalled for shout. "Are you trying to wake the whole town?" He snapped quietly. Raphael merely ignored him and hurried down the remaining steps towards Finn.

 

"It's been so long, my son," Raphael nuzzled Finn's mane and Deniz resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He noticed how Yuusina had jumped earlier at Raphael's outburst and was currently in a rather miserable states. In an attempt to calm him down a little, he placed a hand on the prince's shoulder and squeezed it lightly before letting go again. It was then that Raphael noticed the prince and looked away from Finn who was nuzzling his hand. His face lost its warmth and his eyes darted to look at Deniz. "What is he doing here?"

 

Deniz didn't wish to talk about Yuusina in front of the prince himself. Instead, he gestured to the back room. "Let's take this in the back," he said and walked into the room, Raphael at his heels.

 

The moment the door closed, Raphael snapped. "What on earth are you thinking Deniz? This isn't what we want? Besides, the crown prince has lost his power, you think he can still take the throne?!" Raphael was right, this wasn't what he or the people supporting them wanted. But Deniz only thought for the citizens. It wouldn't be easy to get Yuusina back into power especially since everyone was out for his head. Sure, it would be easier for Deniz to just usurp the throne and reclaim his title instead of pushing Yuusina into power. But then what would he do with the said prince, he had the prince with him now. Besides, he didn't like to think that his efforts to protect Yuusina the past few years would have gone to waste. As id sensing his thoughts, Raphael continued. "This why I told you to stop protecting him for so long. He's been stripped of his title, what has everything you've been doing for him gone down to?" By this time, Raphael was deperate to persuade Deniz to claim his rightful place.

 

Deniz hesitated, then slowly spoke. "But the people......they're happy aren't they?" At this, Raphael fell silent. Tge silence went on for a while.

 

"They were happier when your father was alive," Raphael spoke quietly. "The castle gates aren't open anymore and flower festivals are a thing of the past," Raphael seemed to grow older as he spoke. "I don't wish to see everything that your father has built crumbling to dust."

 

Deniz didn't wish to hear anymore. "We'll talk about this another time," he said and opened the door.

 

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[Kotorichan]

Yuusina managed to keep himself together until the two men left the room. Finally he couldn't hold his feelings in anymore. His head fell into his hands as his body shook with silent sobs. He could faintly hear the sound of voices, but couldn't make out any voices. If he had been thinking straight then he might have thought to move closer to listen, but right now he could only feel the pain.

 

For so many years Yuusina had done his best to keep his head low, not anger anyone or make himself a threat. He had tried so had to lead his brother to think for himself and be a good leader if anything happened to Yuusina. But despite all that his life had fallen apart. All his hopes of helping the country and it's people. His plans to bring back traditions from the previous country, to lessen the pain of those who missed their old king. Everything he had hoped to do was gone, and who knew what would happen instead.

 

He jumped as the door opened and quickly wiped his eyes on his sleeve, leaving streaks of dirt across his face. He attempted to rise to his feet, still shaking. The pain in his ankle made the prince fall back down to the floor with a small whimper of pain.

[Yukio Takamiya]

When Deniz exited the room, his red eyes landed on Yuusina who had fallen so suddenly. After a once over of the prince, it seemed pretty obvious that he had been crying. Sighing, Deniz walked over to Yuusina and placed an arm around his waist, helping him to get up. "We have a spare room upstairs, let's get you settled there." Despite being abnormally tall, Yuusina wasn't very heavy at all and Deniz carried him easily. He opened the door of the room closest to the stairs and set Yuusina on the bed before starting to rummage among the cabinets.

 

"Lie down properly, your wounds won't hurt so much after I've treated them properly," he instructed. Taking out a few bottles of ointment, Deniz treated Yuusina's wounds and wrapped them up properly in gauze. "Get some rest," he said without looking at the prince after he was done. Exiting the room, Deniz avoided Raphael whom had passed by and headed straight for his room.

 

He locked the door of the room and walked towards the drawers. Unlocking one of them, he retrieved an intricately carved box from the drawer and unlocked it as well. Inside lay a ring with a renown seal. The seal that represented his title as the crown prince. It had been the only thing he managed to take before Raphael snuck him out of the castle. Of course, it held no meaning now. Anyone who saw it recognised him as their prince but it was all in the past. Though of course, his eyes symbolised that he was a descendant of the Eligerand clan, now the only one left. In the day, he used a special spell that Raphael taught him to conceal his eye colour and would wear off at night. That particular day though, he had been in too much of a rush to cast the spell on his eyes. The prince had seen his eyes but Deniz was sure that he had been too distracted to really notice. He hoped that Yuusina would forget about it permanently. Heaving another sigh, he locked the ring back into the drawer and prepared for bed.

 

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[Kotorichan]

Without thinking Yuusina leaned into the man's chest. He wanted some kind of comfort, but he was in no position to actually ask for it and was too tired too stay proper. By the time he was laid in bed he was already falling asleep.

 

"Thank you... For saving me" He managed to say, forcing himself to stay awake for a few moments longer. "If my presence is a problem then I can... Find somewhere to go" He wasn't fully confident in that but he had to offer.

 

He fell asleep before the door even closed behind the other man and managed to sleep peacefully for a couple hours. But after just three hours he began to thrash and struggle in his sheets. His mind had been taken into a horrible nightmare. Suddenly he let out a terrified scream before bolting awake, shaking and sweating.

[Yukio Takamiya]

The sudden scream made Deniz bolt out of his bed and rush out of his room. He had always been a light sleeper and the slightest noise woke him, imagine how such a scream could have shocked him. Did the soldiers find them? That scream definitely belonged to Yuusina. But if it really were the soldiers, they would have broke down the door instead of sneak in. And that would have woken him. All these thoughts flashed through his mind in the second that he took to get to Yuusina's room. He slammed the door open wildly and looked around the room for the intruder. What he saw however, made him slump against the wall breathing heavily, unable to resist letting out a relieved sigh.

 

Deniz left the room and headed to the kitchen before returning with a cup of hot tea in hand. He handed the tea to the prince, grabbed a chair and sat down by the bed. After a nightmare, tea was always the best. He learnt this through countless experiences. "Finish it and go back to sleep. I'll be here." He said, at the same time waving away Raphael whom had came to see the ruckus.

 

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