Something Missing

Disclaimer: I don't own Kyou Kara Maou.

Warning: Mild swearing. Kissing. Mild spoilers for episode 59.

Author's Notes:

1. This fic is inspired by and makes a reference to Kyou Kara Maou anime episode 59 entitled "Mazoku, to Earth". If you haven't watched that episode, this fic probably won't make much sense. So I suggest you watch that episode first. It's one of my favorite KKM episodes! hearts

2. I love Shori. Who's with me?

Sweat. Drop. Shori Shibuya was sweatdropping. The twenty-something raven haired university student was even close to panicking. No, he was already panicked. And he probably would have fainted right now if only his age, stature, gender and pride allowed it. But they didn't. So… Shori Shibuya settled for sweatdrop.

After muttering that unfinished sentence to his closet, he stalked out of his room, jumped two steps at a time on the staircase and entered the dining room with a dramatic open-the-door-with-a-bang movement. He scanned the room for his cheerful mother but found only the figure of his father sitting at the table reading a newspaper and drinking coffee.

"Morning, Shori. Breakfast is ready," Shouma said when he saw his eldest son. "No milk, though. Your mom is still not back from the convenience store."

Butterflies attacked Shori's stomach with a vengeance. Pallid with concern, he stared at Shouma Shibuya and said, "No way. She's not here?"

"No." Shouma furrowed his eyebrows when he saw Shori's expression. "You look pale. Are you sick? You better see the doctor, Shori. Your internship in Bob's Japan company starts tomorrow, right? Bob will be disappointed if you don't show up."

Shori snapped. "It's not the time to talk about that!" Careful not to let his father know the worry and the panic gutting inside him, he masked his face with an angry expression and then spun, strode through the door and closed it with a dramatic close-the-door-with-a-bang movement.

Once he arrived back upstairs, he sighed dejectedly and entered the bathroom to wash his face. Now he just felt like crying. Before tears managed to make an appearance in his eyes, however, he splashed water on to his face. He. Would. Not. Cry. No, Yuuri probably would cry. Like that time when his favorite pair of baseball shoes went missing… Yuuri cried like a baby. Shori was not going to cry. Not. Going. To. Because Shori was not a baby.

Five minutes passed until Shori realized that he had let the water run from the tap in the sink. "Good god, Shibuya," he snapped to himself, "Get a grip. Just because it's missing doesn't mean you have to waste water." Shori reached for the tap but, to add to his troubles, he was suddenly sucked down the sink.

The next thing he knew he was traveling to the other dimension. In frustration, Shori did cry out this time. Perhaps Shinou, Maou, our whatever Ou there was out there would hear him this time. "BASTARDS! I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS! I NEED TO FIND MY MISSING SHIRT!"

"Hello there, my friend's brother," Murata greeted cheerfully as Shori floated in the fountain at the temple's yard. He lent a hand for Shori to get up from his undignified state. "Welcome back to Shin Makoku!"

"It's been a long time, Shori-sama," Ulrike the priestess said with a solemn smile from her position behind Murata.

Shori accepted Murata's hand and got up. He nodded to Ulrike and then turned to Murata to ask tersely, "Where's Yuuri?"

"He'll probably be here shortly," Murata said. "I'm sure he'll be happy to see you."

As if on cue, Yuuri arrived. He appeared from the gate accompanied by Wolfram, Gunter and Conrad. When he spotted Shori, Yuuri waved. "Hi, Shori! Welcome back!"

Shori stalked over angrily to Yuuri. For once everyone was treated to a sight of a very, very angry Shori Shibuya. The older Shibuya brother was usually even-tempered and even when he was angry his face always wore a mask of calm. This time, however, Shori was just looking plain pissed. He didn't care if Wolfram, Conrad and Gunter were going to kill him for grabbing His Majesty King Yuuri Shibuya by the collar and nearly strangling him.

"Yuu-chan! What sort of trouble have you gotten into this time?!" Shori lashed out. "Did you find any more forbidden boxes or something?!"

Yuuri choked out his response, "Shori, let me go!"

Seeing that Gunter was close to fainting at the sight of Yuuri being hurt, Conrad immediately took action. He touched Shori's arm and asked him to remove his hands from His Majesty. Instantly, Shori felt his body react to Conrad's touch on his skin. Damn! Why did he have to come here while wearing a short sleeve shirt and therefore exposing his arm? Shori would have been embarrassed but from Conrad's expression, his body reacted too. The older man's eyes widened for a moment and he quickly withdrew his hand that had stayed a tad too long on Shori's arm. He was therefore unsuccessful in his attempt of releasing his king from the clutches of possible evil.

Wolfram was about to continue Conrad's failed attempt at un-choking Yuuri but Shori let go of Yuuri instantly as soon as he locked eyes with the blonde prince. At the look on Shori's face, Wolfram's hand automatically reached for his sword. But suddenly he found himself receiving the same strangle-by-the-collar treatment from Shori.

"Or is it you who is in trouble, Wol-chan?!" Shori demanded.

"W-Wo-Wol-chan?!" Wolfram retorted, flushed.

"Yes, you, my brother's fiancé. You and Yuuri come as one package! So? Are you in any trouble?!"

"Let go of me, wimpy big brother!"

"So which one of you is in trouble?!" Shori lashed out impatiently. "Let's get on with saving the world so I can go back immediately to earth!"

Murata sighed and gave Shori an apologetic smile. "It's true that you're usually summoned here when Yuuri needs your help. Or Wolfram. Because, like you said, Yuu-chan and Wol-chan–" (Wolfram flushed again.) "–come as one package…" (Yuuri shouted, "Oi, Murata, stop the nonsense!") "But this time I honestly don't know why you were summoned here. There is no crisis here whatsoever! In fact, Yuuri has been determined to stay out of trouble because he knows you're going to start working tomorrow with Bob-san and he doesn't want you to worry. Sorry, Shori."

Shori hung his head at Murata's explanation. "So that means I'm stuck here for who knows how long, right?"

Conrad patted Shori's shoulder. The gentle pat made Shori look up and Shori found a smiling Conrad in front of him. Strange, but the sight of Conrad's smile made Shori feel better again. Shori returned the smile to Conrad who looked relieved at the change in Shori's mood. For a moment and for some reason unknown to themselves, Shori and Conrad felt that the world seemed to belong to the two of them.

On the sidelines, Yuuri nudged Wolfram and asked, "What the hell kind of look are they sharing?"

Wolfram scoffed. "Isn't it obvious, you wimp?! Honestly now!"

"Shori," Conrad said, "I know it's probably a distraction you don't need right now but everyone here really misses you. Greta has been asking about you and it would make her happy to see her uncle again. Gwendal is also looking forward to exchanging his thoughts with you again. So I hope you don't mind indulging us."

Shori stopped himself before he could ask, "Do you miss me, Conrad?" Clearing his throat, Shori then sighed in defeat and said, "It can't be helped." He added, though, "But I do miss Greta. I look forward to seeing Gwendal and the others too."

"Excellent!" Gunter said, regaining his composure. He handed a towel to Shori and said, "After you dry yourself, Shori-sama, we'll go to the castle!"

Shori dried himself as best as he could until he could change into something dry at the castle. After that, he turned to Ulrike and bowed, apologizing for the disturbance.

"OK! Let's go!" Yuuri cheerfully exclaimed after he mounted Ao. Wolfram mounted the stallion beside Ao. "Shori, are you hungry? Last night we had a party! There's plenty of food left! You have got to try this drink from Cavalcade! It's amazing!"

"Pipe down, wimp!" Wolfram shouted as he smacked Yuuri's head.

"Wolfram! Do not treat His Majesty so harshly!" Gunter reprimanded from his own horse.

"But he's being a major wimp!" Wolfram said. "Right, Murata?!" The Great Sage merely chuckled from his mount.

Shori automatically shook his head in exasperation. Conrad noticed the 'what-have-I-got-myself-into expression Shori had on his face and chuckled as he brought the horse that had been prepared for Shori. Shori heard Conrad and the both of them shared a look of amused understanding.

"Welcome back, Shori," Conrad said as the both of them finally mounted their horses.

And Shori somehow felt at home. He always got that feeling when Conrad was around. Quickly forgetting about his worries on earth, Shori nodded and firmly said, "It's good to be back."

He managed to get himself drunk in the first night of his return in Shin Makoku. Cecilie had been so insistent on throwing a small party for Shori who hadn't been in Shin Makoku for a long while. Since there were also plenty of leftovers from the party last night and the décor hadn't been completely taken down they all succumbed to Cecilie's wishes. Once the champagne was passed around, Shori didn't waste time in gulping down one whole bottle for himself, partly because he didn't want to remember about his troubles on Earth and partly because he needed a distraction from Conrad, who looked as dashing as ever.

So how ironic it was for him to wake up in that very man's bed the next morning. He bolted upright and searched the room for any sign of Conrad. He found it. Conrad was sitting on the settee right across the bed. Conrad still looked sleepy but he was awake. When he saw Shori, his face brightened.

"Good morning, Shori."

"Why am I here?" Shori asked, disoriented. "What happened?"

"You nearly passed out from all the drinking and since your room is far I took you here."

"Sorry," Shori apologized. His head was throbbing softly. He guessed it must be from the drinking binge of last night. "Did you have to give up your bed for me?"

Conrad smiled. "Nothing to worry about. I didn't mind sleeping on the settee. As long as you're comfortable, Shori. Are you all right now?"

Shori nearly blushed. Conrad really had the ability to make him act like a teenage schoolgirl when he did that! Shori wished Conrad wasn't so kind! Then again, wasn't that what attracted him to Conrad?

"I took the liberty of replacing your clothes with some pajamas. I put everything else in the wardrobe. There are some towels inside as well, if you want to take a bath first. I'm on way to the bath house myself."

Shori forced himself to get out of bed. He tried to steady himself on his feet but his head was still spinning from the effects of alcohol. That and he didn't have his glasses on. Conrad hurried over to support Shori. Shori asked him where his glasses were. Conrad took them from the nightstand beside the table. He was about to hand it over to Shori but decided that it would probably feel nicer if he put them on for Shori. So he did. And Shori gaped at Conrad.

"Conrad…"

"Sorry," Conrad said sheepishly. "I just felt like doing that…"

Shori was suddenly aware of the closeness of their bodies. He immediately put some distance between them or he was sure to turn into mush by walking over to Conrad's closet. "Towels are in here, right?" Shori asked.

Without waiting for an answer, he opened the closet and grabbed a towel. He saw his clothes from yesterday on the hanger. He stared distastefully at the black evening attire that just seemed too much for daylight. He decided to ask if Conrad could lend him something casual.

"Do you mind if I borrow one of your casual outfits?"

"By all means, take anything you like." Conrad added with a smile, "We have the same size, after all."

Shori rummaged through Conrad's closet. He sifted the selection of clothes in it and after a while his eyes suddenly fell on a familiar form of clothing. Shori's hand paused mid-air as he stared at it. The shirt that he was looking had the same fabric as his favorite shirt. The color was the same. The model was the same. The size was the same. Heck, even the buttons and the cuffs were the exact same! There was no doubt about it…

THIS WAS HIS SHIRT!!!

All feeling of respect, friendship, romance or whatever it was he had with Conrad evaporated. He turned around quickly at Conrad and glared at the Mazoku with a look of pure unadulterated anger. His body exuded the magic power within him and he looked ready to pounce. To say that Conrad was shocked at Shori's transformation was an understatement.

"Sir Conrad Weller."

"Y-yes?"

"Did. You. Take. My. Favorite. Shirt?"

"Huh? What?"

Shori blew up then and there. He flung that shirt of his he found in Conrad's closet to Conrad's face and shouted, "YOU! How many times do I have to tell you?! THAT SHIRT IS MY FAVORITE! I let you wear it because my mom let you wear it the first time you came to my house but I already told you that it was MY FAVORITE SHIRT! That color was very hard to find! And damn you, I spent the whole day yesterday looking for it like an idiot! I nearly got down on my knees and cried when I couldn't find it! I got myself drunk trying to overcome my grief for losing it! Why didn't you tell me that you have it with you?! If you liked it so much, you could've at least told me you were borrowing it, Weller!!!"

Conrad retreated to the wall as Shori advanced forward threateningly. For once, Conrad he didn't look so confident with himself. In fact, he looked downright embarrassed. His back was pressed hard against the wall by the time Shori reached him menacingly. And when he did, he had his arm on Conrad's collar. He leaned forward to interrogate the culprit until their faces were only a few inches apart.

"Why did you take that shirt, Weller?" Shori asked, his voice dead calm but the tone suspiciously dangerous. "And you better give me a damn good reason, thief."

"I can explain perfectly but…" But he wished Shori didn't stand too closely to him. He couldn't think properly when Shori was this close.

"THEN DO SO IMMEDIATELY!"

"All right, all right," Conrad quickly said before Shori unleashed his powerful Majutsu on him. "I'm sorry that I took your favorite shirt away. The last time I was on earth and wore that shirt I accidentally tore a stitch from the sleeve."

A twitch on Shori's left eye betrayed his expression of false serenity and Shori's fist tightened around Conrad's collar. Conrad quickly explained, "Sorry about that too. I knew you would be angry if you saw that so I kept it with me so I could sew it back. But I was transported back here before I had the chance to do it. Since then I kept it here and I had every intention of returning it to you…"

"But you didn't," Shori finished for him.

"I didn't," Conrad admitted.

"And why not?!" Shori exploded again.

Sweat. Drop. This time Conrad was the one who was sweatdropping. The moment of truth had come. "Because the shirt reminds me of you, Shori."

That certainly wasn't the answer Shori expected to hear. He let go of Conrad and took a step backward as the older man sheepishly explained, "When you're not around, your shirt keeps me company. It keeps me from longing too much for you."

All the anger left Shori as if the button that controlled Shori's emotions was switched off. He was too surprised, and touched, by Conrad's words to be angry anymore. Conrad looked away because he could feel himself blushing at Shori's intense stare and continued to say, "I couldn't make myself let that shirt go. Not even to you. Because I don't have anything else but that shirt to hold on the nights where I want to hold you the most…"

Conrad turned to Shori and smiled sadly. "I'll have it pressed and wrapped. You should bring it with you the next time you go back. I'm very sorry about all this, Shori. I knew you liked the sh–"

"You can keep it," he said huskily to Conrad.

"–irt so much… what?"

"I said you could keep it." Shori turned around, himself blushing at how soft he sounded just now. "I, uh, don't mind if you keep it."

"But–"

"It's all right," Shori said. "But in return, I'll take one of your shirts. Fair enough, right?"

Conrad was not entirely clear on what Shori meant but he nodded anyway. It wasn't until Shori said these next words that he understood. "Great. I'll be picking your favorite shirt then." Then with a lazy, meaningful smile, he said, "Your favorite shirt will be something to keep me company when you're not around in those nights where I want to hold you the most."

The moment he finished his sentence, Shori found himself being wrapped around from behind by Conrad's strong arms. Shori didn't move or said anything because he knew if he moved he would be tempted to kiss the man holding him and if he talked he would probably profess his undying love for him… But Conrad wouldn't let him stay put. He spun Shori around and then placed a kiss on his cheek, thus sending Shori into a state of stunned silence.

"Thank you, Shori. I will keep that shirt and treat it with great care."

At Conrad's solemn tone, Shori regained his composure. "Hmph. So," he asked tersely in order to hide his embarrassment, "Which one is your favorite shirt?"

"The one I'm wearing right now."

"Well, then, take it off."

On the hallway outside Conrad's room, just a few feet away from the wide open door, Yuuri and Wolfram were gaping like idiots. It took them a few tries to put their jaws back in the normal positions. When they finally managed to do so, Wolfram, face burning in embarrassment, took the initiative to drag Yuuri away from the spot where they had been at for the last few minutes.

"Wolfram."

"What, wimp?"

"Did you see what I saw?"

"Of course I did. I'm not blind."

"Then tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"Did I really see my older brother kissing your topless older brother?"

"Of course not!"

"But you said you saw what I saw!"

"Get your eyes checked! Your brother was topless too!"