Cinderella (Counterpartshipping fic)

Chapter #6

"Prince Yuto. Prince Yuto, it's time to wake up." Yuto groaned and rolled over, pulling his pillow over his head. Something suddenly pounced on him, trying to yank the pillow from off his head. Yuto growled low in his throat as a warning, his fingers clenching tighter on the pillow. "Prince Yuto, please wake up. Don't make me get Yugo in here. If Yugo has to wake you up, you know it won't be a pleasant experience." The pillow was taken away from him rather forcefully then and whatever it was that had pounced on him was now bouncing up and down on the bed. Yuto groaned again and rolled onto his back. A face was thrust into his view then. Vivid golden eyes stared down at him as a smile lit the person's face.

"Good morning Yuto!" The girl chirped. A tall blond and blue haired man with warm blue eyes was standing at the side of the bed, watching the two of them. It was Kite, one of his father's most trusted royal advisors. Kite was a kind man, but he was stern when it came to discipline. The girl, Ali, had been under Kite's care since she had been brought to the palace when she was five. She and Yuto had been best friends ever since.

"Good morning Ali. Good morning Kite." Yuto said. Ali giggled and jumped off the bed. Yuto stared at her as she jumped up and down in place. Just where the hell did this girl get all her energy? Yuto sat up, shaking his head.

"It's time to get dressed, Prince Yuto." Kite said. Yuto looked at them, rubbing his grey eyes sleepily.

"Why are you getting me up so early?" Yuto asked. Ali pouted and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You mean you forgot? Yuto, you promised to go horseback riding with me today. You said so before you left yesterday." Ali said. Yuto blinked.

"Oh, right. Sorry Ali, it slipped my mind." Yuto said, giving the girl a warm smile. She giggled and pounced on him again, hugging him.

"Don't forget the ball tonight either, my Prince. Your father has high hopes for tonight." Kite piped in. Yuto groaned again.

"Yeah, yeah. I remember the ball. Can you two go on? I'll meet you at the stables once I'm dressed." Yuto said. Kite nodded and bowed, grabbing Ali by the arm and dragging her from the prince's room. Once they were gone, Yuto got out of his bed and went to his wardrobe to find something suitable to wear. He settled on a pair of white pants with his shin-high black boots and a black shirt that ruffled once more at the sleeves. He left his room then and walked down the halls, raising one hand to his mouth as a yawn escaped his lips. Inside, Yuto was as happy as could be. He couldn't wait until tonight. Surely Yuya would be there and then he could let the whole world know he'd found his true love.

Yuto exited the palace a moment later and headed down to the stables. Kite and Ali were waiting patiently when he finally made his presence known. Ali waved to him excitedly. He gave her a small wave back and stopped in front of Kite. Ali skipped around the stables, looking at all the horses. She wanted to pick the very best one for her lesson and she looked back at them with a smile once she had stopped in front of a lovely red mare.

"I want Flare here. Can I ride her?" Ali asked. Kite nodded.

"She's pretty gentle. I think you can handle her." Yuto replied.

"Which one will you take?" Ali asked, directing her question to Kite. Kite pointed to a pretty smoke colored stallion. Yuto had already brought out his own horse, Anukete. She was a medium sized, beautiful black horse. They all mounted their respective horses and left the stables, heading for the riding trails. Ali was having only a little trouble, so Yuto rode beside her and coached her. Kite trailed behind the two so that if there were any problems, he could step in and help Ali too. Ali was soon getting the hang of it after a few pointers from Yuto, so Yuto thought they should go a little faster. He helped her get her horse to trot and they went further down the trails, Kite sticking to their heels. After a while they slowed back down to a walk, admiring the scenery as they passed it by.