"Hiyori is a princess who doesn't exactly act like she is supposed to. She lacks any grace and talent and is a mere burden to the kingdo-..."
"SHUT UP! He's the pitiful genie who destroyed my life, by the way! I regret ever finding his stupid lamp!"...
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Daikoku, one of the royal guards, hurried along the halls, heading to the center of the ruckus. It seemed to be coming from the princess' chamers, something rather unusual since the last few days... And even more unusual was the voice he recognized talking, it belonged to the sultan himself! Maybe the princess had finally come back? Daikoku could already hear the sultan's anger from a great distance: "You should be ashamed of yourself to bring such disgrace over our entire kingdom, I never want to see your face here again!" "Oh no", the guard thought, "even if she overdid it this time, the princess doesn't deserve such harsh treatment! In his rage, the sultan isn't thinking straight!" He was in no position to discuss with him but he could always ask if something was the matter, so Daikoku approached the scene slowly. He didn't plan to see, instead of the princess, the maid Kofuku kneeling on the ground next to princess Hiyori's crown and in the middle of clothes scattered everywhere. Sultan Iki raised his voice again: "I bet you know where she is at the moment! Maybe you even convinced her to leave so you could rummage in her room and steal her precious garments!" The maid shook her head in terror, explaining in a quivering voice: "No, your highness, certainly not! I swear on my life, I neither know where the princess is nor did I intend to benefit from her absence! Please don't let me go, I have no other place in the world but here!" Daikoku had heard enough. He cleared his throat and stepped bravely next to Kofuku, bowing before he spoke: "Forgive me for interrupting this conversation, your highness, but I think this maid is telling the truth. If I recall correctly, she and the princess have been friends for a very long time now and so her highest priority would naturally be the wellbeing of our beloved princess. Just like princess Hiyori wouldn't want any harm to befall her loved ones..." Sultan Iki forrowed his brows in wonder. His daughter would've never forgiven him if he had sent the maid away, maybe his accusations had been a bit rash. He waited, listening to Kofuku's next observation: "The only thing I noticed is that the princess didn't look too happy the last time I saw her. It seemed like something had upset her. If I had known she would escape the palace I would have talked to her about it sooner, however, I thought she might need some time for herself... I am truly sorry I was unable to hold her back." The sultan nodded and sighed, hanging his head slightly as he told her: "I have to apologize and thank you both for your patience, I think my behaviour was very unfitting for a ruler who should especially keep a clear head inside all this chaos." As he took leave, probably to talk with his wife about their daughter's motives, Daikoku released a sigh of relieve. It had never been this close for Kofuku to be fired. She was always such a little sunshine who couldn't be brought down by anything but now she resembled a hurt baby bunny, sitting in a pile of clothes that didn't belong to her and holding the princess' left-behind crown in her small hands. It was as clear as day that she missed her friend. Daikoku decided to give her some space and walked one step away from his spot until he heard the maid's voice again: "She always hated this crown and would never wear it. That's why she told me I could keep it and all the fine dresses too since she didn't need them anyway, even when I refused several times. We'd dress up as each other and laugh at the guards' reaction while running around the palace and knocking on every door we could find, or steal food from the kitchen and bring it to the hard working people around here... You are one of these selfless guys who protect the weak, you know? Thank you for standing up for me, I really owe you a lot!" Daikoku was blushing a little, the maid he had secretly observed for a while now was finally talking to him, but he'd never wanted her to owe him anything. So he shook his head and said: "It's only my job to keep an eye on everyone and to protect them." "So you've been keeping an eye on me all the time?", Kofuku replied delighted, "That's why you know I'd never betray Hiyori-... I-I mean... The princess! This is so sweet of you! It's the first time someone besides the princess actually cares about me!" The guard didn't need to stutter an answer since Kofuku instantly threw herself into his arms and almost hugged him to death. Doing the right thing had never felt this warm before.
