Summary: Yugo has made his decision to go speak with Balthazar about potential alternative routes that could be taken with the problem faced in Qilby and Shinonome, but advice from Eva makes him think that perhaps this isn't a decision he should be making alone.
A few minutes later and Yugo was once again in Eva's kitchen. This time, rather than happily making and eating his favorite stew, he was holding his arms over his stomach while his head lay far too close to the table top where he was sitting. The Cra was across from him in her own chair. She was frowning but it was clearly out of concern.
It would have been easier for some people to ignore their upset stomach and talk about something, really anything, else than what was causing the nausea. Yugo didn't remember ever being that type of person. Sure, he'd been trying to look past his unease on this for some time, but now that he'd told people like Eva that he was struggling with this? There was a commitment in that. He wasn't one to skirt responsibilities. No matter if responsibilities stacked up and hurt him and a part of him wished he could return to a time when there were far less, he still couldn't bear to skirt them.
The Eliatropes called him a good king for it.
Alibert and his friends looked worried for it.
While Eva was listening, he explained what was on his mind since talking with Joris and where he wanted to go next. As much as he worried it would lead nowhere, that it could lead nowhere, that the words of begging and pleading in his memories would always just have to remain there, Yugo still would try to contact Balthazar and ask to visit the Eliatrope's dimension in order to speak with him face to face on it all.
"What about your brother?"
The interruption to his plans made him stall. Yugo wished he had an answer for her question.
"Yugo."
Ah- quiet for too long, evidently. Eva's voice was no-nonsense. He followed the implied command and looked at her.
"I'm hardly in any place to tell you off for keeping things from your sibling," she joked in an attempt to get him to loosen up. It only partially worked to give levity to the subject. No matter if it was said lightly, it still was a joking cover for the hurt she and Cleophe had between each other.
Funny...Between Eva and the sibling she'd intended on forgetting forever before his quest had reunited them, and Amalia's transparent issues with Armand, Yugo supposed many of his friends were the type he could talk to about sibling issues. Still, he didn't think he had problems, issues, per se with his brother. They were friends, had been since hitting it off so well the first time they had met. It was just that they were friends that didn't agree all too often and weren't always telling each other everything they probably...should have been instead of assuming he already knew what Adamaï would say disparagingly...
(maybe there were problems there after all)
"What exactly should I tell him? He doesn't think I should be worrying about this," Yugo said.
But had Ad really told him that outright? Had it been Yugo misreading? No, Ad detested Qilby. He'd position himself in front of Grougal whenever the traitor got brought up in a conversation, even if he was making that protective position subconsciously. But Yugo detested Qilby too. That anger hadn't stopped him from feeling out of depth in delivering his fate. He and Ad could be agreeing even as they grew upset over arguments that were unclear, vague, misread. Maybe...
Maybe even if they didn't agree, Adamaï still needed to be there, deserved to be there, to get his chance to throw in input- that input convincing the rest and Yugo to let things lay-
Maybe Ad deserved to be included in decisions of his people whether or not Yugo wanted to listen to his opinions.
That Yugo thought he'd visit Balthazar alone just meant he still could abandon his brother without even considering that was how Ad would take it was concerning enough and here he'd been stressing- stressing since the archipelago, about how angry Adamaï was with him over leaving him out so often before- stressing to make sure he didn't anymore-
Maybe.
And maybe this latest assumption was wrong anyways, but did it hurt to show Ad that he was trying to include him and his opinions these days? That he wasn't trying to leave him out to deal with responsibilities while he did as his instincts led and left his brother to face fallout?
Leave it to Eva to make him consider his plans more thoroughly than rash instinct, Yugo thought with fond amusement.
He'd decided then that he'd follow through with it, that he'd ask his brother to accompany him.
So they'd go together. Or would if Adamaï wanted to join him. And Yugo couldn't imagine he would not.
Sure, maybe he'd play the opposition. That didn't matter really. What mattered was remembering to include his part at all.
Yugo went about stressed enough at being a king unexpectedly for a hidden race. He couldn't forget that he wasn't alone in that. He and his twin were both holding that weight of leadership and this time-
this time they'd do it together. He may not agree with everything his brother thought, but he'd listen to it, and just hope that Ad would listen to him likewise.
AN: And it turned out Adamaï was sympathetic to hearing Yugo was having a hard time and they both improved their ability to just transparently talk to each other before making decisions, the end.
But really, Yugo has the bad habit of ignoring Adamaï and the fact that eventually leads both to separate completely was one of the plotpoints in the OVAs and S3 that actually made sense to me, no matter if it was heartwrenching to see. This fic is a 'fix-it' in that the ending is hopefully pointing to the potential that both will start actually communicating with each other instead of making assumptions and thus avoiding the later tragedy down the road.
Thank you for reading!