1 PROLOGUE

SAVERNIA

TRAINING GROUNDS

"Oh, my! Look who is here!" Exclaimed a boy when he saw Lucas wandering outside the training grounds. The traning for the day ended and Lucas was waiting for his other friends to come out. Lucas widened his eyes in fear when he saw the boy coming towards him.

Today wasn't his lucky day, like yesterday and like few days back.

"Look at you! You are half of my height and least skilled in the class! Hahaha!" Another boy compared his height with Lucas's and pushed Lucas's shoulder, and he took few steps back. Lucas firmed his body and stood tall. No matter how much he stood straight, on his toes, he barely touched shoulders of his bullies.

"Leave me alone!" Lucas yelled and saw here and there to locate his friends, but they were no where to be seen. The sun had already set and twilight was dimming to black night. Lucas took many steps back. He was too weak and coward to hit back.

"Who do you think you are! Even after being the son of the General, you are too weak to even create a simple sphere." Another boy pushed Lucas. This time, he fell down. He was to scared to fist his fingers and punch them back. He stared at them with small eyes full of tears and frowned eyebrows.

Even though he was son of the powerful man in the whole kingdom, he was too scared to tell his father. Considering who his father was, he should had been a strong willed and bravest of his generation. But he was quiet the opposite. He was meek, thin and frail. Even at age of ten, he was weaker than most of guys in his batch. He thought he would loose his father's respect if he couldn't deal with three bullies. So, Lucas struggled alone till his friends saw the incident few days ago and came for his rescue.

"Go away!" He pushed them, conjuring all his strength but was barely able to touch one of the boy.

The sky darkened, his tears camouflaged into the blackness. He stood their praying for someone to save him. Even though he could run, his small legs would be too slow. And if he got caught, they might hit him more. If the word passed around, he thought everyone would look down on him. So, even though he was scared so much that he started to tremble, he tried to standup for himself.

"Today, I am in good mood. So, I will forgive you for daring to supervise my practice. Next time, I will break all bones in every corner of your body!" One boy threatened. He came onto Lucas with a very large and broad body. Before him, Lucas looked like an infant.

"The Master asked me to do that!" Lucas defended with a shaky trembling voice but he took a step back.

"So? You shouldn't have complained to Master about us!" Another boy came onto him. Lucas arched his back as that boy bent onto him.

As the bullying continued and night fell, away from the bullies's vision, within hearing range, a small pair of hands were stretched into thin air. A small body stood erect and a pair of eyes closed to concentrate on sending energy into the palms. After few seconds, two small blue lighted energy spheres, merely at the size of small onions, but filling the tiny palms, were formed. The eyes opened. For one last time she compared her body with the bullies and charged. The hands were hidden behind while running towards the bullies, as the blue light illuminated behind her.

Her body was comparable to Lucas's but smaller than the bullies. But she was confident that she would take down three bullies double of her size. Was it overconfidence? Only future can tell!

On reaching the scene as silently like a cat, that child jumped into the air, pushing the smal pair of hands forwards. The blue spheres hit two bullies and they fell onto ground wailing.

"How dare you bully him!" She yelled!

The third bully turned around and widened his eyes in shock. "Sasha!" He whispered as his voice was struck in his throat on seeing her.

"I will complain to the King if you continue!" She threatened and slammed her tiny fists onto his face, barely reaching till his neck.

The last standing bully stopped her fists with one hand and pushed it away. She stumbled and fell down. The other two bullies regained their strength and stood. They were about to fight her but were stopped by a couple of guards yelling.

"Stop it! And freeze!" The guard yelled. Behind him two small boys slightly taller than Lucas came running. The bullies ran for their life but could a ten year olds outrun a trained soldier? Rarely!

So the bullies were caught. Two boys helped Sasha and Lucas stand on the ground properly.

"This is going out of control! We have to inform father!" One of the boy said.

Lucas was crying, tears travelling down his small cute cheeks, which turned red. His whole face was swollen and uncontrollable sobs were audible from that tiny little mouth.

"N....no, y..o..ur high..ness! My... fathe...c... can't know!" Lucas tried to talk while crying. His voice was breaking by sobs.

"But!.... I will ask the King to not tell anyone!" The Prince tried to help Lucas but he shoke in denial.

"No one should know!" Lucas said in low voice. But the bullies heard.

"Looks like we are safe, Hades!" One of the bullies smirked and other bullies followed.

"We should hit them back!" Another boy who accompanied the Prince created a huge blue energy sphere in his hand, which was too huge, like two big oranges, for his eight years old tiny palms. He jumped into the air and smashed it onto Hades face.

The sphere perfects hit his face, which made the Prince to press his lips in jealousy.

"Jade stop it! The guards will take care of it!" The Prince yelled. He didn't say that because of jealousy, but because he didn't want his best friend, Jade to get hurt.

"Lucas we should inform your father." Jade said  , while turning back to look at sobbing, weak Lucas.

"No! We should let them go! Lucas doesn't want his father to know, and we should understand him!" Sasha said conjuring her tiny knowledge about the word ' understanding'!

"Yes, young master! What lady Sasha said is right. Let the guards take care of them." The Prince's personal servant said to Jade, who shoke his head.

"Don't but in Jade. You can prove yourself some other time!" The Prince said after understanding Lucas.

"Yes, I will promise that I will not leave them without teaching a lesson!" The chief personal guard of Prince said.

Jade clicked his tongue and stepped back from the bullies.

"No! Please leave us! We are sorry! Please! Please, your highness!" The bullies turned to Izan and begged. Izan only shoke his head. Seeing this they cried loudly.

The guards took those ten year old bullies away from the group. Their cries became faintly audible till completely stopped.

"You should man up Lucas! You can't let this happen everytime!" Jade blurted. Lucas bend his head down and cried.

On seeing him, Sasha held and wiped out his tears on his tiny cute cheeks.

"Don't say like that! You are only making it worse now!" The Prince stopped Jade, who clicked his tongue.

"Izan, if not now, then when will he learn!" Jade averted his gaze by turning his head away and started to walk away. Seeing him rest of them started moving.  Everyone were surprised to hear a eight year old kid address the Prince by his name! They decided to complain to his parents after reaching the Palace. But Izan didn't care.

"This isn't the time. We will teach him later!" The Prince said. Jade only clicked his tongue to show his disapproval and continued to walk at front. It was so clear for everyone that Jade wanted Lucas to gather strength and punch those bullies. He was not alone, others also want to see that, but Lucas was too weak to do that. He needed more training and fighting skills to muster the courage. Even though Lucas was two years elder than them, because of this reason he had to train with them.

"It's okay. I am sorry that I wasn't with you today. But I promise this won't happen again! Okay?" Sasha lifted Lucas's face to make him see her. Sasha nodded her head making Lucas to follow.

A faint smile appeared on his face after seeing her beautiful tiny eyes comparable to his. Her smile gave birth to a feeling that Lucas wasn't familiar with. Never he once thought that he would go behind her wherever she went after today!

Sasha held his hand and pulled him forwards as they walked towards the Palace. Lucas held her hand firmly, interlocking his fingers with her's and walked beside her with a big smile. That tiny little heart of his beat faster than ever for the first time.

Soon, the guards pushed Jade to walk behind them, where Izan was. The night deepened and the stars glittered in the briliant pitch black sky. They reached a street filled with food. Izan once ate a pink cotton candy when he was with the King on country trip. Since then, Izan couldn't stop thinking about it. Every waking day he asked for candy. Initially, as the Prince ordered, his servants bought it but this went on everyday. Soon the word reached the King's ears and he ordered to not buy any candy for Izan.

Izan's eight year old little heart broke and he cried. He cried for days together but the King and Queen didn't bulge. The King ordered that no one in the Palace should buy that till Prince moved on. But that never happened.

As they were walking down the street, Izan located a cotton candy shop.

"Look! A cotton candy!" He ran into the shop without care in the world. The guards and his personal servants ran behind him.

"Wow! Different colours! I want blue one! Blue one! Blue one!" He jumped up and down asking his servants to buy one for him.

"I am sorry, your highness. The King ordered not to buy any candy!" His servant bowed at him.

"Noooooo! Father says like that so that I won't eat everyday. But it's been a week since I ate it. Please give me one! Pleeeeese!" Izan asked with his puppy doll eyes. But no one said anything.

He kept on asking for it but everyone firmly denied his request. He cried and they begged him to walk home. Izan cried and finally let go. They walked for a short distance. At the end of street, there were no lamps and completely dark, it was as if they walked in forest, with only stars to guide them.

As the night deepened and nothing was visible, unless one had a burning lamp. Izan felt someone hold his left wrist and pull him away. As it was too dark no one knew that he was missing. Izan was scared. He was being pulled away by force which made him stumble in his path. He thought he was being kidnapped. At that moment somehow he didn't  scream.

Izan felt the fingers on his wrist to be familiar. He touched the arm with his other hand and held it.

"Huh?" A familiar voice asked him. On recognising it a wide smile spread on his face. Instead of feeling of taken by force he followed that person heartfully and he never called for help.

As the pair reach a lake, the person dragging him stopped.

"Let's go there!" He pointed out the wooden walkway that went into the lake. He held Izan's hand pulled him to sit on the wooden path, while dipping his legs in water. Izan was scared at first but after seeing Jade, he sat with courage. The cold chilling water shivered him but he dipped because other person asked. Somehow the cold water were no longer chilly. The water was splashed onto them as Izan kicked the water.

"It's not cold, Jade!" Izan yelled with happiness.

"Wow! Look at that!" Jade pointed out the stretch of stars in the sky. Izan raised his head and stared at the sky with astonishment. He had seen night sky many times, but today was some how special. The stars shined brighter than he felt before.

"You know, my mom said that, after anyone dies they turn into star.  That star is my grandfather!"  Jade said with his cute lips, while pointing out a star in the middle of their view.

"Oh! Then this will be my grandmother then!" Izan pointed out a star directly above him.

"No! My mom said that it is MY grandmother, not yours!" Jade pulled down Izan's arm which was pointing out the star.

"Then, this might be my grandmother's." Izan pointed out a third new star.

"No! This is my aunt!" Jade shoke his head. Izan felt sad.

"Why are you taking all the stars in the sky! Give me some!" Izan clicked his cheek and turned his head away from Jade.

"Hmmm. That's very difficult. All the stars belong to my family. That's what my mom said. " Jade said in deep thought with crossed arms across his chest.

"You should leave some stars for the previous kings and queens! This isn't fair!" Izan shoke his head, while looking up.

"Nah! All those stars belonged to only my family!" Jade chuckled.

"You are lying! I know. You always do!" Izan down turned his corners of lips and twisted his upper body away from Jade, while folding his arms across chest.

"Okay! Okay! Now don't be sad! Turn around, there is one star that doesn't belong to anyone of my family." Jade pulled Izan's shoulders towards him. Izan turned to face Jade with a serious sad expression.

"Look up! This star is free!" Jade pushed Izan's chin upwards.

"Okay. Then that's my grandmother. Why is it only one star for my family?!" Izan wasn't convinced. "You are lying again! Tell me first of all, why did you pull me here? You are already making me sad!" Izan's irritation was clearly visible.

Jade chuckled and went closer to Izan. He took his face in his hands and said, "don't be sad Izan! Not here, I wanted to take you somewhere else. But I saw this beautiful lake and I couldn't stop from going." He let go of Izan's face and stood up. He leaned down and pulled up Izan to stand. "Come, lets go!" He held Izan's hand and ran away.

Izan felt little bit less sad, didnt know for what! He followed Jade blindly without any fear for his safety. They were friends since they could crawl and not even once Izan felt scared at Jade's presence.

Jade pulled Izan to hide behind a wooden wall of small shop. Infront of them lie a huge crowded market, where anyone could find anything. The whole Street was lightened with bright lamps of different colours. Izan liked the scene but he loved the night sky more.

People were yelling here and there, asking about rates of different products, clicking of coins and precious stones in their pockets. Both the kids were waiting for a window to pass through without getting notice.

After waiting for few minutes, the street became more crowded. Jade took Izan's hand and slipped through the crowd to reach a shop. As the street was too crowded to recognise these two cute boys.  Jade raised his hand and showed two fingers. Izan couldn't see what's inside the shops, so he Izan had to raise his head so high but that wasn't sufficient. So, he tiptoed and placed hands on a wooden rail. He gathered strength into his feet and jumped up. A clear sight of different colours of cotton candy came into his vision. His eyes went wide with surprise as he landed on the ground. He turned to Jade with anticipation and hope.

Jade was few inches taller than Izan, so, with tiptoeing he could see the inside of shop.

"Please give me two cotton candy, sir!" Jade showed two finger to shop keeper.

The shopkeeper stood up from his decaying wooden chair and bent over to see the source of voice. A bright smile landed on his face as he asked, "well, whom do we have here! Which colour do you want young man?" His heart was lightened and happy on seeing two cute boys asking for candy.

"Which colour do your want?" Jade turned to Izan and asked.

"What colours are there?" Izan jumped again to see into the shop. He had to jump multiple times to check for all the colours in the shop. And finally he decided on one colour. "BLUE! BLUE! I WANT BLUE!" He jumped up and down with excitement. His loud voice became indistinguishable from the noisy street.

"Give us one pink and one blue." Jade raised his head and yelled.

"Okay, young man! Here it is. It costs two silver coins!"  The shop keeper said giving two candy sticks to Jade. Jade took them and gave the blue one to Izan while he munched on pink candy.

"Young lad, two silver coins!" The shopkeeper reminded the kids as they forgot the world around them after taking one bite.

"Huh?" Jade frowned his eyebrows while Izan continued licking his candy.

Izan was in cloud nine. No one or nothing could make him happy like a cotton candy for seven year old kid. He didn't bother about anything as he drowned himself in the candy's world.

"Two silver coins, lad!" The shopkeeper said again as he thought that the kids didn't hear it.

"Huh? What are those?" Jade asked which made both the shopkeeper and Izan surprise. Izan stopped licking and saw Jade.

"You don't know that you have to give silver coins in exchange of the candy?" The shopkeeper.

Both Jade and Izan shoke their heads.

"Then, I am afraid you can't have the candy. Please return it." The shopkeeper bend down to reach the candy sticks from their hands.

Izan's felt sad. All the happiness from his face drained and he turned pale. He down turned his lips and started crying.

"Don't cry! Don't cry! I will find a solution!" Jade took Izan into his arms. Tears were streaming down Izan's cheeks like a high speed flowing river.

Jade turned to shopkeeper and asked with puppy eyes. "Please!" He said.

Izan's heart was breaking, he felt like the world was ending. He whimpered loudly that Jade had to cover his mouth with two palms. His hands on Izan's mouth drenched in Izan's salty tears. " Please! I will go home and get the coins immediately. Trust me, please!" Jade pleaded.

"Alright! Only this time!" The shopkeeper melted on seeing the cute little boys and gave the candy away for free. " Don't worry to pay. These are for free!"

Izan stopped crying, his heart lightened again. He licked once and closed his eyes, like that drugged him.  He saw Jade licking the candy and smiling. His heart was full.

"You took me to buy candy?" He asked for which Jade nodded.

For the first time, Izan saw Jade differently. His heart beat faster and when Jade held his tiny wrist, it pounced in his chest. Izan didn't quite understand what that feeling meant but he liked it. He enjoyed the candy while walking hand in hand with Jade. Jade held candy stick in one hand and Izan's wrist in another. They hopped along the way, while licking without a worry in the world.

They reached the end of street where the soldiers found izan and his kidnapper. They took both of them to the Palace, where everyone were so terrified about Prince.

King went calm after seeing Izan but infuriated on seeing cotton candy in their arms. He complained about Jade to Jade's father and both of them decided to let this go.

By mere age of seven, two innocent and pure hearts were beating for two new hearts for the first time. Never did they think that their love will evolve into something beautiful.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

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NALSINDA