Chapter Text
"His Royal Highness, Emperor of Kilan, Masaru Bakugou, would like to formally propose a contract marriage between His Royal Highness, Crown Prince of Kilan, Bakugo Katsuki, and the honorable Crown Prince of Waelyn, Shoto Todoroki. Shall His Majesty, Emperor Enji Todoroki, accept His Royal Highness's proposal to end the fifteen year war?" The Scholar finishes, bowing towards the royals, his trimmed green hair falling over his eyes as he inclines. Leaning back to his original position, a stiff, well-practiced standing position, trailing his gaze above him, he meets the heterochromic eyes of the Crown Prince of Waelyn.
The prince's stare is cold, yet his face is emotionless; the Scholar knows from experience this face of neutrality is considered standard for all royalty, as to not give away their genuine emotions, for emotions are often a mere weakness with royalty. This prince is known widely for his ethereal, entrancing beauty, with bold red and white hair that falls past his waist, and his silken blue kimono, mirroring his icy nation, inlaid with pure silver, a luxury to find. The Scholar remains neutral, while he does feel himself trembling slightly under the cold prince's stare.
The prince averts his gaze, across the hall from him. Following his gaze, the Scholar finds his prince, no, the Crown Prince of Kilan, Bakugo Katsuki. The fiery prince hosts a face of boredom, as though he doesn't want to be here, listening to scholars drabble on about the relations of the two countries, even while his possible fiance is in this room. The Scholar gazes at the prince a moment longer before he finds himself looking between the two princes. He takes a moment to think about the benefits of the proposed marriage between these two. On one hand, the war that had caused countless deaths on both sides, even costing the life of the younger prince of Waelyn, Touya Todoroki, would finally come to an end. On the other hand, the prince's opposite personalities could conflict with each other, deepening the feud between the two countries.
The Scholar turns at a tap on his shoulder to find Momo Yaoyorozu, the Appointed Head of Relations, handing him a paper with new information for him to read out. He quickly reads, preparing himself to speak again, "The Empire of Kilan would like to cordially invite Their Royal Highnesses Emperor Enji Todoroki, Empress Rei Todoroki, and Crown Prince Shoto Todoroki to the Winter Ball, where the decision of their marriage shall be announced." The Scholar finishes. Both royal families seem tense. The decision could very well change the fate of these two countries forever.
The team of delegates sends a muscular redhead forward to speak. Bowing, he says, "The Kingdom of Waelyn formally accepts the Empire of Kilan's invitation to the Winter Ball, and accepts that the decision shall be needed by that time." The redhead holds his bow for a few seconds more before gracefully making his way back to his seat, where a girl with short brown hair pulls out his chair for him; he inaudibly thanks her with a nod of his head, as he sits. His chair creaks slightly below him, the only sound in the room. Guards assimilate besides both of the royal families, muttering can be heard as the guards lead the families towards their designated rooms. The Waelyn royal family stays in the rooms prepared for nobles from other countries, in the south wing of the Asim Palace in Kilan.
The Scholar makes his way down the hall, respectively trailing ten meters behind the blond prince of Kilan; the grand hall's glass ceiling casting light upon the prince, making him glow; he looked positively radiant, the embodiment of the sun. Finding himself staring for a disrespectfully long time, the scholar stares down at his black polished shoes, gazing past his red tie and black suit vest; he smiles to himself. He is thankful for all of this; his clothes, his position, everything is owed to the prince in front of him. When they were young, the prince had seen the small green-haired boy orphaned in a fire, where the prince had taken him in, convincing the Emperor and Empress to allow the boy to grow in the palace beside the prince. The scholar may have lost his parents young, but he had not lost all his family. The Empress, Mitsuki Bakugo, had treated him with the same affection his mother had, while still allowing him to work. The scholar was even given a new name by the Empress, as his old name pained him when he heard it. He fondly remembers the moment it had been gifted to him, back when he was four.
His vision blurry, the boy woke to a smell so putrid he could hardly breathe, the feeble hands of his mother shake him awake as he feels her shake in the effort. "Mama!" the boy yells, as she collapses, she murmurs, "Run far from here, Mikumo, leave me." The boy feels tears rush down his face, pooling on his chin before falling to the ground, steaming in the raging heat encasing them. All too suddenly, the roof above them collapses, crushing the fallen woman in the rubble, falling to his knees he yells, "MAMA!!" Allowing himself a moment of vigil, he lays next to her. Numb, he shakily makes his way through the remains of his home, tripping along the house that held all of his memories. As he emerges from the blaze, he meets ruby eyes, covered with a mess of blond hair as his world goes black. When he awakes, he finds himself in the arms of a large blond woman, as brushed away the ash on his face, smiling at him, "What is your name, little one?" The boy sobbed, practically unable to speak, "Mikumo Akatani" He sputtered out. The woman frowns, he cries slightly harder at the frown, thinking the woman doesn't like his name. She brushes away a tear so gently it reminds him of his mother, she hugs him close, "That name seems to hold too many memories, would you like a new one?" He pushes back from her, looking into her eyes before slowly nodding, not wanting to seem disrespectful. She smiles thoughtfully, before saying, "Midoriya, That will be your last name. Midori for green, like your hair." She said, ruffling his hair. He gives her a weak smile. "Katsuki, what shall his first name be?" The empress asked her son, he thought, his eyebrows scrunching, "How 'bout Izuku?" Izuku smiled, nodding. Mitsuki chuckled at how eager the boy was. "A very pretty name for a very pretty boy."