Anti-Villain (1)

(Leo)

***

"Inei, is Haru in your kingdom still? I'm worried about her. She disappeared yesterday afternoon here. I figured she might be with you, but she always comes back quickly." Hikaru's breathing intensified until his words were difficult to understand. "I'm scared something happened to her, oh my g—"

"Hikaru, sweetie," Inei replied, sickeningly sweet despite his usual malice.

I gagged as I listened to their conversation. Why had they separated, again? They were so gross and domestic to the extent of being unbearable. If someone asked me to identify the closest people I knew to the married couple stereotype, I wouldn't have hesitated to point all my fingers towards them.

Considering that, I leaned against the wall as the kings talked via magic, and I cloaked myself with the power of invisibility.

Inei continued, the sharpness returning to his speech as a despondent tone threaded itself through, "Stop rambling for a second so that I can answer you." He shook his head with a sigh. "No, I haven't seen her. My advisor is also missing. You want to tell me where she is?"

Hikaru responded with an exaggerated gasp, and I rolled my eyes. The kings were already on the verge of theatrics; frankly, it didn't take someone observant to know how much Hikaru was going to lose his shit. He was always the calm one until something irked him. Then, his emotions steamrolled anyone within fifty feet.

"Inei! Listen to yourself! They're both gone! Don't you know what this means? Don't you?"

Inei exhaled, and he rubbed the bridge of his nose as the volume of his voice became erratic yet restrained. "Yes, I'm afraid. We'll need to contact the Terrestrial Kingdom immediately so that the girls can be located. I'll send Sinclair as soon as I find them, love."

He looked in my direction with piercing eyes as if he tried to squint. "Leo, show yourself. I can sense you're there. There's no need to hide."

I chuckled and revealed myself to the almost oblivious man.

"Took you long enough."

I uncrossed my arms and legs to saunter closer to the conversation. The perturbed castle winds lifted the edges of my skirt from slightly below my knees to several inches above them.

"Can you divert from the topic anymore, Inei? How could this happen?" Hikaru's face appeared red and tense with bloodshot eyes as if he hadn't slept all night—a likely scenario.

"What do you mean 'how could this happen', Hikaru? Who are you trying to accuse? Haven't we been working to protect our children? Haven't we kept them inside all these years so that they would be safe?" Droplets of saliva splattered from his mouth from how harshly he spoke.

"I'm not trying to blame you at all!" Hikaru stepped back with his hands raised before curling fists at his sides. "I just want to get to the bottom of this. I can't understand how anything could have gone wrong with all we've done."

The Sun King placed his head behind his palms. "Can you think of anything at all? Either of you? Things like this don't happen on a whim."

It was then a sudden feeling of guilt hit me. I let it crush and wrench me before calmly saying, "Inei."

Huffing, he raised an eyebrow at me. "What?" he spat.

I inhaled, picking my statements carefully like the highest quality produce. "What did Koharu tell you Fifi was doing two days ago when she couldn't go to the briefings?"

"Haru told me the girl was sick." Inei's eyes narrowed, and he clicked the soles of his shoes in front of his throne. "What does this have to do with anything, Leo? You're not playing any tricks, right?"

"Only treats, sir," I joked with a smile, but I was pained on the inside.

"Go on, Leo." Hikaru groaned.

Of course, they teamed up against me before coming to a consensus on anything else. To think anyone was ever on my side was like wishing for the moon to fall out of the sky. I could only touch its reflection while I fruitlessly waited for its demise.

I walked by the two of them with a hand under my chin, contemplating the flickering moments. "But did you not say they could leave together that day? Did you not say they could go to the beach between the mountains at Caelum?"

Standing, Inei smacked the sides of his throne. "I supposedly said what, now? I would never agree to such a thing! Never!"

"Then, Koharu lied to us." I shrugged while pressing my lips together. "Plain and simple."

"I didn't raise my daughter like this!" Hikaru yelled, hitting a table in his room. The chime of the elegant glasses rang throughout the chamber. "I can't believe her. She wanted to mess around outside the castle without understanding the consequences. I never thought she was this foolish. We need to find her now." He pointed. "Go get Sinclair, Leo. This is now an emergency."

I nodded compliantly. I was never like that, but in the face of such a dire situation, I could be mellow. Most events just weren't that important in comparison.

Sinclair waited beside the exterior of the door like a loyal dog, playing solitaire in the air. I had asked them to sit there while I listened in on the rare call between the kings. I didn't know how probable of an outcome needing to get the elusive fairy would be, but considering that slim chance in advance saved me from hours of searching.

"Sinclair," I said in an almost cold tone. I didn't even know my voice could be so expressionless.

They were startled, and the cards scattered on the floor, falling from the air and then disintegrating into nothing.

"What's wrong, Leo?" they questioned, faintly airy and unassured. "You never speak like that to anyone."

They must have assumed I was mad at them, but I had no time to directly correct their assumptions.

"A lot, Sini," I told them gingerly. "The king needs you pronto. Come inside with me."

Standing up and stretching their back, they followed me calmly into the chamber—a careful distance away from my wings.

"Hikaru," I told the somewhat transparent man, "I've brought them here."

He smiled sweetly. "Excellent. Sinclair, I need you to relay a message for me."

"As I do day and night, Your Majesty." They bowed their head.

Face splotched red, Hikaru grimaced at the name. "Go to the Terrestrial Kingdom and tell King Daemon or Queen Lucy that the Sun Princess and a Moon Advisor are missing. Ask them to locate the girls, please." High, thin tones colored his voice. "Inei and I are desperate right now. We're worried sick, Sinclair."

"They're missing? What kind of magic is this?" Their impossibly large eyes widened as their breath hitched. "But of course. I will be on my way now." They turned to me with the kindest grin, brown irises shining in an almost sad way. "Could you send me to my chariot in the courtyard, Lele? I can't waste any time."

I nodded and teleported them to their desired location with the dust from my wings, waving them off with as much of a smile as I had to offer right then. I made sure to cover them gently to keep them from coughing while their presence faded. After all, I had no reason to be rude to them under any circumstances.

"Is there anything I need to be doing?" I inquired innocently, hoping the kings would say no.

I did not wish to exhaust myself with magic and travel quite yet, especially when something much more minor *could* have occurred. Oh, to have thought positively.

"We just need to wait for Sinclair's return. You're free to roam until they get back, but please stay close," Hikaru said calmly.

"All right."

I ambled out of the room, but once I was out of sight, I flapped my wings like an eagle and soared through the halls. From the reflection of the waxed floors, I noticed my face went deathly pale as a thought disturbed any temporary peace Sinclair's calmness brought to my mind.