I reach out a hand to caress his face. So smooth. I stroke his cheek, taking note of the dark circles underneath his eyes. Surely, this is the result of insomnia. Despite this, he appears to be energized, prepared to take on any challenge.
Yuuri beams down at me, and I feel so buoyant, free of the turmoil that has been plaguing me ever since this conflict began. What's more, I'm able to truly smile. He brings me into a loving embrace, and places a long, passionate kiss on my lips. A blush spreads from my ears to my toes. I can't believe that he'd do this in front of Eileen, but that indignation vanishes when he pulls me closer. I become more daring, very keen on returning his effervescent show of affection.
It's been too long since I last felt his arms around me, and his lips against mine. The strength I thought I lost wells up inside me. The seal that the war has put on my happiness is broken by the one person that can. I bask in the heat that he has rekindled in my heart, and the rapid beating that his love and need for me evoke.
When our kiss ends, I pull back, my face flaring. I'm abashed that he'd be this intimate with me in Eileen's presence, but at the same time, I'm elated. I needed him. I wanted to see him so badly, and he came.
"Y-Yuuri," I say.
"Sorry," he replies, sheepishly, his face turning crimson. He tugs at my waist and leans his forehead against mine. "I couldn't help myself. You have no idea how relieved I am to see that you're alive." He reconnects our lips, initiating another fervent kiss.
Once our lips separate, I unhook my arms from his neck and hold onto his shoulders. "How did you…? How are you here right now?"
"It was Shinou's doing," he smiles, big and wide. "He spoke to Ulrike and she summoned me to the Temple of the Great One. He told me that you were in grave danger and that you were calling out to me." My heart swells. "Shinou and Ulrike used their powers to send my spirit here to help you."
Yuuri breaks away from me to address Eileen with a confounded expression. "Uh, who are you?"
Eileen's face colors, and she lowers herself onto her knees and bows. "My name is Eileen, Your Majesty."
"You mean that you're…?" He trails off, and his eyes cloud over. I can tell that he's revisiting the moment that he severed her sword in half. "I…Lady Eileen…I didn't mean to…I mean, I'm really sorry."
She stands up and shakes her head. "It's what had to be done, sire. I am grateful to you for doing what you did. It must've been a difficult decision to make."
"Decision?" I echo. I glance at Yuuri to see that he's just as quizzical.
"I sensed your hesitation when you fought King Saralegui, Your Highness. You didn't wish to harm me, but you saw that Wolfram was losing strength, and you took immediate action." Eileen smiles and tips her head to Yuuri, who flushes.
I'm struck by a bout of jealousy. It's ridiculous, I know, but I can't help it. Yuuri has admired beautiful women in the past, and he's doing it again.
"You saved me, Your Majesty. If you didn't do what you did, King Saralegui would've used me to kill you and Wolfram." Her lips tug downward into a haunted frown. "He could've used me to commit a massacre."
Yuuri's eyes widen. Then, he fixes his gaze on the surface that he paved white. He processes what she just said with little disbelief. I can see that. It's easy to believe that Saralegui would do that. I think back to what I said to Conrart and Yozak in regard to Saralegui and how I thought that he had changed. Now that I've been reminded of his past discrepancies, I can't be certain.
Something in the distance grabs my attention. I take a few steps in that direction and realize that it's another illusion. I curl my hands into fists as I grow anxious. The mirage that the dark crystal used to influence me was very powerful. It felt so real, and to make matters worse, it made me forget. It made me believe in that reality.
I'm afraid that I'll lose myself in those illusions again.
A hand clasps onto mine. I see Yuuri through my peripheral vision. My fists loosen. He threads our fingers together.
"Don't misunderstand, ok?" He asks, softly.
I loathe how transparent I can be sometimes. I must seem foolish to him. He has proven that he's committed to her engagement. However, envy has been carved so deep into my heart, and that scar is still in the process of healing.
"There's nothing to misunderstand," I say.
"Could've fooled me," he mumbles, sarcastically.
I give him an annoyed stare. He squeezes my hand and kisses my cheek, which instantly becomes hot.
"Lady Eileen is pretty, but you are way prettier," he says with the utmost adoration.
"P-pretty?" I sputter, unsure as to whether I should be flattered or offended.
He nods, exuberantly.
I look ahead with a heated face. That's when I see a figure quickly pass by inside of the illusion. It's Father, I recognize. I'm about to dart towards the realm that he occupies, but Yuuri yanks me back.
"Wolfram, wait!" Yuuri exclaims. "Don't be so reckless."
"Father is in there," I tell him.
"What? But I thought-"
"Come on!"
I take him by the arm and drag him inside the portal that leads into Father's hallucination. Eileen follows, and we all leave the black and white plane behind. I don't recognize the area at first, but then I realize that it's the border of the von Bielefeld territory.
Once I see that he and his men are battling against humans, I feel an overwhelming sense of dread. This is the day that happened. It's that day that Father was killed. With a gasp, I let go of Yuuri, and break into a run. He calls after me, but I ignore him as I frantically search for my father. I tear my way through the crowd with my sword, pushing every soldier aside, and parrying the blows that the enemies deal. One man has me locked in fierce combat when I spot him.
His breathing is ragged. He's being overpowered by a human. This sight shocks me. I know that he was slain by a human, but I'm still incredulous. To me, as a child, he was invincible. He was a warrior who could conquer the world if he so pleased. He definitely couldn't be defeated by the very humans that he detested with every fiber of his being.
He collapses.
I shout out to him, trying my best to get past my opponent.
The man slits his throat.
Newfound energy pulsates through me. I let out a deranged cry and shove the man to the side.
"Father!" I shriek.
I'm about to take off towards him, but someone jerks me back. I whip around to see Yuuri, who draws me close. I struggle to free myself from his grasp.
"Let me go, Yuuri! I have to save him! He's dying!"
"Wolfram. Wolfram!" He shakes me. "He's already dead." I still, my eyes and mouth wide open. "Don't be fooled. This isn't real. It's another illusion."
I blink. "What?"
Yuuri looks at me with concern. "We entered your father's memories, remember?"
I stare into Yuuri's eye as I recall where we are. We're inside the black crystal that Belar had in his possession. As everything comes flooding back, Yuuri tightens his hold on me. He's right. I let out a quivering sigh. I have to remember that we are not a part of this reality. It's all in my father's mind. Although, that doesn't bring me much comfort. Father is reliving the moment that he met his end. This must be very traumatic for him.
"We still have to help him," I say.
"You still can," Eileen replies. "Make sure that you keep contact with King Yuuri. He'll prevent you from being influenced by the crystal."
"OK," Yuuri says, slinging an arm about my shoulders.
I move my arm around his waist. In tandem, we walk to Father's side, passing through the apparitions of soldiers along the way.
We drop to our knees beside him. I can't stop myself from shaking Father's shoulder. "Father! Snap out of it, Father!"
I see the gash in his neck mend itself. I give Yuuri an alleviated smile. He gives me a warm smile in return. Then I turn my attention back to Father, who is opening his eyes.
"Wolfram," he murmurs. Slowly, he sits up and looks around in confusion. I follow his gaze to see that everything has become white. "What happened?"
"Yuuri broke through the illusion that you were experiencing." I say, excitedly.
"What?" Father asks, regarding Yuuri with bemusement. "Who are you?" His eyes narrow. I imagine how he must feel, seeing Yuuri and I in such an affectionate position.
"I-I-I," Yuuri stammers, nervously. He clears his throat. Then, much to my surprise, he bows deeply. "My name is Yuuri Shibuya, sir. I'm Wolfram's fiancé, and I would really appreciate it if you gave us your blessing. I mean, I know that we just met, but it would mean a lot."
Father's taken aback by such an emotionally fueled reaction. I am too, but having known Yuuri for as long as I have, I recompose myself faster. Peeved, I wrench him back by the collar. He yelps. "Wolf! What was that for?"
"Such peasant behavior is not befit of the Demon King." I admonish.
"You're the Demon King?" Father asks.
"Y-yes, sir." Yuuri responds.
"How old are you?"
"I'll be twenty this upcoming summer."
"Twenty?" Father repeats. His eyes enlarge before they become slits. "You're a human." He stands and brings forth his sword.
A jolt cracks inside me. I pull Yuuri to his feet and shove him behind me in one fluid motion. Father glowers at us. I feel a pang go off in my chest. I should've suspected this. Father's abhorrence of humans is deep-rooted, so much so that he made it his life's mission to eliminate as many as he can. I've read about his hatred for them, but seeing him like this has me aghast.
It's as if he's an entirely different person. Someone that's been molded by sheer malice.
"Step aside, Wolfram." He growls.
"Don't do this, Father." I say with a wavering voice. I assume a battle stance, unprepared for the fight that's on the brink of happening.
"Why do you insist on protecting that-that thing?" Fathers asks. I glare at him. A burning rage fills me. How dare he refer to Yuuri like he's some grotesque object? "How could you even associate yourself with that filth? I taught you better than that!"
"No, no you didn't!" I snap. "You warped my mind and made me think that all humans were the enemy. It's because of you that I despised my own brother and shunned him. You planted the evil inside my heart, Father!" As my voice hitches, my steady words turn tremulous, and I hate myself for displaying such weakness.
"Wolfram," Yuuri murmurs.
"You are not my son," Father snarls.
Too many emotions hit me at once, leaving me nonplussed.
I simply stand there and stare at the stranger before me.
This isn't my father.
He'd never say these things.
Would he?
I don't know.
I never knew him. Not this man. Not the man that I had grown to know as my father. Not the man that I idolized and wished to become.
That man is dead.
"You bastard," Yuuri growls. He takes his place in front of me, bearing the fearsome power of the Demon King. "After being reunited with your only son, you have the audacity to treat him like garbage. As if that wasn't enough, you forsake him in the name of prejudice. How utterly despicable!" His mighty aqua dragons materialize and flank him. "For that, you deserve the worst punishment. Justice, be done!"
The water dragons seize Father in a deadly hold. He struggles to break free. His efforts are futile. It isn't long before he's rendered unconscious. Once he is, the twin dragons return to Yuuri's side. He raises a hand in the air, and the two beasts coil around his arm and fuse together.
Yuuri grabs me by the waist. In the next instant, we're lifted off the floor. A cold sensation causes my body to rack with shivers. A large dragon peeks its head out beneath us and takes flight. Yuuri and I crouch down to maintain balance on the beast's back.
I sneak a glance behind me, past Eileen, to see Father sprawled on the ground, inert.
I feel nothing.
He means nothing.
"Wolfram," Yuuri says, his voice deep and full of care. "Are you all right?"
I lean further into him. His very presence here is the balm that makes all pain cease. It's as if I'm being cleansed, absolved for all that I have done. I revel in the levity that he has granted me just by being here.
"I'm ok." I whisper.
I relax and shut my eyes, smiling as we soar higher and higher.
Winry1021: Thank you, babe! Your feedback is always very much appreciated! :D
Alicia Spinet: Thank you! I'm glad that you like this story. :D I'm actually working on a story told from Yuuri's POV. It's going to be a separate story. Please look foward to that!
Sawyer Fan: I disturbed myself when I wrote that scene with the fake Yuuri and Saralegui. Your diagnosis was very spot on, doctor. I have given Wolfram a much needed dose of Yuuri. ;) I'm not sure why Wolfram's father neglected him. I can only guess that he didn't want a child or maybe he didn't like the fact that Wolfram was related to a half human. Wish I knew for sure though. I can't thank you enough for your constant encouragement! Much love and hugs!
Jenmoon1: Thank you so much! :)