Cantarella

“Ojou-sama?” A teal haired girl, who was playing with her eleven-year-old friend Kaito, looked up to see one of the many maids nervously standing at the door. “The master wants to see you.” The small six-year-old looked nervously at her blue-headed friend, but he smiled and motioned for her to go. The girl hesitated a bit, but Kaito leaned over to whisper in her ear, and she nodded and stood up, brushing of her pink dress. She followed the maid, knowing that Kaito would wait for her. When they got to her fathers room, the maid knocked. “I’ve brought her, master.”
“Come in.”
The maid opened the door and the girl walked in.
“Father.” She curtseyed respectfully and looked up at her also teal haired father. Her father looked the little girl in the eye and said in a serious tone of voice,
“Miku, as a daughter of a duke, you must marry accordingly. We have arranged for you to be betrothed to a son of a marquis.”
“What about Kaito?”
Her father frowned. “Kaito is the son of a viscount. It is far below your status.”
Miku tilted her pigtailed head to the side and looked at her father without speaking, making her father a bit uncomfortable. Her father cleared his throat and stood up. He brought her to the rose drawing room where there was a blonde haired boy of eleven waiting with his mother.
“Miku, this is your betrothed.”
Miku smiled cheerfully at the boy and curtseyed. The boy bowed in return, a scowl on his face. “Hello!” The boy mumbled something under his breath before turning away, but Miku didn’t seem to notice. “My name is Miku! What’s yours?”
“Len.” The boy looked at her and then looked at the ground before speaking.
“Okay, Len! Let’s be friends!”

Time passed, and ten years later…
Miku nervously stood in front of the mirror as one of her personal maids, Gumi, brushed her long teal hair. She was wearing one of her best dresses, a floor length black one with a tightly laced top and a skirt that belled out. It had long detached skintight sleeves and the bodice embroidered with teal roses. Her hair was done op in two long twin-tails and tied with a teal and black ribbon. “I don’t know if this is enough…”
Her maid giggled and putting down the comb, peeked in the mirror. “You look fine! And your waist is so tiny, too! If I looked like that, maybe Gumo would actually look my way!”
Miku laughed with her maid. Gumi was a lot less formal than most servants, something Miku was grateful for, as she didn’t like the feeling that she was any better then them. Why are people divided into classes, anyways? They were all human, weren’t they? And… shouldn’t they be able to marry whom they wanted? The sixteen year old looked in the mirror again. She hadn’t seen her childhood friend Kaito in seven years, since she was nine, and they were supposed to meet in the ball that celebrated her birthday. It was custom for the betrothed to get the first dance on one’s birthday, but Len was away, so she was free to dance as she pleases. On, a whim, she picked up the rose on the table and slipped it in her right twin-tail.
Gumi smiled at her. “There. Now your ready.”
The green haired maid pushed her mistress to the door of the dressing room; the door that led to the ballroom. Miku hesitated, but Gumi proceeded to push her into the ballroom and close the door behind the girl.
Miku looked up to see her father making a speech in the dais above the ballroom and then signal to the musicians to start the first song- a waltz.
“My lady? Would I have this dance?” Miku looked up, prepared to refuse when se saw blue hair. Blue hair?
“Kaito?”
Her childhood friend smiled, no smirked at her.
Miku inspected her best friend carefully. He had grown. He was now much taller than her, and the way he held himself suggested that he had grown out of the slouching habit he had when he was young. But his Blue hair and pale skin was the same. His features were still delicate and his fingers still slender and smooth, the hands of an aristocrat.
Miku smiled and put her hand in his. The dance started and as they swept along, they made small talk about politics. Miku had always found politics boring, but Kaito seemed to enjoy it.
Kaito was always shy before he got to know people, but now he seemed to know everyone and all the ladies would giggle and open their fans when he passed.
The dance stopped and Kaito suggested that they get re-acquainted over some wine. Normally, the girl would refuse, but as she had not seen Kaito for seven years, she agreed.
The blue haired man led Miku out of the ballroom and into a dark room with a table and two chairs. There was two cups of wine and a bottle in between.
“So. How are you, Mimi?” Miku blushed slightly at the use of the nickname he gave her and lifted her wine glass to her lips. “Fine…”
Miku frowned. She felt funny. Suddenly, the world went hazy and the last thing she saw before everything went dark was Kaito’s smirking face leaning close to hers.

Finally. I am free… Kaito smirked as Miku slowly fainted. Miku thought Len was away on business, just like everyone else. It never occurred to her that Len would never miss her birthday, if he were alive, that was.
No on would find out that Kaito killed him. It had been easy, too easy to lure the blonde haired bastard out and poison him. Usually, he would have even liked Len, but he was Miku’s betrothed. To Kaito, he was nothing but a useless distraction, something that would get in his way. Kaito stood up and picked up Miku. She was light, even with the heavy fabric she was wearing. Kaito smirked once more and carried her to his bedchamber. Tonight, she would become his.

When Miku woke up, everything was black. No… she felt fabric around her eyes and realized that she was blindfolded. The fabric wasn’t itchy or uncomfortable, though. From the feeling, she would guess that it was silk of the finest quality. She was lying on a bed by the soft material under her, and she felt someone on top of her. She could sense hands on either side of her head and their vanilla scented breath washed over her face. Suddenly, she felt something wet drip on her face. Tears?
“Mimi… I’m… sorry.” Miku heard the person whisper. The voice… the nickname… it was… Kaito?
She reached out and looped her arms around his neck, the movement making her blindfold fall off.
Kaito was braced above her, his face streaked with tears. For a moment, she was surprised; Kaito never cried, but then, she made a decision.

Make me yours.

Kaito’s eyes widened in shock as he heard those words. Didn’t he kill her betrothed? Didn’t he poison her? He wouldn’t be surprised if she wanted him dead but…
Those words. The words he had wanted to hear since he knew what “love” and “lust” meant. Those words…
His lips slowly curved into a smile, and…