Ten: Real Face

(Recap)

"Sara…"

He turned. Yuuri stared at him, eyes blank with shock and horror. Behind him gathered his court, free of the time-freeze and regarding him with accusation plain on their faces.

(End Recap)

Gwendal's face was stonier than ever with anger. "Get out."

Saralegui frowned in the most regal manner he could muster. In his current state – drained of all but the last dregs of his houryoku and immensely exhausted – he was finding it difficult to stay on his feet, let alone argue with a massive crowd of hostile Mazoku. "Is that what you say to the person who has just saved your Maou's life?"

"Liar!" shouted Wolfram. "You tricked us the last time; you won't trick us again!"

The blonde king sighed, exasperated. "Alazon stopped time. Of course you couldn't have seen what happened. She tried to hypnotize Yuuri, and I stopped her."

"But Sara… she's your mother," said Yuuri, sounding worried and conciliatory at the same time. "Wasn't there any other way to solve it?"

"Yuuri, you were hypnotized," repeated Saralegui, as patiently as he could. He could feel a terrific headache building. "She could have forced you to do anything if I didn't stop her!"

"You killed your own mother," echoed Gwendal, his voice ominous.

Murata and Cherie stepped in. The bespectacled soukoku laid a placating hand on the Shinzoku boy's shoulder while Cherie took Gwendal's hand. "Why don't we hold a proper inquiry when everyone is in a calmer state of mind?" entreated Cherie. "What kind of hospitality are we showing to our guests?"

"I agree with Cherie-sama," said Murata. He gave Saralegui a searching look. "However, as the odds are highly against you, Your Majesty –" He's using my title as an insult, fumed the blonde –"we shall place our strongest security on you. Your bodyguard will be kept in a different place."

Conrad nodded, his expression hard. "Yes, that will probably be best." He glanced at Saralegui, conveying his opinion that Saralegui was highly dangerous and suspicious all too clearly in that short look.

The blonde king inclined his head in acknowledgement. "Thank you for your kind consideration. I am sure all will be made clear." Well no, they'll never believe me, but I can't exactly say anything else…

"Ladies and gentlemen, we apologize for this – occurrence," began Gunter, facing the rest of the gathered crowd. "We will…"

Saralegui missed the rest of speech as his ears suddenly filled with a hollow roaring and the world spun around him. Balance gone, he crumpled to his feet. The last thing he remembered before the unfathomable darkness took him was Yuuri shouting, "Sara!"

He woke up in the bed he'd occupied in Blood Pledge Castle the past few nights he'd been here. Upon realizing this, he couldn't suppress a sigh of relief. He'd had a feeling he'd be waking up in the deepest, darkest, dankest dungeon in Shin Makoku.

Sitting up, he felt a twinge as he noticed the acute absence of Berias. Berias had left him before, but always with Saralegui's express permission (in most cases, command would be a better term), and never when Saralegui was faced with impending danger. Which was, he knew, was his current situation. How could one persuade a vast crowd that what he said was true if it had all happened during a time-stop?

Almost instinctively, he paused, waiting for the familiar thought-voice of Veni to give him an opinion, a reprimand, or even a dose of laughter to lighten his mood. After a moment of silence, he realized that he couldn't even feel the accustomed presence of the ancient sword in his mind.

Where is Veni?!

A sudden rush of panic accompanied the thought. In the time he'd spent with the old sword, a kind of bond had formed between them – a bond perhaps as deep, maybe even deeper than, the bond he had with Berias. The sword had become his friend, teacher, conspirator and above all was an immense reserve of power. Without Veni, without Berias, accused of murder in a probably hostile land, Saralegui felt fear close in on him from all sides, crushing, crushing…

No! He had survived without Berias before. He had survived without Veni for much longer. He may not have them, but what he did have were his brains and his wits. That was something. He would figure a way to persuade them.

It was this whole problem of the time-stop. There were no other witnesses to what had happened apart from Alazon, Yuuri and himself. Alazon was dead by his own hand. Yuuri had been hypnotized by Alazon. He was the only possible reliable source of information, and these people had no real reason to believe that what he said was true. Certainly, he had given them plenty of grounds on which to doubt him.

With a deep sigh, he lay back onto the bed. Well, what exactly did the other people see to make them so hostile towards me?

For the rest of the court, it must have appeared that one moment, Saralegui was talking to the Maou, about to dance with Greta, and the next, he was wielding a sun-bright sword in a mage-fight with a strange woman who had appeared from nowhere. After a tremendous display of power on both sides, he had killed the strange woman without any sign of hesitation, even grinning like the devil incarnate before withdrawing the blade from her body. And to top it all off, Yuuri had more or less announced that he'd just publically killed his mother, a fact that Saralegui would have preferred to be kept confidential.

It wasn't a very happy picture.

The Mazoku nobles were probably debating whether or not it was wise to continue sheltering a foreign king so ruthless as to kill his own mother, so close to the Maou himself. Really, this Shinzoku king must be some kind of trouble magnet – what had happened in Shou Shimaron, after all? Sure, maybe the king himself had saved the Maou from a fatal arrow – but wait! He was the one who had ordered the arrow to be shot in the first place! Oh, the treachery!

No, no. It wouldn't do him any good to keep thinking like this. Positive thinking was always a good booster for creative thinking… then again, desperation is the mother of invention. Saralegui smiled bitterly at the word mother. Perhaps positive was indeed the way to go after all.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. The blonde frowned, sitting up again. "Come in."

The door opened a crack, then slowly creaked open to reveal Yuuri – alone. Saralegui's eyebrows soared. "Yuuri…?"

"Sara." The soukoku looked uncertain. "Are you okay?"

"As 'okay' as I could be in this situation," replied the other king, donning his customary smile at once. "Do close the door, you're letting in a draught. Besides, aren't there supposed to be a regiment of guards outside my door?"

Yuuri's lips twitched, as though trying to smile and not quite making it. "I'm really not too sure about it myself. I was walking past and thinking I should really return this to you, then suddenly the guards started falling asleep…" He held out a sweetly familiar, golden sword and its scabbard.

"Veni," breathed Saralegui, eyes riveted to the beautiful old sword. Then, realizing what he'd said, he coughed gently. "Thank you so much, Yuuri. You don't know how grateful I am for this favor."

"Um, it's nothing, really," the soukoku demurred, scratching his head with his free hand in that awkward yet adorable way he always did. "I suppose you'd be wanting this back, right?"

"Yes, please," said the blonde, quickly swinging his legs out of the bed. Taking the sword, he felt the warm feeling of reassuming, rather as a man reassumes his wooden leg after a week without it. As soon as Yuuri's hands relinquished the sword, Saralegui heard Veni's familiar voice in his head. Well, don't you think I'm great? A sword that can find its master on its own! How many of those do you think there are, eh?

Oh, stop praising yourself. It isn't at all becoming, he retorted, but with more than a little affection in his tone. Turning, he set Veni down on the room desk – he could hardly buckle it on over his pajamas. A small part of him wondered who had changed him from his bloodstained robes into these clean pajamas, and hoped that it was Berias rather than one of those fluttery servant girls.

"Uh… so, I guess I'll leave now," murmured Yuuri.

Saralegui looked at the other king. Something wasn't quite right with the Maou – Yuuri wasn't this hesitant, not even when Yozak pranced in fishnet stockings and caked makeup with Murata teasing and cracking dirty jokes every few minutes. He could usually be depended upon to make his opinions very clear. So what was the problem now?

"Yuuri, are you… scared of me?" inquired Saralegui, curious.

The younger boy started, actually jerking backwards a step. Spot on. "Eh? No, what makes you think that?"

"You've been on edge since you came in. Well, since before you came in," amended the blonde, leaning on the table and facing the other king. "You're stammering more than you normally would. You don't seem to want to get too close to me, either. Why?"

"I – well, I mean, you killed your mother. And – and you were smiling when you did it!" Yuuri burst out. "That's just wrong, Sara! I thought you wanted a mother! That's what you said last time! I believed in you, Sara – even when everyone was saying that you couldn't be trusted, that you were a liar, I was sure you were telling the truth, at least to me. But – but after what you said – you –"

"She didn't want to be my mother. She disowned me," interrupted the older boy. "She hated me. When I first met her, she tried to kill me!"

"That doesn't give you an excuse to kill her!" argued the Maou. "She's your mother! Mothers can be irritating, they can nag you till you feel suffocated, they can do all kinds of strange things, but they're our mothers! They gave birth to us; they looked after us! How could you kill her, Sara?!"

Now Saralegui was getting rather angry too. "Oh really? Well, Alazon told me that she regretted giving birth to, I quote, a useless, ungrateful wretch like me. She gave birth to me not because she wanted a child, but because she wanted more power! Once she realized I was of no use to her, she abandoned me like so much trash. What kind of mother is that?!"

"Well, she is still the person you owe your life to," said Yuuri, his expression mulish. "And she must have had some other reason. No real mother could ever do such terrible things to her own children. A mother's love is the most powerful thing in the world!"

"Yuuri, is her life more important, or is yours? I killed her to save you," the blonde pointed out. "Had I not stopped her, you would have spent the rest of your life in servitude to her. I simply could not stand by and see a friend of mine suffer such a fate!"

"So friends are more important to you than your own family?" lashed the Maou. "Your priorities –"

"Yes, my friends are more important than my family!" Saralegui cut in. "My parents abandoned me, but my friends – Berias, and you – were there for me when I needed you. My mother never appeared at any of the myriad times my life was in danger. My father was cold, aloof, above worrying about mundane family matters. Parents? I had none, if they are to match your previous description! The maids took care of me. Berias taught me. I had no love or care from my parents; I have only their titles and physical legacy."

Yuuri's mouth opened, as though he wanted to say more, then closed again as he deflated. His anger-bright eyes dimmed; his energy seemed to vanish. "I'm sorry, Sara. I didn't realize… I thought…"

The blonde clenched his fists tightly, then let them fall. "It's okay. I didn't expect you to. You and I – we are too different to truly understand each other, I think."

"Don't be so pessimistic! Remember, we're friends," encouraged the soukoku, apparently having easily left his role of lecturer to return to his accustomed role of friend. "Even if we don't completely understand each other, we should always keep trying. Maybe someday we'll succeed; even if we don't, at least it's better than not having tried at all." Reaching out, he took Saralegui's hand a squeezed reassuringly.

"… have all the parents you've ever known always been so nice?" The older boy fought to keep his voice neutral, but his tone still came out wistful. He did not let go of Yuuri's hand.

The Maou shrugged. "Mine are awesome; I've told you about them before. But, well, I've heard of people in the news… parents who lock their kids in dark rooms their whole lives, parents who abuse their kids, parents who sell them… I've never personally met anyone like that before, though. Not that I want to."

Saralegui's grip tightened. Somehow, hanging on to Yuuri was like hanging on to a lifeline – to what, or why, he had no idea. "You shouldn't. It's a terrible experience. Yuuri, I – do you think your people will believe me? Us? I don't want to be sent back to Shou Shimaron, not yet."

"Don't worry. They'll believe me, for sure," declared the younger boy confidently. "They always do. I'll make sure they don't send you home. Why, you've barely begun to appreciate Shin Makoku! I was planning on a trip to –" The rest of his words were cut off as the blonde wrapped both arms around him in a bone-crushingly tight hug. "Um, Sara?"

"Sorry," murmured the other king. "Just… let me do this for a moment, will you?" For some reason, Yuuri's reassurances had unleashed a completely unexpected rush of pure happiness, closely followed by a strong need. He didn't recognize this emotion – it was neither desire nor even possessiveness, but something more like vulnerability and a craving for protection.

After a beat, Yuuri relaxed, awkwardly putting his arms around the older boy. "… Yeah, it's okay," he mumbled. A few seconds later, he added, "I don't want you to go back, either."

Saralegui had a feeling that if he could see the Maou's face at that moment, the younger boy would probably be blushing. He grinned. "Yuuri…" Pulling away slightly, he faced the soukoku. "Thanks."

And then, because Yuuri was just so adorable with his hair mussed and his cheeks pink, Saralegui kissed him.

As he'd expected, Yuuri went stiff and tried to move away, but the blonde simply locked his arms and held on, tracing the younger boy's lips with his tongue. It's been too long since…

Finally, the Maou responded, opening his mouth slightly and tentatively extending his own tongue. Saralegui smiles without breaking contact. He's mine, now.

Thanks to Veni, nobody had walked in on them, but Saralegui was still inexplicably pleased that they had not progressed beyond kissing. He still wasn't too sure how he felt towards this new relationship of not-quite-friends anymore. From what he could tell, Yuuri too was not sure how to handle it or himself.

But one thing was for sure – Yuuri was on his side, and would defend him against the Mazoku court.

That, coupled with his reacquisition of Veni, had effectively rid him of his fears. Now that he had a clearer mind to consider things, he decided to find out how long he'd actually been sleeping since the battle with Alazon.

How long? he inquired of Veni.

Three days and a number of hours, replied the sword. I believe you will have to finish your business here as soon as possible. You've been away from your own country for almost a fortnight already.

Don't nag, admonished the blonde king. I will return when I have done what I must, which is to forge an alliance with Shin Makoku.

What were you doing just now, if not forming an alliance? Inquired Veni, amusement strongly evident in the thought-voice.

Saralegui grinned. Well, that was the first step.

With a better idea of the situation, he started to dress for the day, though he doubted that he'd be allowed out of the room for anything apart from the Mazoku court's inquiry. Since Yuuri had left not long ago, they would probably know that he was awake by now. If they required his presence, he would be summoned soon. If not, he would be released soon on Yuuri's testimony. He should at least be appropriately clothed.

Once dressed, he selected a book from the shelf (A Complete History of Shin Makoku) and settled down to wait until someone came for him.

He didn't have to wait long. About two hours later, there was a knock on the door, and he went to answer it.

The person who awaited him was none other than Gunter. "Your presence is requested in the Third Audience Chamber," he informed Saralegui.

"Very well. Has the inquiry begun yet?" the blonde asked, blandly polite.

Gunter's face was impassive. "It has finished already."

Saralegui raised an eyebrow, taking care not to appear too cynical. "I see."

"His Majesty Yuuri has vouched for your innocence. He has explained to the court that your mother, Queen Alazon, was a dangerous person and had been trying to attack both of you. The court decided that you must have acted in self-defense," continued the Mazoku. "However, they still have their reservations."

"And what may those be?" inquired the young king, keeping his tone mildly curious.

"You will find out for yourself when we arrive," was the rather unhelpful answer.

The Third Audience Chamber was a fair distance from Saralegui's rooms, but after this exchange, the pair spent the rest of the journey in silence. The blonde took advantage of this to consider the possible outcomes. They couldn't possibly do very much to him now, could they?

Politics are dirty, and politicians even more so. You should prepare yourself for the worst, advised Veni, at his proper place at Saralegui's hip.

I know. I'm a politician too, after all, answered the young king, concealing a smile.

At last, they arrived at their destination. Gunter nodded to the guards at the door as a footman opened it. Saralegui's eyes widened as he saw the interior of the room. It was huge, as big as his own throne room, and somberly but elegantly and richly decorated in the Mazoku style. It was full of people. And this is only the Third Audience Chamber, he thought, mentally shaking his head. I wonder what the First Audience Chamber looks like…

A herald tapped his staff against a bronze disk next to the door. "His Majesty, King Saralegui of Shou Shimaron. His Grace, Gunter von Christ."

The blonde king walked down the length of the room, holding himself confidently. The Maou's on my side. They can't touch me. When he reached the large throne where Yuuri sat, he did not bow, though he did nod and smile at the other boy. I am a king as well.

Clearly, the nobles in the room did not like this display of familiarity between their Maou and this upstart of a foreign king. The panel of nobles seated on the raised platform on either side of the throne, probably the High Court for Shin Makoku – Saralegui was surprised to see that they were not a collection of the oldest, fustiest and most crotchety nobles, but were actually quite youthful in appearance – frowned simultaneously. He restrained a chuckle.

You're being overconfident, child, reprimanded Veni. You won't make yourself any friends among these people, the way you're going.

As long as the Maou's on my side, they can't do anything, retorted Saralegui.

Looking at Yuuri more closely, though, he realized that the soukoku didn't look particularly happy. The smile he gave Saralegui was altogether too forced to look real. The blonde felt a twinge of discomfort, and wondered what was to come.

It wasn't long before he knew. "Your Majesty Saralegui," began Murata, "the High Court has decided that you must leave Shin Makoku within the week."

A/N: OMG I am so sorry for not having updated for so long! It's been what, a month? More? Well, whatever it is, I know that I took much longer than I should have. I think it might have ended up rather draggy throughout, but there you go, writer's block is not a nice thing.

SaraleguiXYuuri fluffiness. Hope you enjoyed it!

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