The real Prince

New love

As they finally arrived at the castle, Obi silently took Shirayuki's hand and gestured her to follow him. He couldn't stand it anymore, she had been silent the whole way and after the event between Zen and Mitsuhide she hadn't even looked at him. He was seriously worried about her, after all, everyone knew about her feelings for Zen. He gently guided her towards her room and even though he knew there would be rumors if he went to her bedroom alone with her, he didn't care at that moment. Let people talk, they always did anyway and his intentions were pure, he just wanted to be there for the Miss.

Once in the room, he closed the door behind him and stopped in the middle of the room while Shirayuki, who still hadn't said anything, sat down on her bed.
"Listen," he began, but was immediately interrupted by her. "Obi. Come here, I don't want to talk to you while you're standing by the door and I feel like you could run away at any time." Hesitantly, he did as he was told and stepped up to her bedside, where he politely stopped in front of her. "Miss-" he began. "No, now it's my turn to talk," Shirayuki interrupted him again. "I know what you want to say. I know what you want to ask me. Of course I've seen it. Of course I understood it. Of course I was happy for Zen and Mitsuhide." Obi's eyes widened; he had expected a lot, but not this. "I know what you're thinking now. Yes, I thought I had feelings for Zen too. Or rather, I certainly had some," she corrected herself. "But while I was locked up I had a lot of time to think about things that I had suppressed for a long time. I've become aware of things, I see everything much more clearly now. Actually, it started quite a while ago that I... That I felt much more comfortable around you than I did around Zen." His heart skipped a beat. "To cut a long story short, Obi I... I felt nothing but honest joy when I saw Zen looking at Mitsuhide. It only confirmed what had become increasingly clear to me all the way back home. Obi." He knelt in front of her now, looking up at her intently as he tried not to let the leaps of joy in his heart show. He wouldn't allow himself to believe it until she said it or- Before he could finish the thought, Shirayuki had leaned down to him and pressed a peck to his lips without hesitation, but with a shy look. Fire flared up in Obi's chest, a fire that he had suppressed and repressed for so long. Shirayuki looked at him sheepishly and bit her lip. "I'm sorry I-" But Obi had now lost all self-control. He rose, sat down on the bed next to the miss, and gently pressed her head onto her pillow while tenderly stroking her lower lip with his thumb.

Shirayuki's heart flipped over so much that she thought Obi must be able to see it with the naked eye. There he was, bending over her with a passionate yet tender gaze - the man she loved. It felt so good to finally be able to think that, without the stinging remorse. "My miss," Obi whispered, and the roughness of his deep voice made her heart trip. He leaned down to her and gently kissed her cheek. Shirayuki closed her eyes in excited anticipation but... nothing happened. Confused, she opened her eyes and turned her head to the side. Obi's head rested on her pillow, his eyes were closed and he was... snoring softly? Indeed. Shirayuki looked at him smiling as he lay there so exhausted and peacefully sleeping. All the excitement of the last days and everything that had happened... The poor guy had probably gotten as little sleep as she had and had additionally ridden for hours looking for her. 'My prince...', she thought, gently caressing his cheek and then, very quietly so as not to wake him, lay down at an appropriate distance on the other side of her bed and was asleep within seconds.