Edited: 11/10/20

A/N: If anyone is reading this as of the update, I decided to change the OC I made who has an interest in Yuuri into being Sara. I didn't like the OC (Alaric) and decided to make him into a canon character. However, Sara still might be ooc. Also, I kept going back and forth with who would be the "Hyena's". Sara was one of them but now they will just be Raven, Nigel, and Dorkas, just to clear things up. I will go back and fix names in previous chapters, but keep in mind they won't be fixed in future chapters till I edit all of them. Sorry if this causes any confusion. :)

Outskirts of Shin Makoku

With Wolfram

Wolfram was lost.

He was physically and mentally lost and drained. It felt as if he was no longer connected to his own body. He had no control, like he was watching from the outside as his body walked along. Not knowing where he was going, but just knowing he had to get away. What was he supposed to do now? Where was he supposed to go? Wolfram never realized how much your life could change in such little time. He felt absolutely helpless. And hopeless.

He couldn't let himself think about the people he had left behind. He had never wanted to leave them. But what else could he do? They would never look at him the same way again after they found out what he did.

What he did...

His blood ran cold again as tears came to his eyes. He was a murderer. He killed someone. His...father. He deserved this. He didn't mean to do it. But that doesn't mean it didn't happen. And what he doesn't deserve is his mother and his best friend there to support him through this...

But he does want it. He selfishly wants that. He's never felt so alone and scared. Which is why he can't. He did something terrible and unforgivable. He doesn't deserve their sympathy. And they never did anything that would deserve getting caught up in his terrible sins. He deserved this suffering. They don't.

They would be better off without him, anyways.

Once Wolfram made it far enough into the woods, he climbed and crawled through the brush and sat down in it. It was getting dark. And he's heard enough stories to know what happens at night. The dangers in it. That was why he was never allowed outside after the sun went down. Of course, it was a lot more dangerous out here than it was inside the borders of Shin Makoku.

Wolfram was terrified. He couldn't help but wonder what would become of him now. He had nowhere to go. He doesn't know anything about the places outside of Shin Makoku. And he can't let anyone in Shin Makoku see him either. Because what if they recognized him?

That couldn't happen. He promised himself he wouldn't ever go back there. And that's a promise he intends to keep.

Tears spilled out of Wolfram's eyes. He was lonely, cold, and helpless. He didn't know what to do...

So he just curled up into a ball, trying to keep himself warm as he continued to cry. Wolfram doesn't remember ever crying so much. In his whole life, the only times he had cried was when he was a baby. Because he has no memories of ever crying. Yuuri was the one who cried. And he had to be even more strong for him. And besides that, Wolfram would say it was a weakness.

And Wolfram refused to show any weaknesses.

Unlike Yuuri...

Wolfram shakes his head. He has to stop thinking about him and his mother. It will only bring him pain. Because he knows he'll never see them again. That he can't see them again.

Wolfram continues to cry and he doesn't stop until he falls asleep.

WolfYuu WolfYuu WolfYuu

Wolfram wakes to the sound of hushed whispers. He stiffens instantly as he hears two voices arguing back and forth.

"We can't just leave him here! He's only a child!"

"He's one of them! Who cares if he's a child?"

"Yozak! Don't be like that! If you say that, it will only make you as terrible as they are. And besides, considering he is in fact a child, they wouldn't have drilled such prejudices in him. He wouldn't have anything against us. And we can't just leave him here to die. We should take him in."

Wolfram frowned as his eyes peaked open to look at them. Take him in? They would take him in? Well, at least one of them seemed to want to. He glanced up at them to see a man with short brown hair and eyes. And he looked too noble for his own good. The other one had short orange colored hair.

This one kind of annoyed Wolfram.

Yozak, Wolfram remembered the other man calling him. Who exactly were these men? Were they Mazoku? But they didn't have god-like qualities in their looks the way other Mazoku did.

However, they didn't look as plain and ordinary as most humans did either.

"I really don't think this is...," Yozak trailed off, and then suddenly a huge grin made its way onto his face. "Wait! Which element do you think he has? If we take him in, then maybe he'll be on our side!"

Wolfram sees the brown haired one roll his eyes in exasperation. Then he noticed Yozak starting to walk up closer to him. He stiffened as he kept getting closer. Then Yozak's hand reaches out to him and his eyes widen fearfully. Wolfram started to panic and he jumped up as fire burst out of him towards the orange haired man.

"Ahhhhhh!" Yozak screamed as he backed away from the fire.

"Yozak!" The brunette screamed as he ran towards his friend and grabbed onto him to hold him up. "Are you okay?! Did you get burned?"

"That little brat! How dare he?! Look what he did to my hands!"

The brunette sighed as he looked down at Yozaks hands. "Relax, they'll heal. They aren't too bad. And obviously you scared him. Can't you see how terrified he is? He's all alone and suddenly a strange man starts to walk up to him. He was only defending himself."

Yozak turned to glare at him, "Oh, stop defending him, Conrad! The brat can't just burn everyone that comes near him."

Conrad gives him a look. "He's a child! And I'm guessing he went through something terrible! He wouldn't be on his own, otherwise. Try and be more considerate."

Wolfram shakes slightly as he watches the strange men interact with each other. What was going on? Suddenly the brunette, Conrad, leaned down on one knee in front of him and gave him a small, soft smile.

"Hello. I'm Conrad. And this is Yozak. What is your name?"

Wolfram holds back a scowl. Why is he talking to me like that? I'm not stupid. I have already figured out what their names are.

He paused, not really wanting to speak to them, but eventually decided it wouldn't hurt anything.

"Wolfram. What are you?" Not who are you. What are you? Wolfram needed to know.

Yozak's glaring at him again, but frankly he doesn't care. He's used to people glaring at him at this point. Conrad's not glaring at him, though. In fact, the soft expression on his face didn't change in the slightest.

"We are half Mazoku and half human, Wolfram."

Wolfram looks up at him in bemusement. "What?"

Wolfram's never heard of such a thing. He knows of Mazoku. And he knows of humans, too. But not of someone that could be both. Is that really possible?

Conrad nods, "Yes, my father was a human. But my mother was a Mazoku."

Oh. Wolfram supposed that would make sense. It just never occurred to him before that Mazoku and humans would ever have children together. From his experience, they all hated each other.

"Are you more like a human then? Or a Mazoku?" Wolfram was curious about these people. They weren't like anyone he was used to being around.

"We don't have any maryoku. Though, we do live longer than the average human."

Wolfram blinks at him, taking in this new information. That is...interesting, "How am I supposed to know if I can trust you? I haven't had good experiences with humans in the past."

Yozak turns to glare at him, "And you think we've had good experiences with Mazoku in the past? Your kind is the reason we are in hiding in the first place!"

Conrad turns to glare at him, "Yozak!"

Wolfram glares at him fully this time. "Yeah? Well humans have tried to kill me...a few times before. And my best friend, too!"

Yozak looked like he was about to respond, but the words were caught in his throat. Conrad just shakes his head and turns to look at him again.

"Listen, Wolfram. I promise you. You don't need to judge people based on what they are. But who they are. You met some bad humans, but they are not all like that. The same goes for Mazoku. We just want to help you."

Wolfram squeezes his fists together. He doesn't know if he trusts them. And yet...

"Listen, kid. What do you have to lose? Unless you have somewhere better to be," Yozak drawled out.

Wolfram scowls at him this time. How dare he talk to him like that? But, of course, he did have a point...

"You said that you live in hiding, right?"

Conrad frowns slightly, "Yes. I know that's not exactly an ideal living arrangement for you, but-"

Wolfram cut him off, "No. That's actually perfect. I can never go home. And I can't let anyone find me."

Yozak raises an eyebrow at him, "Geez, kid. What exactly did you do?"

Wolfram's teeth clench as he tries to hold back from snapping none of your business at him. But he could only hold back from being a Little Prince Brat for so long.

"Something terrible and what it is is none of your business!"

Yozak just raises an eyebrow curiously, but then raises his hands in mock surrender. "Whatever. You're not the only one who has had bad stuff happen to them, you know."

"Yozak!" Conrad glares at him.

Yozak rolls his eyes, then crosses his arms over the back of his head and looks away from them. Conrad sighs while shaking his head in exasperation. He turns back to look at Wolfram and gives him a small smile.

"Forgive Yozak, Wolfram. He doesn't really mean anything by it. He's just being difficult. Of course, you are welcome to stay with us. Both of us would really be glad to help you."

Yozak glares over at the brunette. "Speak for yourself."

Conrad glares back at him and then looks back at Wolfram, his face softening. "Like I said, just ignore him. He doesn't really mean any harm. Do you want to come with us?"

Wolfram frowns in thought. He doesn't really have anything to lose, does he? Both figuratively and literally, he realizes. And actually, he may be risking his life more by choosing not to go with them. Sure, they could be really untrustworthy. Though Wolfram was sure that if they really wanted to hurt him, they would have tried already. And if they were trustworthy, he would probably last longer with them than he ever would on his own. He bites his bottom lip in thought before shaking his head. He needs to stop doing that. He can't copy the wimp's bad habits. That only leads to thoughts about said wimp, after all.

Wolfram sighs as he looks back up at Conrad and then whispers, "Okay."

WolfYuu WolfYuu WolfYuu

"Where are we exactly?" Wolfram asked as he looked around. They really are in the middle of nowhere. There's no one in sight. Wolfram really hopes they don't sleep on the ground in the middle of the woods like savages. The 'selfish loafer' in him wouldn't be able to take that. He wouldn't be able to go from pampered prince to a savage that sleeps in the dirt. He makes a disgusted face at that thought. How deplorable, he thought. I really expect a nice bed to sleep in.

"We are just off the borders to Shin Makoku, Wolfram. But don't worry. We are also very close to the human territories, so Mazoku never come too far this way."

Wolfram nods, but he still isn't satisfied. He's not as concerned of where they are than he is of where they'll actually be. Do they live in some kind of house? Wolfram really hoped so.

"Well, kid. Here we are," Yozak tells him.

Wolfram's eyes widened. He didn't expect...they live in a jungle. And he didn't expect it to be so beautiful. He didn't think anything could be as beautiful as Shin Makoku. Though, even he had to admit, this place did come very close. There was a beautiful lake nearby.

"There's a little cottage on the other side of the lake, Wolfram. That's where we live. It's very private here," Conrad told him.

Wolfram never expected that he would go from living in a castle to living in a cottage in the jungle...

But he supposes that he's going to have to live with that. He doesn't have much of a choice anymore, after all. He will be fine eventually.

WolfYuu WolfYuu WolfYuu

48 years later

Shin Makoku

With Yuuri

Yuuri is no longer the boy he was before Wolfram's death. He's grown up now, and the man that he has become is hardly even a shadow of what his child self was like. The world that he and everyone else lives in now, that has also changed. Shin Makoku is no longer the beautiful paradise that Yuuri remembers as a child. The droughts that clouded their once beautiful city has destroyed all forms of plants and life within its path. They have become a barren wasteland that makes living very difficult. They are no longer that much different than the abandoned territory Yuuri once visited, that seemed like a different lifetime ago.

There was no hope left. But the drought and famine didn't do that. Adelbert, or rather King Adelbert, did that. He does nothing while his people starve and die everyday. Does nothing as everyday is a battle for them to stay alive. He simply doesn't care. He has his way of doing things and if you don't fit into that, he will get rid of you. Plain and simple. He rules with fear, and Yuuri is sad to say that it works.

After everything that he's seen, it's no wonder he changed. He couldn't be the weak, defenseless, naive boy he was as a child and survive in this world. In fact, Adelbert would have killed him if he were, just like he did with all the other children and elderly people he deemed to be a nuisance and a hindrance.

He could still hear his mother's cries the day they came for him.

"No! You can't take my baby! I'll do anything! Just please don't hurt him! Please!" Were Miko's broken cries.

The only reason he's alive right now is because Adelbert trained him as a soldier from that day on. And he killed people. Right in front of him. In the name of toughening him up.

You must be wondering why Adelbert has the power to do all this. He may be the king, but his decisions have to be approved by the Lords of other territories first. Well, that was years ago. When King Shinou, Rest In Peace, was the king. Things have changed.

When Adelbert first became king, he went to war with the other territories after they went against him. For the first time in history, there was a war brewing inside the walls of Shin Makoku. Against all the territories. All eligible men were supposed to fight, or them and their families would be killed for treason. His father died in that war.

There were so many lives lost that the other territories finally ended the war. By separating from Shin Makoku. And that was how Adelbert became a dictator and had complete control over everything that happens in Shin Makoku.

His mother was never the same either. After his father died, she locked herself up in her home and didn't communicate with anyone except Yuuri and Celi.

And Celi...

She's always with his mother, but both of them barely speak. After everything they've both lost, they fell into a deep depression and refused to see anyone except for him. He feels he has a responsibility to them and tries his best to take care of them.

And as for himself...

He still can't help but think of Wolfram sometimes, and his heart would ache. He remembered the following weeks after his death where he refused to speak. He cried and cried until he was sure he had no tears left. He wouldn't look anyone in the eye.

And Wolfram was a reminder of better times. A time where he was happier than he could ever know now. A time where hope was alive. A time that had a brighter future. A future where Wolfram would have been the king.

So, mostly, he tries not to think about him. He tries not to think or feel much at all.

WolfYuu WolfYuu WolfYuu

Yuuri couldn't believe how much things have changed.

Actually, he barely remembers the time when Shin Makoku was considered 'The Most Beautiful Place on Earth'. As sad as that was. Honestly, he tries not to think about it too much. It leads to hope and Yuuri doesn't have much left in him to feel that anymore.

He feels as if he's drowned in death these last 48 years.

Yuuri sighs after he knocks another's sword out of their hand. Years ago, no one could have possibly imagined Yuuri fighting with anyone. Imagine him using a sword at all. But a lot has changed. He was forced to change. He didn't have a choice. Everyone seemed to lose their ability to make their own choices. His life in particular is no longer being controlled by him.

And yet, he still hates fighting. With a passion he hates it. He can be taught to wield a sword, protect himself and others, but he would never be able to bring himself to kill anyone. It's not in his nature and it never will be in his nature. Even if one day he's finally forced to do it. He'll just never forgive himself. Because he knows that day is coming. And it's a day he's dreading with a passion.

That being said, he still wonders if he was given the chance, if he would kill Adelbert. Out of his own free will. For all the things he has done. Yuuri shivers at his own dark thoughts. He hates to admit it, that he is capable of such a thing, but Yuuri honestly thinks that he would. Though, he thinks that he would be forever changed if he did. Partially kept away in the darkness. Because the idea of taking someone's life away from them makes him sick.

Though, Yuuri has to admit, lesser of the two evils. If he had to feel that way to save everyone else that Adelbert would eventually kill or hurt...Yuuri doesn't think he would think twice if put in that situation.

"Yuuri," A voice calls out to him. "Why do you insist on doing this? You've already surpassed everyone by being the best fighter we have. Must you continue trying to prove yourself?"

Yuuri turns his head to face a pair of striking golden eyes. He recognizes them instantly. "Sara," he states as he sends him a small smile. "I'm not proving anything. It's just...it's a good distraction. That's all."

He nods in understanding. "How is your mother, by the way?"

Yuuri sighs. "Still the same. She barely speaks. She prefers being alone. And I'm pretty sure she's getting sicker."

His mother has been bedridden for months now. He didn't know what was wrong with her. And she refused to see any doctors. He didn't know what to do with her anymore.

Saralegui smiles at him apologetically. "I'm sorry. I wish there was something I could do for you."

Yuuri shakes his head. "You have helped me a lot. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have ever learned how to use a sword. Which means I wouldn't be here now. All you've ever done was try and take care of me."

Saralegui laughs. "And yet you've even surpassed me. You are even Adalbert's favorite."

Yuuri grimaces, then gives a disgusted look. "Don't say that. I'd rather not be his favorite anything. And besides, there's really no point in being the best if I choose not to use it. If I would rather not kill anyone. I'm of very little use to Adalbert, he just doesn't know it."

He smiles again. "There's more to using a sword than killing people, you know." His face softens as he looks at him. "And anyways, you have many uses. The fact that you won't kill anyone, I like that about you. I...don't ever want you to change."

Yuuri bites his bottom lip as he looks at him. "Sara..."

He sighs, "I know. You don't think of me that way. But...Yuuri, you have to let go of the late prince sometime."

Yuuri frowns. "Sara. I was a child. I didn't have any of those kinds of feelings for...Wolfram. And that has nothing to do with us."

Saralegui gives him a sad, angelic smile. "Could have fooled me. But it is another day. And I have yet to tell you that I love you."

Yuuri flinches slightly. "Must you tell me that everyday? I know how you feel. You've made that clear. And you know how I feel. And this just makes me feel more guilty. And I shouldn't feel that way just because I don't return your feelings."

Saralegui sighs. "I keep saying it because I'm hoping one day you will let go of your past and return my feelings."

Yuuri closes his eyes tightly. He hates feeling like this. He's never going to return his feelings. He hates the fact that he's hurting him. He cares for Sara. These past years have been very difficult and somehow Saralegui has helped him through it. He would have been dead years ago if it wasn't for him. As a child, he was meek, naive, and probably way too trusting. He would never have survived under Adelbert's reign. Just like Wolfram used to say, he was a wimp. Yuuri smiled bitterly at the thought, as an empty nostalgic feeling overtook him. He hated that feeling. It hurt a lot.

Yuuri shakes his head, making the painful thoughts disappear from his mind. Now, Yuuri knew he was still all those things. Just not to the extent that he was when he was a child. He got hit with a severe case of reality. Not everyone was inherently good. People were capable of doing bad and terrible things. That being said, Yuuri still wanted to believe the best in everyone. He didn't want to assume they were terrible people before he got the chance to see it for himself.

Yuuri looked back up into Saralegui's soft, kind looking eyes and whispered, "I'm sorry, Sara..."

Saralegui smiles sadly and almost bitterly back at him, "And that's how you've responded since the first time I've told you. And you'll probably say it again tomorrow. But I'll keep on saying it. There's hardly anything wrong with my reminding you, after all."

Before Yuuri could respond, a soft, panicked voice cut through to them. "Yuuri!"

Yuuri looks over and blinks in confusion as Gisela runs towards him, her face pale. "Gisela?" Yuuri ran towards her and put his arms around her, trying to calm the frantic maid. He patted her back as he hushed her. What could have worked her up so much? "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Oh, Yuuri! It's terrible! A little human girl...she came here...she tried to assassinate the king! And now he's sentencing the child to death! He was so angry...he's going to tie her up like some animal and have the humans torture her!" Gisela told him her eyes filled with tears.

Shock and fear filled Yuuri's veins. What could this girl be thinking? Has she not heard the terrible stories regarding Adelbert? His cruelty towards children? He feels his throat close in terror at the thought of it happening again. It always feels like he can't breathe at just the thought of anyone else facing the cruelty that is Adelbert.

Instinctively, he releases Gisela and tries to take off toward Blood Pledge Castle. But before he gets the chance to escape, someone grabs his wrist tightly, preventing him from moving. He turns around to find Sara there, holding him back and glaring at him.

"Yuuri, stop! You can't just run to the rescue every time someone's in danger. They are not your responsibility. You're only endangering yourself! Remember what happened last time?"

Yuuri shivers before responding, "Of course I-"

Saralegui cuts him off, "You took the punishment for those children that stole the bread! You're just lucky Adelbert likes you and you're too big of an asset for him to lose. You could have lost both your hands! But he chose to whip you instead, just so he wouldn't lose his best soldier because he had to cut both of his hands off!"

Yuuri bites his bottom lip before arguing, "I had to-!"

He glares at him and says through clenched teeth, frustrated, worried, "No, you didn't! It's not your job to protect everyone! Who was it who had to deal with your wounds every time you've decided to play hero?"

Yuuri sends him a glare back. "I never asked you to! And besides, if I don't protect people, who will? As far as I'm concerned, it is my job. Now let me go."

Alaric's teeth clench tighter. "Do you really have such little sense of self preservation? Do you really value your life so little?"

Yuuri stands his ground as he answers sternly, honestly, "Yes."

Alaric's eyes widened. "Wha-?"

Yuuri twists his arm out of Alaric's hand, who loosened his grip out of surprise. "Their lives are worth more to me than my life ever will. Protecting them...makes me feel like my life is worth something." He sends Alaric one last glare before walking away. "So stop trying to stop me. That isn't your job."

WolfYuu WolfYuu WolfYuu

Yuuri has experienced a lot of dark and gruesome things happen to people at Adelbert's hands. He feels guilt over the ones he couldn't seem to save. And though he didn't want to admit it, this girl just may be one of them. Because he's, sadly, probably one of the few people who cares. Since she's a human, a lot of Mazoku wouldn't care so much. But Adelbert wouldn't care about that. He would care about the fact that she's a child and of little use to him. He would care that she is from another territory and she tried to kill him.

But none of that was going to stop Yuuri. In his mind, she was a little girl who needed help. Who cared if she was a human? In Yuuri's opinion, humans and Mazoku were hardly any different. And he couldn't imagine the kind of life she must have lived through to feel so desperate to try to kill Adelbert. Many people wanted to, many people attempted to, but no one has succeeded. Much less a little human girl with a knife.

When he made it to the royal courtyards, he hid behind a tree to see what was going on. He looked to see a little girl with tan skin and short brown hair and brown eyes. She had tears streaming down her face and she was tied up on the ground as she looked up fearfully at a smirking Adelbert, who was leaning over her almost predatorily.

"Nigel, Raven," Adelbert commanded with narrowed eyes as he looked behind him. Many Mazoku were standing around watching the scene before them. Looking almost thrilled. Like for once they felt Adelbert was doing something right.

This disgusted Yuuri. How could anyone be filled with so much hatred that they felt that something so disgustingly horrible was okay? This was a child. Did hatred and bigotry really run this deep?

"Yes, My King?" Raven asked as he answered Adelbert.

"I want her tortured. To the extreme for her crimes against us. Against me. I want her to suffer severely for what she's done. So torture her for at least two days before killing her. I'll decide at the end of the two days if she has had enough. And if you can put her out of her misery."

Nigel nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Yuuri stiffened as he watched Raven walk up to the little girl who glanced up at him, fear evident in her features before she burst into tears. Yuuri has had enough.

No more.

"Stop!" Yuuri cries as he runs out towards them. He stops in front of her and shields her from the sadistic humans in front of him.

Adelbert practically growls out. "Yuuri! There's nothing you can do this time. There is no getting out of trying to assassinate the king!"

Yuuri's teeth clench as he glares up at him. "Then I plead for guardianship!"

Yuuri heard a mixture of both surprised and disgusted gasps behind him. He chose to ignore them. He refused to lose his firm stand on the subject.

Adelbert grits his teeth as he snarled, "You can't do that!"

Yuuri just glares back, not wanting to lose his stance. "Legally I can! She is a child! Which means I have the right to take responsibility over her."

Adelbert snarled again as he walked back and forth, trying to figure out what to do. He sent a glare every so often towards Yuuri. Suddenly Adelbert stops and then turns to face Yuuri.

"Fine," Adelbert answers and surprised whispers are heard amongst the crowd. "She is now your responsibility. But you must make it official. Adopt her. Because she is never allowed to leave Shin Makoku and go back to wherever she came from."

Yuuri looks down at the terrified child before looking back up at Adelbert. "Fine."

"And Yuuri," Adelbert looks at him sternly. "I wouldn't make it a habit to cross me. I hope you are ready to deal with the consequences of having the reputation of a Mazoku with a human child."

Yuuri stood his ground, but started to tremble on the inside. He could care less for his reputation. "I am."

Yuuri relaxed slightly as Adelbert turned his back to him. Then he watched as Adelbert started to walk away, but then stopped next to the sadistic humans and said, "You will keep an eye on them."

They all nodded in unison and Yuuri glared at Adelbert's retreating back. Yuuri knows he wasn't getting away with this that easy. Adelbert would surely get back at him for humiliating him. He always does.

Yuuri quickly turns around to look at the girl. She was covered in dirt and blood and tears were still streaming down her face. Yuuri completely softened as he looked at her. He kneeled down next to her and frowned as she flinched away from him.

"Hey, it's okay," Yuuri said, keeping his voice soft. "I'm not going to hurt you..."

She quickly glared at him. "You're one of them."

Yuuri blinked at her in bemusement. "Them?"

"Mazoku," She spat the name out like it was disgusting.

Yuuri frowned and held back a flinch at the way she said it. "I'm sorry for what Adelbert did. I mean, you did try to kill him, but he obviously took it too far..."

"That's not what I meant!" The girl burst out, startling Yuuri. "Mazoku killed my parents! Killing their king was the only way I knew how to..."

She quickly stopped like she revealed too much and then looked down at the ground. Trying not to look at him at all. She just fell silent.

Yuuri's features soften, sympathy for this girl consuming him. "I really am sorry about your parents. But honestly, you would have probably done most Mazoku a favor if you had succeeded..."

"I have always been told Mazoku weren't like us. They were demons and didn't deserve to exist." She paused before looking up to glare at him. "I didn't believe it. But then they killed my parents."

Yuuri sighed. "I honestly am sorry about your parents. But not all Mazoku are like that. Can you honestly tell me all humans are good?"

She frowned in thought before looking away from him. Yuuri closed his eyes before opening them and looking at her again.

"Listen. You don't have to trust me. Though I promise I would never hurt you. Would I have saved you if I didn't?"

Her teeth clench. "I've always been taught that Mazoku always have ulterior motives."

"Well, the way I see it, you have a choice between me and Adelbert. And at least with me, you're not completely sure that I'm going to kill you."

The girl frowned and nervously looked around. She was obviously looking for an escape, but when she was unable to find one, she turned back to face the double black before nodding. Yuuri relaxed and sighed in relief. He couldn't explain it, but he felt strangely protective of her. The thought of her getting hurt made him sick to his stomach.

"Alright, then. I'm Yuuri, by the way."

She rolled her eyes. "I know that. That's what the demon king called you."

Yuuri flushed. "Right. So what's your name?"

They quietly walked along, the girl biting her bottom lip as she tried to figure out if she should tell him or not. She then glanced up at him shyly and responded, "Greta."

Yuuri smiled as she answered him. Greta, he repeated in his mind. He couldn't wait to introduce her to his mother. She would love her. And Celi would, too. He took her to his home where both his mother and Celi stayed with him. He tried to take care of them as much as he could. They were the only family he had left, after all. Of course, it was still difficult. They both refused to even leave the house. They haven't been outside in years. And his mother hadn't left her bed for months. Yuuri didn't know what to do for either of them anymore. He didn't know how to help them.

"Yuuri?" A soft, warm voice asked from inside the house. He turned towards it and smiled.

"Hello, Celi. How are you?" Yuuri asked.

She smiled at him softly. "I'm alright, Sweetie. Who is this?"

Yuuri glances over at Greta with a smile. "This is Greta. Greta, this is Celi."

She nods. "It's nice to meet you, Greta."

Greta just nods without responding to her. Yuuri looks towards Celi to see her giving him a look. Yuuri quickly caught on that she wanted him to explain what she was doing here. Yuuri has never brought anyone over here except for Sara.

"She's a human that tried to kill Adelbert. I...I saved her. I'm...going to adopt her," Yuuri said as he bit his bottom lip nervously.

She just smiled at him and responded, "That's just like you."

Yuuri relaxed slightly when he realized she wasn't at all bothered by the fact. Celi turned and smiled down at the child.

"Greta? Can you please go wait in the living room over there? Yuuri needs to talk with his mother for a little bit."

Greta looks up at them in confusion before nodding and walking over to the living room and sitting down in a chair. Yuuri glances over at Celi as dread starts to make its way through him. Why did he need to talk to his mother? His mother and Celi both spoke very little to him. It wasn't in a personal way. They just didn't speak very much at all. So the fact that Yuuri's mother needed to speak with him...was seriously wracking his nerves. Celi was looking at him in such a sympathetic way that it did nothing to ease those nerves. He tried his best to show his confusion and worry on his face, but she gave him no hints as to what this could be about. He knows his mother has been sick. He dreads the thought of it becoming more serious.

Celi reaches out for his hand and squeezes it in comfort before pulling him down the hall and into his mother's room. When he gets there, he sees his mother lying in bed. She looks even sicker than she did the last time he saw her. She looked frail and weak, but how could that even be possible? This wasn't normal. He had to make his mother see a healer...

"Yuuri..." She said softly, with a weak voice. She looks at him sadly as she reaches for his hand to squeeze. "I have something I need to tell you. Something I should have told you a long time ago...something I should have known I couldn't keep from you forever."

Fear gripped Yuuri's throat as he looked over his mother's frail face.