Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made!

Chapter 6: Unforeseen Change of Heart...

What I had first thought was kindness from Stoffel quickly spiraled into his usual obsession with pleasing me; which of course I still had no idea about. At first, I simply shrugged it off and wandered aimlessly around his castle over the next few days; searching for something familiar in an unfamiliar place.

Well, almost...

For the most part, I just went wherever my legs took me. Following whatever traces of memory led me there to that place or that hall. But Raven of course kept strict guard over me and steered me away from places I shouldn't go. And Stoffel still had no idea about the message Raven had sent and so he assumed the guards Raven had posted were to keep me contained; which partly they were. But in reality, the real reason they were there was to keep from Stoffel going too far and causing undue harm to me.

Raven had seen it first-hand. When I tried too hard to remember something from further back in my life, I would get a skull-splitting headache and collapse. Thankfully though, that had only happened when I first arrived.

Because of that though, they were both very careful not to put too much pressure on me to remember anything. In fact, Stoffel hardly did anything at all except for attempt to plant ideas about my life before that had never actually happened. Things like how close friends we were or how highly I thought about him.

As much as I would have liked to believe him, I just couldn't. There was a knot of unease in my chest that I felt about the things he told me. They seemed like total lies to me. Don't get me wrong, I still felt like Stoffel was a decent guy but, I doubted that we were ever really that close. I mean, I still hadn't fully grasped the fact that this REALLY was another world yet and that I was REALLY a King.

It all felt like a half-remembered dream, and as though I was waiting to wake up any second...

One day, when I reached the courtyard after my long walk around the grounds, Raven said, "Your Highness, wouldn't you like to sit down for a while? You've been walking for nearly two hours now and you are still healing so I-"

"I'm ok," I interrupted, "but thanks for asking."

For a minute, I just stood there, envisioning something that had once happened there. And as I pictured it, I grinned back at him and began, "You know..."

"Hmm?" Raven blinked, "What's the matter?"

"I'm starting to think that this is real," I told him honestly, "I wasn't sure at first, but now I think that I HAVE been here before-" Raven watched me as I dashed over to the center of the yard, twisted around to face him and spread my arms out wide, "When I stand right about here, I remember there being a HUGE hole that pulled me and..." I paused with a strained look on my face before giving up on the memory I had just tried to grasp and continued, "...someone else was also pulled down with me into the underground tunnels. I think Stoffel was there too now that I think about it."

"Highness..." Raven stated with obvious pity, "You really don't remember them do you?"

Lowering my arms and staring at him blankly, I replied, "Remember who...?"

Then, turning away from Raven, and unaware that Stoffel had just walked up beside him, I told him about what happened to me. They were both shocked and appalled at the graphic memory and the wounds I had received which were still healing. I told them how close I had been to losing my life and how lost I still felt because there were still parts of my memory that no matter how hard I tried to remember, the pain always stopped each and every one of my desperate efforts.

"After the accident, I couldn't even remember my own parent's faces when I first woke up," I told him, "I didn't know my name, my friends, or anything. And now, I'm trying so hard to hold onto the few memories that I can almost just reach. Yet the harder I try to reach for them, the more they slip away. I've never felt more alone before. I mean, I know that I'm not really but still-" I began to shake and my voice broke as I choked, "-why can't I remember the people closest to me? The ones who were just as much a part of me and who I am as my family? I'm lucky that I even remembered anything about this place, let alone my...my..." I trailed off, unable to continue, and sat down on the ground, hugging my knees and sobbing quietly, "Darn it! I'm trying so hard. So why can't I see their faces anymore...? I used to see blurs of them but now...there's nothing. Nothing...at all!"

"Please Your Highness, you need rest," Raven said sternly, helping me up of the ground, "That is enough wandering for today."

I looked at him, suddenly aware that Stoffel was standing beside him and stared at the ground shamefully. "I know..." I admitted, "You're just trying to help but to be honest, I don't think I'm going to remember anything else here. I have to go wherever THEY are. Please," Stoffel stiffened as I turned sharply to him and pleaded, "Help me remember..."

It wasn't until Conrad and Gwendal reached the town bordering Spitzbeg territory that they received Raven's message. At the time though, they had something else more urgent to deal with first. They had expected as much, but it still posed a very real threat to their mission...

Wolfram had followed them.

In the end, he just couldn't trust them alone with my well-being and so he followed them. He had been stealthy enough at first but Wolfram soon grew impatient the closer they drew to Stoffel's domain. Therefore, when word reached Gwendal from Yosak, they had been forced to circle around with their men and stop him from going any further.

"I thought that we've been through this Wolfram!" Gwendal bellowed angrily, "Yuri has no memory of either of us and at this point I have no doubt that Stoffel has already learned of this. We can't afford any more delays in recovering him. Now take your men and return to the castle at once! Or so help me I'll tie you up myself and drag you back!"

"I can't do that!" Wolfram protested helplessly, "I just couldn't stand the thought of Stoffel taking advantage of Yuri while he's this way. It's not that I don't understand the gravity of the situation, I just-I couldn't stop myself! I love Yuri too much to let that happen to him. I don't care if he doesn't know me, I just have to be there for him. Surely you know what I'm saying Conrad," he pleaded, "After you both left I realized that you were right. You ARE his Godfather, I get that now, and maybe you ARE the only one Yuri will trust right away. But if you aren't, then don't you think I should be here to try too?"

"He has a point Gwendal," Conrad conceded, "There's no way of knowing if His Highness will trust even myself at this point. Wolfram has just as much of a chance as any one of us to jog Yuri's memory. There's a slight chance that none of us will be enough..." he added quietly with a note of dread, "I understand that this situation is delicate but I think he does have the right to come Gwendal."

Gwendal pondered this for a moment before meeting Wolfram in the eye and asking deathly seriously, "If I let you come, can you promise me that no matter how Yuri reacts to you that you will not get angry or do anything that might make him afraid of you? Because at this point, we have to consider that his only memories are of his family on Earth and even those have not all returned to him. We've already asked for Ulrike to help summon His Eminence and Yuri's elder brother from there because if this fails, he will at least trust them."

"I promise," Wolfram declared, "I'll handle this situation with great care."

"You had better," Gwendal warned, "For Yuri's sake."

That night, I couldn't sleep.

Just like the first few nights after I went back to my own house from the hospital, I had the nightmares again. The swirling colors, the warped shadows, all of those incoherent voices, I couldn't tear myself away from them. And yet at the same time, I wanted to go deeper inside of my dreams. I wanted an answer as to why I just couldn't remember their faces, the faces of the other people that Raven had mentioned before.

So that's when I knew it was time to leave...

I knew perfectly well that my room was under heavy guard, so, being reckless, I decided to climb out the window so I could escape the castle. I had no idea why I felt compelled to do it but I was starting to feel like a prisoner in this place. Sure, after I told him what happened, Stoffel acted sincere in wanting to help me remember who I was. However, I saw it behind his eyes, the fact that Stoffel still had big plans on using my condition to his advantage somehow.

I guess they didn't think I was foolish enough to try a stunt like this so the latch on my window had been left unlocked. And who knows, maybe I was a fool, but I had to get out of there. Thanks to my baseball training, my arms and legs were pretty strong so I was able to hold myself up on the ledge as I climbed towards an empty room. Because I figured even if my own room was locked, the rooms next door wouldn't be. Plus it was easier than to circle the whole side of the castle and look for a way to climb down.

However, not too long after I began inching across the wall, my side began to ache and grow hot and feverish again from the strain. And then, just my luck, it began to rain. I had to reach that next room before the wall grew to slick and I risked falling several stories down. I survived a car crash, but I had been in full health when it happened. I doubted that I would survive a fall from this height in my current state.

I had just reached the windowsill when one of my feet slipped and I lost my footing. So I reached out instinctively for something to hold me up when all of a sudden, a hand grasped the collar of my shirt and pulled me to safety.

My heart was still racing when I looked up to see that it was Raven and I was about to try and explain myself when he put a finger to his lips and said, "Shh, wait right here Your Majesty."

I watched him curiously as he got up and closed the door to his room after speaking briefly to one of his soldiers. He then walked right past me and closed the window which had been making the floor glossy with fresh rain. I was drenched too so he quickly removed his cloak and wrapped it around me before I got chilled.

"What in the world were you thinking? Climbing out of the window like that?" Raven scolded, "You could have gotten yourself killed if you had fallen."

I was still too stunned by how calm he was acting, I mean, I had just tried to escape and yet he just chided me like a misbehaved child. Something told me that Raven didn't normally act this way. Instinct I guess; I didn't know what else to call it.

"I know but I have to out of here," I blurted, "Staying here in this one place won't help me remember anything and Stoffel knows that. That's why he won't let me. He still thinks that I'm going to..." I trailed off though and stared at the floor, frowning, "...well actually, you work for him so YOU should already know what he's up to."

Raven didn't reply at first and shocked me even further by sitting down beside me on the floor and giving me the oddest look. I looked up at him and noticed how sad his eyes seemed, like he was conflicted about something...

That's when he looked away and said, "I do. That is why I sent a message to Covenant Castle-your castle Your Highness. And if you'll just wait a little longer, at least until I receive word back from them, I'll help you meet the loved ones you've forgotten."

I blinked, "Why would you do that...? Won't Stoffel get mad at you?"

Raven laughed, "I don't doubt it Your Majesty," then he grew serious again, "Still, I'm hoping that after what you told us about your memories and how you felt upon losing them, that His Excellency will change his mind and allow you to leave on his own. He doesn't realize how much depends on this."

"What do you mean? Will he get into trouble for keeping me here?" I asked simply, "Is it because...I'm this Demon King person you told me about?"

Raven nodded, "That is part of it, yes. However, the rest of it is perfectly political. You see King Yuri," he explained, "We have both made our share of mistakes over the years and after one of them in particular, Lord Stoffel nearly lost his standing to the other noble families. He is not well liked by many others but I know in my heart that he is a good man. I grew up with him. And that is why I serve him all the more diligently because of that friendship and a promise I made to someone very dear to me..."

"Someone...dear to you?" I repeated, "Who?"

"Lady Celli," Raven replied affectionately, "Stoffel's younger sister."

"Oh..." I blinked.

"Anyway, I promised to stay with him and support him. However," Raven took me by the shoulders and told me, "You may not remember any of this but you once saved this entire world. And in a way, you saved Stoffel from becoming consumed by his own prideful nature. You changed him King Yuri. That is why I want you to return to the way you once were; because you have the power to save others just by the simple and honest way you view the world. Even right now, when you hardly remember anything, you still remain the same kindhearted King that we all came to love and respect."

"Wow, you really think that?" I smiled.

Raven nodded, "I do."

After that we sat in silence for a long time, listening to the soft pater of rain against the glass above our heads. My side was still aching but I ignored it and listened while I waited for him to say something else...

But he never did.

We spent the rest of that night just sitting there until at some point, I fell asleep. I have no idea what Raven did next except for that he personally brought me back to the room and locked the door. Only, he left the window unlocked for some reason...

Maybe he left it unlocked as a gesture of sincerity, or maybe it was a trick, I wasn't sure. But I had a feeling that I should believe in him-no-I HAD to believe in Raven. Otherwise, I might become trapped there forever, with no way to find out what he meant before about the ones 'dearest to me'.

The next day I went back to my usual routine of wandering the castle. However, as I did so, I was also looking for ways to get out of there and escape. I could feel it somehow, I could sense Conrad getting closer and closer to the castle with each passing hour. And I knew that I wanted to see him very badly, even though I had no idea who he was.

As for Stoffel, he hadn't suspected a thing until he noticed Raven acting strangely whenever he was with me. He noticed how Raven was becoming more lenient in regards to where I was allowed to wander. Also, Raven seemed rather nervous and restless which was very suspicious coming from him.

Therefore, Stoffel confronted him about it later that very same morning. "Don't think that I haven't noticed how you've been acting around His Majesty," he warned, "I have a feeling I know what you are up to, but what I'd like to know is why Raven? You know how valuable this turn of events is for me and yet you go behind my back and allowed him to almost escape last night."

Raven's eyes widened, "How did you know that My Lord?"

"One of your men told me that they spotted King Yuri outside your window last night and rushed inside to report it to me. I heard every word you said to him..." Stoffel began slowly, "Is it true what you told him Raven? About the promise to my sister and how you feel about me?"

"I meant every word," Raven replied simply, "Please My Lord, I meant you no disrespect. I was only doing what I thought was best for both you and the Demon King. He is in a lot of pain Sire, I see it in his eyes. He misses them; your nephews and everyone else at Covenant Castle. But if he continues to remain here then his heart will grow ever more restless and it may very well effect his well-being."

"And did you really send a message to them without telling me?" Stoffel asked bitterly, "Why didn't you just tell me about all this Raven?" he added more softly and with a kind smile, "I've already decided to send him back to the castle."

Raven gasped, "Really? You did? When did you-"

Stoffel rose from his seat and looked down into the courtyard where I sat idly staring up at the sky, looking for images in the clouds left over from last night's storm. I used to do that with Shori when I was little; around about the time when my mom still used to dress me up as a girl sometimes like I was some sort of life-size doll. I laughed to myself when I saw the clouds form a man being chased by a dog, because oddly enough it reminded me of Stoffel.

Meanwhile, back in his office, Stoffel sighed and confessed, "When His Majesty told us about the incident back on Earth and how he felt about not remembering his parents I felt so ashamed of myself. This isn't like all those times before when I tried to get into his good graces. King Yuri had never once been so open with his feelings about me. Even on the day he first arrived so suddenly, His Majesty said that he felt that I was a good man. Me, a man who had started two pointless Wars that cost me almost everything, and a man who would even imprison his King afflicted with a severe case of amnesia just to get my hands on a title that has only brought me hardship..." he laughed, "...damn him, even when King Yuri has nothing, he is always smiling and content with what he has. Why can't I do that Raven?"

"Sire..." Raven whispered.

"In any event," Stoffel smirked, "I've received word from our soldiers patrolling the border that the three brothers are on their way. It seems that they have received your message Raven. And when they come, I'm sure that will help His Highness recover more of his lost memories then I ever could. Who knows, maybe he'll even remember my generosity after his memory returns; and then I will have finally proven my worth to him."