Author's Notes: Thank you everyone for staying with this story so far. I hope you are enjoying it. Thanks to everyone who left a review. It really puts a smile on my face when I get them.

Chapter 6

--Wolfram--

I said goodbye to the Ten Nobles as my fiancé kept vigil at my brother's bedside. They had approved of our engagement after, in their words, bearing witness to the strength of our affection. It was a hollow victory.

I hadn't heard from the Maou since his display at the battlefield. I wasn't sure if it was due to my anger or perhaps I had been more forceful in suppressing him. Perhaps, he was as wimpy as the other one. Either way, I didn't feel like talking to either of them.

I felt a small hand in mine and I looked down. It was natural for her to do this with Yuuri, he was the more outwardly affectionate parent. Greta's smile did sooth me a bit and the world started to go back to normal.

"Do I need to show thee who is thy lord and master?" the deep voice sounded in my head.

Great.

"Good, do not forget, Lord von Bielefeld," he added.

I turned towards the castle, since one part of him was already bothering me, I might as well get it over with and speak to the other part.

"Your Majesty," Günter called out. Greta and I stopped. I glanced at her and she nodded. I stared a few moments after her retreating figure and smiled. I had Yuuri's body so I can shamelessly gaze proudly all I want.

"Yes, Günter?"

"I did not have the chance to say this during council since we broke rather early, but I wanted to express my sentiments on your engagement." He looked towards the hills as if trying to form the words in his head. This was atypical of Günter who would normally gush off in a waterfall of eloquence.

"Wolfram is a selfish brat. A spoiled prince. Impetuous. Obnoxious. Loud. Tactless," he said as he turned to face me. Tell me something I don't know. "But Your Majesty, in your wisdom, you had ignored all those and recognized his strengths. It was no accident that he was elected to succeed you when you left. His uncle may have nominated him, but Waltorana is not the type of person who would put family before the kingdom. The Ten Nobles did not choose lightly, he would have have made a good king. Your Majesty, if there was anyone fit enough to be by your exalted self, it would have to be Wolfram."

I stared at him in shock.

"Please don't tell Wolfram I said that," he said before he went inside, "he's still an obnoxious brat after all."

Gwendal and I watched in stunned silence as the man disappeared into the castle. My brother turned to me with a smile; it was that secret smile we shared when we were younger and we had done something mischievous and he was pretending to be above it. I sniggered back.

I kept that lighthearted feeling all the way to Conrart's room but it disappeared all too quickly when I saw my king. He was slumped down on a chair beside the bed with his head on his hands. He looked up when he heard the door. He gave me a bittersweet smile, "Wolf..."

I stopped in front of him and looked down at Conrart's sleeping figure. "How is he?" I asked even though Gisela had already informed me. There were too many words vying to get out of my head, but they were too difficult to think about, much less say. This was simple. Easy.

"Gisela said he will be fine. They didn't hit any critical organs. He suffered mainly from blood loss. She already healed most of the damage and he'll just need to rest. He'll be back good as new in a few days."

Before I could scold him for looking so morose, he added, "How did the council meeting go?"

I crossed my arms in front of my chest before I answered, "Well."

"And..." he said expectantly.

"What did you think? Of course, they approved our engagement. Were you hoping otherwise?"

"Heh-heh-eh. No." He put his hands up in that way he did when he thought I was about to beat him up. Wimp.

"I'm sorry, Wolf," he continued when he realized there was no punch coming. "I should have been there with you. You shouldn't have to answer for me. And then I didn't even do your part, instead I left you hanging."

"There is no help for it, you're our wimpy king, after all," I said as I looked at my brother's face. "We got there in time and everything turned out well in the end." I turned to him and smiled.

"Still, I'm sorry. Next time, I promise to be there."

"Don't make promises you can't keep. You're the king. You need to think of your words before you bandy them about. Besides, the only way you'd have to go through that kind of meeting is if I leave you."

"You're not leaving me, are you?!" he exclaimed as his eyes got unusually large. Not when you're looking at me like that, idiot.

"I should because you're irritating."

"Aw, come on. I said I was sorry."

"Don't worry, the Maou came and answered for you anyway. All I did was watch."

"Th-that was nice of him."

"He is you, after all. And you are kind. But I was glad I didn't have to pretend to be you. It would have been very awkward."

"So what did I say?"

"What do you mean what did you say?"

"You know... what I answered, what they asked. I'm curious."

"Huh?!! Don't you know what you would have said about me? Are you saying you feel differently than the Maou? How can that be? You're the same person!"

"How am I suppose to know what I said, I wasn't there and I don't know what questions they asked. And why is your face red? You're blushing! Did I say something embarrassing at the meeting? Did I babble about my ero-ero dreams?"

"What?!!" I smacked him then regretted it because I just hit my face. "Why would the Maou do that? Do you think the Ten Nobles would be so crass as to ask about our sexual life? Sometimes I don't know what the hell goes inside that wimpy little head of yours."

The argument would have probably gone on indefinitely if His Eminence didn't come to interrupt us. Sometimes I feel our engagement was just one long argument with regular interruptions. I knew love was hard work, but there were times when I harbored a suspicion that Yuuri was some kind of sado-masochist who got off on making our relationship more difficult than it should be.

"Your Emi-- Murata, er, how's it going?"

"You can drop the act, Lord von Bielefeld," His Eminence said, "though I do like you calling me Murata. It would be really nice to hear it coming from your lips instead of Shibuya's borrowed ones."

"Murata..."

"Almost, Shibuya, though I would like to think he would say it with a different intonation.... Anyway, isn't it rude to have a lovers' quarrel in front of a dying man?"

"We're not having a lovers' quarrel!"

"My brother is not dying!"

"Well then, if he's not dying, why don't we fix that little problem of yours. Or do you like being in each other's bodies? I suppose it's kinky in a rather disturbed way." He paused before continuing, "From the look on your faces, I'll assume otherwise. Though Shibuya, you need to stop staring at mirrors. Lord von Bielefeld is getting a reputation of being a terrible narcissist."

"Yuuri..."

"I know, Wolf, I'm just tired... and I guess I feel bad leaving without saying goodbye at least."

"I don't think you understand that it's difficult for me to protect you when you're split like this," I told him. "I can't move in your body easily. I don't know who to protect, this body or that one."

"He's right, you know," His Eminence agreed. "Lord Weller is not going anywhere and your presence by his side is not going to make him recover faster. Your impulse to play as Lord von Bielefeld could have ended badly. I didn't know that your powers did not go with you or I would have stopped you. A miscalculation on my part and it's not something I would like to happen again. We would all rest much easier when you are back to yourself."

Somehow His Eminence's speech made my fiancé look even more distraught. "Yuuri, we can wait until he wakes up."

"It's not that," he replied giving me a wan smile. "Let's go now okay. And we'll go back as soon as I am rested to make the return trip. I know you must be worried about him also."

I felt there was something else he was not saying. We were both worried for Conrart, but he was a soldier and stronger than I. This little thing wouldn't keep him down.

"Well, if you two are done making lovey-dovey googly eyes at each other, we should get going."

"We're not making googly eyes at each other..."

"Really? Because that's what it looked like."

A few minutes and another world later, His Eminence was making another one of his taunting comments, "Well, you're certainly not making lovey-dovey googly eyes anymore."

I was angrily toweling my body dry. Or more correctly, Yuuri's body. I was still in it.

"I don't know why it didn't work," the wimp said, "maybe, it's because the Maou isn't in me."

That was true. Yuuri had not been able to transport us to Earth. I had to do it with His Eminence guiding me outwardly and the Maou guiding me inwardly. Still, I felt fortunate to have actually made it. For a split second, I thought we would end up in an entirely different world more screwed up than this one. I was, however, not happy that the journey did not reverse our problem. In fact, I was very far from happy if my growling was any indication.

"I don't think that's it, Shibuya," His Eminence replied. "The exchange between you and your brother is slightly different from your exchange with Lord von Bielefeld, therefore, the cause must be different and the solution different.... I wonder if that's it," he said thoughtfully. "But I'd like to investigate it first.... Besides you might even figure it out before I do. There isn't much danger here as in Shin Makoku. And it couldn't hurt that you two spend some time in each other's shoes."

I stopped my growling. This actually posed some opportunities for me.

"I am heartened that thou wish not to part yet," said the deep voice inside my head.

It's not that.

"His Eminence is right, it is safer here. You are able to survive here without my protection."

"You know, I've never asked this, but why do you readily agree to Murata's ideas and yet you argue with me."

"I must agree with my other self," the Yuuri inside my head added, "thy temper, which is more explosive than a volcano, need not be kept only for us. It would amuse me if thou decide to unleash it on the Great Sage."

"What are you talking about? I only argue with you because you do foolish things," I answered wimpy Yuuri. I didn't bother answering the other one.

"Shibuya, you are being unfair. Our blond tsundere is playing favorites towards you."

Yuuri turned his sour look on the other double black. Perhaps, I should have sided with my fiancé and tried to get answers out of His Eminence. Regret came when the Maou took over Yuuri's body as soon as my future mother-in-law barged in the bathroom squealing with excitement.

Dinner was strange, Yuuri was quiet while the Maou and His Eminence were talkative. Father Shouma was out on a business trip and Shouri had not come home yet. So it was only us and Mother Jennifer.

What are you doing? I asked the Maou at one point.

"Spending time with my honorable mother," he replied.

I was amused by that.

However, my amusement did not last. It ended once we were in bed. The Maou still refused to relinquish control of Yuuri's body and he started his sexual harassment not only on my mind but on my physical form.

I felt my body snuggle up to Yuuri who reacted predictably, his body stiffly shot up and he started blubbering, "W-W-Wolf, what are you doing?"

"Wolfram?" the Maou answered in a playful tone, "Oh, our fiancé is currently trying to resist me."

"Y-Y-You!!! What are you doing? You're me! What am I doing?!" he shouted then slammed his hand on his mouth and whispered harshly to himself, "what the hell is Wolfram doing going Maou-mode?"

"Look," Yuuri continued as he pointed his finger on my chest, "you-me, why are you out? Is there any danger in the vicinity? Should we get Mom, Dad and Shouri out of here? Perhaps call Bob-san or Rodriguez-san?"

I felt lips break into a smirk as the Maou flashed a dirty picture in my mind, "The danger is only to our virginity."

Geez, where did you learn such a stupid way to talk.

Yuuri's mouth was opening and closing with no words coming out.

A couple of the Maou's fingers found themselves between Yuuri's lips and he stopped his absurd imitation of a fish.

"Suck them," the Maou whispered seductively.

"What?!!" Yuuri spat out.

What?!! I screamed in my head. Have you gone insane?

"Why? We all desire this don't we?" the Maou said out loud.

"N-n-no!!!" Yuuri retorted, "I cannot even begin to say what is wrong with this picture. Why would I want to-to-to... to do dirty things to my own body? Why would you want to do dirty things with me? I-I-I... I've gone insane."

You're damn right, wimp!

"I must disagree," the Maou said, "we have done numerous wanton deeds to our body. And who can blame us, for we are in the zenith of our youth. Is it not our obligation, our solemn duty to abandon ourselves to this pleasure? The beauty of our joining shall be spoken of with reverence for years to come."

You've been talking to Günter too much.

"I think I've been spending too much time with Günter," Yuuri echoed. "I'm sorry Maou-mode Yuuri, I admit to having ero-ero dreams about Wolfram -- if you're in there Wolf, you'd better not be listening, this is a conversation between me and me..."

Even if you say that, what am I suppose to do? Idiot.

"... but please remember I-we... you and me, we are a guy and Wolfram's a guy. The full set should have a penis, a vagina and a set of breasts..."

Oh you want breasts so much?! I'm going to kill you once I get out of your body.

"Like thou hast never caressed bosoms in this lifetime," the Maou shot at me.

Th-that was a long time ago... before you came.... Have you been delving in my memories?!

"...it's not suppose to be two penises and no breasts," Yuuri continued.

"And yet, the mechanics worked well enough in our dreams," the Maou countered.

"We're not gay and that's final!"

"Are we saying we're not marrying Wolfram?"

"That's not what I'm saying."

"We're marrying Wolfram?"

"We're not talking about this while we're like this. And please put some distance between us."

I realized that the Maou had been licking the base of Yuuri's neck as he talked.

"Thou must release me first," the Maou answered.

Yuuri cried a graceless 'gyah!' as he removed his hand from my backside. "This body is betraying me," he added.

"Beloved, we will continue this," the Maou echoed in my head, "do not forget thou art mine."

I felt him release control. I wasted no time in grabbing Yuuri's collar, "Wimp! You pervert!"

"Wolf! You're back!"

"You moron! You idiot! You CHEATER!!! How dare you say I need breasts and a vagina."

"I didn't say you need those..."

"What did you mean then? Huh? That you're going to have someone other than me! Tell me!"

"W-W-Wolf, you're going to wake up the whole house. Why would I want anyone else, I already have my hands full with just you."

I slammed his body back on the bed and got up.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm not sleeping with you tonight."

"Hey, we're not at Blood Pledge Castle, you don't have a room here and we don't have a guest room. Just come back to bed."

"I'll sleep on the sofa."

"You're going to sleep all crooked and your body will hurt in the morning."

"Good, I'll make sure this body is full of cramps before I hand it back. And when I'm back in my own, then I'll beat you up."

"W-Wolf, calm down please."

"Hmph!"

"Aw.... Fine. I'll get the futon out, just stay in this room. I promise I won't try anything stupid okay? Well... I guess I can't really promise that since I've gone all kinds of stupid. We'll get this mix-up sorted out and then we can go home. Okay? Please don't be mad."

How can I stay mad when he says pretty words in that dopey earnest way of his?

"Wimp."

A/N: Next Chapter - spending time with family