Arthur was sitting in the throne room, enjoying the rare peaceful moment that was prevailing in the throne room. His serenity was however interrupted by Fyodor, who almost burst into the throne room with a scroll in his hand.
"My liege, I believe I have found a solution to Chuuya-kun's suitor problem." He said, his voice smooth like dripping honey.
"You have? Do tell me, Dostoevsky-kun." Arthur asked.
Fyodor unrolled the scroll in his hand and read out loud,
"The prince must be wed to an appropriate suitor before his 18th birthday. If the prince is unable to find a suitor, the king must choose one for him."
"But Chuuya hated all the suitors I picked for him." Arthur interrupted.
"Allow me to finish, my liege. If the prince still hasn't accepted a suitor, then he would be wed to... My, my...very interesting..." Fyodor trailed off.
"Who?" Arthur almost pleaded.
"The Royal Vizier. That would be...me." Fyodor finished, smiling smarmily.
"What? I thought the law clearly stated that..." Arthur reached his hand out to get the scroll but Fyodor thrust his staff in front of the king's face.
"Desperate times call for desperate measures, my liege." Fyodor purred silkily and the king fell into a hypnotised trance.
"Chuuya will be wed to me," Fyodor commanded.
"Chuuya will be...but Chuuya hates you!" Arthur momentarily fell out of his daze. Fyodor pushed his staff even further and demanded,
"Chuuya will be married to me!"
Arthur tried to parrot his words, but they were interrupted by fanfare in the distance. Arthur slid out of his throne and stood on the balcony. Below him was the entirety of Yokohama. The people on the streets all turned their heads towards the source of the noise.
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Trumpets blew and music blared all around the street as Atsushi led the entire parade towards the castle.
"Make way for Prince Shuuji!
Say hey, it's Prince Shuuji!"
Atsushi sang as he leapt forward. The rest of the parade sang after him, men showing their sword-fighting skills and women dancing down the street.
"Hey! Clear the way in the old Bazaar
Hey you, let us through it's a brand-new star
Oh, come be the first on your block to meet his eye,"
Arthur glanced at the parade with a smile on his face from the palace balcony.
"Make way, here he comes
Ring bells, bang the drums
You're gonna love this guy!"
The spectators who had come out of their shops to see the parade grinned. This one was the best they'd seen yet! Atsushi smiled as he saw that everyone was enjoying the show he'd put on.
"Prince Shuuji, fabulous he, Shuuji Tsushima
Show some respect, boy, genuflect, down on one knee
Now, try your best to stay calm
Brush up your Friday salaam
Then come and meet his spectacular coterie,"
Dazai appeared from behind the parade, standing steadily on the black dragon, who was none other than Akutagawa. Dazai smiled dashingly at the crowd, clearly preening under the attention.
"Prince Shuuji, handsome is he, Shuuji Tsushima
That physique! How can I speak?
Weak at my knees! You yummy boy
So get on out in that square
Adjust your veil and prepare
To gawk and grovel and stare at Prince Shuuji,"
Dazai flexed his beanpole arms, not even trying to hide the fact that he had no muscles, at all. Atsushi, who felt the second-hand embarrassment from below, magicked him so that he could have at least some muscles. The parade continued up into the castle, and Arthur welcomed them with a kind smile and open arms. Fyodor though, was not pleased with this situation, not one bit.
"Prince Shuuji, amorous he, Shuuji Tsushima
Heard your prince was hot! Where is he?
And that, good people, is why
He got all cute and dropped by!"
Atsushi sprang forward and shook hands with the king, as Shuuji hopped onto Ranpo and floated down. Atsushi finished his stunning entrance with these final words,
"Prince Shuuji Tsushima, right before your eyes!
Dazai got down from the carpet and bowed before the king.
"Allow me to introduce myself properly," He started, pitching his voice just right so that he sounded warm and delighted.
"Your parade did that part splendidly, I'm sure," Arthur said, smiling at the prince.
"It would be rude not to do so by myself. I'm Shuuji Tsushima, and I've come from afar to seek the hand of your prince in marriage." Dazai introduced himself.
"I am Arthur Rimbaud, but I assume you're aware?"
"Yes, of course, Your Highness."
"I am very delighted to see you, after your splendid show. This is my Royal Vizier Fyodor Dostoevsky, and I'm sure he's pleased to meet you as well."
"Ecstatic," Fyodor replied in a dead tone.
They exchanged pleasantries for a while before the topic finally moved on to Chuuya.
"Chuuya would be thrilled to meet you, Prince Tsushima," Arthur stated.
"I must advise against this, Your Highness, This boy seems very suspicious to me," Fyodor said, but his caution was drowned out by Dazai, who said,
"I'm sure I would be able to win over the heart of my dear prince, Your Highness."
Chuuya, who had been standing at the doorway to his chamber, listening to them talk about his life decisions, angrily yelled,
"How dare you! You think I'm a prize to be won?!"
He turned around and stormed off, leaving a stunned Dazai and a forlorn Arthur to themselves. Fyodor was mentally preparing five different ways to get rid of Shuuji.
"Leave him to cool down, I'm sure he'll like you," Arthur said tiredly.
"Of course. I completely understand," Dazai replied solemnly as they walked out of the throne room.
Fyodor, who had finally selected a good plan to eliminate Shuuji smiled wickedly as he whispered,
"I think it's time to say goodbye, Prince Shuuji."
Author's Note: Hello everyone, I know I was gone for a long time, but now I'm back! I think I'll be able to finish the drafts for this story in a few weeks and from then on you can expect frequent updates! Pease look forward to them!!
