Heaven's Will

Chapter 8

  A few weeks passed by. Spring was finally starting to arrive, much to Mafumafu's excitement. Day by day more flowers in the garden were budding, getting ready to bloom. He sometimes sang them songs, thinking it'd help speed up the process. During those weeks, though, his life returned to its usual monotonous pace. Mafumafu woke up, greeted his parents, completed his studies, and went back to sleep. It was almost like the excitement of meeting Soraru and sneaking out never happened.

Sol still came to visit him every day. Mafumafu appreciated the company, but a small part of him was unsatisfied. Sitting in the garden and talking for an hour or two just wasn't enough anymore. He wanted to leave the palace and see the rest of Sol's friends again. Even though Mafumafu still didn't really remember anything about them, he thought it'd be fun to hang out with a group again. It'd certainly be more entertaining than staying in the palace all day. But every time he asked Sol about it, Sol would wave off the comment and make some excuse about his friends being very busy people. Once Mafumafu had made the mistake of asking about Soraru, and Sol had acted very curt and annoyed for the rest of the day. That was the last time Mafumafu brought Soraru up in their conversations.

Today was just another repetition of his boring routine. Mafumafu got out of bed, threw on some comfortable clothes, and headed down to the dining room to eat breakfast. He pushed his food around his plate absently, only half listening to the conversation his parents and a few servants were having. It wasn't until someone mentioned going out to prepare for the Springtime Celebration that Mafumafu looked up.

"Can I go with you?" Mafumafu asked.

Everyone turned to look at him. Mafumafu shrunk a bit under their gazes.

"Mafumafu, there's no reason for you to go into town just to pick up supplies. Leave that to the servants," the Queen said.

"I know, but I was just thinking... maybe it'd be nice to see how other people prepare for the celebration? I could learn more about the citizens this way. It might help me lead them better," Mafumafu said, trying to come up with a believable excuse.

His parents considered this for a moment.

"While I have no problem with you wanting to know more about our kingdom's citizens, it's too dangerous for you to go into town with only the servants," the King responded.

"Then I'll take one of the guards with me," Mafumafu said as he stood up. He looked around, his gaze landing on the young guard positioned by the dining hall's entrance. "Sou-san! You'll come with me, right?"

Sou jumped at suddenly being called. "What? I mean, yes, of course. Whatever you want, Prince."

Mafumafu grinned and looked back at his parents expectantly. They still seemed a little unsure.

"Can I please go? I haven't gone anywhere in a long time. I promise I'll be super careful, and Sou-san will be there to keep me safe the entire time," Mafumafu begged.

The King sighed. "Alright, you may go. But don't be out long."

Mafumafu's grin broadened as he ran over to Sou. "Come on, Sou-san, let's go."

"Slow down please, Prince. Shouldn't we wait for everyone else to get ready?" Sou pointed out.

Mafumafu ignored his comment and continued to drag him down the hall. The King and Queen shook their heads.

"Make sure he doesn't get into any trouble, alright?" the Queen said to one of the servants.

The servant nodded. "Of course. We'll always keep him in our sight."