Disclaimer: I do not own Kyo Kara Maoh.

Pairings: Yuuri x Wolfram

Warnings: Shounan ai (boy/boy pairings), you have been warned.


Our Once Upon a Time

By V. Shalyr


4. Through Other Eyes

Wolfram waited only long enough to hear the judge announce that he had passed before he was off, rushing past his fellow fire element wielding friends with only a quick wave and a hurried goodbye. He'd been annoyed when the final exam schedules had come out and he'd discovered that his and Yuuri's tests were to take place at almost the same time. He'd wanted to be there, damn it! He knew how hard his boyfriend—and he still felt lightheaded at finally being able to call him that—had been working and he wanted to be there to witness the results.

It felt like almost the entire school had gathered at the largest of the school's four arenas where the water element users were taking their exams. Wolfram pushed, shoved, and elbowed his way through the throng, in too much haste to bother with politeness. And really, everyone was too engrossed in the goings on in the arena to be bothered by the slender youth weaving his way among them.

He finally squeezed into the front row of spectators just in time to see Yuuri momentarily wrapped in sapphire light before water lashed out around him, thickening and twisting upward into a pair of massive water dragons.

Wolfram held his breath as the sky darkened and lightening struck like tongues of white fire through blackening clouds. It looked like the duel might have gotten a bit out of hand. The storm was almost always a prelude to disaster. But to his relief, the twin dragons halted their attack mere moments before the judge would have been swept away. The man stared wide-eyed into the dragons' fierce eyes for several long, tense moments before he relaxed and smiled, giving his student a very ecstatic thumbs-up.

"Yes!" Wolfram cheered along with everyone else as Yuuri let the water dissolve and stood there with that idiotic smile of his plastered on his face.

He shook the judge's hand and nodded in acknowledgement when the man told him that he'd passed and then abandoned all dignity in favor of jumping up in the air and whooping for joy. He'd done it! He'd passed the exams for mastery of elemental magic and just in time. All those extra lessons and hard work, all that studying of past Maohs and their experiences with their powers, not to mention that trip to the mountain springs, had paid off in full.

It hadn't been calm that he'd needed, or at least not the kind of calm that all his teachers had talked about during classes in the past. No, Yuuri had found that when it came to his powers, what he needed was emotion—strong, clear emotion—and resolve. Because when it came to his Maryoku, his element was anything but calm, less like a lake and more like the raging, implacable, storm-tossed sea. It was really no surprise that such power took something other than just calm to control.

Why do you want to be able to control this power?

He hadn't really thought about it until the "other him" had asked him that question at the spring. And suddenly, "because it was expected of him" hadn't seemed like a very good answer at all. Because he was going to be the king, but what did that mean really?

What kind of king do you want to be?

That had been his mother's question all those years ago when they'd first received notice from the Temple of his appointment as Shin Makoku's next Maoh. But Yuuri had no better idea of the answer now than he had back then. Sure, he had been taking lessons and preparing for the job ever since, but hardcore experience and studying would always be two different things. Those answers would have to come later when he had the experience to figure them out.

In the end, Yuuri had found his mind drawn back to one thing—or rather one person—in particular. And he wondered with some amusement what Wolfram would say if he knew he'd become the double black's resolve. Yuuri imagined that the blonde would profess to being quite irritated, seeing as he thought he was supposed to be the one protecting Yuuri, not the other way around. That was what soldiers did. But then as far as Yuuri was concerned, as the king, that was his job too. And besides, Wolfram seldom admitted it out loud but Yuuri knew he was always pleased when he felt that he was special to Yuuri somehow.

The roar of cheers and congratulations drowned out his musings and, still grinning like a madman, Yuuri ran to the side of the arena floor and pulled a startled Wolfram into his arms, kissing him full on the lips with all the other students and teachers looking on. In the background, Yuuri could hear clapping, catcalls, and laughter, but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Because he'd finally mastered his magic, they would be graduating in a week, and Wolfram was blushing an absolutely beautiful shade of pink in his arms, embarrassed but dreadfully happy nonetheless.

And another few weeks after graduation, Yuuri would be turning ninety, at which point he would officially be taking up the title of Shin Makoku's 27th Maoh. All the preparations that had to be done almost made Yuuri's head spin, but he'd sworn to himself that he'd see it all through. First thing was first. He had some very important people he had to see.

.

Lord Gwendal von Voltaire glared across his paperwork at the raven-haired young man seated in the chair opposite him. He didn't care if this—this—boy was going to be the next Maoh. He didn't care if he'd practically watched the two grow up together. He was not going to let him marry his baby brother.

"No."

Yuuri sighed mentally, though the determination on his face did not waver. Honestly, his intended's eldest brother had always scared him a little, but there was no way he would back down over this. Aside from the fact that Wolfram would never forgive him, he'd never forgive himself. Besides, he was going to be the king soon. He had to start taking charge, and if he couldn't even take charge of his own life, how could he expect to take charge of an entire kingdom?

"I'm asking you because you're his brother," Yuuri said slowly to make sure he was clear about this, "but I don't technically need your blessings. Lady Celi has already given me her permission."

Gwendal's lips pulled into a thin line turned down at the corners as he scowled. Of all the people his baby brother could have fallen for, why did it have to be the future king? Anyone else would have been easier to deal with. The double black was practically as stubborn as Wolfram, and there was his rank to consider—not to mention the wellbeing of the kingdom.

"Then why seek me out at all?" he asked sourly.

There were a lot of reasons really. Because he and Gwendal would have to work together a great deal in the future, because he respected the man and his abilities, but mostly, "Because you're important to him."

The older man's expression seemed to freeze for a moment then it finally softened—just a little. Fundamentally, he supposed he knew that the boy's heart was in the right place. And he'd already done some good for the kingdom, even though he had yet to officially take command. It was due to Yuuri and his friends' hard work that there was now a preserve in the mountains for dragons, its first two inhabitants being the mother and infant they had rescued during that poacher incident that still had Gwendal cringing inside when he thought about what could have happened. It was just—it was just that this was his baby brother he was talking about giving away at the altar, even if it was going to be to the king.

Yuuri watched the struggle going on behind the older man's eyes and felt a twinge of sympathy. Wolfram had spent so much time with the Shibuyas that he was practically already part of the family in everything but name. But to Gwendal, Yuuri probably seemed like nothing more than "that friend" his little brother so often spent time with that just so happened to be next in line for the throne after his mother retired. Even during the few times Yuuri had stayed over at the blonde's house—er, castle?—he'd only seen the earth Mazoku a handful of times, and never for very long. He knew Gwendal was a very capable soldier and key in the administrative work that kept the kingdom on track, but those very facts meant the man almost never had time for anything else. And face it, he wasn't all that good at expressing himself. About the most emotion Yuuri had ever seen on his face was when Günter or Anissina were with him, and the extent of those emotions tended to revolve around pained desperation and maybe a bit of fear.

"What did Conrad say?" Gwendal asked finally. He assumed, and rightly so, that Yuuri had already spoken to the other man. After all, between the two of them, Conrad was undeniably the more approachable.

Yuuri coughed. Actually, unbeknownst to Yuuri, Conrad had been standing outside the door when he'd gone to speak with Lady Celi. It had been a bit of a shock when he'd exited and come face to face with the man, considering how blank his expression had been at that moment. Luckily, Yuuri had gotten taller in the last decade so it wasn't as intimidating an experience as it could have been.

"So, er, I guess you heard…?"

Awkward.

Conrad had studied him for a long moment and then offered one of his usual encouraging if slightly strained smiles. "Take care of him."

There hadn't really been an "or else" in there, more of a "please" because he'd practically raised the fire Mazoku in question single-handedly, and Yuuri had smiled and replied that of course he would. And that had been that, no drama, no threats, but significant nonetheless.

Gwendal seemed to deflate a bit at this. He had to admit, however grudgingly, that he knew Wolfram loved this boy. He'd be overjoyed if—when—the double black proposed. And honestly Gwendal didn't want to be the one who got in the way of that—partly because, if he ever found out, his temperamental little brother would probably try his best to burn him to a crisp despite being more than a bit scared of him, and partly because he really did care about him even if he didn't show it in the ways Conrad did.

"Do you love him?"

Yuuri paused for a moment, taken aback by the sudden question, then smiled. It was one of the few things he was absolutely sure about sometimes. "Yes, I do. Very much."

After the double black had gone, Gwendal sat behind his desk staring pensively out the window at nothing in particular. He didn't respond when a soft knocking came at his door and Conrad hesitantly let himself in. He took in the expression on his elder brother's face and smiled a little.

"I assume his Highness has just spoken to you on his upcoming plans?"

For a long moment, the older man didn't respond, his features so still it seemed almost as if he hadn't heard. And then he said so quietly that Conrad almost didn't catch it, "Am I doing the right thing?"

Conrad knew that the question wasn't really about the upcoming engagement, not exactly. He'd had similar questions himself, standing outside his mother's rooms listening to her squeals of delight and running through all the memories of the time he'd spent with his little brother. Wondering if he'd raised him right, wondering if he could have made more time for him, wondering if there was anything else he should have told or taught him. But he didn't say any of this; they weren't the kind of thoughts that you could really put into words.

Instead, Conrad said, "He's a good young man and I believe that he'll become a great king. Yozak tells me that the commoners believe so too, the ones who've met him."

"He seems a bit too easygoing to me."

"That's why Wolfram will be a great help to him. They balance each other in their own way, and I know Yuuri will take good care of him."

Another long pause and then Gwendal sighed. If this was what it always felt like when children grew up, he never wanted to have any kids.

.

Wolfram prowled about Blood Pledge Castle in a foul mood. Everyone had been acting so strange lately and nobody would explain why. His mother kept staring at him with this gleeful smile that made him feel like finding some out-of-the-way closet to hide in until whatever had caught her fancy went away. Half the time, Conrad smiled at him like he knew some wonderful secret that Wolfram didn't, and the other half he looked like someone close to him was about to die. And Gwendal, Wolfram wasn't even sure what was going on with Gwendal. His semi-permanent scowl seemed even deeper than usual with a hint of something sour.

Wolfram had thought that graduating would mean… Well, starting to go on patrol perhaps, or getting to spend more time with Yuuri with classes no longer part of their daily schedules. But somehow, things weren't working out that way. Yuuri was even busier than ever with preparing for his upcoming birthday and coronation, and even though Conrad took Wolfram out with him on patrols, no one seemed to want to let him go on missions of his own. Not that he'd have the time either, since Gwendal had called him into his office and announced that he'd be taking extra lessons from Gwendal himself—lessons concerning the finer details of how the kingdom functioned and the politics that bound all the neighboring countries together.

The last thing Wolfram had wanted was to get assigned more lessons after graduation. But when he'd protested, his eldest brother had given him such a glare that he'd immediately shut up.

About the only person that didn't seem to be acting strangely around him in some way or another was Yuuri's mother, Jennifer, which in turn led to Wolfram spending more and more time with her as everyone else grew busier and busier with the coronation drawing closer by the day.

Making up his mind, Wolfram turned his feet away from the direction of the dining hall where lunch was probably being laid out and headed towards the stables. He was going to visit Mama. And maybe if he was lucky, he'd be able to see Yuuri there too.

Jennifer was in the kitchens when Wolfram finally arrived at the Shibuya mansion. Even though they were perfectly capable of hiring cooks, she liked to make their meals herself. It was a sort of hobby, and perhaps one of the ways she kept herself connected to who she had been before she'd married when doing these things had been a necessity rather than a choice.

"Oh, Wolfie dear!" she greeted him brightly when she spotted him in the doorway. "Come help Mama stir this so it doesn't burn while I finish preparing the other dishes, okay?"

The aroma that reached his nose was wonderful as Wolfram took the ladle and began carefully to keep the contents of the large pot from sticking to the hot metal. Everyone loved Jennifer's famous curry and he was no exception. His stomach growled loudly and he coughed, embarrassed.

Jennifer only smiled. "Just give me a few more minutes and we can have some lunch. The boys are out right now but we can all have dinner when they get back. You can stay for dinner, can't you?"

Wolfram nodded, trying not to seem too disappointed at the news that Yuuri wasn't home. It felt like they'd hardly had any time to just sit down and even eat a meal together since the celebration dinner after their graduation ceremony. Surely coronation preparations couldn't take this much time. Unless there was some reason he didn't want to spend time with him anymore? Had he done something to upset him? He—he wasn't having second thoughts after that kiss in front of the school, was he? That had gotten quite a huge reaction from everyone, both good and bad; Wolfram knew that even if he hadn't paid much attention to it all. Yuuri had always cared more than he did about what other people thought.

His stomach twisted horribly at the thought and he stared into the bubbling curry, worrying at his lower lip. He hardly noticed when Jennifer directed him to a small table in the kitchen and ladled out two bowls of curry for the both of them.

"Wolfram? Wolfie, is something wrong?"

Emerald eyes lifted to her concerned gaze then looked away. "Is…Yuuri avoiding me?"

Jennifer blinked, startled. "What? Why would you think that?"

"It's just that we've barely spoken to each other in the last couple days. He's always so busy and…" He trailed off, prodding at his curry.

"You're thinking too much," Jennifer assured him, understanding finally dawning on her face. "He's just got a lot of things on his mind right now. It's going to be a very important day for him and he wants to make sure everything goes right. After all, it's going to affect the rest of his life—all of our lives. It's his birthday, but he's also going to be taking on a whole lot of new responsibilities."

Considering this, the blonde shook his head vigorously and squared his shoulders. Of course it was going to be a big day. Yuuri was going to be the king. He was being selfish because he wasn't happy with the way things had been going. But perhaps there were reasons for it all that he just didn't know yet. Patience had never been one of his virtues, but he'd try.

Though now that that was decided, it brought up a whole new problem. With the coronation, he'd practically forgotten that it was also going to be Yuuri's birthday.

"Do you know what I should give him?" Being from fairly well-off families, it wasn't like either of them ever really needed anything. And on top of that, Yuuri was a fairly simple person when it came to life in general. It was one of the things Wolfram liked about him, but also made gifts difficult to plan. Funny, one would have thought it should make things easier.

Jennifer beamed. "Oh, you don't have to buy him anything. All you have to do is wear something nice and make sure you're there—and say yes."

Wolfram blinked in confusion. "What?"

Oops. Oh, she never had been good with secrets. "It's nothing! Why don't we go shopping for what you're going to wear? This lovely little shop just opened downtown and I still haven't had a chance to go in. And well, it's just so boring to go shopping by myself."

"I'd be happy to." Wolfram never did understand why neither of her sons liked to go shopping with her. He never got to do anything like that with his own mother. And last time they'd gone out, she'd bought him a really nice nightgown.

Jennifer smiled, happy at the idea of an entire afternoon with one of her sons—well, he wasn't technically her son yet, but she'd never been big on technicalities. Though there was this strange niggling in the back of her mind that told her she'd just made a big mistake. It wasn't until they actually arrived downtown, however, that she remembered why it wasn't such a good idea. Fortunately, she was quick on her feet and being spontaneous suited her nature anyway.

.

"What about this one?"

Yuuri paused to glance at the ring Shori was pointing to in one of the display windows along the street they were currently slowly progressing along. It was gold and quite beautiful but, "It's a bit too flashy. He wouldn't like it and I don't either."

His brother considered this for a moment then shrugged. "You know best, I suppose. But are you sure this is what you want to do?"

Yuuri scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed but his chin high with determination nonetheless. "I know it's not customary, but I like the idea. Besides, I like that it'll be a bit different."

Shori nodded, giving the tray of rings a last survey before continuing on their way. When his little brother had his heart set on something, nothing was going to change his mind. He'd certainly grown up a lot over the years. And Shori found it just a little bit amusing and disturbing how much his relationship with the blonde fire wielder had changed him—changed them both. But maybe that was what true love did for people, helped them grow up, helped them find their way and become more certain of themselves. It made him a little sad because neither of them needed him to take care of them anymore, but also a little proud because he'd been there with them the whole way much as Conrad Weller had. He wondered if this was how the other man felt too.

"Do you even have any idea what color you want the stone to be? It might help narrow things down."

"Blue or black."

Well, that was a start. He should have asked earlier.

Almost at the street corner, Yuuri paused again before a small but very well furnished Shop, its windows devoid of all goods save for a single pendant in the shape of two falling leaves. "This place looks promising," he murmured, reaching for the door. "Let's go in."

Before he could enter, however, Yuuri glimpsed a flash of gold out of the corner of his eye. Startled, he jerked his head around for a better look. He could have sworn he'd just seen his mother pulling Wolfram into one of the shops further down the street. He could feel his heart rate speeding up, both because it felt like forever since he'd seen his angel and because he'd really wanted all this to be a surprise and if Wolfram saw him right now he'd almost definitely take it the wrong way.

"Hey, are we going in?" Shori's question snapped him out of his panicked daze and Yuuri all but flung the door open and jumped inside. His brother stared, only just raising his own hand in time to prevent the door from swinging back and smacking him in the face. Little brothers could act so strange sometimes. Maybe it was a good thing after all that they would all be moving on.

Their own lives. Their own problems.

.

Wolfram yelped in surprise as Jennifer suddenly grabbed him and dragged him into one of the various clothing stores lining the street.

"Look at these! Aren't they adorable?" she exclaimed, latching onto one of the more acceptable racks of clothing within. To her credit, she could find tasteful clothing in pretty much any store she entered, so it wasn't a complete charade. Picking out half a dozen outfits in one breath, she shoved them all into Wolfram's arms and ushered him towards the changing rooms in the back. "Go try these on, dear, and make sure you show me each one."

"But, Mama—" This was a women only clothing store. And the shop assistants were giving them funny looks.

"Please? For me?"

Staring into her sincerely pleading eyes, the blonde caved. It wasn't like it really bothered him, and if it made her happy.

Once she was sure Wolfram was safely out of sight, Jennifer hurried to peek out the shop window. That had been so close! She was almost sure that Yuuri had seen them but the important thing was that Wolfram hadn't seen Yuuri. She hadn't considered that they'd be in the same area downtown! This was going to be a very tiring shopping trip.

Wolfram had gone out shopping with Yuuri's mother many times in the past, but as far as he could remember, it had never been quite so—hectic. Sure she had always been easily distracted, but this seemed downright insane. They hadn't even reached their original destination and they had already visited more than a dozen stores, not all of which sold clothes. At least the produce market made sense since they'd just been cooking, and he might have found the weaponry place interesting if it weren't for the fact that his current sword was a gift from his brother and he had no wish to replace it. But a flower shop? And a pet store? He hadn't been aware that she even liked pets and he'd been sure it was always her husband seeing to the gardens plus the handful of other mansion servants. Even if she had taken up gardening, Wolfram would personally not have chosen cacti.

By the time they finally returned to the Shibuya mansion, all he wanted to do was collapse on something soft and sleep until dinner. Still, he helped Mama unpack everything they had bought before succumbing to the urge to sit down. Jennifer looked exhausted too, and that was definitely a first. It was nice to know he wasn't the only one.

The next thing he knew, gentle hands were shaking him awake. "Wolf? Hey, Wolf, Mom said that dinner's ready."

The sleep-blurred image above him resolved itself into Yuuri's grinning face and Wolfram blinked a couple times. He must have fallen asleep. Sitting up, he gave the double black a hug then pulled away and punched him in the arm. "How dare you ignore me for an entire week! Do you have any idea how worried I was? I thought—I thought,"—okay, so maybe the idea of Yuuri finding someone else was more than a little ridiculous now that he was here in person again—"never mind what I thought. Would it really have been so hard to get to the castle and see me once in awhile?"

Yuuri winced, rubbing at his arm and donning a look of sincere regret. "I'm sorry. I've been busy but I promise I'll make it up to you."

He really hadn't meant to ignore him. Time just went by so fast when you had things you had to do. One thing always led to another and, before he knew it, one day had already bled into the next. When he had had time, Wolfram had always been with Gwendal getting extra lessons the stoic man believed important for someone who would one day have to help run the kingdom. That, Yuuri reflected, was probably indirectly his fault .He himself had already been studying these matters in detail ever since his appointment had been announced by the Temple. Wolfram had a lot of catching up to do, especially with how much he'd always hated the subtle ebbs and flows of politics. He'd considered abducting his angel from the castle for an evening alone, but had reluctantly dismissed the notion for fear that Gwendal would try to kill him.

Needless to say, he'd been very happy to arrive home and discover said angel asleep on the main sitting room couch.

Wolfram sniffed. "You're forgiven. Now let's go eat. I'm starving and we shouldn't keep Mama waiting."

He'd almost reached the door of the sitting room when a hand closed around his wrist. Yuuri tugged him into his arms and tilted his head down so he could brush a kiss across Wolfram's lips.

"I missed you too."

The blonde looked away but relaxed against him, letting his head rest briefly on a black-clad shoulder. He didn't say anything, but he was pretty sure that Yuuri understood.

I missed you too.


TBC…


AN: I hope the beginning cleared up any confusion from the previous chapter. ^_^

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