Scientific Progress Goes "Whoops!"

Part One - Tea for Two

"You want tea, Highness?"

Yozak grinned as the black-haired youth looked away from the hilarity in the garden and up at him. He took note of the tray in Yozak's hands, how there were only two cups, and then smiled. "Sure." He leaned back in his chair and shifted his weight so he faced more toward his new companion.

Yozak glanced out into the garden as he set the tray down and watched the kiddo with Greta and Wolfram, trying to teach the young noble how to play baseball. Off to one side, Conrad kept watch, as always, and covered his mouth with one hand whenever his younger brother did something particularly amusing. "How long've they been at it?"

Murata glanced out too. "All afternoon," he said with a wry shake of his head. "There are times when Sir von Bielefeld seems to get the hang of it, and then he nearly clocks Shibuya in the head with the bat."

The redhead snorted and set out the cups, pouring for the Sage first, and then for himself, though not as generous a portion. "Kiddo oughta brought one of those helmets." Murata laughed and Yozak eyed him. "And are you just out here working on your tan, Highness?"

He received an enigmatic shrug and smile in reply, then Murata plucked at one sleeve of his jacket. "If I were, I suppose I'm not exactly dressed properly."

"Doubt anyone'd mind if you changed," was the spy's answer. He dropped into one of the other chairs at the table and stirred his tea idly.

Murata plucked three sugar cubes out of the bowl and added them to his cup. "Mm, where I come from, having a tan implies you have nothing better to do than sit out in the sun all day."

Yozak arched one eyebrow. "Do you?"

"Well, not today... but that's hardly the point."

"Ah, I see." Yozak tapped his spoon against the side of his teacup and watched as Murata continued to fuss with his tea. The young Sage had loosened up somewhat in the past months, now that everything with Soushu had been put behind them. But not nearly as much as he could, Yozak was certain. Not that the kid's personal life was any of his business -- unless someone thought it should be, anyway -- but just because an edge had dulled here and there didn't mean everything was perfectly smooth. "Well," he said lightly, "at least you've started taking days off."

Murata grinned. "Don't let the temple maidens hear that. They'll find more chores for me to do."

Yozak laughed out loud. "Surrounded by pretty virgins ain't all that it's cracked up to be, is it, Highness?"

"Oh, I don't know about that," the youth said mock-thoughtfully. "They do have to change their clothes at some point, don't they?"

The kiddo often lamented that his friend acted like an old man, and comments like that, accompanied by a sly wink, lent credibility to the label. Yozak snorted again and clucked his tongue. "Careful, Highness..." he wagged a finger and Murata grinned. "I hear s'not a good idea to get little Lady Ulrike upset."

Murata picked up his teacup, now apparently satisfied with turning it into something was more or less tea-flavored sugar milk, and snickered. "She'd have my head," he agreed. "It's not easy recruiting maidens." He took a long sip of his tea and then looked up. "Think about it, having to spend your entire life..." the boy frowned, suddenly, and glanced at his cup. Yozak sat up a little straighter as he touched one hand to his lips and then looked at his fingertips, as if expecting to see something there.

"Highness?"

Dark eyes met his and Murata immediately turned red and glanced away quickly. "It... I'm not s, sure..."

Yozak stood quickly, curiosity turning to concern in less than a heart's beat. A poisoner in the castle? Was his -- or her -- target the Sage? Or...

He glanced over his shoulder at the young king. He hadn't been specific as to who the tea had been for when he'd been down in the kitchen. Someone could have decided the odds looked good enough to try for the Maou. Yozak looked back at the Sage and saw that Murata had set his cup into its saucer, hardly a drop spilled, and his frown had deepened. The flush that had risen to his cheeks hadn't eased at all. Yozak reached over to feel his forehead, and Murata pushed his chair back a good two or three feet before Yozak could touch him.

"Highness, what is it?" He flagged down one of the maids lurking in the entrance to the garden, Doria, and she hesitated before coming toward him. "Go and grab Gisela," he said quickly.

"No, don't." Murata raised his head with an effort, teeth clenched tightly. He looked past Yozak's shoulder and stared steadily, though his eyes seemed slightly glazed. "Go get--"

"Did it work?!" An eager, sharp, female voice rang out into the garden.

"--Lady Anissina," Murata finished.

Yozak heard a shout behind him and turned to see the kiddo and company had paused in their practice, and Yuuri was waving at the redheaded woman as she strolled onto the patio with a triumphant look on her face.

"Ah, it did!" Clapping her hands in delight, Anissina peered into Murata's face, which tightened even further as she pressed close to him. Yozak's eyes narrowed at the fist clenched in the tablecloth. "Granted, not the intended test subject, but that's hardly important--"

"Hey, what'd you do?" Yozak finally piped up, as the level of discomfort in the Sage's expression only heightened. Whenever this particular woman used the phrase "test subject", he had two reactions: amusement or dread. He was leaning much closer to the latter in this case. Anissina's last attempt at potions had produced something that had burned a hole in the floor.

She stood up straight and placed both hands on her hips. "It's called 'Act Like Newlyweds Tonic'," she declared.

Murata turned ashen, dark eyes widening. Yozak blinked. "You mean..."

With a satisfied nod, Anissina gestured toward the tea. "I put a dose in the tea, hoping I could help His Majesty along in his engagement." She winked at Yozak, who wasn't sure, now, which reaction he was having to all this. He should probably be irritated that she'd taken such a risk... and that she'd managed to drug the wrong person...

But he did have a rather twisted sense of humor.

Anissina studied Murata again, and the Sage had yet to regain any of the color in his face. Save for that blush that now had darkened to what had to be a painful shade of red. He swallowed. "When..." Another swallow. "When will it wear off?"

"I don't know," she replied blithely. "Probably in a few days."

Yozak covered his mouth with one hand; oh, Wolfram would have been forever indebted to Anissina if her plan had succeeded.

Murata twitched. "Is there an antidote?" He had to give the youth major points for managing to remain so calm while under the influence of what should have been a rather debilitating tonic.

Anissina waved a dismissive hand. "What would have been the need?" The twitch became more pronounced. "Now, Your Highness," she pulled a pad of paper and a stylus out of seemingly nowhere. "Can you tell me how it's affecting you?"

Murata rose from his chair -- unsteadily, but with increasing poise -- and walked past her, into the castle.

--+--

News of Anissina's latest experiment spread like wildfire through the castle. The kiddo had been furious, both with her intent and with the result, and had ordered her to adhere to something called "informed consent" before ever experimenting on anyone, ever again. Wolfram had, as Yozak had suspected, seemed slightly disappointed Anissina hadn't succeeded.

When three days had gone by with no trace of the Sage in either the castle or the Shinou's temple, Yozak stopped thinking the situation so funny. He was still smarting from the icy look Conrad had shot him the night before when he'd mentioned how amusing he'd found the whole situation.

"There are certain people you do not trick like that," Conrad had said.

And looking at things from the captain's perspective, Yozak understood what he meant. It could have as easily been any one of them, really. For it to have fallen on someone as reserved as the Sage -- with whom Yozak knew Conrad had more than a few things in common -- the situation seemed almost cruel.

Plus, the captain's mood probably hadn't been helped by the fact that he and his men had been looking for Murata for three days and hadn't found him. The kitchen staff was currently on the palace guard's 'shit' list, and everyone knew it.

Yozak walked through the library again, before moving on to the store rooms. No one had seen the Sage leave the castle grounds, and though that was hardly reason to believe he hadn't, Yozak had a sneaking suspicion the youth was still in the castle, but moving. On the road, there were too many unknown variables. Supplies, for one. And a random passerby might have the bad luck to be near when Murata finally lost control. Although, he wouldn't exactly call the idea of having sex with the Sage -- even under the influence of Anissina's tonic -- to be "bad" luck, exactly.

But, no. There were countless places to hide in the castle. Passageways long forgotten except by the one person still able to remember their construction. Even drugged up, the Sage still could probably figure out ways to nick provisions from the kitchen when no one was looking.

Sad, really.

Though if Murata was hiding in undiscovered secret rooms or tunnels, Yozak hoped he'd be the one to find him. Those would prove incredibly useful.

The spy made his way down a winding staircase and stepped out onto the storage floor. He heard a soft sound behind him and turned.

A hand was poking out from behind one of the tapestries, waving him over.

Finally.

Glancing around to make sure no one else was around, Yozak walked over and lifted the side just enough to see a small alcove. And Murata, in the shadow, standing at the top of a retractable ladder. "We've been chasing you for days, Highness," he said in a low voice.

Murata shook his head and started to climb down. With the light from the torches along the wall, Yozak could see how tightly he was holding the ladder. And the hand that beckoned him to follow was trembling.

Yozak Gurrier could be called many things, but "abysmally dense" would not be one of them. Really, he should insist the Sage come out of his hidey-hole, or start hollering for someone else to come and help him drag the young man out. The fact that Murata was still hiding implied the tonic had not worn off as Anissina had expected. Accompanying him into the dark, with this in mind, really only led to one conclusion.

Yozak glanced around again, slipped behind the tapestry, and climbed down the ladder.

The hidey-hole opened up into an open room with a slightly low ceiling. Someone of Murata's height had a good foot or two of clearance, but Yozak had to stoop just a little. A single torch burned in a sconce on the wall, far from the trap door. Yozak watched Murata pull the ladder down and slide the door into place. In the flickering light, the Sage moved stiffly, each action undertaken with deliberate, intense concentration.

"Highness..."

"Surprised no one knew about this place," Murata said quickly, voice sounding like it had to be scraped out of his throat. It gave the normally sweet-sounding voice a distinctly husky timbre. "There's a whole bunch of... of rooms down here."

Yozak shook his head, astounded by that revelation, yes, but more that Murata still hadn't lost it yet. Though he sounded awfully close.

He reached out and stroked the back of his fingers along Murata's jaw. He was rewarded with a shudder as the young man clapped both hands over his mouth and squeezed his eyes tightly shut. Yozak moved behind him, broad chest just touching his back. "Highness," he murmured. "You've held out long enough." The lightest brush of his lips along the shell of Murata's ear produced a strangled sound that pushed up against Murata's hands but didn't manage to break out. Yozak chuckled under his breath, slightly awed at the resistance, even now.

And yet, what had Murata brought him down here for, if not this?

A heady trust indeed. He slid both of his hands along Murata's arms, feeling the heat through the thin white shirt he wore under his uniform jacket, until his hands gently closed around slim wrists and pulled the hands away. Murata whimpered, but just leaned against him, letting him lower his hands to his sides. Yozak nuzzled the side of his throat and listened to the youth's shaky sigh. "You smell pretty good for being on the run this long," he murmured, and Murata laughed softly.

"I snuck out for a bath," he replied. "Had to, after cleaning this--" he broke off into a moan as Yozak pulled his earlobe in between his lips and suckled on it. One hand frantically pulled out of Yozak's grip to reach back and tangle in the spy's hair. "Yozak, uhn, please..."

First time hearing his name on the Sage's current voice stirred a powerful arousal deep in the pit of Yozak's stomach. "I'm surprised you still know who I am, Highness."

Murata turned to face him, expression pinched and almost disturbingly open. "Oh god, so am I," he replied before reaching up and pulling Yozak into a hard, desperate kiss. With a groan of his own, he pressed one hand into the small of Murata's back and felt the shudder, and another as his free hand cupped the curve of the Sage's pert little ass. He kneaded that hand slowly, hearing tuned toward every little catch of breath in Murata's throat until the kiss was little more than Yozak's tongue stroking the hot, soft swells of Murata's open mouth.

He had teased Conrad mercilessly about the man's infatuation with the kiddo, but couldn't exactly say he had never wondered what it would be like to be with the young king's more enigmatic shadow.

Without stepping too far away to break the kiss, Murata pulled him along until eventually, they nearly stumbled on a bedroll laid out in a corner. Yozak groaned first at the implication, then laughed because he recognized the make. His mouth moved over the column of the Sage's throat, which Murata bared without hesitation. "You're pretty resourceful, for a bookworm."

Murata's hands moved over Yozak's chest, down to his waist, nimble fingers seeking out the tunic laces and undoing them. "'Needs must when the devil drives', Yozak..."

"The only need I see right now, Highness," he replied as he slipped one hand between Murata's legs and fondled his erection through his pants. "Is yours."

"Ohhh..." the Sage's hands stilled for a moment, clutching in the fabric, as Murata pushed his hips up into Yozak's hand. "Ngh...bad... joke..."

Yozak laughed against Murata's collarbone. "I do what I can, Highness." He heard an echoing laugh followed by a slight purr as Murata finally got his tunic off and started working on his breeches. Chuckling under his breath, he squeezed the Sage just hard enough to make him cling to his shoulder just to keep standing. "Taking things a little fast, hm? "

The only reply he received amounted to a strangled moan. Yozak straightened and recaptured the Sage's mouth and set about unbuttoning his shirt.

--+--

Murata managed to get Yozak to stay with him before succumbing to exhaustion, head pillowed on the spy's shoulder. Yozak watched him in the dim light and wondered how much sleep the kid had gotten in the last few days. He drifted in and out of dozes himself, finally waking for good and gently nudging his companion. Eventually, dark eyes opened, though Murata seemed only technically awake, and made a petulant sort of sound before curling up closer to Yozak's side. "You can get more shut-eye, Highness," he said softly, amused and somewhat surprised by the gesture. "But I've gotta get back topside." Depending on what time it was, his absence would be noticed.

Reluctantly, the Sage sat up, rubbing one eye with the heel of his hand. "Mm, you're right." Yozak hunted around for his tunic and belt, found Murata's shirt in the process, and handed it over to him. "Thanks," he said groggily.

Chuckling softly, Yozak tucked a lock of hair behind Murata's ear, and felt him shudder under his fingers. "It wear off yet?" he asked, pretty sure he knew the answer.

"Seems not," the Sage replied, gaze wandering thoughtfully over Yozak's body as he slipped his tunic back over his head.

Yozak snorted. "Well, I have to go now," he began, noticing where the gaze was lingering. "Should I come back?"

Murata blinked and looked up at him, then smiled almost shyly. "If you wouldn't mind..."

"Right, then." He leaned down and kissed Murata slowly, feeling the renewed want in the way the Sage's mouth moved and fueling it just enough to coax a little whine out of Murata's throat. He pulled back and winked. "See you later."

--+--

It took a week for the potion to wear off. Wolfram would have been deeply in debt to Anissina had the scheme worked.

Yozak wasn't sure he didn't owe the inventor something, himself.