Anime: Kyo Kara Maoh
Synopsis: It has been 2 years since Greta was adopted by the Great Demon King Yuri and Wolfram. However, Greta is growing restless. Everyone is busy trying to maintain the kingdom and catch Yuri up to speed, that no one is there to spend time with her. She gets sad, she gets depressed, she needs to do something. So, Greta decides to go on a little adventure…outside of the castle. How will Greta fair?
Side note: For the sake of this one shot Greta will be able to hold Morgif.
It was like any normal morning; Greta was woken up by one of the maids in the castle. She was promptly washed, dressed, and taken to the dining room. There she sat. At first she was waiting to see if Wolfram would show up like he usually did. She waited, looking at the door expectantly to see if her dad was there. As the door was opened she got excited assuming it was Wolfram.
"Wolf-" but she stopped when she noticed that it wasn't Wolfram but just a blond maid.
"I'm sorry Princess, I was sent to tell you that His Excellency can't make it to breakfast with you. He asks that you eat without him and that he'll see you later." The maid said with a bow. If she had been looking up, she would have seen Greta's smile slowly diminish. This had been happening for the past few weeks.
Greta could feel the frown on her face, but forced a smile when the maid straightened from her bow. "Thank you. You may leave now." She said as lightly as she could. She had hoped that she kept the disappointment out of her voice. If the maid had heard it, she didn't say anything or react. Instead, she just left.
When the door closed again, Greta let out a sigh. She was already 12 and she was acting like a child. She knew that the kingdom came first. She had convinced herself that this was for the best. That didn't stop it from hurting her feelings though. "Gods Greta. Stop getting upset over nothing." She silently scolded herself.
She took a deep breath to calm her emotions. When she thought they were relatively quelled. She began to eat her breakfast.
She was in class when she heard that Yuri had come home. Not waiting for her teacher to let her go, she ran from the room. She could hear her tutor call out to her, but she ignored her. Her papa was home, and she wanted to greet him.
She headed to the fountain that she knew he'd show up in and was pleased to see she was right. He had a smile on his face. "Yu-" she started happily, but then she looked at the faces of Gwendal, Conrad, Gunter, and the Great One. Yuri too, saw their faces, and his smile immediately went away.
She could hear Yuri demand to know what happened. She bit her lip and turned away from the scene. The kingdom is more important than my feelings of neglect. Yuri will come see me later. I should let him work for now. Even though she told herself this, she still couldn't help hurt she felt.
Dejectedly she walked back to her class and prepares herself for the rant that she knows her teacher will give her.
Her day was winding down to a close. After the ridiculously long rant from her teacher, she was left to her studies and given the rest of the day off. At first she did study because she knew that would make Yuri and Wolfram happy, but then she got bored. Abandoning her studies, she wandered around the castle.
She kept up the appearance of happy princess, and made sure to smile at everyone she pasted. No one was none the wise to her true feelings.
Her wandering had led her to Yuri's main office. She was a little bit shocked that she had ended up in front of Yuri's office calmed herself. Since I'm here…should I knock? That's where a bit of inner turmoil came. Half of her wanted to knock, and the other half wanted her to just leave. She knew deep down that Yuri and Wolfram, as well as everyone else was in there talking about the recent crisis.
It was moments like this that she wished she was still the rash little girl she was two years ago. She lifted a timid hand to knock on the door. Just as she was inches away from the door she stopped. She stared at the door long and hard, glaring at it as if it offended her in some way. With a quickness she dropped her hand, turned, and walked away.
She gave up and walked straight to her room. She didn't let anyone come in. No one came to visit her either.
The next day, she got up by herself. She dressed and readied for the day. She knew that she had classes again today, but she didn't feel like going. She didn't feel like doing much of anything related to being a princess. So, she went to the kitchens and politely asked for an Apple, which the cooks gladly gave to her.
She took her apple, needles, and yarn to one of the many inner court yards and sat in the grass. She spent that morning knitting. This was supposed to relax her, but she had gotten so good at knitting in these few years that she could do it without much effort. So, this allowed her to think. She remembered the horrible family she was with before Yuri and how she tried all she could to gain their love.
She remembered the feeling she felt when Yuri had accepted her and said he'd protect her. Wolfram following suit. She giggled softly at the memory of Wolfram self-asserting himself in their weird family. Thinking about all those moments she smiled.
She continued knitting and smiling, that was the happiest she felt in a while. Oddly enough, even though she was happy, laughing even, she could still feel something wet go down her cheek. Her eyes with widen. She quickly dropped the knitting materials and wiped her eyes. I shouldn't be crying. Why am I crying?
She wiped her eyes, willing herself to stop crying. But she couldn't stop. "Why…? Why am I crying?" she asked herself in a broken whisper. She lifted her knees and rested her head on top of them. She wrapped her arms around her knees and cried. She hoped that no one saw her like this.
…..
When she awoke next, she was still in the garden. She didn't even realise that she had fallen asleep amidst the crying. She felt two emotions. Happiness that no one came, and sadness because no one came. She was conflicted.
So, instead of dwell on those emotions she stood up. Stretching herself because that position wasn't exactly the most comfortable when you're in it for an extended period of time. I wish Anissina was here. I would have something to do. Something to keep me occupied. Anissina had left to handle something in her home territory. So, she was gone. Though she was coming back soon.
Soon isn't soon enough. Greta thought sadly. After she was stretched fully. She picked up her uneaten apple and knitting materials. She walked back into the castle, and asked the first maid she saw to take her knitting materials back to her room for her. The maid gladly took her things and smiled so earnestly that Greta couldn't help but smile back.
In that moment, Greta got an idea. It was not a good idea, but it was something to help her get rid of her boredom. Since her parents were busy, and she wasn't, she knew they wouldn't notice. She never really got to explore outside the castle.
And of course she wouldn't be alone. I know the perfect person to take with me. She thought happily. She knew that this would distract her from all her doubts.
She found her way to the weaponry/ armory room. She slipped into the room, as quickly and quietly as possible. When she got into the room, she looked in awe. It had been a while, since she was in here, but it was still filled with beautifully crafted weapons. With lots of enchanted items. She considered grabbing one or two things, but thought against it.
She walked all the way to the back of the room, where in a huge case, was Morgif. He was sleeping, so he wasn't making any noise. She smiled at Morgif's peaceful disposition. He would make a great companion on her adventure. She quietly left the room. She felt 100% better about what she was going to.
She just needed to wait a few days before she did anything. Within two days of Yuri coming back, wouldn't be a good idea. She'd leave next week, if the great one allowed it. She just had to hope that whatever was happening didn't need to push Yuri into going to the front.
Greta was on her best behavior for the rest of the week. Her parents could not visit her because of the issues that were happening in the kingdom, but she found that she wasn't too upset over it. They would send their love to her, through the mouths of others and she would do the same. Yes, she still hurt over the fact that the kingdom was in such a huge need of her parents but she was okay.
During her week, she asked for extra lessons in self-defense, horse-back riding, and common curtesy. When asked as to why she wanted to practice these things, she luckily could use the impending war as an excuse. And no one questioned it.
There were some moments that she thought that what she was doing was going to be bad, but she pushed those thoughts away. She had made up her mind and this time she was going to go through with it.
She also started saving up food from the kitchen. Small things like apples and such. She also "borrowed" some money from her parents. It had been a long time since she felt this free. She was like this when she was younger and grew out of it. I guess I didn't grow out of this. Greta thought with a grin.
She had everything prepared. She was ready to go. Though there was one problem. Her uncle Conrad, he was keeping an eye on her. It was really hard to get around him. He was really hard to lie to. Her parents must have felt really bad, because Conrad asked her if she was okay. And just was worried about her.
That is the situation she found herself in now. This was the 5th time that she was stopped by Conrad in the hall this week.
"Greta, is there anything that you need? Anything that you want to tell your parents?" He asked with a kind tone.
Greta shook her head. "I don't need anything Uncle! I'm fine." She replied with a bright smile. The one that normally graced her face. "But if you want to tell Yuri and Wolfram a message…. then…tell them that I miss them and that I want them to work hard for our kingdom! And also, that I'm okay."
Conrad nodded, but stared at her for a little while longer. He reached out to her and touched her shoulder. This caused Greta to actually look him in the eyes. She could see the secret concern he had for her. "Are you sure you're okay?"
She smiled sweetly at him and nodded slowly at him. "Yeah Uncle. I'm fine. Really." She said in the sincerest way she could. Conrad stared at her, as if searching for any doubt but reluctantly let her go.
He smiled at her and bowed at her before turning to go back to her parents.
Greta watched him leave before she turned and continued on her quest. She felt bad for lying to him. It wasn't all a lie, but it wasn't the full truth either. Her mood sobered a little after that particular meeting with Conrad. Though, she wasn't pulled away from her exploration trip, she did feel for Conrad and her parents. This was the most she'd ever been alone.
It wasn't as if she didn't know that her parents cared, she knew they did, she was just bored and full of doubts. After she became princess, she was always with someone. She was always taken care of. They were nothing like her old family. She knew that. She just, she just needed to leave for a little. So they could worry more about the problems at hand and not about her.
That was the lie that she told herself.
So the night had finally come. She had gone to bed dressed in the clothes she was going to wear when she got outside the castle. When she was sure that everyone was settled for the night, she got up. She grabbed the bag that she had filled with food and quietly exited her room. She knew that the guards would be there soon. So she had to act fast.
With her bag secured on her back, she ran to the armory. She made sure not to stop for anyone or anything. She knew she had to be quick or this would never work. She ran into the Armory and went straight to Morgif. He was once again sleeping and she had to hold back a laugh.
She reached into the case and gently pulled Morgif out of his home. Greta made sure not to jostle him too much because she couldn't afford for him to wake up and start doing his howling thing. As soon as she touched him though. His eyes opened. They stared at each other.
Before he could do that screaming thing she spoke quickly. "Morgif it's me! Me Greta! Yuri's daughter. Listen DON'T Scream okay?" He looks at his her, mouth forming an 'O' but he still seemed to wary of her. So she continued to talk "Listen YURI sent me to get you! HE wanted you. But he's busy. SO I offered to get you. Morgif you like me sorta! Remember?!" She stage whispered, hoping that he would just listen to her.
After a few moments of what looked like Morgif contemplating the whole situation. He gave his own sort of okay. Greta sighed in relief and grabbed him firmly. She slid him between her back and bag and took off in a jog away from the room.
When she got to the door. She checked that the cost was clear, and took off outside to the stables.
Luckily that whole escapade was much easier then obtaining Morgif. She easily got into the stables and grabbed her brown house that she named Star. She was easily coaxed out of the stables. Greta was ready to go. She walked her horse away from the castle and listen to Morgif snore at her back.
When she thought she was far enough from the castle. She mounted Star and gave one last fleeting look to the castle before lightly kicking star into a gallop. With Morgif by her side. She'd be just fine. Plus, she'd only be gone a few days.
Feeling the wind in her hair was refreshing as she rode. She was no longer "Princess Greta" but just "Greta". She wanted to scream in delight but didn't because it was late. She didn't plan to leave Shin Makoku, but she did plan to leave the immediate territory where the castle was located.
She was headed South East to the shore.
She rode until the sun was high above her head. That is when she decided to take a quick stop. She hopped off of Star as gracefully as she could and led her to the side of the road to let her rest. She reached into her bag grabbed an apple. She held it out for Star to have with a smile. With her free hand she gently pet Star.
"Thank you for holding up all night." Greta whispered to her. Star in response nudged at Greta gently. Greta couldn't help the grin that lit up her face.
They stayed like that for a while. That is, until she heard Morgif moan. She scrambled to get him off her back.
She brought Morgif to her face and frowned. "Morgif are you okay? What's wrong now?" She asked worriedly. Morgif just moaned and made a strange face. "Morgif…do you want…Yuri?" she asked cautiously this time.
Morgif seemed to quiet at the sound of Greta saying Yuri's name. Greta couldn't help but stare at Morgif. She couldn't take him to Yuri, because her adventure just started! But…she knew how stubborn Morgif could be. "Umm…you see…Yuri…he…he is traveling to the shore! And…And I have to take you to him."
Morgif made a face as if he were concentration then moaned again. He knows I'm lying…crap. Greta felt herself begin to panic. She couldn't just give Morgif what he wanted, and she needed someone, or something to stay with her.
"Morgif!" Still he moaned as if ignoring her pleases.
"Morgif please!" she tried harder but to no avail.
"MORGIF" She yelled in annoyance. He stopped moaning then, and gave her a cross look. "Thank you." His eyes narrowed at her. Who knew a sword could be so intimidating. "Morgif… listen… I-I need you to stay with me. Please? Yuri needs to know that I'm protected and I couldn't take anyone else. Morgif please don't moan okay? I promise when this is all over, I'll take you back to Yuri."
She looked so torn and tired. She hoped that this worked in her favour and that Morgif felt sorry for her and would stop. Morgif made a face as if he was going to start to moan again and Greta rapidly began talking again.
"Morgif please, please, please. I swear I'll make sure you're polished and sparkling every day for an entire month. And that you can bite Yuri as much as you want." She pleaded.
Again, Morgif looked to be contemplating the offer. She didn't know what else she'd do if he didn't listen to her. She knew that Yuri would be able to track Morgif easier if he was moaning or whining. Or at least, that's what she thought.
She looked at Morgif expectantly and was relieved when Morgif made of noise of compliance. She doesn't know how she manages it, but she hugs the sword. "Thank you Morgif! Thank you!" She squealed.
Morgif grunted but quieted down. She placed him back in his spot at his back and went back to Star. Star had finished her apple and seemed well rested. Greta mounted her once again.
"Okay Star, let's get going. We want to try to make it to the Karbelnikoff Territory within 3 days."
With that they were off again.
The ride was peaceful. She pasted by many small villages and towns on her ride. It was late afternoon when she decided to stop again. This time she stopped in a small village. She pulled her hood over her curly hair and made sure that her gloves were firmly on. She also wore a mask to cover her lower face.
Her clothes were very minimal. She wore black pants with knee high boots and a long sleeved black hoodie type shirt. It kept her identity hidden and she also had to cover Morgif in a white cloth as she didn't bring his sheath.
She walked her horse into the town, and bowed to any of the locals she pasted on her way to a booth that was filled with food. From her studies, she was pretty this was the last village for a few 100 miles. So it would be better for her to stop now.
When she made it to her destination she looked at all the fruits on display. She knew she could spare a few coins for more apples for Star and also if they had some sugar cubes, she would definitely get that as well. The small woman who ran the stand was fretting over a small child and not looking in Greta's direction when she got there.
The woman, feeling someone behind her turned. She looked at the small girl in front of her with a smile. " 'Hat a wee 'ittle lass 'ere." She said to Greta. When Greta bowed her head to the woman, the lady chuckled. " 'hat can I get ye young one?" Greta carefully picked up 3 apples from her cart. " 'hat all lass?" Greta nodded.
" 'here are ye parents 'ittle lass?" The woman asked curiously as she wrapped the three apples. Greta bit her lip behind her mask.
She did her best to deepen her voice as she spoke, "My parents are waiting for me up ahead. They trust me to fend for myself."
The woman raised an eyebrow at that but said nothing as she handed Greta the apples. "Um how much are they?" Greta asked nervously almost forgetting to deepen her voice. The woman seemed to notice the little slip but said nothing about it.
" 'ell 'ittle lass. It's almost 'ighttime. 'here ye planning to stay?" Greta noticed that the woman avoided the question of price for the apples.
"I wanted to ask if there was an inn around here. Somewhere I could stay. My parents gave me money for that." She spoke calmly, this time not forgetting to deepen her voice. "Also, you didn't tell me how much the apples were."
The woman smiled, " 'ittle lass. I own the inn. If you don't mind my bratty 'ittle child feel free to stay the night. " she motioned to the little child who was standing at her legs. The child had been there since this whole interaction started.
Greta frowned. Does this woman know who I am already? "Thank you, I'll be fine with a little child." She answered calmly, "Do you know where I can put my horse for the night?"
"Aye. 'ollow me 'ittle lass." The woman walked from behind her booth and took the reins of Star and led her to the small little stable beside the house. The woman then left Greta to herself to get Star situated.
Feeling that she was alone, she took a hold of Stars head and looked sighed. "Maybe I'm not cut out for this. It's only been a day, but it's been way more stressful than I thought." Greta looked at Star hopefully. "You're right, I should stay positive. I'll make it to the shore and then I'll go back."
"You talk 'unny" At the sound of a little child's voice Greta swirled around. She saw surprised to see that, there was a child standing at the door staring at her. Greta looked at Star once more, and pet her softly. She then gave her full attention to the child at the door. She took small steps over to the child.
The child stood there unwavering. His little thumb present in his mouth. Eyes wide with curiosity. Greta couldn't help but think back to how she was when she was a child. When she got within arm's reach of the child she crouched down in front of him. "You talk funny." She answers with a smirk.
The child face scrunched up in a frown and Greta couldn't help but think it was the cutest thing ever. She tilted her hooded head to the right, and he followed. "What?" Greta asked in mock shock-ness that made the child gasp.
"You're swrange" He said with a nod of his head. Greta giggled at that. Then she held out her arms. His thumb fell out of his mouth and she stared at her like she grew two heads. "Whut you doin'?" He asked as if not trusting her intentions.
Greta shrugged "I'm offering to carry you." She said nonchalantly. Greta felt her mischievous side come out when the kid just stared at her like she was crazy. She let him stand like that for a while before she got tired of waiting. She instantly wrapped her arms around the boy who let out a shriek. He was struggling in her arms but she did her best to ignore it. "Wanna show me where to go?" She asked softly.
The little boy continued to struggle but after realizing that she wasn't going to let go he put his thumb in his mouth and pointed to the left. He said nothing. Greta could tell he was pouting hard core and she couldn't help but think it was cute. He led her to the house and when she pushed open the door, she was greeted by the woman.
"Surprised 'e let you 'arry 'im. 'e likes to claim 'e's a big boy." The woman said, clearly amused by the two.
The little boy began to squirm again, so this time Greta lamented and let him go. "He wasn't very willing. I kind of caught him off guard." she tried to hide the amusement in her voice, but it didn't really work that way.
The lady gently grabbed Greta's gloved hand and pulled her to sit at a table. Greta tilted her head in confusion but said nothing. The lady left her for a moment, but came back with a bowl of food. " 'ere eat. I 'on't stay to watch. I see you tryin' to hide somethin'" She sounded kind and speedily left the room to go check on her child.
Greta gawked at the bowl in front of her. It had only been a day and she was already feeling much better, albeit a bit stressed because of Morgif. She almost felt tears in her eyes but she stopped that train of thought. She wasn't going to cry. She pulled down her mask from her face, and diligently ate her stew.
After she finished eating, she pulled up her mask and got up to seek out the nice lady. "Um, excuse me!" She called out respectfully. She then heard footsteps come down the stairs. The lady looked at her and smiled. "I um, I finished and would like to pay for my night here. And for the apples."
The woman smirked and just shook her head. "No 'harge 'ittle lass." She saw Greta narrow her eyes at her suspiciously. When Greta went to open her mouth the woman held up a hand " 'eriously lass. I won't 'harge you. Come and 'ollow 'e. I'll take you to yer room." Again she grabbed Greta's arm and led her. This time up the stairs to the room that she would be sleeping in.
Greta was at a loss for words. The woman had left her a few hours ago to relax in her room. She was taught to be wary of everyone because anyone could use her against her parents. She was wary at first, but the lady was just so generous. She didn't know what to do. She knew she couldn't just not pay her. It didn't make her feel right.
She lightly pulled Morgif off her back and laid him on the bed. She was happy that Morgif was still asleep. Hopefully he stays asleep. She was getting lost in her thoughts when she heard a little creak of the door. She twisted her head in that direction to see the owners son. He was staring at her with his thumb in his mouth.
He looked exactly the same from when she saw him earlier. The only difference was that he had a blanket and was dressed for sleep. She smiled sweetly at him. "Hello. You can come in if you'd like." She patted the space beside her. The boy looked at her then slowly moved from the door over to her.
"Argent." He said when he stopped in front of her.
"What?"
"Argent. Muh name is Argent" He said firmly. He looked at her as if looking to see if she'd make fun of him or something mean.
"That's a pretty name" Greta said, almost immediately. She tenderly grabbed the little boys arm and pulled him closer. "I'm…well… if I tell you, you have to keep it a secret." She said in playful seriousness. She didn't want to scare him, but she wanted to be somewhat firm.
He nodded. She sighed and whispered to him her name. When she pulled back, his eyes were as wide as saucers. She put a finger to her lips, in which he quickly copied. He then whispered back to Greta, well, it was his attempt at whispering but it was still some kind of whisper "What about mama?"
Greta bit the inside of her cheek and thought about that for a moment. What harm could be done if he told his mom? Well, tell her after I leave. "You can tell her after I leave tomorrow okay?" She said in her normal, but deepened, voice. "You can't tell anyone else though." She added quickly.
Again Argent nodded. They were both silent for a moment, looking at each other. The silence bothering her, she plucked Argent from the ground and into her lap. She started poking at his tummy and tickling his sides. When Argent started laughing and kicking she smiled wholeheartedly. Maybe I need a sibling. Something to keep me from having doubts.
They played together until Argents mother came to get to send him off to bed. Greta sprawled out on the bed and let out a breath.
"Morgif, we have completed the first day of our adventure." She said tiredly. When she didn't get a reply from Morgif she just assumed he was ignoring her. And she was okay with that.
With that she went to sleep.
She was having a peaceful night, while her family was not.
Intermission
Yuri had been so stressed these days. When he got back to the kingdom, everything had literally almost fallen apart. He was tired. For the week he was back, he had to go to meeting after meeting trying to figure out what was happening in his kingdom. What the new threat was now. It was hard.
But at least Wolfram was there with him through it all. It was nice to know that someone he considers like his best friend being there. Not to mention Conrad and the Murata adding their support on top of Wolfram. He was so grateful he could almost cry.
He even said that a day and Wolfram called him a wimp. It was something light heartened that helped lift his spirits some. But something bit at him today. He was getting closer to preventing war from taking place and he should feel relieved. But something wasn't right.
He sat in his office trying to figure out what caused him to feel out of place. Feel like something was missing.
That's when he noticed, that Wolfram wasn't in his office like he usually was. He got up from his desk, deciding that he'd figure out what was happening on his own. He pushed past his chair to head to the door, when it was opened by a distressed looking Wolfram.
It took a lot to really worry Wolfram. So, whatever caused this look on his face, was something serious. "Wolf what's wrong?" Yuri asked moving towards Wolfram. Wolfram said nothing, which was definitely uncharacteristic for him. He saw that Wolfram was staring at his clenched fist.
"Wolf?" Yuri asked again grabbing the hand that was clenched the tightest. With some coaxing Wolfram opened his hand and Yuri saw a crumpled piece of paper. He took it out of Wolfram's hand and read the note.
Not believing what he was reading, he read it again. And again. And again.
He looked up at Wolfram incredulously. How could this have happened? Why would Greta even…? He didn't even know what to say. So many things ran through his mind. The first being how much of a bad father he had been to her.
"We have to find her." He said after a long moment of silence. "It's too dangerous for her to be out there alone."
Wolfram looked up at Yuri and saw that he was as equally distressed. "I would never forgive myself if something happens to her." Yuri's voice was even, but full with resolve. Yuri took Wolfram by the shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes.
"We will find her and bring her home Wolfram." He said evenly, "Then we will ground her indefinitely." He added.
Wolfram gave Yuri a weak smile but nodded anyway. He knew Yuri would get her home.
"Plus, she has Morgif, which I'm surprised she can even carry him without getting shocked. But anyway, I can track Morgif." Yuri smiled.
Wolfram starting to calm from the initial distress rolled his eyes at Yuri. "Well, get to it wimp."