The kimono behind Aiko fluttered like soft butterflies. It flickered delicately.

Aiko's maids scuttled in front of her. They bowed down in front of the royal couple and opened the doors to the Myth Room. Aiko smiled at them discreetly as she passed, feeling secure that they were there with her. The maids smiled as they looked down at the floor, knowing the Emperor couldn't see them smile. Aiko stepped over the threshold of the room. Her eyes glanced at the wall. They lingered on the beautiful paintings. It was her first time here, and the decorations made her happy

The maids inside the room switched two black seating-pillows with two purple ones embroidered with golden roses: their royal status. Aiko sat on the one nearest to the open shoji screens, watching as an amulet dangled from the frame. It danced in the wind coming from the garden. She smoothed her kimono, erasing any wrinkles. Her eyes wandered to the view outside, hoping to forget her family for a mere moment.

The Emperor sat down next to her. His eyes shot continuous glances towards the complicated hairstyle that Aiko harbored on her hair. The sunlight slanting through the open doors made her hair shimmer like crow feathers.

Chiho stumbled in an un-lady like manner to the seat next to the Emperor, almost pushing her sisters away. The Emperor smiled coldly. Uncle Shin Sa entered, covering his blush with his fan: Chiho was acting horribly. Aiko noticed the same burning in her Uncle's eyes. She smiled. She slid her right hand on the table next to the Emperor's.

Without thinking he grasped her hand in his. Aiko smiled innocently at Chiho. Chiho smiled as well, her hand gripping her sleeve tightly. Her eye seemed bloodshot. Her smile was forced. Bile was burning in her throat.

Aiko turned to face Eriko. "We would like a full meal." Aiko said, omitting 'please.' She didn't want to get into a fight with the Emperor over how she treated her servants. Especially in front of her wonderful family. Eriko nodded, understanding the situation.

Aiko slowly glanced back at her family. Siho was staring at her nails. Miho had just realized her kimono was stained. She gulped loudly in the tense silence, and slid her hand on the stain, covering it.

The Emperor cleared his throat. "So," Chiho leaned in. Her ears were eager to hear his voice. "We will be getting married next week. Presumably on Monday. It is a lucky day for marriage. As our court astrologist predicted."

Aiko looked at him with a raised brow. "He never mentioned that there was a court astrologist. And he never mentioned he had gone to him." Aiko thought, surprisingly not worried that her wedding was so close. It made her heart beat faster.

Chiho smiled. "You know, Your Majesty, the day is auspicious for me too. I could get married as well. My zodiac sign is the Dragon, same as hers." She exclaimed. The Emperor chuckled; Chiho grinned, thinking he had impressed her, while everyone in the room realized she had just humiliated herself.

"No, we based the fortune reading on the ideograms in our names. My sweet little Aiko didn't tell me she was a Dragon. Although I think I knew in the bottom of my heart. Unlike some people it is clear her zodiac sign matches her personality perfectly."

Aiko almost rolled her eyes. "What has been happening in our family? During my absence." Aiko said, trying to push the conversation in a different direction.

Siho smiled and turned around, playing with her sleeve. "I might get married soon... to a rich merchant!" She exclaimed. Her eyes lighting up. Aiko felt something twist in her stomach.

"Just for money." Aiko felt her face scrunch up in a grimace of hate. The Emperor realized someyhing was wrong. Aiko's eyes landed on him and he nodded discreetly, asking her if she was okay. Aiko nodded, waving her hand. Aiko was mildly surprised that he had noticed she was uncomfortable.

Chiho was attempting to start a conversation with the Emperor when Uncle Shin Sa shot her a murderous glare. She had been acting like a child, ignoring the severe protocol. It was the Emperor she was humiliating herself in front of.

Uncle Shin Sa cleared his throat. "Your Majesty, as you know, I care a great deal about my niece, ever since my late sister left her in my care. And I cannot help but wonder, how would this marriage benefit my niece? And... what will I get in return?"

Aiko stiffened. Her eyes shot daggers ah him. They shone with fury. How dare he waltz in here and try and benefit from her situation? He had no right.

TThe Emperor noticed her fury. His grey eyes became cold. A hint of darkness stained them.

The Emperor noticed her fury. His grey eyes became cold. A hint of darkness stained them. "It would benefit you greatly. First of all, I love your niece more than my life." Aiko looked at him, her eyes wide. He possibly couldn't be telling the truth, could he? Her heart fluttered. "And second of all," he grabbed Uncle Shin Sa's collar. The soft silk crackled as the man was pulled closer to the Emperor. He was inches away from his royal face. His cold breath blowing on his face.

Siho, Chiho and Miho stood still. "I'm the Emperor. You will obey my orders. To keep that dirty mouth from spewing any more nonsense about my bride, you will receive two chests full of gold. And if I hear you mention her again, my General will visit your house." His cold eyes bore deep in the man's eyes. The lowly worm coward back in fear.

The Emperor smiled coldly. His eyelids descending to cover his eyes in brutal disinterest. "Understood?" The man shivered as he nodded. The Emperor let him go.

Uncle Shin Sa tumbled to the floor. Aiko gazed at the Emperor in amazement.

"My darling, I think we have talked with your family enough. You can wait here for your meal. We will head to our chambers." The Emperor stood up. He motioned for Aiko to do the same. She grinned at her family before covering her face with her fan.

And so, she left, leaving her "loving and caring family" behind. Aiko barely noticed their fuming stares following her as she left.

As Aiko and the Emperor walked in the empty corridors, the Emperor fumed in silence. "I understand how you feel. I can't stand them." Aiko said, closing her fan and slipping it into her sleeve.

The Emperor gritted his teeth. "Most of my family was like that. Is like that. They are cold and despicable, maybe even worse than yours." Many years of family fights, manipulations and even assassination attempts clouded his mind. He remembered when his favorite uncle had tried to poison him.

Aiko shook her head. "Believe me, my family is hard to beat." She laughed sadly.

The Emperor shook his head. "No."

Aiko stopped as well. "If you say it's so bad, tell me about them." She said, ready to learn more about the mysterious Emperor.

The Emperor turned around and glared at her. He was still furious from the encounter with her family. He needed to release the stress the memories and the anger were making him feel. The fear of having her know more about him made him afraid she would use his weaknesses against him. He couldn't tell her anything: what if she was killed as well? He didn't want to admit it, but he couldn't bear to lose her. The walls he had erected around himself were coming down, and he was terrified of it.

"I won't share anything from my life with a wench, I'm marrying for convenience." He hissed.

Aiko felt something cold and hard pierce her heart. Her fan clattered to the floor. Tears suddenly threatened to spill down her cheeks. She pulled him closer, hitting his arm. "Bastard! I hate you! I hate you more than anything. You decided to make my life hell, didn't you?!" Aiko roared. She usually would have kept her tears back but this time she couldn't. She was broken from the meeting. She felt extremely tired. The tears seeped through the cracks of her façade.

The Emperor froze, realizing they were in a corridor. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her towards his chambers. As he walked towards the phoenix doors, Aiko yelped in pain, bruises forming around his grip. She stumbled over the fabric of her skirts around her feet. The red phoenix looking terrifying, glaring at her with gleaming eyes.

The Emperor gestured to the guards. "I want you patrolling my chambers but far away from the doors." He didn't even wait for their reply. He pushed Aiko inside and kicked the doors shut. He didn't care that the guards were questioning his order: he just needed them far away to not hear their fight.

He threw her against the wall. Aiko slid to the floor. "You will never disrespect me again!" He shouted, his anger still boiling over from the recent meeting. Aiko harshly rubbed her tears away.

Aiko decided she wanted to hurt him back, sharpening her tongue. "No one will ever love you again! You are too full of venom to even approach!" She yelled. Her hands slamming on the tatami floor. Her hair ornaments were tingling.

The Emperor froze. He felt something crack inside of him. "You're lying!" He yelled as he pulled her closer. The Emperor realized those words had come out of him suddenly and without control. He had always considered himself a loner, so why did these words hurt him? The Emperor cleared his throat and smoothed his hair, his fury becoming cold. Slowly, he collected himself. "Yes, that might be the case. But no one will miss you if you disappear. Have you ever thought of that?" He asked, pausing to make the words weigh over her. "No one would care." He hissed in her ears, hoping to shatter her.

Aiko felt herself go numb. She knew what he said was true. But maybe, a small part of her had been hoping that he was the person that would miss her. But Aiko realized what she was hoping for was just a foolish dream that would never blossom to see the light of day. "I know that." She whispered hoarsely. Aiko pulled herself away from him. Her head was spinning quickly, coming to rapid, hurried conclusions. "What you say is the truth. My existence has no meaning. No one would miss me...That's why I'll end my uselessness now." She said, her eyes cast down.

The Emperor stopped, struck dumb. His hand hovering in the air.

Aiko slowly raised her hand and took out one, long pin. It had been hidden underneath all the other ornaments and was plain in comparison. It glittered in the dying light of the sun.

Your Highness, please don't move. This hairpin is extremely sharp. Every important woman must have one. It's a last defense if ever needed." Eriko had said. Placing it in her hair.

Aiko glanced at it, a small tear rolling down her cheek. Her hand shook as she brought the hairpin closer to her heart. Aiko inhaled before her hand steadied. Her heart started beating frantically. "I ask you only one thing: bury me underneath a rose plant." She said. Aiko felt tears stream down her face, letting go. "No one will miss me anyways. I'll go join my mother." The words the Emperor had shouted at her resonating in her head.

The hairpin pierced the first layer of the kimono, she was about to end it all and push it further when her hand was slapped away. It tingled as the hairpin flew away.

The hairpin fell in the spring where Aiko had almost drowned in. A similar ending its owner almost had. It sank slowly, touching the bottom soundlessly.

Aiko felt two strong muscular arms encircle her. A broken voice whispered in her ear. "You don't have permission from the Emperor to die."

The Emperor had seen his world stop when he saw her take the all-too-familiar Piercing Pin. When he was a small child, his mom, oppressed from the court and her unloving husband, had been found in her bathtub. The Piercing Pin stuck in her heart. The water stained red. The small Hisato had cried so much he hadn't been able to cry for two days. His voice had become hoarse from all the crying.

Aiko broke. Her mind shattered like glass. The shards fell, cutting her heart. Tears rolled down her cheeks freely. She tried pushing the Emperor away to retrieve the Pin in the water. The Emperor looked at her. Aiko froze. Her long hair had cascaded down from the ornate hairstyle. "Let me go. Let me die." She pleaded.

TThe Emperor shook his head. Fury tainted her vision. "If something happens to the Emperor; and the culprit is found dead, they won't be able to do anything to me." She thought. She brought her arms backwards, ready to punch. The Emperor almost hissed. His eyes turned black. He stopped her arm an inch away from his face. He pushed it down, pressing it against her body. Aiko struggled for a few moments before she freed her other hand and slapped the Emperor.

The Emperor cheek's hurt. He turned around. His eyes could scare a divinity. He grabbed Aiko's now bruised wrist. "I don't care what you do to me bastard!" She yelled in his face. The spirit and fierceness she hadn't shown lately came flowing back.

Aiko's eyes were ablaze. Her hair messy.

The Emperor bit his lip. "I despise you." He hissed in her face.

"Don't worry, I feel the sa-..."Aiko stopped.

Her eyes widened. Her arms loosened in shock as the Emperor's soft lips prevented her from speaking.