~MAKOTO~

"She's not going to like me. I'm weird!" I announced, raising my hands up in the air.

Kai raised an eyebrow at me, relaxing on the sofa of our living room.

"You're not weird, and she will adore you," Kai replied for the fifth time.

I'd returned from my adventurous date with Marcus a few hours ago. We'd gone to the town on the outskirts of Minato, collecting some goods and essentials we would need for our trip to Heila, my birthplace. I was trying not to ponder too much about the upcoming trip.

I didn't know how to feel. Excited? Nervous? It was honestly a bunch of emotions that attempted to weigh me down, and I didn't want that to stop me from enjoying my remaining days in Knightwood.

I dreaded the fact I'd have to attend this exam for the sake of Leonardo's dignity. It wasn't my fault he couldn't reach his potential. I didn't want to be rude or reject his request – having been drenched on the floor from the storm we'd been caught in.

I accepted, not out of pity, but due to the fact I didn't want the boys to be unforgiving. I knew they were all future heirs in this vast galaxy and one thing that was vital to be a leader was to learn how to forgive and move forward. You didn't need to forget the harm that had been inflicted, but you had to be wise and determine if those actions were worth having them cling to you.

The first exam had been difficult to surpass. From being in a coma for two weeks, followed by dealing with the darkness that tainted my very soul, it was a difficult period for myself and my star knights.

However, there was a silver lining in this experience – Midnight was my fifth spirit. I had never expected she'd be a spirit. I don't think anyone did. But thanks to Winterlya’s arrival and hypothesis, I was finally able to accept the darkness that once plagued me, and that led to Midnight being a part of the four other spirits within me.

Having Midnight as a spirit was a comforting feeling. It was as if I'd finally felt whole, but hadn't realized I wasn't complete to begin with. I hadn't experienced any complications after that, simply feeling a tad exhausted from switching back and forth with Midnight so she could enjoy some time with the boys and not have to return to the darkness.

Once Leonardo had left, the boys decided to surprise me with the news that we were headed down to Realm Six, Earthala. Ever since I'd learned about the realm and some of their traits courtesy of Marcus, I had wished to go down there and have a look.

I'd asked Elias when I earned the top spot at Knightwood if we could go down there as my gift when everything was settled, but I didn't imagine we'd be going before we headed over to Heila.

We were leaving tomorrow, and the boys worked on last-minute planning, leaving me with Kai for the night. I was encouraged to sleep, since I'd been up super early and awake all day, but instead, I was freaking out.

"But...I am! She'll look at me and be like, look at her uh...blue eyes...and um, brown hair," I continued.

Kai sighed, closing his sketchbook and standing up. He approached me, waiting for me to stop pacing all over the living room.

When I didn't, he walked into my path; his arms slipped around my waist.

"Makoto," he began; I gave him a weird look. Kai Akiyama, my fifth-star knight did not use my name unless he wanted to give me a serious talk. He grinned at my confusion. "Anyone who meets you loves you. As we all say, you're like a breath of fresh air, and I know it's not going to be any different when you meet Scarlet," he reassured me.

Scarlet Sinclair was Junho's girlfriend and lived down on Earthala. She'd recommended to Marcus that he buy me an e-reader to help me with my recovery when I'd gotten discharged. Marcus had said she was appalled that I was stuck on bed rest with nothing to do. Having the e-reader had made a big difference, and she'd even helped Marcus pick a bunch of books in different genres.

She was a criminal investigator and worked with Junho and his friends. Marcus had asked if we could come down a while back, and now, their team were off for two weeks. Scarlet had gotten injured and wasn't allowed to work, but she'd reassured Marcus that she was perfectly fine and would love for us to come down, seeing as her and the boys wouldn't need to go back to work till the following week.

Now, we were going to spend the next five days down there, and I didn't know whether to be super happy or cry in the corner.

After Lily died, I had no other female friends. I didn't know how to interact with them and even though Knightwood was eighty percent female shifters, they didn't approach me unless they wanted to challenge me – Brittany and her group of dimwits were a perfect example of that.

EliaseAnne was an exception, and she loved me for who I was and never judged me.

I sighed; my shoulders sunk in defeat. Kai pulled me into him, holding me in a warm embrace.

"Trust me, Princess. It will be fun, and you will enjoy it," he whispered.

I could sense a pinch of magic in the air – noticing his voice sounded off. I lifted my head to peer into those amber eyes of his. "You saw a glimpse of the future, didn't you?" I inquired.

He gave me a small grin, pressing those delicate lips against my forehead. I shivered at the touch; my insides fluttered at his affection.

We'd known each other for a short period of time, having instilled the knightly bond on our first encounter. Yet, it felt like I'd known Kai for cycles and loved his directness. It was something different, and I personally loved how he didn't mind showing his affection.

"Maybe," he replied, looking down at me.

"No fair." I purposely pouted, blinking my eyes.

He blushed, looking away. "Unicorn float," he mumbled.

"Unicorn...float? Like the one we have in the pool? Wait, did you pack it? I want to bring it to Heila. Wait...does Heila have a pool? Does the castle have a pool, Kai?" I rambled, needing my unicorn float to be a must-have in my home, regardless if there was a pool.

If we didn't have one, I'd just put it in my room somewhere. It could guard my valuable possessions, especially my drawer of souvenirs I'd collected from my knights. Maybe I'd put it right in front of the door. Then when they walk in, BOOM! Cuteness overload would bring them to their knees and into submission as they trembled in fear.

"No one is going to be afraid of a unicorn," Midnight began.

Hey! Unicorns can be scary and powerful. Maybe they can sprinkle dust to make you fall asleep like Daniel. Or better yet, maybe it causes you to laugh like crazy, rendering you useless on the battlefield.

"You have an obsession," she declared.

I. Do. Not.

"Don't go buying anything unicorn when we reach Earthala," Midnight mumbled.

I huffed. Just thinking of not being able to expand my newfound love for the mythological creature was frustrating. That's uh...unicorn racism!

"What's unicorn racism?" Kai asked.

I blinked, looking back up to realize he was waiting for me to finish my inner dialogue.

"Midnight is saying I can't buy anything unicorn when we go down to Earthala," I complained, hoping Kai understood my distress.

She shoved me aside, taking over.

"She has an obsession. No, an addiction. Don't tell me you don't think so?" Midnight argued, retreating.

I groaned, crossing my arms while in Kai's hold.

"I do not! Kai!" I glared at him.

"I didn't even say anything. Why are you glaring at me?" He sighed.

"Answer," I urged.

"You really don't think you have a tiny, itsy bitsy obsession?" he proposed.

"What makes you think I do?"

"Well, you took about two hundred pictures with that unicorn float for one, during our celebration party, remember? I'm actually surprised it didn't replace our group picture on your lock screen."

"...It's on my home screen..." I confessed.

He stared at me, shaking his head. "Okay… well, you also asked Marcus to buy you a unicorn figurine when he went down to Earthala. You brought it around with you for a good week, even into the bathroom where Daniel found it later staring at him, which is creepy," Kai explained.

I blushed. "That...was because I wanted to stare at it while I had a bath! It's cute and would contribute to my relaxation. I didn't mean to leave it there! I just fell asleep, and Daniel had to wake me up," I defended.

He snickered. "Princess, I guess you can make do with us not buying you unicorn pajamas then?"

I gasped, looking up at him in sheer horror. "You-you can't! That's taking away my right to choose which pajamas I want!"

He laughed, hugging me again. "Okay, okay. Don't give me that look. We'll get you the unicorn pajamas, promise."

"Obsessed..." Midnight whispered.

Hmph, Whatever.

"Promise! Cross your heart, hope to fly, poke a flower in the sky?" I questioned, pulling my head back to see his expression.

"Yes, I promise, my unicorn obsessed Princess. Cross my heart, hope to fly, poke as many flowers as you want in the beautiful sky. Though, the sky isn't as beautiful as you,” he whispered, lowering his lips to mine.

I blinked, my eyes slowly closed as we shared our first kiss.

He moved his lips an inch from me, waiting for my reaction. I glanced up at his orange eyes – their changing copper tone made my heart flutter with love. He leaned back in, understanding that I wanted this, to be kissed by him. He deepened the kiss; his hands drifted from my waist to my hips, while mine clung to his orange shirt.

We reluctantly pulled away, having no more air to spare to continue our kissing fest.

"You should sleep," he whispered.

"I'm not tired," I replied.

He grinned, knowing I was exhausted, but would rather stand here and continue our loving exchange.

"If you go to sleep, I'll buy you as many unicorn pajamas as you like. I'll even get you another figurine."

I beamed, jumping up and down in place.

"I'm going to change and brush my teeth!" I announced, rushing over to the washroom.

Kai chuckled. “I'll meet you in the bedroom.”

I stopped before entering the hall, looking over my shoulder.

"You’re gonna stay with me?" I wondered.

Kai had been with us long enough to know about my sleepwalking habits. "Yes. Your sleepwalking self has started entering my room in the last week. Might as well save her the trouble," he revealed.

I blushed. "Okay," I whispered, seeing the amusement in his expression before I headed towards the washroom. I should get my pajamas first.

I passed the washroom; my eyes lingered in there to see if I'd left my unicorn figurine before I continued to my room. It was pretty bare, having only one drawer that held very little clothing. It was decided that my stuff could be sent off first. It wasn't like I used the room other than to change and store my souvenirs. Regardless of how many times I slept in my room, by morning I was in one of the guys’ arms.

I pulled open the drawer; my eye widened at the new set of lingerie – an orange bra with black lace. I pulled it out with the matching panties, noticing the small paper note.

I assumed you'd need a set for your phoenix lover. Enjoy – EliaseAnne.

I grinned; Midnight reappeared in my mind to see the note.

"That was nice. You think we'll be able to get her something when we go down to Earthala?" Midnight asked.

I could sense her hesitation as if she was worried that I would decline. Of course. Actually, we have to get a few things to finish up the crafts remember? I reminded.

"Ya. I think they're gonna like it when we're done. Now, let's get ready. Your body is tired, and you don't want to sleep this trip away," Midnight encouraged, leaving my mind.

I nodded, taking a final glance at the note before setting it down on top of the dresser and heading back to the washroom.

"Mew, mew, mew, mew, mew."

My eyes locked onto my familiar, Nightmare, who was playing with a pink squishy ball we'd bought when we went in town. She froze when she noticed me, dashing towards me.

"MEW!" She sat down in front of the washroom; her three tails waved wildly as they began to glow a bright pink.

"Hello, Nighty. Wanna chill with me while I take a bath? Apparently, I can't bring my unicorn figurine today. I have to prove I don't have an addiction," I greeted, kneeling to pick up the small, white fur ball. She purred, rubbing her face against my cheek.

"Mew."

"Yeah. Let's take a relaxing bath and then go to bed. We're going to have an awesome time these next five days. I heard Scarlet has a cat. Maybe you guys can be friends?" I proposed.

"Mew, mew." Nighty nodded her head in approval, climbing onto my shoulder. Her tails wrapped around my neck as usual.

I stood up, walking into the washroom and closing the door. I noticed my unicorn figurine sitting neatly on the countertop of the sink, next to one of the pink-gold glitter bath bombs Scarlet had suggested Marcus purchase to help with achy muscles.

I didn't get why they called it a bath bomb. It didn't explode when it hit the water. It was like a failed experiment – fizzling out into a colorful mess. At least it smelled nice. Silly humans and their weird name calling.

I smiled, picking up my unicorn figurine that wasn't there previously.

"Mew?" Nightmare peered at the figurine, attempting to tap it with her paw.

"Yeah. Kai must have brought it here with the bath bomb. Hehehe. He gets brownie points," I replied.

His small acts of compassion only contributed to my new found love for the phoenix shifter.

I looked in the mirror – my bright blue eyes stared back at me with pride; my lips still curled up in a smile.

I'll enjoy this trip to the fullest, with my star knights by my side. In stars, we trust.