The Uninvited Guest

The blond bride rolled her eyes at the Kasai king. She knew he would make a commotion. It was such a Hao thing to do.

Yet everyone's attention was diverted from the Asakura monarch to the raucous from behind the throne room doors. It sounded like someone was trying to get in but the palace guards won't let him. The doors flung open as they were kicked by the intruder in the form of a blond man wearing glasses. The guards were dragging him towards the exit but he was a man of great strength. He had managed to take one step at a time as he pulled the guards clinging on to his torso.

"Marco?" Lyserg stood up looking bewildered. "What are you doing here?"

"Release him!" King Ren ordered his men after realizing who it was.

The palace guards bowed down and left the throne room in a hurry.

Marco smoothened the wrinkles on his coat before walking towards the couple. People were staring at him with distaste.

"Your Highness, I'm sorry to interrupt your wedding but I've been trying to reach out to you since morning. I'm not being allowed inside the palace as I cannot present an invitation letter."

"Have you heard of RSVP?" Chocolove asked out loud.

"What is going on, Ren? Who is he?" Queen Anna grabbed her husband-to-be's arm and gave him a confused look.

"Your Majesties, my apologies for causing a commotion... My name is Marco Lasso, butler to Duchess Jeanne of Mont St. Michel. I would like to inform you that she had given birth two weeks ago... to your son..." Marco eyed the Kaminari king.

The throne room was filled with gasps. The bride slowly removed her grip of the groom's arm. "You had someone else...?" she whispered.

"I'm sorry..." Ren avoided her gaze. His suspicions were confirmed at such an awful timing. He wasn't prepared to face it yet.

"I am not here to stop you from marrying your fiancée, Your Highness. But I need you to know that if this union pushes through, your son will become an illegitimate child. Perhaps even an orphan soon... My sick mistress does not know that I am here. Her and the young master's best interests are the reason I have come."

The Kaminari king spoke. "Let's talk alone, Marco. We need not involve our guests here."

"How about we proceed with the wedding reception? I am famished! I think I can smell the food!" King Horo Horo suggested. He was lying of course. He just wanted to get out of the awkward situation.

"Probably not a bad idea. Everyone, thank you for coming to our wedding. Please go to the ballroom and enjoy the feast we have prepared for you." Anna pointed at the opened doors.

People followed the bride's request and lined up to the exit. They would probably be talking about this for months. When the final guests have left, the queen turned to the bewildered groom, "Ren, I am not here to judge whatever you did while I was gone but I would have appreciated honesty. Please deal with this as a man. I'll be waiting at the palace garden if you need me. Let's talk later..."

Queen Anna let the train of her gown sweep up the dirt from the stone path in the Kaminari palace garden. She wouldn't be attending a wedding that day, that's for sure. She threw the bouquet of roses at the side and stopped in front of the statue of Ren's grandfather. She folded her arms across her chest and stared at it for a while.

"I promised to be a good wife to your grandson... But in reality, I was not sure if that is what I want. Ren owes me an explanation. He was keeping a secret from me all this time... but I wasn't totally honest with him either..."

"Why are you talking to the statue?" A familiar voice asked from behind her.

It was the Kasai king. "Go away, Hao. It's none of your business."

"Er... I am not actually my brother..." The royal grinned at her sheepishly. "Faust let me pack a suit before we left in case I needed it in a mission. You look so beautiful, Anna..."

The blonde did not respond right away. She gazed at him from head to foot. He looked more mature now. They all were actually. She shortened the distance between them then caressed his cheek as she stared at his face. She was trying to figure out if it's really her Yoh or it's just Hao playing a prank on her. There was only one way to find out... Without warning, she slapped him hard.

"Ouch!" Prince Yoh rubbed his red cheek. "I think I deserve that..."

"Must you always pretend to be someone else when you come to Kaminari? I hate your hair. Why did you let it grow that long? You look like your brother."

"Well... we are identical twins... That's why I was able to enter the palace without presenting any invitation letter."

Another slap.

"Being cheeky, huh. That's for dozing off like an idiot on my wedding."

"I'm sorry! I didn't have enough sleep last night. I was practicing what I would say to stop the wedding."

"That was all for nothing now because you did not get to say it. Someone else stopped the wedding." The Kouku queen scoffed at him.

"You're right... I'm a total idiot, Anna... I'm a self-righteous royal blood who thought I carried the whole weight of the kingdom on my shoulders. I am sorry that I didn't even try to fight for you..." Prince Yoh lowered his head.

"Well, why didn't you?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"Because I felt guilty... Ren had searched far and wide for you and had gone great lengths just to be with you... He would be heart broken if... you would end up with someone else..."

"You almost died for me, stupid. Give yourself some credit." Anna mumbled.

"I also felt unworthy... I have been trained to be king since I was ten years old... and then all of a sudden, I did not become one... I thought I wasn't worth waiting for and that you would be better off with someone in a position of power like the ruler of Kaminari..."

"Since when did you become so political, Yoh? I felt guilty about Ren, too and I admit that I was a little mean when we last spoke... But let me be the person to determine who is worthy of my affection or not. I want to have a say in this... You just don't go on deciding what's best for me. The choice had to be from the both of us. I got so emotional when you said you had to leave... That was a mistake and another one is expecting you to at least fight for me..."

"I apologize, Anna... I was such a wreck that day... Each day that we were miles apart, I realized how much I love you and I can't bear to let you go..." The Kasai prince tried to enclose her in an embrace but Anna moved one step back.

"Yoh, please understand... The man who I love left me and did not attempt to even write a letter while he was away. Then he showed up after almost a year telling me that he did not fight for me because he thought he had the sole right to decide that I would live a better life with someone else. Then that someone else who happened to be my best friend and fiancé from an arranged marriage, had sex with another girl and kept it as a secret. Then on my wedding day, a stranger barged in announcing to all our guests that he had a son with her! I don't think I'm ready to forgive and forget all of that in an instant... This whole love and arranged marriage thing have been too exhausting for me. I want to do it on my own terms and right now I just want to take a break from it all."

"You.. love me?" The prince grinned at her.

"Have you even heard the rest of my sentences?" Anna wanted to scream out in frustration.

"Please let me make it up to you... I want to make you fall in love with me again..." The Kasai royal took her hand.

"While you're on a mission?" The queen raised an eyebrow. "Let's see if that's even possible."

"I'll do it anyway, even if you tell me not to."

"Argh, now I know why Hao is persistent. You two are of the same material."