Fate: The End of War

2: It All Falls Down

Leo

I was led to a room with smaller stalls in it, and the king left. He came back with a black and white kimono in hand, with white flowers on the black cloth. The clothing was odd, as it looked like a dress, but he had insisted that this traditional wear was meant for both men and women to wear. Having been taught what I assumed were only lies about the nation of Hoshido, I believed him, and took the kimono in to put on. The king stepped out as I did so, but partway through, the door was slid open again by a very vocal Takumi, who started calling out to me to hurry up, though he was a couple years younger, and a foot or two shorter.

Luckily I was just about completely dressed when he entered to command me to hurry, and I slipped into the sleeves of the kimono. I looked into the mirror for a second and was surprised as how oddly fitting the kimono looked on me, and how soft and silky it felt. I heard Takumi speak behind me, whatever he said was illegible to me, but he looked at me and said it again. I shook my head and opened the door, wondering if he was talking in the kingdom's native tongue.

Sumeragi had been waiting for us to be ready, and turned to face us. I had noticed he had kept his armor on and attempted to point it out. He shook his head.

"No matter the occasion, a king must keep his armor on, especially in this time of war, there is too much of a risk of attack."

"Then why do you celebrate, no matter the risk?" I asked, feeling that there was a gap in reason.

Sumeragi thought, as us three started to walk down the hallway to meet up with Hinoka and Ryoma. He eventually opened his mouth again, and responded, "That would be robbing our kingdom of traditions because of conflicts. Tell me, do you know about the Festival of Bonds?"

The Festival of Bonds, I thought, I've only heard stories of that celebration. I looked over and shook my head.

"Never? That's quite disappointing. It was a celebration where the nations came together and celebrated the similarities between one another, no matter if there was war or peace." He explained to me, and I finally understood his point.

"Big brother!" Takumi bumped into me and ran down the hall, to where Ryoma, Hinoka, and another woman, with red-pink hair, holding an infant were. He hugged his older brother, and turned to Sumeragi and I. "Hurry up, slowpoke!" He yelled, prompting me to quicken my pace, in an attempt to respect their time. The woman behind the two royals looked over at me. She smiled, and bowed slightly.

"Hello." She greeted, adding to my confusion. She laughed slightly and she added, "You look nice in that kimono, prince Leo."

"Th-thank you?" I managed, questions raising about the friendliness of these royals towards me. I was an enemy, why am I accompanying them to a celebration?

I was thrown from my questions as the woman, dressed in a white kimono, said, "I am Queen Ikona." Takumi pulled away from Ryoma and went over to his mother, who crouched down and affectionately rubbed his head. As she crouched down, I was able to see the child she held in her arms clearly. She was a very small one, already with a full head of pink hair like her mother's. Her darker brown eyes were open, and I felt that she was staring directly at me. Ikona soon stood up, and looked at me again. She then held the child out to me so I could see her clearly.

Her eyes closed again and she seemed sound asleep.

"Her name is Sakura." Hinoka spoke as she came over near me. She still had little trust in me, and I understood why.

"Like the blossoms on those trees?" I asked, and Hinoka nodded in response. It seemed a fitting name, I thought, I wasn't sure why, but it did.

Everyone was drawn out from looking at the new life by King Sumeragi clearing his throat. He had went ahead while we all were distracted. "There's less than an hour left before it starts. Let us get going."

"Of course." Queen Ikona got up onto her feet and walked ahead to Sumeragi's side. He wrapped an arm around her before planting a kiss on her lips, and let go, to stroke their new daughter's head, and plant another kiss on her forehead.

Yet with the kind-hearted mood this area was in, I couldn't help but feel a knot of dread form in my stomach.
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We were in the throne room of the castle, a massive place, all up around the throne where the Queen sat, the King standing beside her. I watched as the many Hoshidans started to enter in. Each held some form of gift, from food to drink to clothing and everything between. While some gifts were for the King, Queen, and their children, each Hoshidan was gifting one another. I saw a man gift a child with a new kimono. The child was wearing old, worn out clothing, and seemed to appreciate the gift. There was music, song, and mostly a calming and joyous air about the place.

A few individuals came in late.

A man with paler skin and somewhat messy black hair, dressed in an Onymoji's robing, and a few Diviners. The Onymoji looked familiar to me, yet, I couldn't place my tongue on why. The celebration continued late into the night, and by the time I could barely keep my eyes open, I had been given multiple flowers adorning myself, as the Hoshidans paid little mind to me as opposition.

I had walked into the crowd to get a feel for the foreign sensation that radiated through. Soon enough, the feeling of the knot in my stomach came back, and I went back to the throne in an attempt to communicate my unease. I went up to the throne to speak to the Queen, and as soon as I opened my mouth to emit an utter, a scream erupted through the crowd.

I turned in time to see a dagger fly through the parting crowd, and in my frozen fear, the dagger launched past me, and I felt something warm hit the side of my face. Liquid. I touched my face, and pulled my fingers away. Blood. The Queen! I turned to her, and saw her still, and unresponsive. Sumeragi had already leapt into action and drew the Raijinto, running into the crowd to fight.

Through her chest had went the dagger, killing her instantly. I glanced to Takumi, whose expression screamed trauma, and he was frozen there. The Hoshidans who had no weapons attempted to run, as more Nohrian soldiers entered to back up the assailants. A Diviner's weapon skidded over to me, and I slowly picked it up, and noticed that a Nohrian soldier had gotten up behind Takumi, and raised his lance to strike.

"Prince Takumi!" I shouted, the words barely escaping my lips as I ran toward the defenseless prince and shoved him out of the way. The lance grazed my side, drawing blood, and tearing the kimono. Without hesitation and on complete instinct, I raised the weapon in my hand, and it drifted out, becoming the multiple charms that danced in front of a Diviner. The soldier realized who he had attacked, and his expression grew terrified, as a red oxen exited the ring, and stampeded through his chest, killing him.

The sounds of the battle around me blurred into silence, as I could hear my heartbeat pounding in my ears. The soldier remained still, and I was once again frozen. I had killed a man, I had thought in terror, and not just that, a Nohrian man. Something moved in front of me, as fire blasted across to both sides of me. Ryoma had blocked a Fire spell from hitting me, and Hinoka had swiftly stabbed the mage with her naginata. He looked back at me, and ordered me to run. I complied, running to the doors next to the throne, before I paused, hearing crying, I looked to the queen's body, seeing that the infantile princess Sakura was still laying there. I hesitated for a second, before grabbing the child, and escaping with her out the door.
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It was at that time that Iago had noticed that Leo escaped into the castle's interior. Assuming he was a Hoshidan trying to escape, he looked to an Outlaw beside him and ordered, "That rat's escaping. After him, leave no survivors!" The outlaw nodded and went after him. At the same time Leo had ducked into a room and took cover in a closet in the messy room, trying to calm the sobbing infant in his arms.