A buried scar
"No," Yuri said firmly, "Absolutely, not!"
"But Heika, should Dai Shimarron—" Stoffel began.
The sound of a hard fist contacting table rang throughout the meeting room. "I SAID 'NO'!"
Nothing more was said about weapons making after that – not even perfecting Anissina's inventions. Gwendal knew Yuri wanted a peaceful country but he never saw Yuri this angry in the middle of the meeting.
For the first time since he became Maoh, Yuri stared them down. The Nobles shuddered, it looked exactly like Conrad did when he gave a stare down while trying not to lose patience with an enemy, "This meeting is dismissed, since you all are ardent in making weapons, I suggest you spend that energy on broadening your knowledge of making peace. Am I understood?"
No one dared to speak.
"AM I UNDERSTOOD?" Yuri thundered.
"Hai!" all the nobles said simultaneously.
"You really done it this time, Stoffel," Waltorana muttered.
"I was only thinking for the best of Shin Makoku," Stoffel rebuked huffily. Gunter glared at him but said nothing.
"I don't think I've ever seen Yuri-Heika so agitated," Delchias murmured. Gwendal hid himself behind a pillar as the Nobles moved on. They were right – well, Delchias at least – it was not like Yuri to lose his temper in the middle of a meeting like that. I swear this kid's going to make me grey before Greta's his age, he thought to himself. He walked back to the meeting room then.
"I need to leave this in your capable hands, then?" a familiar voice asked. Conrad was standing just beside the huge doors. Gwendal pushed down a groan; Conrad always had a knack of knowing when Yuri was hurting.
"I'm more worried he would hide it," Gwendal told him.
Conrad look at him, confused, "He doesn't hide anything from me."
"Trust me Conrart, he would this time," Gwendal said, "it has something to do with you or Greta. Otherwise he wouldn't be this upset."
Conrad nodded in understanding. "Make sure he's okay?"
"Quit being a mother hen," Gwendal rebuked, "he may be your godson but he's not going to be a kid for much longer."
"That's what I'm worried about," Conrad murmured. Gwendal looked his brother, realising what Conrad was implying in being an adult. There will likely come a day when Yuri would shed blood, send soldiers to their deaths. For now, he was a young kid needing their protection. Rather than serving him, Gwendal almost felt like he and Conrad were raising him.
"I had to help Hahaue raise you and Pup," Gwendal reminded him, "and you survived."
Conrad just smiled in appreciation and left his brother to deal with a distressed king.
Gwendal sighed as he stepped into the room. He was surprised, and relieved, it was not in shambles. Instead the King was still sitting at his desk and, surprisingly, doing paperwork. Gwendal wondered if he should try ruffling Yuri's feathers more often…
"Do you have anything to discuss Lord Von Voltaire?" the boy King growled, looking up and daring Gwendal to approach.
…or not.
"You all right?" he asked, approaching the King.
"Do I look all right to you?" the King said sarcastically.
"Easy," Gwendal said, holding his hands up in surrender, "I was just helping…"
Yuri sighed. "I know… I know…"
"Today's meeting opened a scar didn't it?" Gwendal asked. The kid was practically an open book.
"One I tried to bury," Yuri murmured, putting his quill back in its inkwell, "I couldn't talk about it with Conrad… he's already so hurt…"
"Yuri, by Human standard all of us Nobles are old men," Gwendal told him, "and you're just 15, a kid." The King looked up. Gwendal had only ever called him 'Yuri' when he was either concern or angry.
"What does that have to do with what happened?" Yuri told him heatedly, "I don't want anyone else to get as hurt as we were, ever!"
"Doesn't mean you didn't come out unhurt…" Gwendal replied, "the moment you came back to Shin Makoku you were set to save him, Wolfram and I wallowed in our sadness and anger. He hurt you by hiding so you wouldn't be hurt or killed."
"I know that DAMN IT!" Yuri yelled, his fists hitting his desk causing papers to fly and the inkwell to shake slightly. He breathed slowly to calm down. He looked away from Gwendal, his hair hiding his eyes. Gwendal could have sworn saw two teardrops
"Th-things are bad enough with arrows," Yuri choked, clearly trying to hold back tears, "we don't need guns added! Or bombs!"
"Why do I get the feeling something happened in Japan with guns and bombs?" Gwendal asked. He knew Yuri would not say 'no' with such vehemence unless it has something to do with Earth, or even Japan.
"You know the saying 'the more you know about history, the more prepared you are for the future', right?" Yuri murmured.
Gwendal nodded, allowing the boy to continue.
"What happened was what Earthlings call the Second World War," said Yuri, "There are some things my people have done which I am deeply ashamed of, and it had hurt my people back. Like the Mazoku, even now there are people who are wary of us. In 1945, about sixty years ago, another land, America dropped an atom bomb in two cities, Nagasaki and Hiroshima. My grandfather was only Greta's age. He lost his parents upon impact of the bomb and lost his only sister to the radiation sickness that came after."
"And the guns?" Gwendal asked then, quite sure he should not ask what atom bombs were. He remembered Bob's assistant using them but he never saw her kill. He also remembered the brief hint of fear in Conrad's eyes when he saw those metal objects.
"People are killed daily by guns on Earth, Gwendal," Yuri told him firmly, "daily! If I were to introduce the technology of guns here, a world of power crystals, think of the damage it do to the innocent people."
Gwendal remained silent. Though Japan, last he saw, was at a time of peace, like Shin Makoku it was once at war. He remembered Conrad mentioning something about guns when he came back from Earth. He could hear the shudder in his brother's voice at the mention of it. There was something about guns that truly frightened Conrad; and that in itself was rare.
Now, it frightened the Maoh to even think about bringing it to Shin Makoku. With the events, that only happened months ago… had Yuri talked to anyone about it?
It seems… no matter where they're from, rulers hide their true feelings because they try to be strong…
With a sigh, Gwendal pushed down his pride and pulled Yuri into a hug. The action itself surprised the boy.
"Gwendal?" Yuri asked.
"It's going to be okay…" Gwendal murmured, "You may have done much since you came and that makes us old men forget you're still a kid." They were silent for a moment before Gwendal began again, "You don't have to introduce guns here if you don't want to."
"Thanks Gwen…" Yuri murmured, trying very hard not to cry.
"Don't expect to do this every time you're stressed, dig?" Gwendal said, hoping to get a laugh from the King.
It worked.
"Dig," Yuri murmured, snickering slightly.
Don't grow up too fast, Yuri, Gwendal thought to himself, we still need the naïve you to lighten our dark day… and… please. Don't hide your feelings again…