The elegant blades of green grass swayed with each gust of cool wind, dancing with the trees' branches that gently moved about as well. The leaves brushed and rustled against each other, adding to the melodious songs the birds sung. The sun was out in the cloudless blue sky, shining its golden, warm rays onto the earth, brightening the forest and creating an atmosphere of peace and serenity. The stream moved against the wind, its clear waters heading towards the town where it'll merge with a strong river that he visited from time to time.

It was his secret place, a place that no one would ever find out about, a place where he could let out all his secrets, whispering them to the wind where it would carry them far from him, letting him forget about the troubles of his life for a moment. He felt secure here, safe here, himself here; the perfect place for him to feel normal.

It was his sanctuary from the world.

He loved his family, he loved the towns and villages, he loved the townspeople, he loved every aspect that his country had to offer, but he hated his boring, uneventful life as royalty. He had learned magic for the very purpose of brightening up everyone's day, making them laugh and smile until it hurt to do so. It made him proud and happy that he could achieve something as great as that but there wasn't anyone that could do the same for him. It made him feel alone.

So he had created a mask, one that could hide what he was truly feeling from the people around him, keeping them oblivious to his loneliness because he didn't want them to worry. He had created the facade for the sole purpose of hiding his emotion, only putting it on when times really got tough. But when his father had died, he couldn't bear the grief and agony he had felt on that day and soon, the facade had become a normal, natural thing that he kept up everyday.

He had locked up his feeling, his desires, and left them in a dark corner of his mind where he would open only when he was in his sanctuary, a place where he didn't have to worry about being found out or pitied.

Like every other time he had visited this wonderfully surreal place, he had unlocked the tight chain and brought down his walls, letting the rush of emotion drown him in its depth. He did this every time he came, but there was only one thing he promised himself he would never do. And that was to cry. Never would he shed a single tear; it didn't matter where he was or who he was with, but he wouldn't shed a single drop. The last time he had cried was at his father's funeral and it would stay that way until he reached his grave.

He sat on a smooth rock that sat beside the flowing stream, watching his reflection mimic what faces he made in his emotional state.

"What's wrong?"

He started and whipped his head around, eyes wide as they darted around the scenery until they met with striking blue ones that looked worriedly at him. The figure stood under the shade of a tree, his hair gently blew across his face as the wind chose that moment to blow past them, he wore a dark cloak around his clothing that were equally dark, and his gentle blue eyes searched his in hopes of finding out the cause of his turmoil.

"Who are you? How did you get here?" Kaito asked, a note of authority slipped into his tone. No one was suppose to know about this place but him and only him. How did this complete stranger suddenly come out of nowhere and invade his peace? The fact that he saw he, Kuroba Kaito, prince and heir to the throne, in such a weakened and vulnerable state was enough to make him demand the other to leave and never come back.

"I live around here." The stranger replied, stepping out of the shadows and towards him. Kaito's eyes drank in his features as the other stood right in front of him but not in his personal bubble. The other, Kaito noticed, had an uncanny resemblance to him that they could even be considered twins if one didn't look too closely.

"I've been to this place for years and I've never seen you before. How could you possibly live here without me knowing?" Kaito retorted, eyeing the strange teen warily. Said teen only gave a light chuckle as a reply before sitting on the grass, his hands propping him up from behind and his legs out before him with one drawn in. He brought his head back to look at the sky, his eyes dark with unknown emotion, as he closed his eyes and sighed before letting a wistful look appear on his face.

"I've been here for a long time - before you even knew this place existed - but I kept myself hidden and isolated myself from any possible travelers coming this way or human contact in general."

Kaito raised an eyebrow, forgetting momentarily the swirl of emotion inside of him as curiosity radiated off of him in waves that he was sure the other could feel, but before he could ask anything else, a distant ringing of a bell could be heard, signalling his leave. Kaito got up and dusted himself off while his doppelganger looked at him curiously with - was that loneliness in his eyes?

"Well, that's my cue to leave, but I guess I'll see you later?" Kaito asked, glancing down at the cloaked teen, whose eyes widened fractionally as if in shock before returning back to its original size.

A small smile appeared on his lips before he nodded. "Sure."

*~OoOoOo~*

Kaito walked into the palace and swiftly made his way towards his room, ignoring the calls of several maids that asked him to stop. He shut the door with a quiet click and fell face first into the soft haven of his bed, burying his nose into the snow-white pillows and breathed in deeply, a grin was refusing to remove itself from his face.

He was excited; it was almost the day that the annual Clover Festival, arguably his favorite time of the year, would take place. It was a festival that was made in memory of his father who had loved festivals, parties, balls; anything that consisted of large amounts of people, food, entertainment, and laughter.

But that wasn't the only reason why he was excited.

It was almost time for him to meet up with Shinichi.

It had been weeks since their first meeting and they had become fast friends. And even though Kaito had been wary of him at first, curiosity had won over and they had begun to have lengthy conversations ranging from the weather to fairy-tales, to people and their ways of life. It was a wonderful experience that he had forgotten and left behind in his childhood when he developed his masks. Sure, he had Aoko, the tomboyish and loud, yet soft-hearted and kind girl that was his childhood friend, but it just wasn't the same as it was with Shinichi.

Shinichi, he had learned, was a calm, quiet person who preferred listening over talking and had a dry sense of humor. He had a sense of justice and possibly cared for every breathing, living thing on thing on this planet. He hadn't asked why he felt that way because Shinichi never asked him anything personal so he thought it would only be fair. They never pried into each other's lives or secrets - only gave the other an ear and listened.

Yet, even though he knew all of this, he couldn't help but wonder why Shinichi seemed lonely every time Kaito turned his back on him. It was as if Shinichi had masks of his own as well, carefully keeping Kaito outside the walls of his world, and it bothered him. He had masks as well, but ever since the first week of their encounters, he'd slowly and hesitantly pulled them off around Shinichi and only Shinichi. He entrusted him with his fears and feelings, yet the other wouldn't do the same. It made him think about how much Shinichi actually trusted him.

Kaito, after the pleas coming from the maids on the other side of his door gave up their futile attempts to coax him out, quietly opened the window - not that he really needed to, the palace was loud enough with everyone preparing for the festival - and slipped out, crawling down the lengthy, aged wall of the castle. When his shoes touched the ground, he looked both ways before he ran towards the forest where Shinichi would be waiting for him.

And indeed he was.

He sat where he always did - right beside the rock that Kaito claimed his after a childish banter between the two. Shinichi was always there; never late or anything, and he always sat in the same place with the same position that made it seem like he never left the spot before. As Kaito came closer, the calm expression that never seemed to leave Shinichi's face was, for once, absent, and in its stead was a troubled expression that Kaito had never seen on his face before.

He quietly made his way over, not wanting to disturb the other in case he was thinking about something important, and took his seat on the smooth rock. He stared at the stream, making him remember an odd conversation they had had a few days prior.

He had been sitting on the rock as he always did, and stared as Shinichi seemed to be trying to catch something in the stream.

"What are you doing?" Kaito asked curiously, leaning forward to get a better view of what his friend was doing.

"Nothing much." Shinichi mumbled, completely concentrating on his mysterious task.

As he thought back on it, he guess he should have known what was going to happen. After all, why else would someone randomly reach into the waters without another reason besides wanting to feel the flow of water against their hands?

Shinichi swiped his hands into the water and his eyes brightened a bit at whatever he had just done.

"Hey Kaito," Shinichi said, standing up on his feet and brought his hands out towards Kaito, seemingly trying to contain something inside. "Look at it!"

He opened his hands a bit and Kaito leaned in for a better look. That had been the stupidest idea he had ever had because he tensed in fear before he let out a strangled scream, bolting across the clearing and up a tree. Shinichi started but quickly put the fish back into the water where it swam with the current, and jogged towards the tree and under the branch Kaito was currently hugging himself upon.

"Kaito?"

His answer was a strangled sound coming from his throat.

"Are you alright?"

Another strangle sound but he managed to shake his head.

"Can you come down?"

"Do you still have the f-finny thing in your hands?" He warily spoke, glancing down from the high branch he was perched on.

"Don't worry, I don't have it anymore, so can you come down?" Shinichi asked, holding his hands up, palms out as proof that he didn't have the devil's pet in his hands any longer.

He hesitantly climbed down the tree, slower than what was strictly necessary but Shinichi hadn't complained and just stood patiently, waiting for him to reach the ground.

After that, Kaito made sure to keep his body out of the stream in fear of the finny things even though Shinichi had told him that there weren't many finny things that show up in the stream. So, he stayed on his rock and stared at the stream as he always did, but every time he caught a glimpse of something even remotely like a fish, he would jump and snap his gaze towards Shinichi who didn't seem to mind his strange fear of fish.

Kaito glanced at Shinichi, his face seemed to let go of the troubled expression in favor of sporting a dejected look as he tossed a pebble into the clear waters of the stream - the first movement he had made other than breathing and blinking.

"Hey Kaito?" Shinichi mumbled, watching as the pebble slowly sunk into the water and got carried away just as quickly by the currents.

Kaito glanced at him before tossing his own pebble into the stream. "Hm?"

"You're the heir to the throne, right?" Kaito started a bit at the question. Shinichi never seemed like one who cared about politics or the royal family, but he assumed he had a reason for the out-of-character question.

"Yeah." Kaito gave him a quick glance before tossing another pebble into the water. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing. I was just curious."

"Well, let's tal-"

"Kaito." Shinichi cut in, bright blue eyes locked with his. "I think it's best that you leave now. You wouldn't want your family worrying about you, no?" Shinichi looked up at the darkening sky and Kaito did the same.

"They can wait a while longer, but first I just want to ask you abo-"

"Kaito." Shinichi cut in, his face became expressionless and blank; a look that Kaito had dubbed as one of his masks. He turned away and took a step towards the opposite direction of the palace. "I think it'd be best if we don't meet anymore."

Kaito stood rooted in his spot as Shinichi's cloaked figure disappeared in the shadows of the forest. He hadn't made a move until a few minutes after Shinichi's exit when he ran after him. But when he passed the first tree, he had somehow ended up in front of the palace gates which he knew was nowhere near the serenity of the clearing.