In the midst of a momentous decision Taki Reizen had to make that would shape his own future and that of his whole nation, Klaus von Wolfstadt received a letter from his sister.

Though neither of them knew it at the time, this letter would have a small hand in shaping all futures.

He read it over slowly, several times, as he sat by himself in his shed.

Dear Klaus,

Hello, little brother! I hope this letter finds you well.

The whole family saw you on television last week! You looked so handsome in those eastern clothes. I cried a little when they translated what you said. Little Eva was quite taken by your beautiful young master. She hasn't stopped talking about him since. It's strange, but I think I understand why you left everything for him, Klaus. Even over the television, I can see there is something about him. I can't quite explain it. I'm so happy for you both.

I hate to be the one to cast even the smallest shadow over your happiness, especially when you're so far away. But I feel I've waited long enough to tell you. Please forgive me both for taking so long and for breaking my silence.

My health has taken a turn over the past year and in the past month especially. I assure you it's nothing to be alarmed about. But with the master out of the house for work, and with these two rascals to take care of (Heinrich is turning more into you with each passing day, heaven help us), it's become difficult to find the time to really focus on recovering.

I beg you not to turn up on my doorstep just for sending this letter. It was for that very reason I put off writing you at all. I'm only letting you know because I've been thinking about you a great deal since I saw that beautiful ceremony on television. And because it occurred to me how much I miss you.

In case you're ever wandering around in the west again, please swing by the little cottage. The roses are just starting to come out.

Take care of yourself, Klaus. And be sure to send my love to your young master.

Love,

Claudia

PS When his father is out of earshot, Heinrich doesn't ever stop talking about his uncle, the pilot. He races over living room furniture with his little airplane and has even given himself a call sign. I wish I could remember what it is. I think you would have approved.

To anyone else, it would have sounded like the casual letter it purported to be. But Klaus knew his sister. He knew she wouldn't be writing him unless it was serious. He also knew she genuinely didn't want him to drop everything and go to her. It was almost as though she was clearing her conscience by letting him know.

The thought made him run a hand over his face. He held his chin, elbow on his lap, and tried to process everything.

He decided not to tell Taki.

It was the closest he'd ever come to having split loyalties. And yet Taki would win in the end, always, even where his sister was concerned.

But instinct told him that if Taki were to catch wind of his little decision, he would somehow convince Klaus to go.

'You should go.'

Klaus left the shower, rubbing his hair with a towel, to see Taki standing by his bed with the letter in his hand.

'Hey, come on, now. Whatever happened to privacy?'

Taki tried to look away. Water glistened off Klaus' bare arms and chest. Small trickles ran over his cock and down the muscles of his legs. He made no move to cover himself.

'I'm sorry,' Taki said, putting the letter back down on Klaus' bedside table. 'I didn't mean to pry –'

'I'm kidding. I'm happy you care enough to pry at all. I might leave my journal lying around next time.'

When Klaus moved to his wardrobe, Taki allowed himself one surreptitious glance at his broad back and shoulders before turning away. He thought about Claudia.

'She didn't tell you about her condition before now?' he asked carefully.

As Klaus pulled on his pants, he again felt that new, nagging anxiety. But when he turned, he tried to emulate the casual tone his sister had adopted in the letter.

'It's like she said. I'm sure there's nothing to worry about.'

Taki didn't believe him.

Well done, Wolfstadts, Klaus thought. Masters of deception.

'You should go,' Taki repeated, his mind full of the little domestic picture that Claudia had painted. The life Klaus would never have.

Have you ever asked him? What it's like to have given everything up for you?

Klaus sat on the bed, shirt in his hand.

'I'm not leaving you.'

Taki met a gaze that was both steady and resolute.

'Plus, don't you have that tiny decision to make? Something about becoming emperor?'

There was to be another quorum in a week's time where the eight noble families would gather to hear Taki's decision. Little else had been on Taki's mind. That is, until he read Claudia's letter.

'I'll decide by next week.'

Taki had recognised the tone in Klaus' voice when he refused to leave. He knew there was only one thing that could sway him. As much as he regretted having to do so, he slipped back into who he once was. For Klaus' sake.

'I don't need you like I needed you during the war,' he said, allowing a little frostiness to lace his tone. 'And it sounds like your sister does.'

He saw Klaus' resolve weaken. A little flash of hurt crossed his features and Taki battened down the guilt.

'Want to get rid of me that badly, huh?'

'You won't be gone long,' Taki said, his voice still firm, though privately he said it to assure himself as much as Klaus. 'And you'll come back when I call for you.'

Klaus took a second to recall the image of his sister. The last thing she said to him in her kitchen as she embraced him. He imagined Heinrich racing over couches and tables with his airplane. He imagined the look on his face when his mother tried to tell him she was sick.

He glanced up into Taki's eyes and understood what he was doing. He felt a sudden rush of love and gratitude. It was with a huge effort he didn't channel it by pulling Taki down onto the bed and pinning him beneath his body.

'You will call for me, won't you?' he asked, his voice quiet.

Taki felt both relief and a touch of despair.

'I will.'

Klaus stood up and kissed him.

A few days later, as he waited for the train to come to a stop on the platform, he thought about the colour of Taki's hair in the morning light. He was glad he'd convinced him to stay behind. He wasn't sure he could have handled an elaborate train-side farewell.

On board, he squeezed past people in the narrow corridor and found an empty compartment. The train lurched to a start and Klaus nearly lost his balance. He swung his bag up on the overhead rack and stood still for a moment, watching the platform inch by.

The last time I was on a train, he thought, but tried to fight it. If he dwelled on thoughts like that for too long, he would be running back down the corridor, demanding that the train be stopped.

Like the gods had read his mind, at that moment the train came to a sudden, screeching halt.

This time, Klaus lost his balance completely. He fell forwards and his forehead collided painfully with the overhead rack.

Wincing and rubbing his forehead, Klaus glanced out the window to see they had barely cleared the platform. He wondered whether there was a problem with the train. Whether he should take that as a sign –

Stop it, he told himself. He sighed and sat heavily on the seat.

Around thirty seconds later, he had the shock of his life when the glass door of the compartment slid open and Taki stepped in.

The train cautiously moved off again.

Even when the train picked up speed and the vista outside began to shoot past, even when Taki took the seat opposite him and nervously avoided his eye, Klaus still had trouble accepting he was there.

'What are you doing?' he finally asked, hearing that his voice carried how winded he felt.

As he watched Taki struggle to come up with a reply, something occurred to him.

'Did – did you order them to stop the train?'

At the look on Taki's face, Klaus laughed loudly, his mind still reeling. He rubbed his forehead again.

'That hurt, you know.'

'It occurred to me that I had been hypocritical in my advice to you,' said Taki softly, eyes out the window. It sounded almost as though he'd rehearsed the words in his head. 'I made my decision recently. In the wake of it, it would seem my people no longer need me like they did during the war. And – and it sounds like you do.'

Klaus was almost relieved; he was most definitely dreaming.

As Taki slowly told him everything, Klaus noticed the small suitcase Taki had left by the door. Still dazed, he lifted it onto the overhead rack beside his own.

'Are you sure?' he asked, realising how ridiculous a question it was in the face of Taki's staggering decision. A decision that could change history, he thought numbly.

'I've asked Hasebe to speak on my behalf at the quorum next week. All the arrangements were made this morning.'

Klaus stared. The timing of it was impossible to ignore. He dared to wonder.

How much of this is because of me?

Instead, he asked, 'So are the – the Tachibanas going to be running things?'

'No,' Taki replied evenly. 'I've asked Meiji-sama to consider taking the throne. He said he would decide by the quorum next week. In any case, I've made it clear that the decision is in his hands now, not mine.'

He then glanced at Klaus. 'Meiji-sama asked me to pass on his thanks for your vote of confidence in his leadership.'

From one shock to another.

'You took my advice?' Klaus said with a small, incredulous smile.

Taki kept his eyes on his lap.

I once made the mistake of not doing that, he thought, his mind turning briefly to Hans.

'It's the right decision,' he said. 'I can feel it.'

He's never spoken like that before, Klaus thought. It was rare to see him make a move based on his heart rather than his head.

It would take another few hours before the reality of everything caught up to Klaus. Before he allowed himself the thought that Taki would be with him in the cottage with the roses. That he would meet Eva and Heinrich. And Claudia.

But right then, even before he caught up properly, he felt something blossoming in his chest. Like a little flower with flames for petals, opening slowly.

The left side of Taki's face was lit up in the glare from the window. His dark eyes glittered. Klaus tried to control himself.

He cast a quick glance out the door.

'No Uemura or Hasebe or attendants or anything?'

Taki hesitated.

'No.'

His heart thudded when Klaus flashed him a wicked grin.

Despite the fact that Klaus had given him plenty of forewarning, Taki still managed to be caught off guard when he was pushed down into the sun-warmed grass of the field.

The train had taken its scheduled stop at the water supply point. Everything happened exactly as it did before. Klaus helped Taki from the train, happily ignoring the distrusting gazes of several train workers. They took in the sun glimmering on the wheat stalks. They stared out at the distant mountains bordering Taki's country that they'd left behind.

And then Klaus suggested they take a walk. Just like the first time, Taki led the way.

Now, the wheat stalks were being crushed beneath Taki's back. Klaus deftly removed Taki's coat and shirt but left them on the ground as a cushion. He slipped Taki's pants past his ankles and spread his legs before him.

It was like the sun painted his body a different shade. Klaus was pleased to see that all of Taki's strength had returned. His eyes drank in the lithe muscles of his stomach and legs. Bending low, Klaus ran his tongue on the inside of Taki's thigh.

He could be anything, Klaus thought. A prince, an emperor, a commander, an alley cat, a bird, a rose. But really, beneath it all, this was who he was. And he was Klaus'.

Fingers and then tongue. Klaus probed deep, occasionally drawing back to spit into his hole before delving in again. Into Taki's heat. His familiar taste. His warm flesh gripped in Klaus' hands.

Taki, meanwhile, was focusing all his energy on stifling his cries. They were not so far out that train workers and nearby farmers wouldn't hear.

The wheat stalks dipped their heads over the scene, bobbing with each gust of wind. Not a single cloud obscured the warm spring sun.

He didn't expect Klaus to lift him up and spin him around. A strong hand held him face-down against his rumpled coat and shirt. Klaus' cock then pushed in with such force that nothing on Earth could have stifled the cry that escaped him.

'Ah! Ugh, Klaus…!'

Klaus held his hips in place and watched his cock piston in and out of Taki. The brightness of the scene, combined with Taki's moans, made his climax approach a lot sooner than he would have liked.

Taki felt, again, how deep Klaus was. How far into his body Klaus had gone. How much of Taki belonged to him.

He suddenly felt Klaus' hand clamp down on his mouth. Klaus had pressed himself low over Taki's back, his chin hooked over Taki's shoulder.

'I can't believe I'm going to say this,' he gasped, still thrusting even as he spoke. 'But you need to keep your voice down. They might find us. And I doubt it'll be Suguri this time.'

He then spun Taki back around and drove his cock back into him as he kissed him, feeling Taki moan into his mouth, grinding him into the soil.

After they came, they lay still for minutes. The silence was suddenly damning; Taki realised with a flush how much noise they had made.

'I think we're good,' Klaus assessed, though he still kept an ear out.

He kissed the place beneath Taki's ear where his neck met his hair. Their hands lay intertwined, almost forgotten, in the stalks.

AN HOUR EARLIER

'Remember what happened last time we were on this train?'

He got up slowly and Taki's pulse raced. The door to the compartment was entirely transparent, he thought. Surely –

'I mean, we were in a much nicer compartment,' Klaus continued, his voice rumbling. 'That bed was handy, wasn't it?'

Klaus stood directly in front of him, relishing the look on Taki's face. He lifted a knee and placed it on the seat beside Taki. He imagined, briefly, Taki's mouth around his cock. The sounds he would make as Klaus pushed into his throat. The shocked look of the conductor when he passed their compartment.

Just as Taki's anxiety reached its peak, Klaus chuckled and leaned away. He lowered himself to the plush leather of the seat and, in deference to the happiness he experienced in Suguri's office and under the wisteria, he lay his head in Taki's lap again, eyes closed.

'Wake me if we stop by that field. I want to see you in the sunlight again, like the last time we were here.'

But this time, I'm going to fuck you properly.

Eyes half-lidded, Taki stared for a time at Klaus' face. He felt the echo of a thought he had long ago. How everything about him was foreign. The wisps of blond splayed on his lap. The heavy, self-assured jaw. Even his tanned skin seemed somehow oversaturated. Implausible.

Taki touched his hair. And then turned to stare out the window. The sky, in that moment, seemed like nothing more than a colour; something that he could easily push through if he were to reach out and touch it.

Klaus, his eyes still closed, didn't get to see his small smile.

Although he could have attributed it to a few things, Taki smiled mostly because of how impossible it had once seemed.

If only you and I could fly away together, to the other side of the sky.

END

(of Part 1)

Author's note:

COLLAPSES WITH RELIEF.

I can't believe I thought I could fit all that into five chapters. So glad it's finally done! I really hope you guys enjoyed it!

Not surprisingly, my author's note is going to be a long one:

POLITICS
In my view, Eurote always came across as super dodgy even though they were Taki's allies. They started the war, after all. And there was all that craziness with the Duchess and Berkut. The whole thing felt a bit like Japan and Italy being on the same side in WW2. In this reality, it's like the Axis powers won but (thanks to Klaus lol) the horrifying potential of fascism winning the war was stopped anyway.

Emperor drama. Meiji-sama, one of my OCs, is the emperor while Taki goes off gallivanting with Klaus in the west. For any Saezuru fans: I seriously love the idea of Yashiro being emperor of imperial Japan – how much does that suit him?!

APOLOGIES
A lot of non-canon things to apologise for:

Hans Regenwalde and his goddamn psychicness. Blanket apology. His power was the foundation of this story when I imagined it and I loved writing him, but I'm well aware that his gift is a massive non-canon blasphemy (forgive me readers and Inariya-sama!).

Haruki's age. He looks about ten or eleven when he first meets Klaus. And this story's set only a few months after that. So Haruki's magically gained three years and several inches of height (and a serious crush) in less than half a year.

Klaus' sister. Is Claudia even still alive? Klaus saw her when he was nearly dying by the river which made me wonder if he saw her in the afterlife. If she is dead – oops! There goes all of Part 2.

Technology. Pretty sure I made radios and interception a lot more digital-era than WW2-era. Also was TV around in Inariya's version of 1928? I just really wanted to heighten the globalness and vividness of the ending. Also, while Enigma's a real codebreaking machine the Germans used in WW2, I highly doubt that you can use it the way Frederik Scholz did haha.

And please forgive any and all other details that are blasphemous that I've missed (and happy to hear about if you pick up on it btw!)

THE FUTURE
For the sake of emotional relief and so you don't have to keep reading my endless updates, I'm more than happy if you consider the end of Part 1 the proper ending of the whole thing :D Sex and a train and sex thoughts on a train and sex near a train and Klaus laughing and Taki smiling was all just so nice to write and I think, maybe, it has the ring of an ending to it.

But I'm just going to write the rest of the story anyway. Because I might go mad if I don't.

So if there's anyone left who might want to keep following, Part 2 and 3 are next! Although I've split the story up into three parts, neither Parts 2 nor 3 are as long as Part 1. Then again, I'm terrible at keeping things short, so maybe don't take my word on that.

In Part 2, called 'On the Other Side of the Sky', we follow Klaus and Taki to the cottage with the roses. Claudia finally meets the mysterious man from the east who so completely stole her brother's heart. The beginning of Part 2 is well past the war, well past Hans Regenwalde, well past negativity. Okay, most negativity. (Klaus' patriotic and vaguely racist brother-in-law is a different story.)

And if you're wondering what the hell is happening in the prologue, that's not until the end of Part 3 (which is called 'Haruki'). Sorry guys! I might as well have called this Maiden Rose: The Final 3,000 Chapters -_- But like I said, I totally won't take it personally if you guys stop following at Part 1.

If it helps, for those of you who want to keep following, I've decided just for the sake of symbolism/poetry/wankiness I would finish the entire story while Klaus and I are the same age. (I took it as a sign that I read the manga last December so I'm going to finish my story in the same year *downs coffee despite caffeine allergy). Oh I just remembered Klaus is 36 for most of Part 3… WELL hopefully I won't wait that long.

GREAT BIG THANKS
Thank you to everyone for all of your amazing, tear-jerking comments (Hanairoh, I'm looking at you!). And thank you also to my favouriters and followers!

Looking forward to hearing from you, whatever you hated and loved and anything in between! Your support has been absolutely wonderful, it's honestly my favourite part of the whole process. Again, hope you all enjoyed!