"Your majesty, come back!"
Heavy steps chased him and a gentle wind stroked through his hair.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Mike yells out while racing away as fast as he could, the weight of his clothes leaving him feeling heavy and tired. The crown was clinging onto his hair for dear life.
The sun was reflecting beautifully onto Mike's pale skin, causing many onlookers to gaze upon his helpless escape. These men suddenly saw him and called him a majesty, asking him to come with them… 'they' said to avoid weirdos so he immediately started to flee!
He was running to leave the fishing village when finally misfortune caught up to him as the length of his kimono got stuck in a branch, causing him to trip over and fall onto the ground.
"Ah!" He hit the grass with a light thud as his pursuers quickly knelt down to hold onto him.
"Your majesty please!" One called out.
"Let go of me!" Mike slapped off their hands, the loose sleeves slapping some of the men in their face causing them to recoil.
"We have to take you home! Everyone has been worried sick!"
Home…
He finally came to a halt as his body relaxed and he sat up.
"You'll take me home?" His voice was low, almost like asking for a secret.
"Your majesty, please... We understand."
There were eyes all over them and some men even stood up to block the view, while one ran off to who knows where.
Something's off. The prince's eyes lacked the lively gold after hearing about home. Mindlessly staring at the one who even offered to guide him back.
The group fell silent, looking into each other's eyes.
"Will they be there?" Mike asked. The mood went from merely a chase to gloom. Everything about the prince felt off in that moment, until he slowly got up.
"Yes... Your mother and siblings will be home." Not a mention of a father.
That's not what he wanted to hear. It's not them… he's not sure about who they are but it's definitely not his mom… siblings maybe?
There was a strong silence as the man who previously left finally returned with their horses.
"I hope i am not too late!" "Of course you aren't, let's help the prince up." Mike's body felt listless and light as the men guided him onto the horse's back, with another man in front of him holding the reins.
"Your majesty, we'll go now." The man's voice fell on deaf ears as the prince's eyes barely even acknowledged its surroundings.
The horse was slowly led by a man while the others rode around the prince, their weapons out as they traveled through the paths. One of them was holding a compass at the very front, clearly in lead.
The man who was riding with Mike spoke to his comrade in another language, pointing at Mikel.
They whispered back and forth a bit before another rode closer, holding a flask of water.
"Prince Kioshi, how about some water, are you hungry? We brought nourishment."
Mike slowly reached for the flask holding it blankly close to his chest, as if he could do nothing but stare at it.
Even without a response, another one still went closer, holding a few rice balls and some buns that were not even a few hours old, offering them to the so-called prince.
With both options right in front of him, he lowered his head, everything suddenly felt so heavy.
A wave of sadness washed over him but he couldn't tell why.
---
"THE PRINCE HAS RETURNED!!!" The voices rang through the palace as many guards came running, maids, servants and many more were rallying up at the gates entrance as the prince was being led inside on a horse, his expression simply at a loss over his fancy surroundings.
"Your majesty!" Many bowed while others kneeled, their weapons displayed in respect as he carefully got led down the horse.
"KIOSHI, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!!!" younger looking kids ran out, their clothes flying wildly in the air as the guard held the horses still so they wouldn't freak out.
Mike's eyes widened when he saw that one kid was not human at all, but half horse! The other kid clearly wasn't human either.
Ah.. Centaur?
The other had a small horn coming out of their forehead. Mikel barely got off his horse, confused by what was in front of him.
The littles half-humans ran into a tight embrace, the horn slightly poking the side of Mike as they began whining.
"BROTHER, BROTHER, WHY DID YOU LEAVE!"
Mike couldn't find his words, everything was overwhelming despite him not showing it on his face.
A few more men walked out where the kids came from. Another centaur. A strong build, with a mane and tail as white as snow, including his beard. The rest of his body was of a nice tanned tone, while the fur of his lower part - the horse part - was of different shades of grey.
A short haired beauty was on his back, covered fully by a ruby robe. Her… no, his? legs slightly revealed by the dress, brushed lightly on the fur as he dangled on the centaurs back.
Next to them were also two boys who seemed the same age as Mikel. One had a pair of wings so large he wrapped them around his body like a cloak making him look eerie, his hair black similar to the others, both having their eyes covered by their bangs.
Large white wings, long white horn that could reach the sky…
It was getting too much. Mikel's head hurt when he saw that the other boy had a large black horn sticking out and blending in seamlessly with his white hair.
I feel dizzy…
"Where have you been.. we were all worried. And what's with your funeral clothes!?"
The centaur man approached, his voice booming across the yard. The closer he got, the angrier Mikel felt his heart get, against his will.
"Don't be loud... He looks unwell…" a gentle voice came from the centaurs back, causing him to approach less threateningly.
"Honey… are you ready to stay home?" The voice cooled soothingly, almost tempting Mikel to come closer.
"I think so..." Where did this answer even come from?
Was it because he had nowhere else to go? He felt conflicted, he felt like he didn't belong here. Nor in his body. He stared at his hands, they felt so unreal…
Everyone around him looked so different but they all blurred into the same crowd.
"Your highness, if i may…" a man jumped off the horse. "We believe that Prince Kioshi is far too unwell, if we could get a few servants to escort him to his room… He needs some rest."
"YOU DA-" "Yes. Escort him to his room."
The gentle man covering his angry centaurs mouth, gestured to the riders to take Mike to his room.
"Us?" The man nods insistently while the riders get nervous, jumping off their mounts and running off to escort Mike away, the kid fussing in the process. They were pulling and tearing at his robes. But the centaur grabbed them by their hair, yanking them back.
Mike was guided through the halls as everyone made room and kept rushing around him.
The wood creaked heavily under the mens weight until he finally arrived at a room that was a total mess.
"O-oh!" "Your majesty lets get you elsewhere-"
Kshk!
The sliding door was shut in their face and Mike was finally separated from all that ruckus and noise.
He slid down onto the floor, his legs giving out as his butt hit the floor with a heavy thud.
The room felt exactly like how he felt.
The bed was broken, clothes were thrown around and there were a bunch of torn papers thrown around.
"Shards..." Mike picked up a broken shard, realising it was spread across the room like a deadly trap.
"This room was not meant to be re-entered." Mike dropped the shard into a corner so it would not cross his path again.
He tried to pick up a few bits here and there, but it was all too messy.
Mike picked up papers just to find dried ink stains underneath them.
"This reminds me of something.."
He shook his head as he began to kick things aside until he reached the broken bed. Despite all the impact, his boots seemed to still be flawless, without any bumps or scratches.
Such quality.
Mike threw himself onto the cushioned mattress. Everything about it felt different on the body. He rolled on his back and stared up at the ceiling.
Its tapestry kept repeating the same flower symbol over and over, to the point where Mike got dizzy.