Wolfram walked up the stairs silently, trying not to disturb the budding conversation below. There was a thin bar of light radiating from under Shori's door, alerting him that it was occupied, along with the click clack of keyboard keys being pressed in quick succession. He rapped gently at the door and waited to be granted entry, fidgeting slightly as he stood, the coarse material of the jeans agitating his skin.

The door opened slightly, the taller man looking down into the hall, his expression making it certain he had not been expecting this particular visitor. "Wolfram...hi."

"May I come in?" Wolfram asked. "I've something I'd like to speak to you about."

Shori nodded curtly, stepping aside to the let the mazoku soldier through, though he seemed somewhat uncomfortable. He closed the door behind them.

"What is it with you and Yuri? You're both acting very skittish," Wolfram pointed out, looking curiously at the glowing screen of the computer, another advancement he'd need to ask someone about in the future.

Shori shook his head. "I just remember the last times you wanted to see me alone."

With a scowl, Wolfram recalled those times through a fog of distant memories. "That wasn't me and I'm appalled you base your knowledge of me off those occurrences." He stood up taller, leveling the future Maou of the Earth with a serious stare. "I would never try and seduce an enemy or ally in such a disgraceful manner. I love Yuri. That which controlled me had little regard for my feelings on the matter. I'm glad things worked out despite that, but do not make the mistake of confusing me and the actions you witnessed at that time."

Shori nodded, taking a seat on his bed. "Sorry. It's just rather memorable. It's not every day your brother's fiancé sneaks into your room at night to offer you what you most desire."

"No, I should hope that is not a common occurrence at all. Perhaps, though, you will understand my request better than I thought you might."

Shori quirked his head quizzically, thin eyes narrowing. "How so?"

"You are the only one I can think of who can grant me this." Wolfram took a seat at the computer, pulling the chair closer to the bed to sit before his brother-in-law. "As Yuri's husband, it will become my responsibility to give him children. There are several ways to go about this, but only one which I am capable of accepting. I will never allow a woman to bear his child, nor will I expect Yuri to tolerate my infidelity for the purpose either. Therefore, there is only adoption left to us."

Shori nodded, though he felt rather uncomfortable speaking on such things with present company. "Why do you need my help?"

"Because I want a child that looks like Yuri," Wolfram explained. "Black hair and eyes are not common where I'm from, though. To find the one-in-a-million child born with those attributes would be a miracle and for that child to be an orphan would be even more so."

"You could take your pick of any Japanese orphan and they would fit that description."

"Just having black hair and eyes isn't enough."

Shori pulled back slightly, his brain shouting at a conclusion it was not able to fathom. "Are you asking me to father a child for the two of you?"

"No, though that is an option I hadn't considered." Wolfram leaned forward to compensate for the increased distance between them. "Why? Is that something you would be willing to do?"

"I'd...rather hear what you had in mind."

Wolfram nodded, expecting as much. He could hardly blame him, though, and continued his explanation. "As you know, Greta is human. She will look older than us soon enough and die while Yuri and I are still very young. Her brother must be a mazoku or at the very least half one. I will not suffer the loss of many children if it can be avoided." He gave a proud smile, having thought of all this himself. "That's where you come in. You will be the Maou of the Earth. Since the mazoku here are not distinguishable from humans in most respects, it would be very difficult for me to find one on my own. You will have resources, though. As you are their king, surely your people are known to you. If you were simply to let your subjects know that Yuri is willing to adopt a male mazoku infant with the physical specifications I have asked for, it should not be difficult for one to appear."

Shori shook his head, trying to think through the request logically. "I'm not sure it works like that, exactly. I'd have more resources, sure, but I doubt there's a roster of all the mazokus born on Earth."

"You will still have better means to facilitate my request," the blonde pointed out. "Especialy with Bob's help. And Rodriguez is a pediatrician, is he not? He deals with a lot of children, then. Just his help alone would increase the chances of finding a child for Yuri."

Shori rubbed at the bridge of his nose. "Does it have to be male?"

"It's a preference," Wolfram stated. "We have one daughter already. I would enjoy raising a son. As he were an infant, it would be easier for us both, I think, to take care of him. If it is a girl you find, though, that is acceptable as well."

The dark haired man nodded slowly, thinking it over more as they sat in silence. "I'll address it to Bob. See what he thinks," he said at length.

Wolfram smiled, leaning back in the chair. "Thank you, brother."

"Brother?" Shori shook his head, rising to his feet to pace back towards his computer screen. "I can't even get Yu-chan to call me that."

"I have found him to be rather lax in formalities. He calls one of our country's biggest supporters Mr. Shiny-Head. It's not his choice in words most times as the emotion he puts in them." Wolfram stood and pushed the chair back toward its owner. "There's no need to tell him about this though, brother. I would rather my request remain a secret between you and I."

"Why?"

"Because he would either get excited about the idea of raising another child and take in the first one he saw or become nervous and worry over things before they were even a possibility. If I want this done right, I will do it myself, as is my obligation," he explained in good humor. "I have faith that eventually you will find what I'm looking for. Consider it your wedding present to the both of us, regardless of when you find the child. Neither event is on a set schedule."

"Alright." Shori began typing again, addressing an e-mail to Bob. "You're sure about this though? What if Yuri doesn't want another kid?"

"He will not deny me. I'm not worried in the slightest."

Shori made a face. "That's rather tyrannical of you."

"Were I a woman, he would not get to decide when I conceived. I see no difference." Wolfram explained with logic that was too primitive to argue with.

Footsteps pounded slowly up the staircase, the heavy feet landing in tired intervals. Wolfram looked towards the door, recognizing who trudged wearily towards them. "Yuri..." He went to the door and opened it, looking down the stairs as his fiancé appeared. Shori followed him slowly.

Yuri looked up at him at the sound of the door opening and smiled thinly. "You managed to get Shori away from his studies?"

He nodded. "Everything alright?"

Yuri sighed and dragged himself to the landing and to his lover, resting his head against his shoulder. "Just tired. Dad says he's happy about the wedding. It'll be interesting when I have to come and bring them over for it."

Wolfram wrapped his arms around him, letting him lean heavily against him. "That's not what had you so nervous."

The Maou shook his head and sighed again before forcing himself to stand up straight. "Come on. Let's get ready for bed."

"It would be only a little after noon back home." Wolfram frowned. "You can't be this tired already."

"We'll talk in my room." Yuri took his hand and pulled him along, trying to avoid the look on his brother's face as they turned away from his room and moved into Yuri's. The door swung closed behind them and Yuri sank down on his bed, pulling Wolfram down with him.

Wolfram laid over him, brushing his dark hair from his face. "You promised you'd tell me," he reminded his lover.

Yuri nodded with his eyes shut, nuzzling his face against Wolfram's hand. "I know I did. I'm sorry I didn't tell you beforehand--it's just something I didn't want to think about too much. I know I'm gaining more than I'm losing, but it's hard to see it that way when I'm here."

Wolfram kisses his cheek. "Spit it out already, then. You're making me nervous."

"I've decided to make Shin Makoku my permanent home."

The blonde looked at his fiancé for a moment, trying to work out why that was such a dilemma. In this world he was nobody, while in the other he was the powerful Maou of the great Shin Makoku. All that Earth offered was his family.

Oh.

Wolfram kissed his lips, letting the sensitive flesh of their lips linger against each other even after the kiss was spent, sharing each other's breath. "You don't have to choose. My brothers can look over Shin Makoku in our absence."

Yuri shook his head. "No. Eventually I'd have to make a decision. If I'm old enough to know what I want to be and who I want to be with for the rest of my life, I'm old enough to know where I need to spend my life. Honestly, I don't even miss home most of the time. I'm so busy with the kingdom and Greta and you that...I forget about them...and I'm sure some days they forget about me." He felt his breath shudder and squeezed his eyes tight. He'd done well not to cry so far and wanted that to last.

Wolfram's lips fell to the corner of his eye, tasting the first tear as it slipped past his resolve. "It's okay to cry, Yuri. I won't think less of you."

That was all he needed. Yuri choked on a sob before clinging to Wolfram, burying his face in his shoulder. He didn't want his family to move on without him, even though he knew they would, same as he did on his long weeks away. He'd be a fond memory and a welcome guest, but he would never be able to be a kid again. That was the most frightening thing of all. No matter what happened in Shin Makoku, in the past he could always cling to the fact that back on Earth, there was nothing more troublesome to deal with than a test or strong competition on the baseball diamond. At the end of this visit, there would be no further refuge from being a king.

Wolfram smelled like strong soap, the kind Yuri always used after a long, hard day. He took a deep breath, breathing him in, and wiped his face off on his shirt. He pulled away enough to smile at his lover's concerned face. "I'm not going to regret it, though. I'm happy to be able to spend more time with my new family. You guys need me more. And...just you being here makes it better."

Smiling, Wolfram kissed him again and rolled to the side to squeeze between Yuri and the wall. His arms wrapped firmly around him, he drew Yuri's head to his chest, where the king closed his eyes once more, listening to the heartbeat beneath his head. The rhythmic breath and warm embrace sheltered him from all else. Sleep came easily.