It was 3 in the morning and Yuuri was wide awake.
It just wasn't his fault, alright!? Wolfram was an awful bed partner.
At some point between the kicking, hitting and blanket-stealing Wolfram had decided to start snoring too- and for such a beautiful 'Vienna Boy', Wolfram snored like an old man.
Yuuri couldn't get a wink of sleep like that, so he carefully crept out of bed and into the hallway to find the only person who would understand: Conrad.
'Conrad is use to seeing me at odd hours of the night. I don't think he'll mind seeing me right now...'
Yuuri thought to himself, trying to not feel guilty about bothering his favorite knight.
But- for the first time in a long time- he just couldn't find Conrad anywhere.
He had looked in Conrad's room, his office, the barracks, training grounds, kitchen, grand hall, stables- but still no sign of the man.
He was about to give up when he went back to check Conrad's room once more- and along the way saw that the lamps were lit in the communal bathing chambers.
'Someone else is up at this hour?' he thought, peeking in through the entrance- when he spotted a familiar form.
Finally! Conrad!
He was-
Oh- Er... Conrad was... taking a shower.
Yuuri couldn't deny- the view instantly made his face heat up.
'W-well, that makes sense- this is the communal baths.. but at 3 A.M.? Are you always up this early, Conrad?' Yuuri wondered. 'Should I leave and wait for him in his room? Has he even noticed me yet?'
He paused for a moment and studied his Godfather's form.
No.
Conrad hadn't noticed him at all- he was methodically washing his arms and chest, staring with half-lidded eyes at the floor.
Yuuri... couldn't help himself. 'I want to get a closer look.. we've bathed together before- I've seen practically everyone naked more times than I've wanted to- but...'
He didn't want to admit it to himself- but he couldn't deny he wanted to see more of Conrad in such a vulnerable state.
Yuuri crept a little closer.
The room was large, with multiple spouts on each wall that poured steaming water into a large ankle-deep pool. Conrad was a safe distance away, and through the steam and ordinate pillars, Yuuri felt concealed enough to continue indulging his curiosity.
At least that was until he tripped.
Not looking where he was going, Yuuri stubbed his foot into the side of the bath- a small raised ledge on the floor- and toppled forward with a yelp.
It was 3 in the morning, and Conrad was getting ready to start the day.
He hadn't slept much, only an hour and a half- but he had a lot to do today, so it was necessary to start early.
Usually, he didn't sleep at all.
Not because he lacked the time, but because he lacked the will.
Sleeping just wasn't pleasant or peaceful anymore with constant night terrors awaiting his tired mind.
These days it was better to just freshen up, do rounds, and avoid sleep all together until he was so exhausted that he collapsed into a restless stupor.
'At least, no one else is awake at this hour.' he thought, letting his face fall into a neutral expression as he made his way into the baths and lit the lamps that hung around the room.
The boilers that forged the heated baths stayed on all night, all Conrad had to do was twist a stone faucet to open a spout of water from above- something fairly similar to a shower on Earth.
If he had to be honest with himself- he was in a daze. Conrad wasn't quite awake as he went through the motions of cleaning up, something he'd done thousands of times in his years.
Though something- an odd feeling of being watched made Conrad stop what he was doing and look up, scanning the room.
It was the same feeling he usually got when Yuuri was entering this world.. but.. Yuuri was asleep in his room.
Odd...
When he was finished washing up, he went to leave the wading pool and felt a chill in the air around him that made his hair stand on-end.
He carefully looked around once more before determining the area to be clear.
Damn his paranoid mind.
Conrad toweled dry, and put on only his underwear before making his way back to his room, and even though he had checked multiple times- Yuuri was no where to be found, even though he thought he could feel the young king's presence nearby.
He changed quickly, before taking a few pills out of his bed-side drawer and swallowing them with a glass of stale water left over from yesterday.
He couldn't let the feeling go- in order to feel okay, he had to check on Yuuri and make sure he was still asleep in his bed- so with swift steps he made his way to Yuuri's royal chambers and quietly let himself in, the guards at the door confirming that Yuuri hadn't left the room during the night.
They let him enter, and Conrad carefully, quietly, crossed the room before peering down at the sleeping forms upon the Maoh's bed.
Yuuri fell face first into the bath water- cringing at his clumsy nature and wondering what he was going to say to Conrad when the man pulled him out of the pool... when...
When nothing happened.
Literally nothing- there was no gasp from Conrad, no splash of the water- he hadn't even gotten wet!
To Yuuri's utter amazement he was in the water- but he wasn't.
"Whaaaat?" Yuuri whispered to himself in amazement as his hand passed through the water like a ghost- leaving the pool undisturbed. "Am I DEAD?!"
He looked up at Conrad- who was looking around the room as if he had heard something, when Yuuri stood up and waved to him.
"Conrad! Over here-"
But Yuuri could immediately tell that Conrad couldn't see or hear him at all as the soldier went back to washing up. It didn't take long for him to finish as he started to exit the bath- walking right towards him.
His heart seized in his chest as Conrad suddenly approached and almost walked right through him causing Yuuri to leap out of the way.
Yuuri was stunned... was he dreaming?
It all felt so REAL though! It couldn't possibly be a dream- his dreams never felt this... alive.
He also never had a dream before where he wasn't somewhat aware that he was dreaming.
No.. this was like how he felt when he was using the Demon Mirror- he didn't know what being a ghost was like or what being 'out side' of your body felt like- but if he had to guess, this was what Yuuri thought it would be like.
Cautiously, in disbelief Yuuri approached his god-father and reached out, his fingers ghosting over Conrad's chest- and although Conrad didn't seem to notice, Yuuri could see goose-bumps rise on the soldier's skin.
Yuuri looked down at his own self and saw he was still in his pajamas- and to himself- he looked 'full' he wasn't transparent or ghostly- but to Conrad he seemed to be invisible.
"Conrad?"
Nothing.
"Conrad! Conrart Weller!"
Still nothing, as Conrad put his underwear on, Yuuri could only stare- too bewildered to feel embarrassed.
When Conrad turned to leave, Yuuri did the only thing he felt he could do- and followed the man to his room. Yuuri walked right through the door when Conrad had closed it- and stood around while the man got dressed and took some pills.
Curious- Yuuri tried to see what they were... Soldier Vitamins, maybe?
But before he could see them they were gone- and before he knew it, Yuuri was following Conrad to his own room.
His and Wolfram's room.
Oh no! His room-!
If he was here, would Conrad find his bed empty? He would be panic-stricken! Yuuri nervously ran ahead of his god father but stopped when he saw the guards at his door.
"Huh.." Yuuri said aloud, "Come to think of it- I don't remember exiting this room, or seeing those guards- how exactly did I get to the baths again?"
Feeling more and more like he was dreaming, Yuuri waited for Conrad to acknowledge the guards.
"Good morning. Has his majesty been asleep the whole night?"
"We haven't seen him exit this room, no sounds to indicate if he's awake, sire."
"Thank you."
With that- Conrad entered and Yuuri impatiently followed, rushing up to his bed side before Conrad could.
"Oh my God." he gasped. "Now what do I do?!"
Sure enough.. thank Shinou- Yuuri was fast asleep.
Conrad watched the teen's even breathing and reached out to touch his soft hair- petting him.
Yuuri...
It was bizarre that above even his brothers- this boy had completely taken over his heart and soul. He would betray his brothers- his mother- his country, and put everything he held dear at risk for this boy.
He already had, hadn't he?
He was certain, so long as it didn't separate him from his king's side, he would do it all over again if he had to.
"Yuuri.." he whispered again. "I'll see you in a few-"
"Conrad-?"
Damn, he had woken Yuuri up- Conrad smiled, apologetically at his king.
"I'm sorry, Yuuri. I didn't mean to wake you."
"Ah- um.. Conrad-" Yuuri struggled to get out of bed, his eyes wide and his breathing ragged, and with concern in his eyes Conrad helped him stand.
"Yuuri-! Is everything alright-?"
"Shh! Wolfram-" Yuuri looked over his shoulder at the blonde. "I.. don't want him to wake up.. um.. y-yeah I'm fine I just- I had a really weird dream..."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"N-no.. it's okay- I'm fine now, I think I'm going to go shower though- is it time to wake up?"
Conrad looked horribly guilty. "No.. Yuuri I'm sorry- it's almost 4 AM."
"O-oh.." Yuuri sighed in relief. "Okay- I'm going to shower anyway, is that okay- can we jog early today?"
Conrad raised his eyebrows, surprised. "Of.. course, Your Maj-" Conrad caught the wild look in his godson's eyes.
"Yuuri- of course. I'll wait for you in the hallway."
"Cool, thanks- I'll be right out!" Yuuri whispered before ushering Conrad into the hall.
Conrad simply shook his head with a small smile before dismissing the guards positioned there, and waited patiently for his king to be ready.
He had a lot to do today, but Yuuri always came first.
Yuuri stripped his clothes off as he hastily waded into the bath.
'What in the world was that- after I touched my own face I woke up- was it really all a dream?'
It just couldn't be- he had seen Conrad enter his room long before he woke up, and when he woke up- Conrad was there, and the man's hair was still damp!
Did that mean he'd had a real, true, honest-to-goodness 'out of body' experience or... something else?
Either way.. he was going to go jogging with Conrad- maybe he could ask how Conrad's morning had been so far and see if he could uncover more details to add proof to his thoughts.
Yuri bathed and dressed quickly, meeting Conrad in record time.
"You're not usually so awake at this hour." Conrad teased as they made their way to the castle grounds.
"I know," Yuuri chuckled.
To be honest despite his odd dream Yuuri felt as though he'd slept the whole night, his mind fresh and clear despite all of his questioning thoughts.
After a brief stretching session they began their jog, it was familiar and easy to fall into, allowing Yuuri's mind to wander.
"Hey Conrad, did you shower recently?"
"Yes- is my hair a mess?"
"Haha, no!" Yuuri grinned, "I'm sorry for making you jog and get all sweaty so soon after showering!"
"You're the one who gets sweaty, Yuuri. Not me." there was a teasing tone to Conrad's voice that made Yuuri laugh.
"That's true- Mr. Eighty-years-in-the-military over here never breaks a sweat. How could I forget?"
Conrad didn't respond but he knew the man was smiling.
Left, right, left, right
They quietly jogged over the dips in the path that wound within the castle walls.
At their half-way point they slowed down for water and a stretch break.
Yuuri watched Conrad stretch- and couldn't help but imagine him without clothes on- the images from his dream(?) came back to him full force and made the boy-king blush furiously.
Conrad's body was lithe, tan and beautiful, but covered- and he did mean covered- in scars.
More than Yuuri had thought he'd have under all those layers.
"Have you ever heard of out-of-body experiences?" Yuuri blurted out, and Conrad tilted his head at the odd question.
"I have- it's called 'Soul-Wandering' here. It's a form of meditation though very few are capable of it. It's usually reserved for high priests, monks and oracles."
Yuuri nodded... Soul-wandering had a ring to it.
"Has your soul ever wandered?" Yuuri said, partly joking but partly curious.
Conrad's smile faltered suddenly for the briefest of moments before it came back full force. It didn't go unnoticed by Yuuri.
"Well.. I'm not sure if it's considered soul-wandering but.. during Luttenberg.. after the battle.. I was there, but I wasn't. It's hard to explain- I'm not sure if I was hallucinating from my injuries or if I was dreaming." He said, somewhat sheepishly.
Yuuri's eyes widened- he wasn't sure what to say.
"I'm sorry you got hurt." Yuuri said a bit sadly. "You must have been so scared."
But Conrad only tilted his head and smiled secretively at him.
"I was terrified when the war started, but at the end.. I was just tired. I was ready for it all to be over. Yozak told you that he dragged me back- didn't he? I wasn't trying to return, he forced me to. I'm glad he did- but back then, I wasn't."
Yuuri nodded, allowing a moment of silence to think about it all.
At one point- Conrad had wanted to die.
He had given up.
Yuuri had guessed from the stories everyone told, that this had been the case- but to hear Conrad say it himself was different.
Heavier...
"I'm so glad you didn't give up. I don't know what I'd do without you." Yuuri shook his head.
"You'd do just fine." Conrad stretched as Yuuri stuck his tongue out at the man- knowing it was useless to argue with his godfather.
Conrad laughed, and gave Yuuri one of his award-winning smiles in return and gestured to the path before them,
"Shall we?"