Wolfram's Bruise
Uniting As One series
Crossover: Gravitation, Only The Ring finger Knows
Written by: chochowilliams
Disclaimer: I do not own Kyo Kara Maoh or the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Summary: An errand leads to much more.
Warning: Drama, Romance, Fantasy, Language, M/M Sexual Situation, Anal, M-Preg
Pairings: Yuri/Wolfram
Inserts: Recap from chapter 1, "Why Me?" by Robby Syruws, David Kirk's Nova The Robot: Nova's Ark
A/N: Enjoy!
oOo
Last Time
Lady Celi released Wolfram and clasped her hands together. "I thought this day would never come!"
Coughing, Wolfram stepped away from his mother and tried to relearn how to breathe.
"She must have overheard when I was speaking with Gwendal earlier."
Yuri gazed at the man who named him in confusion. "Conrad?" What was going on?
"We must plan the wedding at once," Lady Celi gushed.
Both Yuri and Wolfram turned towards the ex-Demon Queen. "What?!"
"Now look here Mother," Wolfram objected.
"Now Wolfram," Lady Celi huffed.
Suddenly understanding, Yuri dropped down in the chair with a cry and hung his head in his hands. Why did these things always happen to him?
oOo
Chapter 2:
The Next Day - Tokyo, Japan
Okay. Now he was officially lost.
"Damn," he muttered to himself. "Maybe I should have let Murata come with me when he asked. He's better at directions than I am."
Yuri Shibuya quickly shook that thought aside.
What the hell was he thinking? Murata was the last person he would have wanted to come with him today. Or would that have been his mother? Either way, the young Demon King was just glad that both had been too busy with other things to pester him. Well, more accurately, Murata had come back to Earth with him because he had his cousin twice removed's wedding, or something. And Yuri's mother had not been home when they arrived.
Yuri glanced from the scrap of paper that he had torn from Shori's school notebook in his hand to the buildings that surrounded him. He ran his fingers through his hair in confusion. He knew it was around here somewhere. It had to be. It was the right street. The problem was that none of the buildings had addresses. Or at least none that were visible.
"Damn! This sucks."
"Kazuki," scolded a voice from behind him. "That was uncalled for!"
Yuri's head snapped around. Coming towards him were two boys. The taller of the two, whom Yuri assumed was this "Kazuki", was smirking. His eyes were gleaming devilishly. They reminded him of Wolfram's when the Demon Prince was trying (and succeeding) in seducing Yuri.
The shorter of the two, the one who was shouting angrily, looked flustered. His ruby red Tee was half pulled out of a pair of dark denim jeans. There were worn-in patches across the right knee. The boy's disheveled dark hair shone brilliantly in the light. He had large dark eyes that scowled up at the other boy, but they did not look angry even though his tone suggested otherwise. As the boy fixed his white zipper-up hoodie, Yuri saw the sun glint off something on his right ring finger.
Kazuki with his right hand tucked into the front pocket of his worn-in looking jeans and his scuffed up sneakers and black graphic Tee that was pulled over a white long sleeved shirt, looked as if he had just stepped out of an ad for some designer store.
Yuri smirked at the sight of his cousin's band, Bad Luck, embroidered in white above the silhouette of the lead singer's face across the guy's chest. He would have to tell Shuichi next time he saw him. He always got a kick out of things like this.
"Don't complain Wataru," Kazuki replied calmly. He did not look the least bit fazed. In fact, if anything, he appeared happy now that Wataru was upset. "You never said no."
"Th-that's not the point," Wataru shouted back. His face was bright red.
Yuri smiled nostalgically and wondered. "Excuse me," he called out to them.
The one called Kazuki turned curious eyes towards him. "Yes?"
Drawing a sharp breath, Wataru stared wide-eyed at the guy who had spoken, as if hypnotized.
In a pair of loose and baggy tan khakis, a white graphic Tee that stretched across a wide, toned chest underneath a white cargo blazer that outlined broad shoulders and sneakers so white they had to be brand new, this guy was nearly as tall as Kazuki with the blackest black hair Wataru had ever seen that fell nearly to the guy's shoulder blades. Dark piercing eyes roamed over the two of them, as if assessing them. Wataru had a feeling that this guy missed nothing.
"I am looking for…" Yuri glanced down at the piece of paper in his hand. "I'm looking for a store called 'Parfait'? They make custom made jewelry?"
His voice was deep and commanding.
"I-it's just…down the street," Wataru answered shyly, pointing over his shoulder.
Kazuki turned sharply to Wataru. He eyes than narrowed at the guy before him.
Yuri smiled kindly at Wataru. "Thank you." He inclined his head in gratitude before vanishing among the thick cluster of people that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
"Are you planning on standing there all day?"
The sound of Yuichi's voice shook Wataru out of his stupor. Wataru shook himself, as if awakening from a deep slumber. "Wait up, Kazuki," he called out to his boyfriend.
"You're drooling," was what Kazuki said as soon as Wataru had caught up to him.
oOo
Parfait - Tokyo, Japan
There was a tinkling of bells as Yuri pushed open the door to the jewelry shop.
"I'll be right with you," called the voice from the back of the shop.
"Take your time," Yuri called back. He was not in any hurry.
Yuri glanced around the shop. It was rather small, but very quaint. He liked the place instantly.
He moved to the display shelves.
There was a wide range of jewelry the store sold he noticed. Everything from necklaces, bracelets, rings, anklets, cuffs, cuff links, chokers and collars to earrings, toe rings, watches, pendants, pins, and charms.
There was a variety of different settings, gemstones, beadwork, metals, patterns, shanks, styles, filigrees, finishes and engravings.
There were rings and bracelets made from spoons.
Beautiful diamond rings.
Studded leather wrist cuffs.
Multi-colored beaded string necklaces with matching bracelet. Some of them had pendants.
A gold pendant with an engraved picture of Buddha on a chain.
"Hello," came a polite female voice. "Sorry about that."
"It's alright," Yuri replied as he turned from a blue crystal teardrop with a strand of white ivy with flower buds engraved across it. It was similar to the one he wore.
He blinked, slightly taken back as he saw the sales woman was nothing more than a girl who appeared to be younger than he was.
"I'm Karin. What can I do for you today?"
Yuri found her oddly enchanting. Her black hair fell to just below her shoulders and was pulled back into a tight ponytail. Stray strands framed her face. Her large dark eyes watched him patiently. Her clothes consisted of a white blouse and pinstriped black suit pants that gave her a professional appearance. But there was something oddly familiar about her.
A picture of Wataru flashed through his head.
Ah! So that was what it was.
CHEATER!
Yuri felt his face pale as he heard Wolfram's voice sharp and clear in his head.
"Are you alright?"
Shaking his head, Yuri smiled pleasantly at the girl. "Yes. Yes, I'm fine. I heard you make custom made jewelry?"
"Yes, that's right. Was there something you wanted to have made?"
"Yes." Yuri pulled out a red folder from the messenger bag he had strapped across his chest. From the folder, he pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to her.
Karin gave the crude drawing a quick once over. "Hm. Let's have a seat over here," she suggested.
They made their way over to a two-seater bistro table in the far corner near the front window that was displaying several beautiful pieces on headless busts.
Yuri lifted the strap over his head and set his bag on the floor at his feet as he sat down.
Karin set the drawing on the table in front of her and smiled at Yuri. "So, what exactly can I do for you?"
oOo
"Okay," Karin said a short time later as she ripped the invoice from the printer that was under the counter. She gave it a once over as she made her way back to where Yuri was waiting to make sure everything was in order. Setting the sheet on the counter, she grabbed a pen and marked the invoice in three spots. "I need you to sign here, here and initial here," she told him.
Yuri took the pen she offered and signed the spots she had indicated. It was not until he was finished that he realized what he had done. Yuri had spent the last what would be the equivalent of three years here on Earth singing papers practically from the moment he woke up to the time he went to bed-if he was lucky-and they were always signed the same way.
Shibuya Yuri Harujuku Furi.
He felt his face flush with embarrassment, but quickly shook it off. Nothing he could do about it now without drawing unnecessary attention to it.
"Alright," Karin muttered.
If she noticed anything odd about his signature then she said nothing, for which Yuri was extremely grateful.
Karin ripped the edges off both sides of the invoice and tossed them into the wastepaper basket under the counter by her feet. What had been one sheet were now suddenly three. The top sheet was white, the middle was yellow and the bottom one was green. She grabbed the top sheet and handed it to Yuri with a smile. "Here you go."
"Thank you."
"Now. Like I said, it will take up to five days to have a sketch ready for your approval."
"Right."
"At that point, we will be able to give you a more accurate estimate of the cost and after your approval, we will proceed. Or if there is something you do not particularly like about the sketch, we can work on a new sketch for you."
Yuri nodded. "Alright."
"Now, when we get the go ahead, we will require a fifty percent down payment."
"Right."
"We accept all major credit cards, checks, wire transfers or money orders. We do not accept cash for orders over two hundred thousand yen."
"Okay." There was no way Yuri would be stupid enough to walk around with that much money anyway. Anybody that dumb was just asking for trouble. "So, now, how long will it take to complete?"
"About three to four weeks after the approval of the sketch. Depending."
"Sounds good."
"Alright? Then we will be seeing you in about a week?"
"Sure. See you then," he said with a wink.
A rosy tint colored Karin's face.
YOU NO-GOOD TWO TIMING CHEATER WIMP!
Yuri ignored Wolfram's voice screaming bloody murder in his head (he got enough of that back home) or tried to anyway. But by all that was holy! How in the name of the Great One had he fallen in love with Little Lord Brat? Wolfram's annoying possessiveness grated on Yuri's nerves even when his fiancé was not with him. Yuri felt the beginnings of a headache coming on.
Fixing the strap of his messenger bag, Yuri inclined his head at Karin and turned to leave. But when his gaze swept over the pendant he had been looking at earlier, Yuri paused. His forehead creased in thought.
oOo
After stapling the crude drawing to the store copy of the invoice, Karin set the stapler back under the counter.
"Excuse me."
Startled, Karin looked over her shoulder and smiled when she spied Yuri.
"I would like to purchase this, if I could."
Karin glanced at the deep blue teardrop shaped pendant Yuri held out towards her with a smile. "Of course!"
oOo
Karin sighed heavily as she watched the raven-haired god vanish out of Parfait with a flourish of bells.
"For your girlfriend?" she had inquired politely. She had been waiting anxiously, hoping against hope that he would say no.
Yuri had laughed and shook his head, his dark eyes had sparkled in amusement.
She had mentally squealed.
"If I had a girlfriend, my fiancé would have my head on a platter."
Karin groaned. Why were the good ones always taken?
"No, this is for my daughter."
Daughter! Can you believe it? This guy looked not much older than her brother Wataru did and not only did he have a fiancée but a daughter! Life was so not fair.
Taking the invoice, she rounded the counter and vanished into the back room to begin on the pieces Yuri had ordered, all the while wondering what horrible crime she committed in a past life to receive such unjust punishment.
oOo
That Evening - Shibuya Residence - Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan
The sun was slipping behind the horizon when the sound of jangling keys was heard. Moments later, the front door to the Shibuya house was thrown open.
"Yu-chan," Miko Shibuya, otherwise known as Jennifer called as she stepped into the house. "Sho-chan! We're home!"
Shoma stepped into the foyer behind his wife with a heavy sigh. He set the armload of green cloth bags down and shut the door behind him. "Now, Honey, Shori has his own apartment, remember?" he reminded his wife in a clam clear voice, similar to how one would speak to a child. Sometimes, it was the only way to get her to understand. "And Yuri is-"
Jennifer waved her husband's words aside, giving them no heed as she gave a tired sigh of her own as her greeting was met with silence. It just was not fair. Both of her boys had no time for their mama anymore. Shori as the Demon King of the Earth and Yuri was the Demon King of the Great Demon Kingdom. Her little Yu-chan was even engaged to be married and had a precious little girl of his own that she hardly ever saw. Boys were just no fun. They grew up too fast and then abandoned their mama. She was absolutely certain that if she had had a girl, things would be much different.
"Don't worry, Honey. You always have me." Shoma grinned broadly.
Feeling even more depressed, Jennifer moved sluggishly into the kitchen after removing her shoes and slipping into her house slippers without saying anything.
Quickly grabbing the grocery bags, Shoma followed his wife into the house. "Honey? Jennifer?"
oOo
Same Time - Covenant Castle - The Great Demon Kingdom
Sitting upon a straight-backed chair, Wolfram's voice boomed through the open basilica-like room. The wall-to-wall floor to ceiling windows that surrounded him on three sides had been cleaned so thoroughly by Sangria, Doria, Lasagnia and the new girl Effie that they squeaked, allowing the midmorning sun to pour through. The entire room gleamed majestically.
"Nova built many animals from pieces of his ship. He modeled them after those in his ancient wooden ark. Nova had a good eye for detail, but he couldn't always remember which animal was supposed to be bigger – 'Was a mouse bigger than a moose?'" (1)
With extra paper, a bottle of ink, her favorite black feathered quill given to her by her fathers for her last birthday, a backup one just in case and a dictionary spread out before her, Greta sat at the table in the sunroom working on her vocabulary assignment. "Hey, Wolfram," she spoke up.
"Huh? Yes, Greta?"
"What are a…'mouse' and a…'moose'?"
The prince's forehead creased in thought. "…Hm. That is a good question." Frankly, he had no idea. Wolfram shrugged. "They're probably some strange creatures from where Yuri is from. We will have to ask him when he returns."
At the mention of her father, Greta's face fell. Her quill slipped out of her grasp. She slumped down in her chair and hung her head. Her mop of copper hair hung over face, veiling her expression.
Wolfram became concerned for his daughter. He shut the book and standing up, placed the book on the chair. "Greta? What is the matter? Are you not feeling well? Should I get Gisela?"
Greta shook her head.
Wolfram's brows dropped. "Then-?"
"…Wolfram?" Greta's voice was barely above a whisper.
"What is it?" Wolfram asked gently.
"Are you mad at me?"
Wolfram went still. His eyebrows shot up into his hair.
Greta lifted her head and glanced through her bangs with chocolate eyes shimmering behind unshed tears. "I was the one who told Conrad about seeing that mark on your neck and he went and told Gwendal and now Gwendal is angry at Yuri and Lady Celi is pushing for a wedding, which I think would be so cool if you and Yuri finally got married because Yuri said that I could be in it, but I know you and Yuri don't want to get married yet and-"
Wolfram merely smiled gently at his adopted daughter.
A stray tear slid down Greta's cheek.
Crossing the room, Wolfram rounded the table to Greta's side. He turned the chair she was sitting in so that they were face to face. Wolfram knelt before her. Cupping her face with one hand, he reached out with the other and brushed away her tears with his thumb. He told her confidently, "Your father and I could never hate you."
"Really?"
Wolfram nodded. "We both love you very much."
"But-?"
With a reassuring smile on his face, Wolfram shook his head. "You could be the Bloody Widower and we would still love you," he told her.
The Bloody Widower was one of the Great Demon Kingdom's most notorious mass murderers. The man made no distinction between human, demon or half-breed; male, female or transsexual; child, adult or senior citizen. It did not matter to him if you were pregnant or a cripple. You could be two minutes old or 200 years old. It mattered not to him. As long as there was blood flowing through your veins. The man had had no conscience. At his trial, his mother had pleaded for the court to spare his life, saying that he was "a good boy".
Greta's cheeks colored at the compliment, but her eyes still held a tinge of doubt.
Wolfram silently cursed Yuri for disappearing from the study like the wimp that he was instead of dealing with the consequences of their love affair suddenly being made public. It was not as if either of them was ashamed. No, the problem was a very disgruntled Lord Gwendal Von Voltaire, a just as equally unhappy Lord Günter Von Christ and an over enthusiastic Lady Cecilie Von Spitzweg. Lord Weller did not seem to have an opinion on the matter, which suited Wolfram just fine.
Wolfram could say one thing about his fiancé's exit. It had given Wolfram the opportunity to quickly and quietly slip out himself.
And now here he was hiding out in his own castle as if he were a wanted felon.
Both Yuri and Wolfram knew that for people of their standing, anything more than a chaste peck on the cheek was considered taboo. Even that enlisted whispers hidden behind cupped hands. It was amazing that Wolfram had been able to get away with sleeping in Yuri's bed for as long as he had. Not that he had ever cared one way or another what anybody thought, including Yuri. It was true that Günter had frowned upon it, but he was bias. The perverted King's Aide was in love with His Majesty. Wolfram's big brother and Conrart had never said anything about it. Mostly because they believed up until a few short hours ago, that Yuri and he had a platonic relationship.
Wolfram snorted. And people said Yuri was naïve.
Platonic? Please! Yuri and he had not had an "innocent" relationship for quite some time. Where have these people been living? Under a rock?
Yuri stopped protesting Wolfram's habit of sleeping in his bed ages ago. In fact, Yuri claimed he found it difficult to sleep if Wolfram was not sleeping besides him. Not even having Greta sleep with him could make up for Wolfram's absence.
Yuri did not freak out at the sight of Wolfram's girlie pink nightgown anymore either. In fact, Yuri himself said he thought Wolfram looked nice in the color. Besides, Yuri told him that up until recently, in his world, both men and women used to wear nightdresses to bed.
What about when they all believed that with the Great One gone, Yuri would not be able to travel back and forth between Earth and The Great Demon Kingdom anymore? Why did they think Yuri even made the decision to go back to Earth in the first place? Let alone run into the portal without even once looking back. Then of course, there was the obvious fact that Yuri had returned.
A couple years ago at Yuri's Coming of Age ceremony, when Wolfram had broken their engagement and fled for the Bielefelt territory, Yuri had come after him. He had traveled all the way from Covenant Castle just to bring Wolfram back home where he belonged. Where their first duel had been just as much an accident as their engagement had been, their next duel at Bielefelt Castle had not been. Yuri picked up that knife with full knowledge of what he was doing.
Yuri and he loved one another and were engaged to be married. Everyone should just be glad that Yuri even returned Wolfram's affection.
So what if they shared more than just a platonic relationship? What business is it of anyone's? If Yuri were not who he was and Wolfram who he was, nobody would care. This would not even be an issue.
Suddenly, Wolfram stiffened. The back of his neck prickled. His hand automatically went for his sword. He cursed when he remembered that he had replaced it in the armory besides Yuri's after morning drills.
He was looking around for something he could use as a weapon when Greta squealed.
"Yuri!"
Wolfram's head shot up and around.
Greta shot up out of her chair and raced around the table. Her slippered feet barely touched the travertine tiled floor as she darted across the sunroom.
There standing with the wall of windows at his back stood Yuri. If there had not been tiny pools of water surrounding the double black Demon King, one would come to the conclusion that the monarch had appeared out of thin air, which was essentially, what Yuri did.
It had been explained to them by Murata some time ago that even though Yuri could control all of the elements, his core element was water. That was why Yuri traveled back and forth between the worlds through water. Since Yuri was now in control of his sojourns, Murata began to theorize that Yuri did not need a large body of water to be able to travel back and forth. It had taken much practice before he was able to perfect it, but now Yuri was able to pull the water molecules out of the very air around him, much like how he formed his water dragons, and open a portal that way.
Along the way, Yuri was able to master the remaining elements as well. Because his chief element was water, it had been a little difficult to perfect the fire element, but eventually, Yuri was able to control it. He still had yet to master it, but he had enough command to put Wolfram to shame. Of course, Wolfram would never admit it.
Wolfram felt his heart give a little flutter in his chest as a heavenly aura caused by the early evening sun shinning through the windows encircled his King.
Except for the innocent twinkle in his jet eyes, Yuri no longer looked like the Yuri Wolfram had fallen in love with on that day several years ago. As Yuri learned to master his powers, he and the other presence within him had slowly begun to merge. He was no longer Yuri, but neither was he the Demon King. He was something else all together with the innocence and pacification that made Yuri Yuri and the angry, hot temperedness that had been the Demon King. Even though the two sides of Yuri's personality had been extreme opposites, they both meshed well in this new form.
Yuri crouched down and held out his arms as Greta flung herself at him. The impact sent him reeling to the floor.
Standing, Wolfram crossed his arms over his chest and watched father and daughter giggling in a mass of limbs.
"Yuri, you aren't wet," Greta noticed as she sat back.
Wolfram took Yuri's appearance in for the first time and realized that Greta was right.
It was a technique Wolfram taught Yuri just recently. Instead of arriving dripping wet and taking the risk of catching a cold or something worse, Yuri could dry himself off just as easily as he could travel back and forth between the worlds. All he had to do was call upon his fire element and wrap its flames around him like a cloak. Demons that could control the fire were able to use it without running the risk of it harming them. Yuri called this technique similar to using a "blow dryer". Whatever that was (2).
"Wimp," he accused as he crossed the room towards his fiancé and their daughter.
"Hey, Wolfram," Yuri chuckled from his position on the floor.
"And what, pray tell, took you so long? You better not have been flirting with some pretentious tramps," he warned as he pulled Yuri to his feet.
Yuri had learned a long time ago to ignore Wolfram, but not this time. "Actually, I was," he admitted. He winked at Greta.
Greta stifled a giggle behind her hand.
"WHAT?!"
Well, there goes the hearing in that ear, Yuri thought with a wince.
Chuckling lightly, Yuri reached inside the pocket of his white cargo blazer. His hand clamped around a small box that he had placed inside of a freezer bag he stole from his mother in order to keep the contents dry during the journey back to Covenant Castle.
"YOU DOUBLE-CROSSING, FAITHLESS, ADULTEROUS WIMP!"
Wolfram's face had gone through several shades of red by this point.
Yuri was afraid that his fiancé would have an aneurysm.
"Yup. I was sidetracked by a beautiful young lady with large eyes and fiery copper hair and cocoa butter skin…"
Wolfram fisted his hands.
"So, I decided to buy this precious young woman a gift."
Greta's eyes sparkled. She clapped her hands together and jumped up and down gaily. "Really?" She squealed.
Growling, Wolfram's fists burst into flames. "Who is this hussy?" he demanded. "I'll rip her head from her body!"
Ignoring his hotheaded fiancé, Yuri pulled out the small white box. Removing it from its clear plastic wrappings, he strode over to his daughter and handed the box to her.
Wolfram's mind went blank. The flames engulfing his fists sputtered and died.
Yuri chuckled at the confused expression on Wolfram's face. He knew that once the blond Prince discovered he had been tricked, Yuri's ass was going to be flambéed, but Yuri was all right with that. It sure as hell would be worth it.
With enthusiasm, Greta tore off the lid. Gasping, her eyes went wide. "Yuri! It looks like yours! It even has your crest on it," Greta exclaimed in delight.
Yuri nodded. "I know."
Curious, Wolfram strode towards his daughter. Greta held out the small white box to help him get a better look.
Lying on a bed of cotton was a blue teardrop crystal pendant with a strand of white ivy carved into it.
Stepping forward, Yuri took the necklace from her.
Greta turned her back to her father and swept her hair aside.
Seeing his fiancé fumbling with the clasp, Wolfram huffed a disgusted sigh and snatched the necklace away.
Yuri turned towards his Consort and soon-to-be husband. "Wolfram?"
"Wimp," Wolfram called. "You are such a guy."
Yuri blinked. What was that supposed to mean?
Pushing his clueless fiancé aside, Wolfram expertly secured the necklace around Greta's neck. "There," he said, stepping back.
Greta twirled around. "What do you think?" she asked. Her eyes were twinkling in glee.
"Beautiful," her fathers said.
With a squeal, Greta flung herself first at Yuri and then Wolfram. She gave them a kiss and a quick hug each before racing out of the sunroom to show off her necklace.
Yuri watched her go with a gentle smile.
A dark shadow fell over him.
His smile faltered.
An angry aura appeared at his back.
He went still.
The only thought that went through his head was, "Oh shit."
oOo
"YURI!"
Wolfram's voice boomed throughout the castle.
In the farthest room from the sunroom, finishing the paperwork His Majesty had neglected to complete, Gwendal's eye twitched and his grip on the quill tightened.
Startled, a flock of dwarf Tori (3), which were squat, red and black speckled birds, took flight from the tree that they were occupying outside the castle walls.
oOo
A Couple Hours Later
Standing outside the closed double doors of the study, Yuri yanked on the bottom hem of his black uniform to straighten any wrinkles or unsightly creases that may have appeared.
The two guardsmen in their stiff black uniforms that had glued themselves to his side as soon as he returned from Japan stationed themselves on either side of the study doors. The soldiers reminded Yuri of the English Guards that guarded Buckingham Palace with how stiff, formal and unbothered they always appeared to be by everything around them. Though the sight of their grim faces always reminded Yuri of Gwendal.
He shuddered.
"Are you going in or not?" snapped a voice in his ear.
Swallowing a startled yelp, Yuri spun around and saw Wolfram standing behind him. "Wolfram," Yuri breathed placing a hand over his racing heart. Gulping, he felt a trickle of sweat trail down the side of his face as he gazed at his fiancé who had his arms crossed over his chest. There was the flicker of emerald flames burning hotly in Wolfram's eyes. "You scared me," Yuri laughed nervously.
Wolfram took a step towards his fiancé. "That'll be the least of your problems if you don't get in there and talk to Gwendal."
Yuri gulped nervously and glanced over his shoulder.
"Well?" Wolfram demanded.
If it was at all possible, Wolfram scared Yuri a lot more than Gwendal did. When had that happened?
To make up for what he did earlier, Wolfram demanded that Yuri speak with Gwendal about allocating some of the mountains of paperwork Yuri had every single day to other, more capable handlers so that Yuri was free to see to other more pressing matters like spending some time with his fiancé and their daughter. It was something Yuri has been meaning to do for a while now anyway, but has been putting off for one reason or another. Really, the request was no big thing, but his second request-now that something else altogether.
No, not request, Yuri corrected himself, Wolfram's demand.
Wolfram had insisted, in no uncertain terms, that Yuri was to speak to Gwendal and get his blessing.
Him? Speak to Gwendal? About him, having sexual relations with the Commander in Chief's baby brother? What did Wolfram think he was? Suicidal? "What?!" Yuri had exclaimed scandalized. "How am I supposed to do that?"
Wolfram had merely shrugged. "You will think of something."
"But why me?" Yuri whined. "He's your brother," he had pointed out. "Why don't you talk to him? He wants to castrate me."
"Because you are the King."
What kind of reason was that?
Sighing heavily and knowing he had little choice, Yuri grabbed the golden handles and pushed open the study doors.
"Just remember," Wolfram hissed as the heavy double doors swung open, "tonight, your ass is mine!"
Was it possible to be turned on and terrified at the same time?
oOo
That Night
Yuri thrashed wildly upon the bed. His raven black hair was glued to his head by sweat. Endless obsidian eyes were clouded over by lust. With his right hand, he gripped the bed sheets above his head tightly. The pressure turned his knuckles white. His other hand was lost among the thick curly mop of blond hair that was bopping up and down between his legs.
Throwing his head back, Yuri arched off the bed. His mouth opened in a soundless gasp as a jolt of pleasure raced through him.
He had had a long talk with Gwendal earlier and they had called a truce. Though it was an uneasy and temporary armistice, it was a start. Gwendal had agreed to look into siphoning some of the paperwork off. Though he warned, a great deal of it had to go through him as the Demon King for approval. Yuri had a feeling that Gwendal was willing to comply with this request more for his own benefit than for Yuri's seeing as Gwendal was the one who took over the King's duty in the absence of the King.
"And you will get Big Brother's blessing."
Even now, Wolfram's demand rang through Yuri's head.
Yuri had never understood that phrase, between a rock and a hard place, but he did now because that was exactly where he had been when he tried to discuss his relationship with Wolfram with Gwendal.
What was worse? Being flambéed alive? Or buried alive? It was a toss up that would definitely land heads up in favor of Wolfram. Mostly because Gwendal would only be his brother-in-law. Wolfram would be his husband. It was not that Yuri was downplaying Gwendal's influence or role in his life. No, it was more that Wolfram had the biggest role in Yuri's life other than that of their daughter and Yuri's duty to his people.
"Uhm, Gwendal, there is another matter that I would like to speak with you about."
Yuri shuddered even now, as he remembered the look Gwendal had given him.
He had assured Gwendal that he was madly in love with Wolfram and had every intention of marrying him. He wanted to make a life with Wolfram, have a family, grow old and grey together, get bald and fat and wrinkly. Wolfram was such an ingrained part of his life that Yuri could not imagine his life without Wolfram. But seeing, as Yuri was not even nineteen yet, that time was not anytime soon.
There had been such a long, tense silence that followed his speech that Yuri had started to think he had overstepped his bounds.
Bowing politely, Yuri had turned to leave the study and rejoin Wolfram and the punishment that awaited him.
"If," but Gwendal's voice had stopped him, "you hurt Wolfram…"
The unspoken threat had been left hanging there.
Licking the last of Yuri's essence off his lips, Wolfram sat back on his hunches and gazed up the hard, lean body of his fiancé with a self-satisfied smirk.
Panting heavily, Yuri licked lips gone dry and sagged exhausted onto the bed. He draped an arm over his eyes.
Yuri peeled open an eye with difficulty as he felt the bed jostle. He watched as Wolfram rounded the bed to the nightstand.
Wolfram opened the top drawer and felt inside for what he knew was there. His hand closed around a glass vial. With a sly smile, he pulled it out: a thick, clear, guppy liquid filled the vial. Closing the drawer with his hip, Wolfram turned back towards the bed and his affianced.
The night has only just begun. Yuri was going to pay for making a fool out of him.
Yuri felt himself rising back to life as he watched the predatory gleam in Wolfram's eyes.
"Don't worry, Gwendal," he had assured his Commander in Chief, "I would never do anything to hurt Wolfram. You have my word on that."
But if he did somehow hurt Wolfram, Yuri would be the first to offer the elder demon his head for a life without Wolfram was not a life at all.
oOo
A Week Later – Parfait – Tokyo, Japan
Akira Tsutsui never knew that skipping school would be so boring. Yawning, he scratched the back of his head and then resettled himself back against the wall.
Final examinations had taken place back in December at the end of the fall semester right before winter break and now classes were strictly on an optional basis until the mandatory graduation ceremony rehearsal (4).
Most of his friends were applying to public colleges, so their hell had just begun. He wished them all luck. Mizuho's older sister had a nervous breakdown last year while cramming for her entrance exams. Since he was being forced into going to the same private college his father and his father and his father before him went to, all that was behind him, thank God.
But now he was bored.
Akira's dark chocolate eyes caught sight of a lithe guy crossing the street towards him at a jog. A feeling of déjà vu washed over him. He studied the guy with a frown. Something about the guy seemed familiar.
With hair trailing down between his shoulder blades as black as raven's feathers and eyes just as equally black, the guy was dressed in a pair of jeans that were faded at the knees, whether by design or wear Akira was not sure, and a yellow polo shirt pulled over a white long sleeved shirt. The black messenger bag that was strapped across his chest bounced against his leg as he ran.
The answer hit him hard and fast.
No! It couldn't be. Could it?
Akira scrambled to his feet, "Shibuya," he called after the guy. "Hey! Shibuya!"
Hearing his name, Yuri glanced over his shoulder and seeing the guy racing towards him, frowned.
"It is you," Akira exclaimed. "Isn't it?" Now that he got a good look at the guy's face, Akira was not so sure anymore. It certainly looked like his old teammate, but he looked…different. His eyes were sharper and more focused. His expression grim and serious. Shibuya had always been a little on the lean side. Keeping his body toned and in shape, even in the off-season.
Yuri took in the guy before him. He was maybe a couple centimeters shorter with short-cropped brown hair and dark brown eyes. Dressed in a black uniform with the mandarin collar similar to the one he used to wear. The black jacket was unbuttoned revealing a plain white T-shirt underneath.
"Aah! Tsutsui!" Now he remembered. They used to be on the same baseball team. Akira was one of the pitchers.
"Hey man! How're you doing?"
"Fine," the Demon King replied with less enthusiasm than his friend had.
Yuri was on his way to Parfait. He had come specifically at mid-day because he knew everybody that could possibly know him would be either at school or at work. Or they were supposed to be. The last thing he wanted was to have to try to explain why he seemed to have fallen off the face of the Earth, which in a way was exactly what had happened to him.
"So, what have you been up to? You just suddenly dropped out of school and quit the team…"
Yuri was not sure how he was supposed to answer that. The truth would surely get him locked up in a padded cell in the nearest loony bin.
Before he could even search his mind for a suitable answer that would not invite additional questions, he heard a familiar voice.
A quick glance over his shoulder and Yuri was thanking the Great One.
"I'm sorry, Tsutsui, but I gotta go!" Without waiting for a reply, Yuri took off down the street, leaving his old teammate to gap after him.
oOo
"Oh! And flowers! And…!"
Eiri heaved a heavy sigh as Shuichi prattled on about plans for their wedding. He massaged his temples with his free hand. He was beginning to regret asking the baka to marry him. What had he been thinking?
A flash of memory from that night came back to him. With his pink haired idiot glistening in sweat and covered in come and moaning erotically underneath him.
Oh, yes. He had not been thinking.
"Hey! We can get your father to marry us!"
Eiri's eye twitched.
"That would be so cool! Don't you think, Yuki?"
As cool as snow in July.
Eiri's father had not exactly given his blessing for Eiri to court to Shuichi. In fact, Eiri's father refused to acknowledge the very blatant reality that his eldest son was gay. Evidently, Eiri was nothing more than one disappointment after another. Not only was he in a homosexual relationship with a rock star, but he was an author of romance novels, had given up his life as a Buddhist monk (not that he had wanted to follow in his father's footsteps in the first place) and dumped the girl his father had wanted to betroth him to for a hyperactive idiot that had a tendency to cosplay in female clothing and who had actually flashed Eiri's father at one time.
Oh, well.
"Shuichi!"
Cut off in mid-thought, Shuichi blinked blankly at the guy jogging towards him who had a smile on his face and was waving his hand above his head.
A grin slowly spread across Shuichi's face. "Yuri!" Unhooking his arm from Eiri's, Shuichi raced full throttle down the street towards his cousin with a squeal.
Sighing tiredly, Eiri followed at a more sedate pace.
Shuichi launched himself at his younger cousin.
Used to being glomped, Yuri merely smiled as he patted Shuichi's back lightly.
Grabbing the back of Shuichi's shirt, Eiri pulled the singer off the poor boy he was choking to death.
Yuri gave his cousin's lover an appreciative smile. "Eiri," he greeted.
"So, Yuri, what brings you down here?"
"Oh, just running some errands."
Squirming out of Eiri's grasp, Shuichi shoved his hand into Yuri's face. "Look! Look," he squealed hopping up and down.
Yuri spied the ring on his cousin's finger. His eyes went wide. "Is that-?"
"Yes," Shuichi nodded with a giggle. "Eiri asked me to marry him!"
"Congratulations!"
With his large eyes sparkling, Shuichi clasped his hands together. "You have to come to the wedding! Promise!"
"Of course."
"And you have to bring Wolfram, too, okay?"
"Oh, he'd come even if he wasn't invited," Yuri confessed with a deadpanned expression. If he did not, he would have to hear about what a cheater he was for a week. Yuri felt the beginnings of a headache just thinking about it.
Eiri chuckled lightly. That sounded like someone else he knew. He shot a glance at Shuichi.
"And! And! Greta could be the flower girl! She would be so cute in a little kimono!"
"She'd love that." Especially seeing as by the time her fathers married, she would be too old to be the flower girl.
"And?" Shuichi pressed. His eyes were gleaming eagerly.
Yuri blinked. "And…what?"
"What about Wolfram? Did you propose to him yet? I heard from Maiko that Mom said that your mom overheard you speaking with Ken about buying him a ring and proposing properly."
Yuri's face was aflame with a mixture of horror and embarrassment. Oh, Great One! The whole family knew?
Feeling bad for the boy, Eiri walked up this fiancé and with a fisted hand, bopped him on the head. "Alright Brat."
"Ow! Yuki," Shuichi whined covering his head with his hands. Tears filled his eyes. His lower lip trembled. "What did you do that for?"
"We gotta get going," he reminded him.
"Aw!"
"Don't give me that," Eiri scolded. "We're supposed to be meeting Seguchi and my sister for lunch. Remember?"
"Oh." Shuichi face turned downcast. He wished they weren't. Neither of the Seguchis particularly cared about Shuichi being with Eiri. "Right."
Eiri rolled his eyes. He understood perfectly well why Shuichi was not particularly eager to go to lunch even if it meant going on a date with him. "Come on, Brat."
"Do we have to?" Shuichi whined.
"Yes." Eiri grabbed Shuichi's hand and lacing their fingers together, dragged Shuichi down the street to the car.
Yuri watched in amusement as Shuichi continued to protest the whole way.
"Oh! It's you."
The surprised exclamation turned Yuri around. "Aah! Karin, wasn't it?"
"Hello," Karin Fujii greeted with a polite bow.
It looked as if the girl was just coming into work.
"Uhm, the sketch for the rings is completed," she informed him.
"Really?"
Karin nodded. "Would you like to come in and take a look?"
"Yes, I would. Thank you."
Side by side, they walked down the street towards the jewelry shop.
…To Be Continued…
(1) David Kirk's Nova The Robot: Nova's Ark
(2) Borrowed this technique from another KKM story (which I love), though I cannot remember which story it is. Hopefully, the author isn't upset I borrowed it. All credit goes to her/him
(3) In case you're interested, "tori" is Japanese for "Bird". I thought it would be ironic to have a species of bird called Tori.
(4) Got this from "Little Butterfly"
A/N: There are two deleted scenes within this chapter. The first one is with Wataru and Kazuki, which you can find in the Only the Ring Finger Knows section under the title, "Comfortable" and the second scene is with Eiri and Shuichi from Gravitation under the title, "It's Nothing Fancy" in case you're interested.
