Hot chocolate
Author's note: I've always wanted to make a story where someone would listen to Gwendal, and well... here it is. Hope you like.
No matter hard Gwendal tried to relax, he still could not sleep peacefully.
In the quiet time of evening
And it was not raining!
When the stars assume their patterns
Giving up, he got up and made his rounds – again! It's not like he would get any sleep this night anyway.
As he walked towards the terrace where he ad been with Conrad and Wolfram, he heard some sounds coming from the kitchen. Nobody ought to be awake at this time of night. Wondering if they had an uninvited guest, Gwendal crept slowly down the hallway to the kitchen. He heard footsteps and something beginning to boil as he reached the door.
Ever so quietly he opened the door and let himself in. The stove was on, there was a pot with warm milky smell from it. Someone was moving around the kitchen, and adding contents into the pot. Gwendal wait until the intruder laid the ingredients down before slowly unsheathing his sword.
And the day has made his journey
He held his sword point between the shoulder blades and spoke in a deadly quiet voice. "Hold it right there!" The figure stiffened. It was dark even with the candle light.
And we wondered just what happened
"Turn around!" he barked. The figure shivered slightly and turned slowly. Gwendal groaned inwardly, why oh why did it have to be him of all people?
To the life we knew before the world changed
Before him was a very surprised King Yuri; his hands held up in surrender.
"What are you doing up?" Gwendal asked pointedly, sheathing his sword.
"Making hot chocolate?" said Yuri, lowering his hands. Gwendal glared at him, demanding explanation.
When not a thing I held was true
"I couldn't sleep and I didn't want to disturb anyone," Yuri explained, not as intimidated by his advisor's stare as he used to be, "so I've made some hot chocolate, Mom told me that it was an easy
But you were kind to me and you reminded me
way to help people sleep, have you ever had some?"
That the world is not my playground
"Some of the time," Gwendal answered, impressed that the king knew at least an iota of cooking.
There are other things that matter
And when a simple needs protecting
"Why don't you join me?" Yuri invited, "I've made enough for two."
My illusions all would shatter
But you stayed in my corner
They found themselves sitting the same bench Gwendal had found Conrad brooding not too long ago and where he ahd comforted Wolfram weeks before then. The stars were out, twinkling the dark sky with their silver glory. As much as he tried to enjoy the quiet night, Gwendal still could not shake off the dread in his heart – when Conrad nearly died... again.
The only world I knew was upside down
And now the world and me, I know you carry me
A lot of things usually escaped Yuri's eye and it should not be a surprise to him that Gwendal was the silent one of the three brothers. But seeing him awake at this time of was rather unnerving.
"Is something bothering you, Gwen?" Yuri asked, calling his advisor out of his musing.
You see the patterns in the big sky
"No," Gwendal lied.
Those constellations look like you and I
"Liar," Yuri said gently.
Just like the patterns in the big sky
Gwendal looked up and saw that his boss – a kid for a boss? Yeah, right... – was looking at him, genuinely concerned.
We could be lost we could refuse to try
There was a soft smile in his lips, telling the man who was at least a century older than he that he would listen. What was more surprising was that the king had accused him of lying. No one in the right mind had the guts to call Lord Von Voltaire a liar. But then, there were times when Gwendal wondered about his king's sanity.
But we made it through in the dark night
Yuri, however, was gentle with the accusation. He knew somewhere deep inside his stern adviser needed a listening ear, just like Lady Celi and her gentle finger-poking-forehead reminders to him not to frown so much. Gwendal looked down at his mug of hot chocolate, which was rather good, creamy with milk and a lot of cocoa, sweetened with a teaspoon of sugar and, strangely, a pinch of salt to bring out the flavour.
Would those lucky guys turn out to be
"I much rather not talk about it," Gwendal murmured. He was the eldest, he was supposed to hide his fear!
But that unusual blend of my funny friend and me
"It'll only be worse if you keep it all inside," Yuri told him, "You'll feel better when you let it out."
I'm not as clever as I thought I was
Gwendal looked at the boy.
I'm not the boy I used to be because
Yuri had grown a lot since they had first met. As much as it was to his chagrin that the boy was unmarred by war, and ridiculously naive, he was kind and considerate - not to mention he was always ready to help others who were in serious need. Just as long as the job was not too big or too small. Now that Gwendal thought about it, Yuri was always there when someone needed a listening ear.
He could trust Yuri...
You showed me something different, you showed me something pure
"I guess you could say, I'm scared..." Gwendal confessed, "I'm always scared for them... I know I cannot protect them forever... and I know they're grown up..."
Yuri nodded. "Continue.."
I always seemed so certain but I was really never sure
Gwendal was beginning to wonder why he was telling this kid, who had neither war experiences nor younger siblings, his feelings; but now that he started, how could he stop?
But you stayed and you called my name
When others would have walked out on a lousy game
"When Conrart went to Luttenberg, I was so afraid he was going to die..." Gwendal continued, "Just like in Francia... I-I couldn't understand why he did it... when I did... I almost thought I lost him."
And you could've made it through
But my funny friend and me
"He was always protecting Wolfram, even when Wolfram did not want it," Gwendal confessed, "but I wasn't there to protect him even if... he came back alive."
He was starting to get angry; angry at his king for constantly putting his brothers in danger, "And when you came along..."
You see the patterns in the big sky
Yuri nodded, empathising with the big man. Because all three brothers were his men, they were forced to pledge their lives for him. The incident involving three of the Forbidden Boxes had nearly cost them Conrad's life. "I'll try not to be so reckless next time..."
Those constellations look like you and I
Gwendal snorted, anger ebbing away at the sincerity of the promise, "Don't make any promises you can't keep."
That tiny planet in a bigger guy
"But..." Yuri started trying to be calm and collective.
Gwendal smiled. Yuri was so innocent sometimes.
I don't know whether I should laugh or cry
"One thing's for certain," the stern adviser said, "You would not put them in danger intentionally."
If I had to do this all a second time
"We follow you because you do the best you can to protect everyone," he continued, "even if I often had to chase you to do paperwork." Yuri laughed. Gwendal joined in recognising the joke he made. Everything was all right again.
I won't complain or make a fuss
"Thanks for listening, Yuri," said Gwendal, relieved to have the fear off his chest.
When the angels sing that that unlikely blend
Yuri squeezed his sdhoulder as they continued to gaze up to the stars, "It's part of my job."
Are those two funny friends
Not that Gwendal remembered. But Yuri was right about one thing, he did feel better after their conversation. Gwendal felt himself truly beginning to like the boy king. The hot chocolate helped too. Maybe he ought to ask Yuri for the recipe in case either Conrad or Wolfram got scared by the storm or needed to talk to him in the middle of the night or maybe just for the sake of it.
Yes, Yuri would bring great changes to Shin Makoku.
That's us
