Yay! Chapter two is up! I'm so excited!
Thank you so much to: prima, KZiva, eclst, XZanayu, emerusmerlinus, Xeohe, Naru Asakura, VickyValross, and Dia-chan87 for all your wonderful reviews! :D
To be honest, I really didn't think I'd get any reviews, so I feel really special. And since you asked, here's chapter two! I apologize if it's not as good as the first one, but here it is. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Kyou Kara Maou belongs to Tomo Takabayashi. She's much more awesome than me... xD
Chapter 2: The Drunk King
It was a few days later, and Yuuri had received a clean bill of health from Gisela, much to everyone's delight… Everyone's except Wolfram's, that is.
Ever since that cozy day they spent sleeping together – during which, the whole castle nearly collapsed after rumors spread that they were 'snuggling' – Yuuri had not so much as uttered a word to the prince. Much less, it seemed like the Maou was avoiding him, leaving promptly to 'take care of some other business', whenever Wolfram entered the same room. In the night hours, Yuuri would curl up into a ball and inch as far away from him as possible. It was slowly becoming unbearable.
Wolfram decided to give the teen his space. Maybe, eventually, Yuuri would talk to him after the constant gossiping and chattering ceased.
Maybe.
But was it really that big of a deal? The two had been engaged forever – not only that, but when the hell were they going to get married? – And wasn't that what couples did? More importantly, wasn't that what married couples did?
Sigh.
Wolfram was sitting in the library, blankly staring at a book that he had yet to read the title of. Later in the evening, the castle was celebrating the return of Yuuri's good health and his return to work. Yuuri wasn't too excited about the latter and everyone knew it; he wasn't known to keep his complaints from people.
"… Wolfram." The blonde blinked, but gave no other sign of recognition.
"Wolfram."
"Huh?" Wolfram glanced up and found he was face-to-face with Conrad.
"Wolfram, is something bothering you?" The swordsman smiled kindly at his younger brother, who retorted with a glare.
"It's nothing you should concern yourself with, Weller-kyo. And why aren't you off with Yuuri somewhere?" Wolfram hissed. No matter how much he hated to admit it, Yuuri seemed to trust Conrad more than anyone… And that 'anyone' included himself. Seeing Conrad around with no Yuuri was just unusual.
"His Majesty wished to be alone for a while, so I went to check on you. Gwendal thought you looked upset."
"I don't need anyone's pity!" Especially not yours! Wolfram angrily slammed his unread book down – probably an overreaction to the current situation – and stomped out of the room. He wasn't a kid anymore! Although he was the youngest brother, he certainly didn't feel the need to be treated like
one. Wolfram was a prince – a demon prince at that – and the Maou's fiancée! With that being said, he deserved the upmost respect. But there Conrad was, treating him like a baby.
Conrad stood still in his spot, staring down at the book Wolfram was 'reading'. A smile was still clearly written on his face.
"Maybe I was wrong to worry…"
After his moment of rage, Wolfram continued to tromp down the hall. His heavy boots, plus the weight of his muscles pounding the ground, made his presence known by every guard in the castle. Thump, thump, thump! Scuff marks on the wooden floor left a trail that no one dared to follow. He wanted to be alone. He wanted the rumors to stop. But most of all, he wanted Yuuri…
As the prince continued down the corridors, he spotted two of the maids whispering in hushed voices to each other. Once within earshot, he managed to make out the words 'Yuuri' and 'bed'. One of them giggled. Wolfram passed by, his green eyes sending an intense scowl in their direction. It was exactly what he didn't want to hear.
One of the maids blushed and covered her mouth. The other made a small 'Eep!' and promptly returned to whatever cleaning duties they supposed to be doing. Wolfram continued on his path of destruction until he reached his and Yuuri's bedroom.
The door slammed shut with a resounding 'Bang!' due to Wolfram using too much force on it… And then he broke down. The coldness in his eyes that was used on the maids became blurred over with fat tears. Wolfram didn't understand just why he was crying. He profusely tried to wipe away at the small drops with his sleeve, but the harder he tried, the more came streaming down his face. Eventually, the shirt sleeve became moist and tear-stained. At least no one can see me like this… The blonde wobbled toward the bed and plopped himself down on it, trying to think of a way to calm down. He was being irrational.
Meanwhile, Yuuri was busy investigating some noises he heard earlier. During his study session with Günter, there had been three distinct interruptions: the sound of someone yelling, a loud stomping that went just by the door – but without a window, neither he nor Günter knew who it was – and the faint sound of someone slamming a door shut. After the incident, the teen was having trouble concentrating and had decided to take a break… Either that or he was just using it as an excuse.
Yuuri wasn't stupid. He had a pretty basic idea of who it was. Actually, it wasn't much of a surprise. He just didn't know why. What would Wolfram get so worked up about?
Come to think of it, it didn't take much to set off Wolfram. He was like a lighted stick of dynamite.
Once the door to the study was opened and Yuuri peered outside, he noticed something different. In the clean hallway, there was a small patch where the wood was less shiny than the rest of the floor. It wasn't really just a small mark. There were a dozen small marks put together, making a line. Yuuri glanced to the left, then the right. If he continued left, then he would end up passing the door to the library. But if he took the right path, then it would lead… Directly to his bedroom… On a hunch, Yuuri
took the path to the right. He followed the trail until it suddenly ended. A little farther ahead, he found the maids cleaning up the little dull blotches.
As soon as they heard footsteps, the two shot up and stepped aside, allowing Yuuri to pass. Something seemed odd about that… Usually, the maids were more relaxed, and they would normally talk about things that the teen would rather not repeat. Nonetheless, Yuuri politely thanked them as usual and continued walking. He didn't need the trail anyway.
Yuuri was about to burst into the room and ask Wolfram what the hell was wrong with him, when he heard an unusual sound… It sounded like sniffling… Wait, was that a hiccup?
... Maybe it's Greta… But the last time Yuuri had guessed Greta was in bed with him, he had been terribly wrong. There was a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, but at the same time, he was curious. Warily, the teen turned the doorknob and poked his head through.
There he was: Beautiful blonde hair, soft green eyes, pale and milky skin. Yuuri had to admit that Wolfram was attractive, and he could probably make just about any girl on the planet – this one, or on Earth – happy. Even a few of the guys would give him some suggestive stares… Yuuri wasn't one of them.
Something was wrong. Strands of blonde hair were pasted to his face. The eyes that usually had a defiant, proud look to them were now red and puffy. His cheeks glistened from the tears running down his face.
"Wolfram… What's wrong?" Yuuri asked, barely even able to speak. He was a little more than surprised. Wolfram seemed to be wearing the same expression.
"Y-yuuri… I…" The prince whipped his head around, hiding his face from view. "… It's nothing…"
"Nothing?" Yuuri echoed, "How can you say it's nothing?" He wandered to the bed, where Wolfram was sitting, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. Wolfram stiffened. "Wolfram, if something's wrong, then you can tell me."
Wolfram slowly shook his head. Yuuri wouldn't understand and neither did he. The blonde was a trained soldier. He shouldn't be so soft! The Maou had changed him, and he knew it.
Yuuri grasped Wolfram's other shoulder with his free hand and forced the blonde to look him in the face. Wolfram had stopped crying, but he still made a few sniffling noises and a thin line of bright pink began to form on his cheeks. Frowning at his friend's state, Yuuri wiped the tears off his delicate face.
Wolfram pulled away.
"So, now you pay attention to me, after you've been avoiding me all this time??" He sounded angry, but hurt.
"…" That was true. Yuuri had been avoiding him, even if it was just a little. Wolfram seemed to pay attention to every single thing the teen did.
It wasn't like Yuuri didn't like Wolfram, or anything. Of course he was a good friend. And those rumors… They were too much for Yuuri to handle. If Yuuri eluded Wolfram enough so that nothing happened, then there would be no more rumors. It was as simple as that. But Wolfram's feelings made everything complicated. The demon king had no idea what was going on in that head of his. If avoiding him had hurt his feelings that much… I'm so sorry…
"Wolfram…" Yuuri started. He was going to apologize; for once he was the one who was in the wrong.
Before Yuuri had a chance to say any more, he noticed Wolfram had already stood up and was headed for the exit. He paused at the doorway.
"Look, I've had enough embarrassment for today. I just want to be alone right now." And with that, he turned the corner and disappeared.
Yuuri stared at the open door, then the empty space next to him. For some reason, he felt terribly lonely. A twinge of guilt was also tugging at his conscious. Wolfram could have his space for now, and he'd find a good time to apologize. "I really am sorry."
The preparations for the party were complete, and the only one who had yet to arrive was the king himself. Normally, the Maou would be the last to be introduced to the party anyway, so all the guests would be there to greet him – or her, whichever case it may be. But since his encounter with Wolfram, Yuuri had completely forgotten about the celebration, and he was running late.
The guests were being patient; some made small talk in hushed voices, while others waited silently. Yuuri emerged from two huge oak doors, his cape was on backwards – it was a traditional garment – his hair was in a mess, and he seemed out of breath. Hastily, the disorganized king scrambled to the center of the room and made a short speech welcoming everyone and thanking them for their patience.
Everyone applauded the speech; especially Günter, who was moved to tears. Yuuri sighed in exasperation. The same Günter, as always… Instead of heading toward the administrator, he turned toward his fencing mentor, Conrad. Meanwhile, Gwendal eyed them coldly from across the room.
"Good evening, Your Majesty." Yuuri smiled slightly from the greeting. The middle brother was definitely the easiest to get along with.
"It's Yuuri. Yuuri!"
"Of course, Yuuri." There was a short, almost uncomfortable pause.
"… By the way, have you seen Wolfram anywhere?"
Much to Yuuri's disappointment, Conrad shook his head.
"I'm sure he's around her somewhere, though." He gave Yuuri an encouraging smile. His eyes trailed from Yuuri to Gwendal, to a crowd of men in one corner of the room. The teen took that as a hint.
First, Yuuri meandered to the stoic Mazoku who was standing at the wine table, glass in hand. Gwendal saw him coming. He grunted, which Yuuri had assumed was his way of greeting. Yuuri picked up a glass, trying not to be conspicuous, and returned Gwendal's acknowledgment with a small "Hi".
Out of all the people in Shin Makoku, the general seemed to contradict himself more than anyone else. Gwendal had a cold, hard exterior. The few times that he did speak, his voice was low, with a tone of authority that demanded respect. The man was also built. However, on the inside, he secretly – or maybe not so secretly – liked fuzzy animals and knitting.
"… Have you seen Wolfram?" Yuuri inquired, since Gwendal opted not to speak.
Gwendal raised a skeptical eyebrow at the question. Since when was Yuuri looking for Wolfram? Normally, the blonde would trail Yuuri like a puppy: an angry, jealous puppy. He also shared the big innocent eyes and cute traits of a puppy.
"Did something happen?" He asked, thinking that he may be able to pry some answers out of Yuuri. Although he seemed nonchalant, the general wanted to aid his little brother.
Yuuri didn't meet Gwendal's gaze. "Not really…" He faked a casual shrug and absent-mindedly took a sip of the wine. It didn't taste half bad.
His suspicions were raised, but Gwendal decided not to force the king to say anything.
"I haven't seen him," Gwendal said finally.
Yuuri's shoulders sagged a little and he took another swig of the wine.
"Alright. I'm going to go look for him." Before Yuuri left the wine table, he finished the first glass and had gotten himself a refill.
The crowd of young men confused the teen a little. Was he supposed to find Wolfram there? Had Conrad merely glanced toward the group out of curiosity, or was he trying to tell Yuuri to look there? It couldn't hurt to look, so Yuuri headed there next.
Cautiously, Yuuri managed to squeeze through the crowd enough to see who was in the center and taking up all the attention. He nearly smacked himself.
Confidently perched in a fancy chair surrounded by flowers and chocolates sat a beautiful person with blonde hair and seductive green eyes. It was none other than… Cheri. She seemed pretty busy at the moment, with men speaking to her from all different directions. Yuuri didn't want to bother her, lest she decided to smother him with her ample bosom and cause all the people crowded around her to become enraged – not to mention he would be extremely embarrassed.
But before he could slink away unnoticed, he heard an enticing "Oh, Yuuri-heika!" and felt something squish against the back of his head. At least he wasn't being suffocated. However, now he could clearly see the envious faces of all the males in the room that seemed to say 'you won't be king much longer if you keep that up'. The teen broke into a nervous sweat.
"Ah! Cheri-sama!" Someone called and pulled her away from the Maou. It was Günter. "Please don't embrace His Majesty like that. You could be putting his life in danger!" He broke into a dramatic sobbing fit at the thought of the king being killed by an angry mob of fan boys.
Günter seemed to be envious of the wrong person in this situation.
"Aw, Günter, you're no fun!" Cheri pouted in her flirty voice, causing all the guys to use the opportunity and approach her with lines like 'I can be loads of fun!'
Yuuri silently thanked the administrator and snuck away, before any more trouble could arise. When the teen thought he was safe, he idled back to the wine table for another refill. Gwendal was no longer there.
He still had plenty of places to look; the room was enormous and packed with nobles and wealthy people. Wait… What was I looking for again?
It had been a few minutes since Yuuri had taken his first taste of alcohol, and it was just beginning to make its way into his blood stream. He may have been the Maou, but he was still a sixteen year old boy. He was drinking underage. Well, technically, that only applied on Earth. In Shin Makoku, he was considered an adult, so it was okay… Hopefully.
Wolfram paced around the room aimlessly. He knew Yuuri was bound to find him eventually. The prince wasn't sure how he was going to face the king, especially since he had fled from the bedroom crying. Who's the real wimp here? He thought bitterly to himself. Yuuri would certainly be worried, but he didn't want to reveal the real reason why he was upset. To put it simply, it would've been much more convenient if the teen had never showed up when he did.
The blonde ended up finding Yuuri first, slouching in front of a table. He was alone, which was a little surprising – he'd been the reason for the party in the first place. Feeling eyes on him, Yuuri turned, and Wolfram was baffled to find the teen grinning and waving madly at him. He slowly approached Yuuri, almost as if he was afraid of being confronted. As soon as the prince was within range, Yuuri bent his knees and flung himself at Wolfram. He certainly was not expecting that.
Taken by surprise, Wolfram lost his balance and collapsed with Yuuri toppling on him.
"Hi, Wolfram!" Yuuri laughed.
This was bad. There they were in the middle of a crowded room, with the teen on top of him. Yuuri was pushing down on all the wrong places, making the blonde's face turn red with embarrassment. There was nowhere to hide his face now.
"Kya! Look at the Maou and Wolfram-sama!" Someone called.
"What? What are they doing?" Someone else asked. A huge flock gathered around them, larger than Cheri's own crowd of men.
Yuuri was oblivious to all the attention and stayed put, smiling down at a red-faced Wolfram. Wolfram responded by squirming out from under Yuuri and scrambling to his feet. Some people in the crowd gave a few disappointed 'Aw's. The blonde scowled at everyone who came into eye contact with him, but he hardly seemed threatening with his cheeks flushing and a completely embarrassed look. He was helpless!
They had to get out of there. Wolfram swiftly grabbed Yuuri's arm and dragged him off the floor to the nearest exit. The teen giggled and stumbled along the way, but Wolfram managed to get them through the doors and round the corner without much trouble. His adrenaline was pumping too fast, and his heart was beating wildly.
Out of the range of everyone's ears and eyes, Wolfram forcefully turned Yuuri to face him.
"What do you think you were doing?! Do you have any idea of how humiliated I am?!" His voice cracked slightly.
Yuuri gave Wolfram a blank look; his brain was unable to comprehend what he had just said. He suddenly smiled. "Wolfram, did I tell you that you look preeetty?"
"What are you…?" Wolfram paused, realization finally dawning on him, "Yuuri, you reek of alcohol!" Now it made sense. All that craziness was the wine talking. That also meant that the real Yuuri meant none of it…
Yuuri, who was having trouble keeping on his feet, leaned heavily against Wolfram for support. He was starting to get tired.
Even knowing that Yuuri was intoxicated, the contact still made Wolfram blush. "C-come on…" The blonde said a little uncertainly, "Let's get that alcohol smell off of you." He started to walk off, but noticed that Yuuri was wobbling in the other direction. "Hey! Where are you going?" Wolfram turned and lifted the teen up, bridal style, to make sure he didn't wander off anywhere. It's just because I have to… He thought, hiding a smile.
Yuuri wriggled in the blonde's hold, making it difficult for Wolfram to walk properly. Then, out of nowhere, the teen wrapped his arms around Wolfram's neck and snuggled into his chest. Wolfram fought to maintain his composure. He nervously glanced around and sighed; thank Shinou there was no one to see that!
The blonde continued down the hall without any more incidents, and stopped at the door to the baths. He somehow managed to get it open while keeping a hold on Yuuri. The teen would thank him later – he would certainly be ashamed of himself for drinking, if he remembered any of it. Wolfram would make sure he wouldn't forget.
Wolfram strode to the edge of the water and hesitantly set Yuuri down.
"Now, stay put." The blonde commanded. He hated to leave Yuuri, even if it was only for a moment, but he was a little heavy.
Wolfram left promptly to retrieve some soap and towels, along with a change of clothes. He wanted to get back as quickly as possible; who knows what Yuuri would do by himself? That thought pushed him to go faster. Why did Yuuri drink alcohol? Did he know what he was doing? Maybe it was Wolfram's fault. He had stormed off without an explanation. Did that mean that Yuuri was worried about him?
Once Wolfram had returned, he looked to see how Yuuri was doing. Everything he was holding dropped to the floor. The top of Yuuri's head was barely visible over the bath water, which was swirling into a whirlpool.
"YUURI!" Without another thought, the blonde dove into the water and found Yuuri's hand. He grasped it as tight as he could and hoped for the best, as the two of them were sucked into darkness.
Haha, sorry! I couldn't help it. I had to put in a cliff hanger. xD Please don't be too mad...
And if you have any suggestions, I would be glad to listen to them! Just press the 'submit review' button in the lower left hand corner... ;D