Hello, I'm back! I've been trying to update more recently. See? I'm a bit proud of myself if I do say so!XD Your reviews...geez, can you guys get anymore awesome? They made me smile so wide that my mouth started to hurt! Reading them always makes me want to do my best! That long break that I took was me trying to shape my writing and that was acknowledged. Thank you, guys! I hope you enjoy this chapter! .
Alone in the Dark
Chapter 14
~AllenNlavi~
Yuuri's eye twitched in time with his finger that was tapping against the table. His mouth was set in a grimace as he surveyed the people before him with irritation.
Why couldn't they do something simple like eating dinner without acting like uncivilized apes?
Yuuri sat at the head of the table, on his left sat Wolfram, having almost stabbed Kai with a fork to get the seat. Kai settled for glaring at the blonde across from him and sitting on Yuuri's right. When Wolfram would accidentally brush his hand with Yuuri's, Kai would viciously stab his poor steak and make eye contact, all the while with a snarl on his handsome face. Kei sat next to his brother with a frown, pushing his food quietly around his plate and occasionally glancing at random spots on the wall.
Gwendal had not even bothered coming, saying that he would rather do paperwork.
Yuuri wished he had gone with the scary ogre man.
Renji sat next Kei, seemingly unaffected by the whole oddness of the situation, happily shoving fork fulls of food down his throat and making appreciative noises.
Yuuri hoped the little twat choked on it.
His black eye landed on the end of the table where Conrad sat, looking every bit as handsome as ever. The man was smiling, but unlike the previous ones that filled him with warmth, this smile looked like someone silly glued the thing on.
Renji chewed on something particularly crunchy and the sound had him biting his lip in irritation.
"Wow! This place has awesome food! What do you think, Yuuri-Senpai?" Renji asked cheerfully and glanced at the Young King. Yuuri smiled in a way that made his teeth want to rot in his mouth and it tightened further when Kai mumbled, ' It's so sugary, even I want to vomit!'
"I don't know, Renji. I might be able to think once you stop gnawing on your food like a horse!" Yuuri sneered in disgust as the boy's mouth clicked shut, spit on his chin.
Kei muttered a quiet Thank God!
Conrad coughed, gesturing to the boy's chin.
"The table manners of a mongrel!" Wolfram said haughtily, his nose tilting away in distaste. Both Kei and Kai snorted in agreement while Conrad just looked at Yuuri warily as the King was silent.
Too silent.
Like run your ass far, far away.
Pale hands slammed on the table, shaking the silverware on the table as he stood from his seat.
"All of you. Shut. Up." He growled, glaring especially at Kai and Wolfram. They both quickly looked away childishly after meeting each others eyes.
Yuuri's eyes lit with a vindictive light.
They wanted to play with him, did they? How brave...
Yuuri stood a bit straighter, the chair scraping against the floor rather loudly. He let out a slightly exaggerated yawn, one hand coming up to cover his mouth.
"Hm? I'm suddenly unbearably tired!" Yuuri muttered in feigned in mock surprise. He inwardly smiled when they all looked at him concern, though he did feel a bit guilty for tricking Conrad. Kai looked at him critically.
"Already, Yuu-chan? It's only 8:00 and you napped in the carriage today. Are you ok?"
Yuuri almost pointed out that both of them had fallen asleep in the carriage. Well, on his part anyway, while Kai passed out. Major difference.
"I'm ok. Just tired you know? You know when I'm tired I tend to roll in my sleep, right?" He confirmed, watching Kai and Kei nod their heads. Wolfram snapped his head toward Yuuri quickly, a glare firmly in place.
"And why exactly would they know the way my fiance sleeps?" Wolfram demanded, shooting the twins an accusatory glare. Kai seemed all too happy to incite Wolfram's ire and smiled widely, shooting him a piece sign, while Kei just leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling.
Yuuri looked at the blonde menace in exasperation, willing his magical powers to somehow to go berserk and light himself on fire.
Ah, wishful thinking.
He really needed to have a little chat with Wolfram about the whole fiance thing, but for now...
"That's not important. Anyway, Kai I wouldn't want you to suffer getting kicked in the middle of the night, so you'll just sleep in a different room, right?"
Thunder stuck Kai as Wolfram smirked triumphantly.
"What? No! I want to sleep with Yuu-chan! I demand that I do!" Kai wailed, latching onto the arm Yuuri had been resting on the table. Kei tried pulling the boy off, but his grip was steel tight.
"Sorry, no can do." Yuuri said nonchalantly, ignoring the puppy eyes directed at him.
He was definitely immune to that look after all those years living with it.
Wolfram seemed to be preening as he examined his nails.
"It seems that the wimp has finally come to see his duty as my fiance-"
"In light of this," Yuuri began before Kai could have a massive shit fit, "I know that Renji and Kei are bunking together, so it wouldn't be fair for me to leave you without a roommate, would it? That's why I decided that you'll be bunking with Wolfram tonight!" Yuuri said triumphantly, already relishing the matching looks of horror on both their faces.
"Yuu-chan, anything but that! Throw me to mutated koala's instead-!"
"I'd rather die than share a room with this imbecile-!"
Yuuri waved their protests off and he could see Conrad trying to stifle his laughter. Their eyes met and Yuuri smiled at the warmth that spread through him before continuing.
"Unless you two are going to go against my orders? How impudent of you." The boy scoffed, his inner chibi giggling and clapping as Wolfram paled from his usual peach to a sickly pasty color. Kai looked torn between screaming and crying. The emotions warred on his face before he settled on one face.
A green face.
"Oh God! I'm going to hurl! Clear the way-!" He howled as he bolted off his chair and scrambled for the double doors. They breezed slightly behind the boy.
Kei huffed, wiping his mouth and throwing his napkin down.
"I'll go find the moron before he gets lost." He muttered as he stood, shaking his head at his twin's stupidity and walking through the doors at a slow pace.
Hopefully, that wasn't contagious.
Renji shrugged, standing up as well. "I'm done, so I guess I'll follow them. See ya' tomorrow, Yuuri-Senpai! Weller!" He said cheerfully before glancing at Wolfram. "I'll see you tomorrow too...uh...blonde kid." He saluted before leaving, closing the doors behind him.
The room was silent for a moment before Yuuri sighed and stood.
"Guess I'll get going too." He said finally. They both moved to stand, but Yuuri stopped both of them with a raised hand. "It's fine. It's not like I need an escort to the bedroom. See ya." He waved as he turned. His vision dipped at a alarming angle and for a moment he feared he would fall, but he stumbled and caught himself.
Yuuri walked on and didn't turn around, missing the alarmed glances the two brothers shared.
Damn it, sometime Yuuri admitted that he should have accepted someone's aid. He couldn't go back now though. Not when he said he didn't need to be taken to bed and that he was fine on his own.
That, and he had no idea which way he had come from so even if he wanted to go back he couldn't anyway.
He had only been here a few times though, so it wasn't like he was used to the place, but he would eat his own foot before admitting that he was lost of all things.
How shameful was that?
So no, shouting for someone was not an option.
Besides, with his luck, Gunter would probably be the one to find him.
All the halls looked almost identical, the same greyish stone and torch lit halls that extended for who knows how long. When this was over, he would definitely be ordering someone to paint arrows or something on the walls.
His boots tapped down the hall, the echo the only sound besides his own breathing. The flame of the torches flickered as he passed.
He had two options it seemed.
Keep going without knowing just where he was going and possibly stumble upon Narnia, which the childish part of his mind actually contemplated for a moment, or-
He could stay where he was and hope someone would pass by. He could claim that he was looking for them and could discretely follow them out of these maze like halls.
Choices. After a moment, he blew a breath before leaning against the wall.
Option two it was then.
The silence was slightly boring after a few moments and his stomach growled.
Right. The little twats had been so annoying he had forgone eating in his irritation. He frowned before he remembered and jammed his hand into his coat pocket, his hand wrapping around the cold manjuu Kai had forced on him earlier. He had stuffed it in his pocket and instantly forgot about it as soon as the thing was out of sight. Sending a slightly begrudging thanks to Kai and his pushiness, he unwrapped it and brought it to his mouth-
Yuuri's face contorted in disgust at the taste that he hadn't noticed until he swallowed, and threw the thing to the ground. He turned and spat but that ashy taste was there still there, soaking on his tongue and refusing to leave. His stomach twisted in a familiar way and he bent at the knees, head bowed as his stomach's nonexistent contents emptied itself onto the floor. His eye burned with tears and the smell stung his nose. Taking a shuddering breathe, he backed away slightly on trembling legs to the opposite side of the hall. Yuuri's back hit the cool stone and he slide down it slowly until he was sitting on the floor.
Shakily, he brought his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them loosely. His head felt like it was hit with a hammer and he rested it against his knees. His eyes trembled and he forced them shut and almost immediately, his parent's terrified faces assaulted his mind.
The smell of roses was overwhelming in its intensity.
Screams of agony and fear, so much fear, played in his ears and his hands shot up and clawed at them before pressing them to the sides of his head harshly.
What was happening to him?
He was getting headaches and tired all the time...
He was hungry all the time, but no matter what he saw, everything seemed disgusting and his stomach recoiled at the thought of eating.
The blood.
The voices.
The images.
And for the first time since this had happened, he was truly scared.
Terrified.
What was becoming of him?
Sitting in this cold hallway, shivering as the torch above went out, he realized he was truly alone.
Alone to suffer this. Whatever this was.
Alone in the Dark.
He wasn't going kid himself. This was reality and no one could save him but himself.
No one.
He was alone.
All alone.
"Your Majesty?"
Alone...
"Your Majesty!"
Alone...
"Yuuri!"
Yuuri's glazed eye blinked away the tears that were still there and Conrad's face appeared like a blurry mirage.
"What's wrong? Are you well? Tell me where it hurts!" Came a trembling voice.
Was that really Conrad?
Conrad, who always had a serene smile and calming voice, was the same man in front of him with the worried brown eyes and a voice nearly cracking in panic?
A warm and calloused hand cupped his cold cheek. Yuuri's eyes fluttered shut softly and his own palm came up to cover Conrad's.
Huh. It really was Conrad after all.
"Come, let's take you to Gisela. Quickly!" Yuuri grabbed the man's arm before he could retreat and take the warmth away.
"No...stay with me..." Conrad's whole body stiffened in shock at the barely audible words and he wavered. Worry and desire warred.
"Please...don't leave me alone...please..."
That was it. The wavering solidified.
Yuuri felt the man shift, prying his hand from his ears and easing them back to his side, and for a alarming moment, Yuuri thought the man wouldn't listen, but the warmth of a large body was next to him and before he knew it, he was being brought between Conrad's legs. Yuuri's back was pulled tightly against Conrad's torso and his head was tucked into the man's neck. A calloused hand came to card through his locks and the other was cupping his cheek. A thumb brushed under his uncovered eye in a soothing sweeping motion and he could vaguely feel a pillowed softness, chapped slightly, press to the top of his head with a startling gentleness.
Yuuri contorted his body slightly to wrap his arms around Conrad's stomach and the man's warm breath puffed in shallow huffs in his ear.
A constant reminder that he wasn't alone.
Conrad was here.
Conrad was the one keeping him warm.
It was Conrad's arms shielding him.
It was Conrad's heartbeat, strong and reassuring under his ear, lulling him to sleep.
It had always been Conrad hadn't it?
Yuuri's arms tightened around him and he inhaled the scent coming from Conrad's strong chest.
Sleepily, Yuuri raised his head slightly, his dazed, coal orb meeting Conrad's gentle gaze, a melted chocolate. A shaky fragile hand raised to Conrad's face and his eyes widened when Yuuri's thin finger traced the faint scar above his eye with a gentle reverence.
"It's always...been you...hasn't it...?" Yuuri mumbled groggily. His hand began to waver as his mind began to drag him under the veils of unconsciousness. Conrad caught the hand before it could fall, bringing it to his mouth and keeping it there. Before Conrad could ask the boy what he meant, Yuuri spoke.
"You can't...leave me alone...never...because...I-" Yuuri's eye slid shut.
Because I love you.
Yuuri's mind slowly shut down and his unconscious mind must have played a trick on him, because he swore he could her Conrad's voice whisper-
"I will never leave you...because I love you, Yuuri."
A small smile curved Yuuri's features in his sleep as a hand smoothed his hair.
Must be wishful thinking. That's all.
There was a gentle pressure against his lips before the warmth disappeared.
Conrad watched the unconscious boy in his arms as he gently laid him on his bed. Pale hands clutched his uniform and he smiled gently as he softly uncurled Yuuri's grip and rested them on the boy's stomach. Brown eyes landed on the boy's boot clad fit and very gently, he began untying them. When they were off, Conrad reached for the comforter and covered the boy, tucking in the sides and placing a lingering kiss on the boy's forehead.
Conrad smiled, gently stoking Yuuri's pillow soft cheek with his finger.
"I love you..." He whispered softly to the comatose boy.
"What are you doing?"
Oh no...
Wolfram's eyes locked with Conrad's and the man waited for the guilt he knew he should feel for falling in love with his brother's fiance.
It never came.
The surprising thing was the fact that he didn't feel any remorse. None at all.
It was Conrad who had looked after Yuuri's soul.
Yuuri was born to be his.
Where were those shackles that had held him in the binds of duty now? What had made him strong enough to watch Wolfram claim what had always been rightfully his?
Rules?
No. That seemed absolutely laughable now.
Status?
What status? They were both people- flesh and blood and warm.
His brother?
.
.
.
Foolish.
All his life, Conrad had yielded to the desires of others, staying passive.
Smiling calmly as what he wanted was being taken right before his eyes and believing himself powerless to stop it.
How long had he bound himself, thinking that what he wanted-needed-wasn't important?
Too long.
His strangely possessive thoughts startled him a bit, but he pushed it aside in favor of waiting for Wolfram to explode-
Speaking of which...why was his brother so...silent?
Where was the yelling? Screaming?
Conrad watched his brother warily as the blonde leaned in the doorway, arms crossed and blonde fringe shadowing his eyes.
Wolfram looked up.
"What took you so long to figure it out?"
.
.
.
What?
Wolfram rolled his eyes, straightening and coming so he could sit on the edge of the bed and placing his hand on Yuuri's forehead.
Conrad stiffened.
"Did you really think I was so stupid that I didn't notice your feelings for my fiance?" Wolfram asked bluntly, still not looking away form Yuuri's sleeping face.
"H-how?"
Had he really just stuttered?
Wolfram smiled tightly.
"I don't know...maybe the fact anytime I touch him, you're wound tighter than a spring? Or the way your eyes follow his every move like mine do? Or maybe your always near him? Just naming a few."
Conrad honestly didn't know what to say. What could he say? Sorry?
He wasn't.
"I'm not sorry for loving him." Conrad said at long last and Wolfram's hand that had been stroking Yuuri's bangs stilled. Finally he looked up.
"I don't want you to be sorry. You fight for him with your all, and I'll do the same. I do love him after all." Conrad mouth snapped shut in his shock. Wolfram looked down and before Conrad could stop him, Wolfram leaned down, placing a chaste kiss on Yuuri's parted lips. Conrad's surprise molded his feet to the floor as Wolfram straightened and his eyes opened.
Jade locked with cold chocolate.
"That was my first and last kiss as his fiance. From now on, there is no upper hand for me. No fiance status-we are both on an equal playing field now. I'll win Yuuri's heart on my own strength." Wolfram murmured and the anger in Conrad drained and was replaced.
Pride.
He was proud of his brother.
Wolfram brushed past him without looking at him, but stopped at the door, his blue clad black facing Conrad.
"Don't get too comfortable, Weller. Yuuri's heart can waver."
A smile was in Wolfram's voice.
"I don't plan on losing, Wolfram."
There was a smile in Conrad's too.
To be continued in Chapter 15
Sorry, I know it was a bit short...he he. Fear not! In the nest chapter the set off, and the real action shall commence! I will probably update before Christmas.
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