HEELS OVER HEAD

Chapter Eight

A ConYuu Fan-fiction

By: Ami

Beta-reader: ProudSnapist a.k.a Sherlockian Slytherin

Alternate Universe. No spoilers.

Standard disclaimers apply.

XXX

Murata was wrong to think that the king would be engulfed with angst after knowing the truth. In fact, he had returned to his old-self as he walked out of his room and greeted everybody good morning on his way to the front gate. He also didn't seem disturbed by the fact that his surroundings were fake. He still looked and acted normally, as if nothing had changed.

Although a little part of Murata suspected that Yuuri had been feigning his cheerfulness, he decided to not be worried. He believed that Yuuri knew what he was doing and knew how to deal with everything. After all, he was the king.

"Orange."

Murata blinked, lifting up his head to meet the playful glance of the raven-haired king, "What's wrong, Shibuya?"

Yuuri just threw him a quick smile before turning around and resuming his walk.

Murata had to fight a smile as he trailed the young man from behind.

After all, he was the king.

XXX

"What took you so long, wimp?"

When Yuuri arrived at the front gate of Blood Pledge Castle, Wolfram had been standing there with a horse behind him, arms crossed impatiently at his tardiness.

"I wanna ride on a horse by myself!" Yuuri protested as he approached the blond.

"No. You're still not well." Wolfram replied firmly as he climbed up the horse, "Now get on the horse. Unless you want to abort the trip."

Muttering a soft grumble, Yuuri did as he was told. Wolfram looked satisfied at his obedience.

Now that he was riding with Wolfram, Yuuri could feel the difference in their height. Somehow, Wolfram seemed a few inches shorter than usual.

Not only Wolfram, everybody seems shorter here, Yuuri thought curiously.

"Hey, Wolfram," he tried, "did you shrink or something?"

Wolfram twitched at the question, "Don't get too cocky just because you gained a few inches, wimp."

The statement dawned on Yuuri. He promptly glanced at his body, his legs, and his arms. Wolfram was right. It wasn't that other people had become shorter. He was the one who had grown taller and bigger!

When did I grow this much anyway?

Yuuri placed a hand on his shoulder. It was a bit broader. His muscles also felt firmer then usual. No wonder Cheri had looked a bit skinnier when he had compared her shoulder and his the day before. The people in Shin Makoku hadn't changed a lot because they were aging very slowly. That's also the reason why it had taken him quite some time to realize that he had hit his growth spurt.

After revealing another truth, there was still one thing that Yuuri was quite curious about.

"Hey, Wolfram… how old am I?"

"…You can't be that clueless, can you?"

In the end, Wolfram refused to answer him.

XXX

As the town came into Yuuri's view, Yuuri had to hold back his astonishment. The area in front of him was no longer the place he had once known. From the distance, he could only see a huge front gate, guarded by a squad of scary-looking guards. But as he and Wolfram got closer, the guards took off their daunting faces at once, approached and greeted them graciously.

"Welcome, Your Majesty, Your Highness," said the leader of the squad. He looked surprisingly friendly. "Thank you for visiting us. What can I help you with?"

"His Majesty intends to take a look around this place." Wolfram replied.

"Shall we guard you on your way?" The leader asked again.

"No. And don't worry. I'll protect him with my life, my hands and my heart," Wolfram answered as he threw a playful glance at the bewildered king, "in place of my brother, of course."

Then suddenly the leader and the entire squad laughed, very loudly.

Yuuri, being the only clueless one, started to look around in confusion. What were they laughing about? Yuuri wanted to ask Wolfram about it, but the boy looked like he was also having a hard time holding his mirth back.

After the sound of laughter died down, the leader quickly apologized for their impoliteness. Before Yuuri had his chance to ask, Wolfram told him to open the gate for them.

"What were you laughing about?" Yuuri asked as they entered the town, "did you say something funny? I didn't get it at all."

"You'll see later," Wolfram still looked amused, "I'll show you."

Yuuri wasn't satisfied with the answer, but decided to wait. For a moment, he remembered about Murata and looked back to make sure that the little fairy was still there.

"Sorry, I don't know what they were laughing about either." Murata smiled apologetically. Yuuri gave him a nod before turning back to the front. Once more, Yuuri was forced to gasp at the view in front of him.

"Ha…"

"Still as crowded as usual." Wolfram sighed as he climbed down his horse and signaled Yuuri to get down as well.

"Ha…"

Wolfram looked up to the gaping king with a questioning look, "Hurry. What are you waiting for?"

"Ha…"

"Yuuri, I'm telling you…"

"Harajuku!"

Yuuri slowly climbed down the horse, not taking his eyes off the sight. The simple town he had once known did not exist anymore. The town had been completely transformed in to an open market town. Shops, restaurants, boutiques and markets were scattered around the place. It was also splendidly crowded with tourists, and most of them were wearing various school uniforms as if it was the latest fashion there. The most popular design seemed to be his school uniform. Even some girls wore it, replacing the trousers with a skirt.

"What are you staring at?" Wolfram threw him a strange look. "Forget it. You won't be able to find Brother Conrad. It's way too crowded here."

Yuuri turned to the blond with a disbelieving look, "Why are they wearing my uniform? What's happening in this place?"

Wolfram sighed, "They are imitating you, as usual."

Yuuri was still staring at the people in astonishment. Then he remembered about the girls in his class who often talked about imitating a popular actress' hairstyle. He immediately became conscious of the fact that people, no matter where they were, liked to imitate the person they idolized. It had never crossed his mind before that he'd someday set a trend among the people.

But this place looks like a school bazaar (or otaku island XP) now… thanks to the vogue I set… Yuuri sweated, what have I done to this place? Even if it's just a dream…

"Here."

Yuuri glanced down at the 'things' Wolfram was passing him in disbelief. It was a complete pack of female suits. Yuuri remembered wearing the similar set in his previous trip to the town in real life, but he didn't expect to have to wear a dress again in his dream.

"…What do you want me to do with these?"

"Wear them." Wolfram instructed casually.

"I don't need to cross-dress now! Why can't I enter the town as a man!" Yuuri protested, almost hysterically. He started to worry about his future as a healthy, straight, sober, and normal man.

"It's fine. You don't need to wear them," Wolfram replied coolly as he put on his sunglasses. He looked surprisingly manlier with them, "After all, it's not me who'll get molested by fans, sign autographs till my hands get numb, and get crushed under their feet in the process."

The king shuddered, looking down at the items he was holding in hesitation. It seemed that he had no choice, although he really preferred his old red wig and contact lenses at the moment.

As an old man wearing a P.E. uniform, passed him by, Yuuri shuddered again.

Anyone… please, wake me up…

XXX

Yuuri was sitting alone in a fast-food restaurant with a half-bitten cheeseburger in front of him. He had intended to find some sort of hint about how to get back to his consciousness, but there was no clue around the town. The place was no different than the fast food restaurant near his house (only that all the waiters and waitresses wore summer sailor uniforms). Although he hadn't eaten any decent food since the morning, he didn't feel like eating at all.

A moment before, Wolfram had left him alone, saying that he had wanted to get something for him. Then when Yuuri looked around to find Murata, the fairy had disappeared too.

Yuuri glumly stared darkly at his surroundings, stirring his soda uninterestedly. He really hoped that his friends would be back soon so that the guys who had been trying to hit on him would give it up. Even though it was only a dream, he'd rather die than say something like: 'Sorry, I'm waiting for my boyfriend.'

"Hi."

Yuuri lifted up his head to find the human-sized blond-version Murata approaching him, smiling cheerfully.

Before the king had a chance to ask him where he had gone to, Murata called one of the waitresses and ordered French fries. Yuuri just stared at the scene in confusion. He had thought nobody but him had been able to see Murata.

"Lovely taste, Shibuya," Murata commented with a wide smile, "You know, I like the design of the skirt. Especially that part. The color looks…"

"Murata…" Yuuri growled menacingly. Murata smartly shut his mouth up, still smiling innocently.

"What are you doing here anyway? I thought nobody but me could see you."

"They can see me only if I want to." Murata calmly explained, "You can do the same thing. It's not recommended, though. Because it will confuse your people."

"It's NOT recommended, but it's also NOT prohibited, is it?"

Yuuri's eyes glinted mischievously.

Murata immediately regretted his own words.

XXX

Not once in his life did Shibuya Yuuri ever imagined being an invisible man, not until it had been revealed to him that he had had the ability to become one. Unlike most people, Yuuri didn't have a set of wicked plans in his head as Murata carefully explained to him the procedures. He wasn't planning to enter the girl's restroom. He was not thinking about stealing things from the shops. He didn't even intend to scare people off by showing them the 'floating burger'.

Shibuya Yuuri, being as simple-minded as usual, just wanted to become one because it sounded cool. Plus, he wanted to make his childhood dream of invisibility come true.

"So, all I have to do is concentrate and believe that I'm invisible, right?" Yuuri asked again.

Murata nodded affirmatively, "Be careful and don't cause too much of a ruckus. Remember the rules."

"Got it, got it." The young king looked quite excited, "Can I try now?"

Murata was still doubtful if Yuuri really understood the consequences to his actions, but nodded anyway, "Okay then. Now close your eyes, listen to me carefully. I'll help you."

Yuuri closed his eyes and followed Murata's instructions to help him concentrate. A moment later, he was asked to open his eyes again and Murata announced that he was officially an invisible man.

Still finding it hard to believe, Yuuri went straight to the street and looked around to find a 'victim'. Luckily, his eyes landed on a familiar figure.

Wolfram had returned and was now searching for him in the restaurant. It was a perfect chance to prove his invisibility.

Yuuri carefully approached the blond and then called his name. It seemed that Wolfram had heard him, but he couldn't spot him although he had been standing next to blond the entire time.

"Wolfram!" Yuuri tried again, a bit louder this time.

Wolfram responded the same way. He looked around in confusion, trying to find the source of the voice to no avail.

Yuuri grinned victoriously. He had gained a new ability, and he was sure that it would be useful someday.

Not wanting to make Wolfram worried, Yuuri quickly returned to Murata's hidden place, transformed back to normal and came back to Wolfram. The blond was furious that he had wandered off without him, but was also relieved that nothing bad had happened. Yuuri didn't complain when Wolfram told him that they should get back to the castle. After all, he had had his share of fun.

XXX

Yuuri went straight to his longed bed as soon as he arrived at his room. It was still a bit too early for his bedtime, but he felt exhausted already after the outdoor activities with Wolfram. Although he had intended to wait until Conrad got home, he didn't think that his eyes would cooperate.

"Hey, Shibuya, what do you think you're doing?" Murata approached the worn-out king, blinking innocently.

"…wanna… sleep…" Yuuri mumbled incoherently, closing his eyes and relaxing his body.

"But you can't," chibi Murata transformed in to big Murata and sat on the side of the bed, shaking the half-conscious young man gently, "Listen to me. When you sleep in your dream, there's a good chance that you might not wake up again."

Yuuri jolted awake at the remark, "What!"

"Didn't I tell you about it?"

Yuuri shook his head, "But… how am I going to survive the days without sleeping? I'm really going to die! At least I wanna see my family for one last time!"

"Relax, Shibuya," Murata sweated at the king's frantic response, "remember, even now, you ARE sleeping. So you don't need to sleep here at all."

Yuuri still looked angst-ridden, "But I feel tired and sleepy! How come I don't need to sleep? You're just trying to hide it! I'm going to die!"

The fairy sighed, partly amused, "It's all in your mind. You think that you've done a lot of things, and it makes you think that you ought to be tired, although you don't actually feel it. Most people in real life often make the same mistake too. You are relying on rationality too much. Remember, it is not reality. It's just a dream. Try to convince your mind that you are not tired. It'll somehow work."

The task was harder than Yuuri had imagined. When he told himself that he was not tired, there came a reply from the back of his mind saying 'stop lying to yourself! You are exhausted!'. He had also almost fallen a sleep several times. Fortunately, Murata had been there to keep him awake by continuously talking with him and sometimes shaking his body.

After struggling for several hours, Yuuri could finally maintain his wakefulness and did not feel sleepy or tired anymore. But he still avoided his bed and sat on the floor, just in case the sleepiness suddenly returned.

"See? I told you, you don't need to sleep here." Murata smiled proudly, "you're a fast-learner, Shibuya. Normally, people wouldn't be able to reach your level until after several nights."

Yuuri didn't look quite happy with the praise. But he was relieved that he had been able to steer clear of the risk.

"How am I supposed to spend the rest of the night now?" he asked glumly, "It's cold here, and if I wander around at this hour and stay awake in the morning, it will be suspicious."

"Hmm… how about me telling you stories about the interesting history of Shin Makoku?" Murata suggested half-jokingly.

Yuuri cringed, "It's like you'll be singing me a lullaby."

"I did say: interesting." The fairy chuckled at his joke, "well then, we'll just do the thing you wanna do. I'm here to keep you company."

Yuuri smiled, "…Let's see… I wanna…"

Both Yuuri and Murata turned their eyes to the door as they heard familiar footsteps outside of the room.

"Oh, good evening, Sir Conrad! Did you just arrive?"

Yuuri held back a gasp. Murata poof-ed back in to chibi Murata and signaled the king to quietly return to his bed and feign sleep.

"Yes. Has His Majesty gone to bed?"

Yuuri closed his eyes tightly, holding his breath as he carefully listened to Conrad's voice. He just realized how very much he missed Conrad, although they had only been parted for one day.

"I think so. Are you going to check on him?"

Yuuri anxiously waited for Conrad's answer.

"Yes."

…And as usual, Conrad always said the things he needed to hear.

As the faint sound of the door rang in his ears, Yuuri nervously closed his eyes and waited. Unlike Conrad's soundless and steady footsteps, his heart was pounding so loud and fast that he was afraid that Conrad might be able to hear it.

The sound of Conrad's footsteps stopped. Yuuri could feel his presence very close to his body. His scent was overwhelming.

"…Yuuri? Are you still awake?" Conrad called, almost inaudibly.

The king held back the urge to open his eyes. He had missed him so much. He wanted to see him. He wanted to talk to him. He wanted to ask him where he had been during the day. But he didn't want to make him worry more than anything else.

Calm down… calm down, Yuuri… you can do it… Yuuri tried to use the 'convince-the-mind-trick'. But it didn't seem to work at the time. His body wouldn't relax. The loud pounding in his heart wouldn't subside.

Yuuri waited and waited. Every second was painful and frustrating, and Conrad wasn't leaving his room.

Just as Yuuri thought that he wouldn't be able to hold back anymore, he felt a gentle pat on his cheek. Conrad's touch was as warm as usual. Like always, it could wash away every bit of anxiousness in his stomach.

After whispering a 'good night', Conrad finally left the room.

"…That was close," Murata commented as Conrad exited the door and walked back to his room, "do you think he knew that you were awake?"

"Probably…" Yuuri slowly opened his eyes and sat up, bringing one hand to his chest, feeling his own heartbeat, "After all, he knows everything about me… he understands me without needing to ask… and he named me… and he saved me numerous time… he always risks his life for me…"

Murata smiled, "He must mean a lot to you. It's nice to have someone like that."

Yuuri returned his smile, although the smile looked kind of bitter, "Yeah… I trust him more than anybody else…"

Realizing that his master was being reminded about his angst, Murata swiftly switched the topic for him, "How long do you plan to stay in bed, anyway. Hurry up and get down here. You'll easily fall asleep over there."

Yuuri just chuckled, then he rested his head back on the pillow and pulled his blanket up again, much to Murata's surprise, "It's okay, it's okay. It's too cold there. I'll just stay here for the rest of the night."

"Besides…" Yuuri added before Murata had a chance to object.

"…It's not like I'll be able to sleep after that…"

XXX

A moment after the sun rose, Yuuri decided that it was time for him to get up.

The morning was a bit chillier than the previous one, but Yuuri didn't really care. He got out of his bed and left his warm blanket without hesitation. He went straight away to get dressed. As he got ready, he was thinking that a morning exercise would help him rearrange his problematic mind.

As he opened the door, the guard in front of his room greeted him a gracious good morning and handed over a little box to him, saying that it was a present from Wolfram.

Perhaps it's the thing that he bought yesterday in town, Yuuri thought as he received the box. It felt light.

After thanking the guard, Yuuri went back inside his room. He wanted to see what kind of gift Wolfram had given him.

"Let me unwrap it for you," Murata offered. Although he didn't show it on his face, he was also curious about it. Yuuri could see it through the blinking glow of his holy ring. Yuuri had also learned the meaning of the other colors so he could easily see through the fairy's mind.

"Oh…" Murata looked inside the box and smiled widely. His holy ring glowed a beautiful shade of lavender, "Shibuya, look. They're really cute."

"Huh? Really?" Yuuri picked the little box up carefully and looked inside. Much to his astonishment, the present turned out to be a pair of dolls. Precisely, one of the dolls resembled Conrad, and the other resembled himself.

"This… where did he get this?" Yuuri stared at both dolls disbelievingly, "Don't tell me that they're handmade…"

Just the image of Wolfram sitting by the window, sewing a doll was enough to make him chuckle. As long as the sun rose in the east, the thing was not possible.

"I must ask him where he bought these." Yuuri smiled happily as he picked up Conrad's doll, staring at it lovingly. He was surprised that the doll gained his liking so easily. He had used to think that dolls were too girly for him.

"Look, there's a switch on his back," Murata pointed up.

"You're right," Yuuri quickly spotted it and switched it on without a second thought, "I wonder what it can do. Perhaps it'll make this doll walk?"

They waited anxiously. But nothing happened.

"Is it broke? How about the other?"

Yuuri placed the doll back in to the box and picked up his own doll. It also had a switch on his back.

Yuuri switched it on, and like the previous one, nothing happened.

"It's strange…" Yuuri put the doll back in to the box, "Why did Wolfram buy---"

"I LOVE YOU, YUURI!"

"I LOVE YOU TOO, CONRAD!"

Both Yuuri and Murata froze at their places, staring at each other in disbelief.

"…What on earth…"

"I'LL PROTECT YOU NOT ONLY WITH MY HANDS, BUT ALSO WITH MY LIFE AND MY HEART!"

"I'M SO HAPPY, CONRAD!"

Yuuri quickly realized that the voices came from the dolls. Murata had also seemed to notice it, but both of them were too shocked to do anything to stop the dolls from screaming further.

"I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU!"

"ME NEITHER! LET'S BE TOGETHER FOREVER AFTER!"

The dolls resumed their friendly conversation, as if they were in a world of their own.

"WILL YOU MARRY ME, YUURI?"

"WITH PLEASURE, CONRAD!"

Yuuri couldn't stand it anymore. He accidentally dropped the box and the dolls were thrown out apart from each other. Then the conversation finally stopped and Yuuri recalled how to breathe again.

"…What was that?" Murata muttered after a long moment of silence.

"…I… don't know…" Yuuri replied weakly.

And they stared at each other again in silence, not knowing how to respond to the previous incident.

"…Wolfram has to explain this…"

XXX

"Wolfram! Wolfram! Wake up!"

The blond slowly stirred, rubbing his eyes lazily, "…What the… it's still too early, wimp… lemme sleep…"

"The dolls! The dolls you gave me! Who made them? Is it Anissina-san?"

Wolfram closed his eyes again and muttered softly, "…you can thank me later for that… now lemme sleep first…"

"There's no way I like it! The dolls speak weird things! Haven't you heard it?"

"Yeah… I know… I've heard it… that's why I bought them…" Wolfram replied, still only half-awake.

"How could you---hey, don't fall asleep again! Wolfram!"

Wolfram finally gave up the idea of resuming his beauty sleep and faced the troubled 'problem' in front of him. At first, all he felt was annoyance for getting disturbed very early in the morning, but as he recovered his vision, he realized that something was terribly wrong with the king. He had never seen such an expression from Yuuri. It was like the mix of confusion and embarrassment and not knowing how to react.

"The dolls you gave me, when I turned on their switches and put them close to each other, they started screaming—things!" Yuuri started, trying to give the yawning blond in front of him a detailed picture of his problem, "And then, I dropped the box and they were thrown apart and they finally stopped screaming. Well, I've seen dolls of their type in my world before (my mom used to collect some of them), but how come someone produce the dolls of Conrad and me and designed them to say--things like that? Where did you buy them?"

"Those dolls are the dolls I talked about yesterday, remember?" Wolfram replied with a rare calmness in his voice. The way Yuuri reacted just astonished him that he had forgotten to yell, "They are quite popular among the people today. Be thankful. I went through a lot of trouble to get the ones I gave you, the limited edition of Super Duper Mushy Conrad x Yuuri Romance! It's the #1 doll set in demand in the market now!" (A/N: yeah, I know what you're thinking about right now, but be tough and bear it… –sweatdrop-)

Yuuri was struck speechless. If it was in his reality, Yuuri was sure that he would have fainted at this instant. Why would people buy such an embarrassing thing like that? And did it mean that Conrad had also known about it? How was he supposed to see the man with a straight face later?

While Yuuri was overwhelmed with his own problems, Wolfram was silently enjoying the troubled expression on the king, although he didn't really understand why Yuuri had looked so bothered with the dolls. He, like all of the people in the nation, thought that they were cute.

"Have you shown them to Conrad?" Yuuri asked while silently hoping that Wolfram would say 'no'. His heart shattered as the blond nodded positively. "What did he say about it?"

Wolfram made a thinking face, trying to recall his big brother's words on the previous night, "I think he likes them."

"Has he also known about the switch?" Yuuri asked again, terrified.

"I didn't turn it on for him, but he had known about it. He said that Yozak and several of his friends had been making fun of him using it." The blond yawned again, "So there, are you done with your interrogation? I'm going back to sleep."

Yuuri wanted to make Wolfram stay awake, but he was also unsure what else he wanted to know from him, so he didn't stop him from returning to his deep slumber.

The situation felt so weird. Wolfram, who had always said something like 'Hands off! He's my fiancé!' had suddenly bought him a Conrad x Yuuri doll set. Conrad, who was also supposed to be as panicked as him had reacted so casually at the presence of the embarrassing dolls. Even Yozak and the others had bought them just to tease Conrad. Then how was he supposed to counter it? The others were not responding the way they should. Even for a dream, the state was unthinkable.

Yuuri turned back to the door. He had to see Conrad and discuss it right away.

XXX

Although Yuuri had made the decision to see Conrad right away, he couldn't help feeling nervous as he arrived at Conrad's room. So he waited outside for a moment, trying to find the suitable words to explain the situation and ask for advice.

After waiting for several minutes, Yuuri made up his mind and knocked on the door.

He didn't have to wait for too long until somebody opened the door for him. But it was not Conrad. It was one of the maids.

"Eh? Heika? Are you looking for Sir Conrad?" The maid asked him.

"Heika is here?" Another maid appeared from her back, smiling at him cheerfully, "Good morning, Heika! What can I help you with?"

"He's looking for Sir Conrad." The first maid explained, "But it's strange. Sir Conrad had left long time ago to wake you up. Didn't you meet? Shall we look for him?"

Yuuri shook his head, "No, thanks. I'll go and find him myself. He's probably waiting for me outside for the morning exercise."

"Or maybe he is in the main hall to check on it." The second maid suddenly said.

"Oh, right. He probably is." The first maid blinked in realization, "I heard that he had brought home another… err… peculiar thing last night."

Yuuri looked at them in confusion, "What is it?"

"So you haven't seen it, Heika?" The second maid looked surprised, "Umm… I'm sorry for being impolite, but he's really no good at it. Maybe you should take over the job for him."

Yuuri was taken aback. As much as he knew, Conrad was doing his job excellently. What kind of mistake could have the man done that the maid was suggesting him to replace Conrad?

"What are you talking about? Sir Conrad has tried his best! Don't ask him to give up at this point!" The first maid scolded her friend, "Heika, please support Sir Conrad. Everybody in this castle has given up on him. You're the only one who can encourage him to go on."

Yuuri became even more puzzled, and could not even find the right question to ask.

"I'm so sorry, Heika. Please forget what I said." The second maid bowed down apologetically, "I---I also think that he's not that bad. With more encouragement from you, perhaps…"

By the time she lifted up her head again, her king had disappeared.

"Heika?"

"He left for the main hall." The first maid replied, smiling in amusement, "I wonder how'll he react when he sees it…"

The second maid sighed, "I hate to say this… but Sir Conrad is really bad at this kind of thing…"

The first maid shrugged, "I'm just hoping they won't have to reschedule the wedding date again for this. I really want to see them together as soon as possible."

XXX

TBC