I woke up early like I usually did every birthday since I turned three. If we weren't in the palace I would've ran around the place and yelled that it was birthday. Doing that here might've gotten us kicked out though, so I avoided doing so.

Bet that my siblings would like sleeping in today. Especially Shi. Big brother loved sleeping. It was basically a pastime for him. I glanced at his bed and saw that he was gone.

"Shi?" I said, walking over to his bed. I squatted and peered under the bed to see if he had decided to sleep there. No one was under the bed, just some luggage.

Did he managed to wake up before me? I smiled. Maybe he was making me a cake or something.

I ran over to the door. I had to jump in order to open it. I would've flown, but flying in place was still hard for me. If I tried flying while moving the knob, I probably would've crashed against the door.

I gasped as soon as I managed to open it. Takeshi and Selena stood outside.

"Shi? Sel? Everything okay?" I asked, tilting my head at them. Had Shi finished my cake? Or was something else going on?

"Yeah," Sel said, picking me up. "Say, want to go to the card shop today? You seem interested in meeting that rude girl again."

Wonder if she felt better about her loss... A week had passed since her match with Kaoru in the park.

"I do?" I asked.

Shi laughed. "You sound like Rocio."

"I resent that!" Rocio said, popping out of Selena's hoodie. She was in her rat form.

"You're all coming with me?" I asked with a hopeful smile.

"Yup! Well, except for our parents. They're plan-" Selena said before suddenly cutting herself off.

"Their plan? What plan?"

"I didn't say that. I. uh, I meant to say that they plan to go somewhere together, just the two of them."

I smiled. "I see." I bet that they are planning my birthday party.

"Wait, isn't the card shop closed at this time?" Cio said.

"Oh, right," I said, lowering my head.

"That's fine. We still need to eat breakfast," Shi said. "We can't go out on an empty stomach, else we'll regret it later."

Sel nodded.

"Then let's go. I have something waiting for us downstairs!"

Sel and Shi rushed down the stairs. We would've flown, but we were in the palace. Doing so could've been considered rude to the monarchy. Besides, it didn't take us long to arrive.

"Oh, hey!" Azami said. He was eating waffles with berry drizzle.

"What are you doing?" Selena asked.

"Eating." He chuckled. "Thought that was obvious."

"Yeah, but why are you eating those waffles? They belong to us!" Selena yelled.

He glanced at the other three plates. "So that's why there were only four plates. Here, you can have this one!" He pushed the plate with its one remaining waffle forward.

Sel continued to glare at him.

Shi sighed. "It's fine. Eat it. I'll just go make some more."

"Really? Thanks, dude!"

"No need to do so. In the end it's your ingredients that I used. The least I can do is offer you some food."

Azami laughed. "You're a lot different than that grouchy sister of yours."

"Cio?"

"Hey!" Cio yelled, jumping off of Sel's hoodie. Hopefully Azami didn't notice her transform from her rat form.

Azami laughed. "I meant Selena."

"I'm not grouchy!" Selena said, stomping over to him. She picked up the waffle and stuffed it into his mouth. "Here, eat up, Your Majesty."

"Sel!" Shi yelled, holding his hands out toward her. He grabbed her by the arms and pulled her back. "Don't do that! Remember who he is!"

"I don't care if he's a prince! He insulted me!"

Azami laughed and wiped away the berry juice from his lips. "It's fine," he said, licking his fingers.

Sel cheeks reddened. "Annoying jerk."

"Sel, stop trying to provoke him! You're going to ruin Skah's birthday if you keep this up!"

I smiled as I took a seat and began eating my waffles. Honestly, I found it entertaining to watch.

"You're enjoying this too, aren't you?" Cio asked as she took the seat next to me.

I laughed but didn't respond.

"You really are great at playing innocent and sweet."

I gasped. Daiyu had said something similar when I offered to help her. Was I really a phony? No, I did mean to help her.

"I'm not fake," I said, frowning.

Cio patted my head. "Maybe you just have a sadistic side that pops up occasionally."

"Eh?" I said, jumping. I didn't like the sound of that...

"Everyone has one to some extent. Even people who claim to be good feel it when a person they deem bad get what's coming to them."

Well, people did like to see the baddie get their karma. But was it good to feel joy from their suffering? Hmm...

"Hmph, dumb prince," Selena said as she sat down next to us. Azami was leaving.

"I heard that!" Azami yelled.

Sel stuck her tongue out at him. "You were supposed to, dummy!"

Cio sighed. "What a child."

"Hey! I'm older than you!"

"Then behave like it!" Cio said, swinging an arm in front of her.

"Please don't fight," I whispered.

Cio and Sel stopped glaring at one another.

"Okay, but only because it's you asking," Sel said.

I hugged her. "Thanks, Sel."

She smiled and hugged me back. "No need. Sorry for making things bumpy."

Cio continued to avert her gaze. Something told me that she felt the same.

I laughed and returned to eating my food.

Once Shi was done eating his breakfast, the four of us left for the card shop.

"How's training coming along?" I asked as we walked.

"It's grueling," Big brother said, touching his neck. "But not harder than anything Dad and Daisaru have put me through."

Daisaru was our dad's friend. Occasionally he would teach us martial arts. He was great at it. Maybe even the best in the whole universe.

"You probably wouldn't even find the training grueling if you had followed Dad's to a T," Rocio said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, you're probably right. I'm regretting not having taken it seriously," Shi said, lowering his eyes to the sidewalk.

I grabbed his hand. "I'm sure you'll be a great knight one day, Shi!" 

He smiled. "And I'm sure that you'll rise higher in Spirit Battles."

I nodded. "Yeah!"

"Oh, hey!" a voice called out from behind. I turned around and saw the blond boy who had dueled Daiyu.

"Kaoru!" I said.

"That's me! What are you doing here? Going to get some cards?"

"Maybe. I was actually hoping to see if I could speak with Daiyu."

Kaoru's smile faded somewhat. "Yu isn't around. She's participating in the National Duelist Training Week camp. NaDuTraWe camp for short."

I gasped. "What's that?"

"You haven't heard about it? It's where those seeking to sharpen their skills gather. Those seeking to become spirit king have attended at least one in their career."

"Sounds neat!"

Kaoru grinned. "It does, doesn't it?"

"You sound as if you haven't been to one," Rocio said.

Kaoru swung his black handbag over his shoulder. "That's because I haven't. I've only heard about it from those in the shop." He laughed. "Come to think about it, I'm probably the only frequent visitor who hasn't attended it."

"Why haven't you?" Selena asked. "Is it expensive?"

He shook his head. "Not really. I just haven't had the chance to do so. Something usually comes up. Plus, I'm not sure if I'll like it there. While battling other strong players sounds fun, there tend to be a lot of people who take it too seriously. I want to play to have fun."

"Surprising that you're friends with Daiyu then," Rocio said.

Kaoru smiled. "I guess so." He sighed. "She wasn't always so competitive. Come to think about it, she didn't start to hate losing this much until she attended one of those camps."

Wonder if the people she met there changed her view of the game...

"Hey, want to battle as soon as they open up the card shop?" Kaoru asked.

"Sure!" I said, grinning.

"Great! Let's go see if Ms. Situ's there."

"Ms. Situ?" Shi asked.

"She's the owner of the store. She's a nice lady," I said.

"She's also Daiyu's mom," Kaoru said.

My eyes widened. "She is?" They didn't behave anything alike. Though come to think about, they did resemble each other physically...

Kaoru laughed. "You're not the first one to ask that. Think her dad spoiled her."

Shi and I glanced at Cio.

"What?" Cio asked, glaring at us.

"Nothing!" Shi said, turning away.

"Daddy spoiled me and I'm nothing like her," Sel said, chuckling.

Was she comparing herself to Daiyu or Rocio?

"Same," Rocio said, crossing her arms.

Shi smiled at Cio's remark. She behaved as if she were a princess.

"Let's go!" I yelled, running ahead of them.

"Wait up, Birdie!" Selena yelled, chasing after me.

Kaoru grinned. "He seems as pumped as me. This is going to be a great match. I just know it!"

As did I. If only Daiyu were here to see it. Maybe her view of duels could have changed if she saw the two of us have a fun match.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed this chapter ^^. I wrote this to mark it being Skah's birthday (unlike the others, I decided to make his part of the main narrative). I plan to publish the follow-up part tomorrow for Thanksgiving**