Lightning flashed and the rain came down on the two men. The ship swayed side to side, making them unbalance as they steadily walked to one another.
"This is the end for you" Jason called out, the wind blocking out their conversation. Zeno narrowed his eye's at the tall man before him. He shuffled his foot back, but could feel the edge of the plank, knowing that if he took another step he'd fall into the sea bellow.
"I've had enough of your game's, and now, I shall win" Jason laughed as he pulled out his curved sword, holding it above his head, reading the chop the young man.
Another flash of bright lightning flickered as Jason brought his sword down, until-"

"Shoto".
I was pulled out of my book when I heard someone call my name. I swirled my head around, only to see my mother at my bedroom door.
"May I come in?" She asked me.
I nodded and she smiled as she entered my room, closing the door behind her. I watched from my bed as she made her way over to the window, peering out.

"Your father is inviting some guests over" my mother told me.
I scowled at the word of my father.
My father is the king of the Endeavor Kingdom. It was originally named the Todoroki Kingdom, after my grandfather and all the way back, but when my father became king he changed it to a name most people call him by, so he takes it as his first name.

Ever since he came into power, he ruled the Kingdom with cruelty. Taxes were high, no protection for any town, and locked up anyone who broke a rule.
It was truly miserable.

"Who has he invited this time?" I asked my mother.
"King Yaoyorozu and his daughter" my mother told me as she turned to face me. I looked at her as she noticed the book I was holding in my hands.
"Are you reading that book again?" My mother asked as she walked over to me.

"Yes. It's my favourite book in all the library" I told her as I closed it. "What part are you on now?" She asked as she sat next to me.
"The part where Jason and Zeno are on The Shredder, fighting. And you came in on the best part" I told her. She chuckled a little.
It always made me smile when my mother looked happy, which was very rare these days.

"All you do is sit around and read books. When I was your age, I was out in the garden's, looking around and exploring" my mother told me. "Well I like reading my books, and although we have a garden, there's not much to explore. I want to go out and explore a real forest and find real animals" I told my mother.

"I know you do Shoto, but you know your father would have us thrown into a cell for going outside the wall's of the castle" my mother explained to me, a sad expression swept across her face.

My mother would tell me stories about when she was younger and lived with her family in her Kingdom.
She would go play in the forest with friends, and play pretend, pretending to be a tribe. How she would go to the local bakery to get the fresh food. How she and her family went on holidays to amazing places.

But, once she turned 19, she was forced to marry my father, for my father's father made a deal with my mother's family. The deal was if my mother married my father, my father's family would give the other Kingdom protection in time of need.

So she married my father, and then her whole freedom was taken away from her in a single night.
As soon as she married, she was forced to move to my father's castle, where she was never to leave. She was no longer allowed outside and was wasn't allowed to contact her family.

She once tried to escape, but my father caught her and threw her in a cell for a week, giving her little food and water.
She said ever since she married my father, she regretted doing so. She allowed it, and never put up a fight saying she didn't want to marry a man she didn't love.

"I understand. And you want me to talk to this girl, don't you" I asked my mother, which she nodded to. "Okay, I'll try my best. When should they be here?" I asked.
"In a few minute. So will you come down stairs to the front door's and wait with me. Your father is out, so I have to welcome them" my mother told me.

"Okay I will" I replied as we stood up from my bed, her doing the same.
We left the room and made our way to the front door's. Two staff members opened the large door's, allowing sunlight to flood into the hallway. I covered my eyes, for they were not use to the sudden brightness from the sun.

When I stepped outside I took a breath, taking in the fresh air outside.
The smell of lavender and daffodil's filled the air.
When we cane outside, we seen King Yaoyorozu already standing at his carriage outside our door.
"Ah its great to see you your majesty" King Yaoyorozu announced as he bowed down, than shaking my mother's hand.

"Yes, welcome to our castle King Yaoyorozu. We are glad you came" my mother replied with a smile.
King Yaoyorozu then noticed me standing next to my mother.
"And this must be Prince Todoroki" King Yaoyorozu asked as he shook my hand as well. I nodded.

"Yes he is" my mother told him, as she looked around.
"Didn't you say your daughter would be with you?" My mother asked.
I thought this might be my lucky day, that I didn't have to talk to someone I probably wouldn't even like, that was until the king spoke.

"Yes she is, but as soon as our carriage stopped, she jumped out and said she wanted to explore the garden's, since she herd your gardens where the the second largest gardens in all the kingdom's" King Yaoyorozu told us.
I sighed.
Guess it wasn't my lucky day then.

"Shoto, could you go find her. I want you to keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't get lost around the garden's" my mother asked of me. I nodded my head and walked to the back of the castle.

Our castle garden's were as big as a large forest, but it's the second biggest royal garden in all the kingdom's, right behind the One For All Kingdom.

I finally reached the garden's that are behind the castle and began to walk around, looking for King Yaoyorozu's daughter.
To my knowledge, I know nothing about her, but through experience where my father will invite a girl to our castle and she will only be interested in me for my title, I have a image.

She will probably be like every other girl, she will act all flirty and pretend she's head over heels for me. But really, she's acting just so I would marry her, and she can have great power.
I hate girl's like that. I hate them. Only wanting to be with me for my title and power.
I wish for someone to love me for me, for who I really am and not as something for someone else's interest.

I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. As I took my hand down, I could feel the scar on the left side of my face. I kept my hand there, remembering how I got this in the first place.

It was a few years back, when my mother was traumatised and frightened of my father. Even when I was young, I could tell how unstable she was, how she looked like she was on the verge of crying every moment, and would shake with fear when my father entered a room.
It made me upset to see my mother in such a state, seeing her in fear.

Then one day, she just snapped.

I remember looking around he castle for my mother.
As I looked, I could hear my mother speaking to someone. I followed where I thought the voice came from and found her in the kitchen with one of the maids.

"I don't know what to do anymore" my mother sobbed. "Each day, he starts looking more like him, and I'm terrified that he'll end up like him. I'm so scarred" my mom cried as the maid tried to comfort my mother.

"M-mom. Mom are you okay?" I asked her as I stood at the entrance of the door.
Everything fell silent, the only sound in the room that could be herd was the sound of the boiling kettle on the stove.
My mom turned her head around, only to show her face, which had an insane look. In her eyes, they were filled with terror.

The next thing I knew, was the burning pain of the boiling water being poured on to my face, and the sound of my cries of pain.
When my father found out, he beat my mother and threw her into a cell for two months.
I had to bandage my eye for three weeks and it hurt so badly.
After that, I blamed my father for what happened, saying if it wasn't for him, mom would have never been so terrified of everything and causing her to lash out.

My father beat me just like my mother, but instead of throwing me into a cell, I was looked in my room for a day.
When I was allowed out of my room, I ran to the cell's to find my mother.

"I'm so sorry Shoto. I'm so so sorry. I never meant for this to happen. I never meant to do this to you" I remember her crying to me, apologising over and over again to me. Most people would have been angry and would have left, but I wasn't like most people.
My mother was the only person who cared for me, and if I rejected her, I would basically be rejecting all those years of love and kindness she had gave me, so I forgave her.

I was brought back into reality when I herd something hit water. I looked around and thought where it could have came from. I then thought of the river and started making my way to it.
There was a river that ran through the garden's from the outside, and before you ask, yes I did they to escape my going through where the river came from but there was one thing. There was bar's that blocked the way for anyone to get out, and it sucked.

I made my way to the river and walked on the path to the stone bridge that went across the water.
When I made a turn to the bridge, I noticed something, or rather, someone.
I saw a girl, leaning over the stone ledge and looking down into the water.
I couldn't see her from where I was, so I walked over closer.

She must have herd me, cause when I got closer, she leaned back up and looked in my direction. Now, I could see her better now.
She had long black hair, tied into a high ponytail, and she had the most amazing grey eye's. Usually grey was a depressing colour for me, but her grey eye's held so much emotion and much more that I couldn't explain.

"O-Oh your highness" she stuttered nervously as she bowed down a bit. I returned the gesture. "What are you doing out here?" I asked in my usually monotone voice.
She faced away from me and looked back over the ledge of the bridge and back to the water. "I was actually looking around and then noticed this river and bridge. I then decided to play this game" she responded.

"Game?" I asked confused. She looked back up at me. "Yeah. It's silly, but entertaining to me at least. Basically, you grab something that will float, and then count down from three. Once you say one, you drop it into the water and see how fast it goes under the bridge" she explained to me.
"Here I'll show you" she told me as she ran over to a brush that was next to me, and grabbed a twig from it. She made her way back over to the ledge and waved me over.

Reluctantly, I walked over and stood next to the girl. I couldn't help but see her excitement. "Three, two, one" she spoke, and dropped the twig into the water. It hit the surface and started going under the bridge, the current carrying it away.
"Now over here" she told me as she ran to the other side of the bridge and leaned over the ledge.

I walked over and did the same, looking at the river below.
Soon, the twig she dropped into the water appeared.
"That was 15 seconds" she noted.
"As I said, it's a silly little game, and not everyone finds it enjoyable" she laughed. Even though we only met like a  ago, I could already tell she was different. She didn't start asking me questions about my life and family as soon as we met, and she didn't seem interested about who I was.

"Do you want to try?" She asked me. "You mean play the game?" I asked, which she nodded to. "Okay, let me find something" I replied as I went over to a bush at the end of the bridge. I looked around and found a white flower. I picked it up and walked back over.
"Okay let's see how long it takes to pass under the bridge" she told me as we went to the ledge.

I held the flower out over it, above the water as I waited for her to count down. "Three. Two. One" she announced. As soon as she called out one, I let go of the flower and watched as it floated down and gentle landed on the water, the current sweeping it away.
"Okay let's go" she told me as we ran over to the other side of the bridge, leaning over the edge and waited to see the flower.

As we waited, I could hear her counting quietly to herself.
"13...14...15...16...17...18" she counted and stopped at 18. "There it is" she announced as she pointed over the bridge. I looked down only to see my white flowers come from under the bridge. "I won" she cheered with joy.
"Yes. You won" I replied as I stood up straight again.

The girl did the same and faced me.
"I never got to introduce myself. I'm sorry. I'm Momo Yaoyorozu, but you might have already known that" the girl,now known as Momo Yaoyorozu, told me. "It's okay. I'm Shoto Todoroki, but you may of also herd of me" I replied as I bowed, causing her to chuckle a bit.
Already, I could see she was very different from any other girl I have met.

She wasn't stuck up, wasn't interested in my title and treated me like a higher up. She was fun and quirky, and was full of excitement and energy. She didn't treat me like a prince, but as a person.

"Oh yeah, my mother wanted to meet you. We should get back to the castle" I told Yaoyorozu as I pulled myself out of my thoughts. "Oh yeah, alright. And I'm sorry for running off like that without asking anyone for permission, I just get to excited" Yaoyorozu apologised. "It's okay, nothing to apologise for. Now let's get going, my mother is probably think we ran off" I said.

"Alright, let's get going then" she replied as we began walking back, walking side by side.

Word count: 2671

I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter.