Snippet #1971124

Daiki paused and looked to Fa Sheng before sighing and shaking his head. "Fa Sheng, Father died when I was six. Kisei even younger. To us, you were like a father. More than a father ever could have been because you were also our brother." He smiled and clapped Fa Sheng's shoulder, shaking it good heartedly.

"If you decide you are ready for kids, I do not doubt that they will love you no matter what. And with Hatsue as their mother, the one person who can bring back Katsuro, everything will fall into place." Daiki smiled, watching his brother carefully. "You do not have enough faith in yourself, brother."

---

Kazumi closed her eyes, mentally bashing herself for the foolish request. Even so, she straightened and gently took the prince's hair and smoothed the rough ends. As she worked, Kazumi gnawed n her lower lip, unable to think of speech even after she had tied the braid with a stip of leather that she wore around her wrist. It was a habit she had since childhood to wear the string of her wrist in the chance it could come in handy.

She sighed softly, unmoving from behind him. "I didn't mean what I said earlier," she whispered softly, her voice almost as weak as Kisei's. "Well, I did. But I think you understood it wrong. When I said you can't die yet, it isn't because I just met you, but because want to get to know you better. You are not what I expected you to be like as our prince, even our sickly prince. You are so much more. I want to understand more about you, why you let me live and how you can be so accepting of your fate. I don't understand how you can be so strong." She closed her eyes and drew a deep breath, rising from the bed. "I'm sorry, you probably don't care. I just wanted you to know I meant no harm."