look at the end of the fic for my apology on the lack of updates omg

How do you tell someone that you don't know what happened? Because Akihito didn't. One second he was bleeding, Hiroomi's face blurring in and out of his vision - and the next, he was shakily watching his blood drip from his fingers, slowly and dramatically, like a single raindrop falling from cloudy skies. He didn't know what to tell Izumi. He didn't know what to tell Mitsuki. She would find him and know - she had always seen right through him, known immediately when something was wrong. And now it wasn't just written all over his face. It was written in the dark red liquid lazily dripping from his hands. It was written in the way he couldn't look at his fingers, in how his nails curled into his arms so tightly that his blood mixed with Hiroomi's. It was written everywhere he looked and he couldn't face her. He couldn't face anyone. He couldn't even face his own guilt.

The first thing that he noticed was the lack of blood. It had all been cleared away, leaving the dark stone floors the same moldy shade they were, before everything happened. But the girl was still looking at the ground as if the blood was there, hands shaking as she stared at the tiles. The night had not changed her posture or horror-filled expression, and it seemed as though she had not moved at all.

It's not like Akihito didn't understand, because he did. After everything that happened with Prince Hiroomi, he still felt like throwing up whenever he looked at his hands, saw the phantom blood staining his fingers - so he didn't look anymore. Instead, he chose watch the girl and the circles that stained her eyes. It looked as if she hadn't slept at all.

Akihito could imagine what would happen if he tried to talk to her, but he couldn't just leave her there to suffer quietly. Her silence was like a blaring alarm in his head - because he had been exactly where she was now.

"Um, hey," He coughed. His voice was usable now. It sounded less like gravel was being poured down his throat and more like someone with a bad cough. But that wasn't to say that it didn't scratch at his throat anytime he tried to speak.

She barely glanced up at him, but Akihito could see the red around her eyes accenting the dark patches of blue. Crying and lack of sleep, then.

"Are you okay?" He started again, and then flinched. Why the hell would he ask that? It would be obvious to anyone that she was not okay - she was broken. Ripped apart inside. Destroyed. Every other synonym that could even possibly apply. "I'm sorry," Akihito said, before she could even say anything in response. "Not a good question. I'll start over. How about we go from the beginning?" He was babbling, but she was listening, and so Akihito took that as his cue to continue. "What's your name?"

The most basic of questions, except he still didn't know the answer.

"Mirai. Mirai Kuriyama." She whispered, voice just as destroyed and thin as she looked. Hers matched Akihito's in terms of roughness now, although for the opposite reason - Akihito had had nothing to say and no one to talk to for years. Mirai spent all night sobbing and it reached the same point.

"Hello, Mirai." Akihito said, pleased to finally have a name to put to her beautiful face. "It's a pleasure to finally correctly meet you."

Mirai didn't say anything, although her eyes lowered and Akihito could tell this wasn't something she agreed on.

Dragging a hand through his matted and messy hair, Akihito pondered over Mirai. It had been a long time since something had happened to him - and although he was still tired and hungry and filthy, having something to focus on was a far cry from where he before. Focus kept him alert and in control, and that kept his demons at bay.

He wasn't even really sure what he looked like anymore. Mitsuki often brought a mirror when she came to visit, but it'd been a while since she traveled down the stone steps that separated the light of the great castle to the cramped confines of the jail. Why the Princess took the time to visit, Akihito could only guess. He imagined it was her love of calling him names, if nothing else.

He glanced back over at Mirai, who was rubbing at the speckled bandages on her palm and fiddling with the tears in her white dress. Well, her used-to-be white dress. Even just a night on the dirty stone floors had covered it in black patches, staining the fabric and leaving only spots of white, like stars amongst a cloudy gray sky.

"So, Mirai," he started, and then stopped. Akihito knew what he wanted to ask - What'd you do to end up here - but he also knew that that wouldn't go over well. He cleared his throat to speak again, but was interrupted.

"Just stop," Mirai ground out, clutching at the folds of fabric pooling around her knees. "Just, just stop this! Whatever this is - you trying to be nice to me - stop. It'll only end in pain for both of us."

"More pain than now?" Akihito resisted the urge to laugh. Years in a dungeon did that to you - replaced humor with cynicism.

Mirai opened her mouth, but quickly closed it as footsteps echoed down the stairs.

Princess Mitsuki came rushing down the steps, overloaded with a pile of things in her strong grip- old, flattened pillows, stained blankets, worn books, loaves of stale bread. Things that she could smuggle without anyone missing or questioning her about.

It all looked wholeheartedly out of place, the cluster of old mismatched objects against her fresh and beautiful clothes. Her midnight-black hair had been braided and looped into a perfect bun, bangs peeking from underneath her small, silver crown. Her dress was a deep purple, as rich and full as a plum. The layers of velvet pooled around her feet and slid across the dusty floor as she made her way to the two of them, corset tight against her waist and crystal jewels biting into her skin.

"Here," She unceremoniously tossed Akihito a hard chunk of bread, purposefully aiming for his head - which she hit.

"Thanks, Princess," Akihito grinned, tight-lipped at her throw but still enormously grateful. He hadn't had a holiday celebration in years, but for him, Mitsuki's visits were like a holiday in their own way. The few times that he received enough food to quell his hunger and enough warmth to curb the chill of the tiles. in their own way. Quickly, he ripped off a piece of his bread and stuffed it in his mouth, ignoring how desperate he might look. He was, in fact, desperate, so it wasn't like it really mattered.

"Don't call me that," Mitsuki snapped, ever on the offensive, even as her face remained impassive.

"Sure. Princess."

She huffed, but let it go when she noticed the blood staining his fingers and the utter paleness of his skin.

"Again?" She asked quietly, and it was all that Akihito could do to nod. She looked down, eyes unreadable. Akihito always had trouble getting a handle on what Mitsuki was feeling. She liked to guard her emotions as much as her family guarded their secrets. "How long ago?" She asked.

"Not as recent as you think - the blood, it's from something else." He averted his eyes quickly to Mirai in the other cell, and Mitsuki's expression made it clear that she understood.

Glancing back at Mirai, Akihito noticed the slight trembling of her shoulders and the way her fingers curled around her thin arms for warmth. Grabbing one of the thin blankets Mitsuki had brought him, Akihito shoved it between the iron bars for her, placing a piece of his bread on top. Then, for good measure, he shoved one of the new books Mitsuki had brought him at her - maybe they wouldn't talk to each other if that's what Mirai wanted, but Akihito knew that sometimes the best solution was an escape. No matter how boring an escape it may be, he noted, glancing at the title of the book he had haphazardly grabbed - The History, Growth, and Care of Bonsai in Thirty Easy Chapters.

"Thank you," Mirai quietly ground out, glancing at Akihito. Turning to Mitsuki, she hastily lowered her head, a faint blush on her cheeks and hair covering her eyes. "Princess Mitsuki," She whispered. "Thank you for your kindness. Both in these gifts, and, um, my lack of death."

Mitsuki raised an eyebrow and glanced at Akihito, who frowned.

"Did you think we would kill you?" Mitsuki asked, straight to the point, as always.

Mirai suddenly looked even more uncomfortable, if it was possible. She seemed to shrink into herself, fingers frantically tapping against her knees, gracefully dancing around as she panicked.

"Well, yes," She replied honestly, her voice small, scared, and embarrassed. Akihito felt something crack inside of him - his feelings, probably. Mirai, from all that he had seen, was beautiful and strong, but believed neither of these things were true. It pained him to see someone that stunning believe otherwise.

Mitsuki frowned, eyes boring into Mirai's. Mirai was the first to look away, averting her hazel eyes as a blush formed on her cheeks from the intensity of Mitsuki's gaze.

"We certainly wouldn't." She frowned. "At least, my brother and I wouldn't allow it."

Akihito breathed out a sigh of relief. For all of her teasing, Mitsuki had a good heart, and knew how to use it. She was truly deserving of the title of Princess. She would make a good Queen, he thought, feeling oddly proud. Quickly, he scrubbed that feeling out. He needed to stop trying to connect himself to Princess Mitsuki so much. They couldn't, and would likely never, be friends, Akihito reminded himself. He almost killed her brother. He was a prisoner, holy hell. That wasn't a likely scenario.

"Besides," Mitsuki's voice cut through his thoughts. "If we let this idiot live -" She jerked a finger in Akihito's direction, and he narrowed his eyes, though his glare contained no real malice - "We certainly wouldn't do anything of such horrible consequence to you, who is almost certainly better at everything than this pervert."

"Gee, thanks." Akihito said dryly.

"Anytime." Mitsuki smiled. In his mind, Akihito quickly took back the statement about her being a good queen.

The playful attitude ended when Mitsuki turned away from Mirai to face Akihito head-on.

"What's wrong?" He asked, a feeling of dread pooling in his stomach. Mitsuki had her 'no-nonsense and no-shit' look, meaning she was about to deliver some cold, hard truth to him.

"You haven't heard." She stated.

"I am currently in jail, in the deepest dungeon in your castle, so, no, not so much."

She ignored his sarcasm. Akihito snapped into focus. Mitsuki never ignored a jab or sass - it was simply not in her nature. This had to be serious, then. "It's the Hollow Shadow." She started, and Akihito felt fear gather in his chest. "It's back."

A fearful squeak from the cell over let Akihito know that Mirai knew exactly what they were talking about.

"When?" He asked.

"Tonight. The sky is already turning darker. All of the citizens are in total unrest. It's chaos outside."

He groaned, slamming his forehead into his knees. Akihito ran his hands through his papery-thin blonde hair, trying to focus. "The jail is warded," he recalled, turning to face Mitsuki again. "There's no way it could reach down here, right? If I get possessed -"

Mitsuki nodded solemnly - she knew what would happen. The entire Nase family did.

"It shouldn't be able to get down here." She agreed. "But stranger things have happened." Mitsuki glanced out the small window, taking notice of the dropping sun. "Just - just don't let anything happen, alright? If you cause destruction tonight, it'll get out to the kingdom. We can't control every bit of information that gets released, and everyone is shaken up already. I don't want to have to..." She trailed off, and cleared her throat. "I don't want to have to take drastic measures, alright? Don't put us through that. Just stay awake and calm and don't do anything."

She turned around quickly, shoving the rest of the basket of leftovers into Akihito's hands. He thought he heard a hoarse whisper of "Please," come from her throat as she turned, but he couldn't be sure. "Just stay low, alright?" She then called out loudly, turning to face him one last time from the steps of the stone staircase.

"I can't really get much lower," Akihito noted. "I'm literally in the deepest floor of your dungeon."

Mitsuki's stare was enough to make him stop talking.

And with that farewell glare - a phrase that embodied her better than anything else Akihito had ever heard - Mitsuki was gone just as fast as she came, her starlit dress trailing after her as she disappeared up the stairs.

Nothing left evidence of her even being there, except for the clear patch of ground where the dust had been pushed away and the small stack of old books, blankets, food, and water she had delivered. Quickly sifting through the treasures, Akihito separated the blankets, food, and water, pushing some more provisions across to Mirai. He certainly wouldn't make her suffer with just half a slice of stale bread while he feasted on the rest. Even though it pained him to give away food with his stomach angrily protesting, seeing Mirai happy - or at least, not hungry - would be worth it.

His offerings were left untouched, and Akihito glanced up at the girl in question. Dread pooled in his stomach as he remembered her squeak at the mention of the Hollow Shadow. She obviously had a history with the creature, and while he didn't want to dredge up bad memories, it would be nearly impossible to avoid talking about it.

Mirai looked haunted. The circles underneath her eyes seemed to stand out more than before, dark as the night sky against her white skin, which had gone about ten shades paler through the course of the conversation. Her hands were shaking and she was fiddling with the bandages tightly wrapped across her palm, never undoing them but constantly pulling, as if she wished to take them off but couldn't. Remembering the blood sword from before, Akihito realized that maybe she really couldn't just pull them off without consequence.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, not knowing where else to start.

She whipped her head around, hair flying in her face in strawberry strands. "Talk about what?" She whispered, as if someone would overhear.

"Whatever you're so scared of - did you think I wouldn't notice your reaction to the name 'Hollow Shadow'? So, I'm wondering if you want to talk about it."

"No." She answered simply, leaving no room for argument. Akihito knew better than to push. He quickly searched his mind for another topic, at least something to take her mind off of whatever it was that she was focused on.

"Where are you from?" He asked out of the blue, realizing that he didn't actually know.

"What?"

"What kingdom?" He clarified.

"Um..."

"You don't know?"

"I wasn't exactly taught much as a child! Honestly, I was mostly alone for a very long time." She puffed, cheeks flushed. "I was in whatever kingdom the Inamis rule. I was sent here because it has a better prison, more equipped to deal with someone like me." She spat out the last part as though the words were acid in her mouth.

"Alright," Akihito decided, turning to face the beautiful girl head-on, looking her in the eyes. "You need to know these things. We'll talk more about the Hollow Shadow and everything you won't tell me later -" He pointedly glared at her, channeling his best 'Mitsuki look' to show how serious he was about this topic. "But for now, I think you need some education on the ways of the world, since you've clearly been isolated for most of your life."

"A tower," She shrugged, eyes staring into space. "I just lived there, until one day Yui climbed up and brought me down with her. After that I became her servant, and I'd like to think, her best friend."

Akihito stayed quiet for a moment out of respect and sadness. Whatever happened with Princess Yui Inami, this moment was not the time to pry. In the end, it was up to Mirai when she felt that he could be trusted with her secrets - though that wouldn't stop him from asking later.

"The kingdom," He started after she cleared her throat and glanced up at him. "The one we're in now, is the Center Rule. It's led by the Nase family - Queen Izumi, Prince Hiroomi, and Princess Mitsuki. You just met her, obviously. The kingdom to the east, or the East Rule, is where you lived. It's led by Princess Yui's parents and Princess Sakura, although you know that. The Kingdom just below, the South Rule, is led by Princess Ai and Queen Ayaka. Then there's the North Rule, which is led by..."

He trailed off, not really sure how much of himself he wanted to divulge to her. "Queen Yayoi. And in the west," Akihito hastily added, partially to get off of the topic of the Northern Rule and partially because it was important Mirai know this - "the west is dangerous. There's just the Boundary. No one really wants to go there, since it's suspected that that's where the youmu - things like the Hollow Shadow - that's where they manifest and do their work. There's a lot of rumors - bright lights, men with many arms, echoes of past lives - it's all compiled and stuffed into the idea of the 'Boundary'. That's how we get the Calm, too. A lot of the religion is actually very based off of that one place, actually. If -" Akihito swallowed. "When you're released, I would steer clear of there in particular."

Mirai had been watching him intently, hanging onto his every word - knowledge was a rare thing when you didn't have anyone to learn from. But with the mention of her eventual release, Akihito could see the world come slamming back onto her shoulders. The illusion that they were normal people, casually talking together was shattered. Suddenly she was a prisoner again, and he was her cellmate, and they were just a pair of monsters in the dungeon where they belonged.

The guards found her quickly. It would be hard not to, she rationalized. There was blood everywhere, and her own sobs must be louder than the rain pounding outside. She couldn't even see clearly; her vision was too obstructed by tears, blurring the dark red carpet of blood around her. They came in groups, armor clanking loudly - but still, not louder than her tears. They came, and then they stopped. She didn't turn around and she didn't see them, but she could only imagine the horror on their faces as they took in the scene - the dead princess, bloodied and ruined, with her best friend crying over the body. With the murder weapon in hand.

hey so i know it's been forever! i am so absolutely sorry for the lack of updates. i know that no excuse is really any good, but in way of explanation, i had a lot going on in my life. add major writer's block to that and you get my absence. i did write a longer chapter than usual, if that makes it better!

on the bright side, i did spend that time figuring out exactly where i want this story to go, so the main plot is now being set up. i tried to get in some big akkey / mitsuki frienship and the start of some akirai in this chapter plus some explanation as to the world this takes place in? i was halfway through writing this when i realized i hadn't properly explained how the kingdoms worked yet. whoops.

so, yeah, let me know what you think of the chapter! your reviews honestly fuel my desire to write, which is nice for both me and you guys!