It was evening of the next day before Evert could be properly banished, despite Yuuri's proud posturing. His declaration had been very theatrical and forceful, but you couldn't throw a nobleman outside the city gates any more than you could strip him of his titles without repercussions. He left under lantern light, and Yuuri could see the procession move into the distance like a bunch of fireflies. Nasty ones that were sure to come back and bite.

"Pity we couldn't have gotten rid of Mael, too." Conrad sighed, watching Evert's retinue leave the city in full state, banners flying as high as when they'd arrived. Bastard. "But you handled the situation well, Yuuri. I was impressed. You're becoming a truly wise maou as well as a great one."

Yuuri shrugged. Sure, Evert's situation had been diffused for the time being, but things weren't really back to normal. Stoffel seemed to think he now had every right to… everything. Declaring someone a knight turned out to be more paperwork than Yuuri had ever done on a single subject before. Candide was still fuming in the dungeon and Wolfram had been in an odd mood Yuuri blamed entirely on his nasty brother. "I don't think we should start celebrating yet," he said cautiously.

"You're correct, but there's no reason not to enjoy a well-deserved bit of praise." Conrad turned, heading back inside from the balcony on which they stood.

"I'm still not sure that I deserve much of anything. It was Greta and Raven who closed this case." Yuuri sighed and followed. "Conrad… Why do you hate Mael so much? I mean, I do. Everyone does. But you usually seem to be able to take people saying… stupid stuff about your parents."

"Some people can just really get under your skin." That was true, but Conrad said it with his mouth oddly tight, a funny look in his eyes. There was more to it than that. Yuuri wanted badly to ask, but Conrad was entitled to his secrets. "Something else is bothering you, isn't it, Yuuri?" He looked back with his usual understanding smile and there was no trace of the vindictive darkness Yuuri had seen before.

"Mael said some really terrible things to Wolfram. I'm just trying to figure out how to undo the damage." He'd perked up at the mention of the wedding, but he still seemed strangely shy and uncertain. He wasn't acting like himself at all. Yuuri was starting to be really worried.

"Oh. Yes, Mael does that. What was it this time?" Conrad looked as concerned as Yuuri felt as he led the way back downstairs. They were both late for dinner, very determined to see the last of Evert for a while.

"That I heard… That, um…" It was sort of embarrassing to talk about. Yuuri swallowed. "That I was only engaged to Wolfram by accident and I'd dump him as soon as a halfway decent girl came along…" Yuuri felt especially bad because a few months before, it would have been perfectly true. And Wolfram would still have trusted Yuuri.

"I see. I'll have a word with him." Conrad closed his eyes. "All the advice I can give you is to try and sooth Wolfram's doubts."

"I've been trying." Yuuri sighed. "But yeah, I'll… I'll try harder." He ventured a hopeful smile and Conrad fondly patted his shoulder.

They reached the dining room and Yuuri ran right for Wolfram, sitting next to him with a smile. Mael was at the table, but so was Gwendal, and Yuuri hoped he wouldn't have had the guts to try to hurt Wolfram with a very protective Voltaire glaring at him. And Gunter was even helping with the glaring, though he kept getting distracted by the fact that Arianwyn had shown Greta how to make a small catapult from a spoon and chunk of potato and both had discovered Gunter's mildly elongate nose made a great target. Even Gunter's poise had a limit.

"Hey, Wolfram." Yuuri smiled casually and took his hand under the table. "Just watched him run off with his tail between his legs."

"Sweet of you to say, Yuuri, but I doubt it." Wolfram sighed and took a long swallow of wine. "Still, you managed this in a much less wimpy way than usual." He smiled a little. Yuuri was glad to see him do it.

"It was indeed an appropriate way to protect your honored subjects," Mael said with a glimmering smile.

"Congratulations. I have seldom seen such an aptitude for seeing the world as you wish it were," Gwendal said darkly, almost a whisper, enough to get Mael to start to glare at him before he remembered to be suave. Yuuri held his napkin up and grinned behind it. So Gwendal could serve Mael back his own medicine. Good to know.

"Yeah, we'll let you know when we find some honored subjects. I mean, well, I guess they're found… But they aren't you." Arianwyn looked slightly confused at the unpleasantly logical turn his quip had taken and stood up, reaching for the wine. Mael rolled his eyes and passed him the bottle. Yuuri felt a little sorry for Airhead sometimes. And he seemed to be less interested in Wolfram these days. That earned him a lot of points.

Mael fell silent as the meal went on. It was exceedingly pleasant. Yuuri silently gloated over his own and his devoted assistants' ability to shut up that lousy jerk from sheer force of will. Wolfram even looked a bit cheerier, though Yuuri noticed him lingering over his wine glass and from past experience could imagine what was putting that rosy smile on his face.

Interestingly, Yuuri didn't find that possibility objectionable. He remembered much too clearly what an unmanageable, demanding pest Wolfram was when he was drunk, and there was no reason on earth he'd want to deal with that again. The little lush. But he was so cute with his cheeks turning pinkish…

So cute that Yuuri managed to miss both Gwendal and Conrad looking disapproving at him.

"Yuuri, will you walk me upstairs to bed?" Wolfram's hand was on his arm. In full view of all the brothers he had who weren't currently unconscious, his daughter, and Petunia the rat, who was running around on the woodwork in case of crumbs. Yup, he was drunk.

"Sure. Um, Greta, maybe Gunter will read you a bedtime story tonight…"

"Is Wolfram sick?"

"Um… not exactly. Might as well, be, though."

"I'm not sick. I'm fine. I just want Yuuri to walk with me…" He wrapped both arms around Yuuri's waist and kissed his cheek. "Otherwise I might fall down."

Yuuri's cheeks went the color of a sailor-scaring sunrise. He tried to stammer a goodnight to everyone, but all that came out was a sort of stunned grunt. He turned around and grabbed Wolfram's arm, managing with difficulty to disentangle it from his middle. "Can we at least get to our room?"

"Our room?" Wolfram beamed. "Oh, but why…? I'm your fiancé, after all." He kissed Yuuri again. They were about two steps out into the hall.

Why, oh why had he thought Wolfram getting drunk again might not be so bad? Yuuri dragged him toward the stairs and up. Wolfram at least wasn't quite as wasted as last time. He could stand up for the most part, though he did teeter. That might or might not have been his fault. Yuuri was half running as he dragged Wolfram along. He would never, never get used to affection in public. He was completely sure of it.

Yuuri slammed the door to their room with a sigh. "Did you have to do this, Wolfram? I know Mael drives you crazy, but—" The lecture was interrupted when his mouth suddenly became very full of Wolfram's tongue.

What had he been talking about again?

Wolfram's hand raked through Yuuri's hair. His other arm was around his waist. Kind of. A bit low, actually, more like his hips. That was new. But hard to pay attention to with Wolfram kissing him so very enthusiastically. And holding him pretty tightly against the door.

"Wolfram…" Yuuri was a bit stunned after Wolfram left off his mouth a moment. "Um…?"

"What?" He was smiling cheerfully, his hand sliding along Yuuri's jaw. The maou shivered a bit. That was surprisingly… sensitive.

"Um, well…" He really should talk to Wolfram about this habit of his. But if it led to being kissed like that, Yuuri might have to weigh the pros and cons again. "That was nice."

"Mm-hm." Wolfram's other hand cupped Yuuri's chin, and he kissed him more softly this time. "Why are you against the door?"

"You put me here." And Yuuri couldn't say he minded.

"Oh. Right." Wolfram seemed to consider a moment and stepped backward, bringing Yuuri with him. Only then did he manage to overbalance and land on the carpeted floor with a rather loud thud. "Ouch."

Yuuri had managed to keep his footing. Wolfram's grip was slightly less vice-like while inebriated. He leaned over, though. "Are you alright?"

"No." He grabbed Yuuri's belt and yanked him onto the floor as well. He was still quite strong, though Yuuri came eagerly enough. His belt's integrity had failed him before, and he wasn't sure he wanted to see Wolfram's reaction to pulling it off. "Kiss me and make it better."

Yuuri did that gladly enough. He realized only after he finished that he'd managed to end up in Wolfram's lap. And he liked it there very much, but Wolfram's legs… "Am I hurting you?"

"Nope. All better now." Wolfram kissed him again, hand on the back of Yuuri's neck and fingers wandering a bit. Another surprisingly intense sensation. "I love you, Yuuri."

"I love you, too." Yuuri kissed Wolfram's cheek very softly. "But you shouldn't keep getting drunk when you can't stand your brother."

"Oh, but it's so much fun." He pouted (damn, he had the perfect face for pouting) and shoved Yuuri off his lap. The maou ended up on his back, glad for the thick carpeting. Man, Wolfram was moody sometimes.

Or, also possible, Wolfram was following him down and now sprawled half on top of him, kissing some more. Yuuri shivered. He'd sort of liked the door, and being caught between the floor and Wolfram's weight was even better. He kissed back the best he could while pretty much immobilized. Wolfram's hand was sliding down his side. Yuuri wiggled a little. He was kind of ticklish.

He gasped as he felt his shirt flicked aside. Wolfram's fingers slid just a little underneath, stroking his waist. His fingernails were kind of long, but he was being gentle. But when he wandered a little further back, slipping his hand under Yuuri to rest on his lower back, Yuuri jumped. "Wolfram!"

"What?" Wolfram blinked. His eyes were hooded and intense, and he didn't look that interested in listening.

"Um… Um, that's…"

"It feels nice, doesn't it?" He spoke with his lips brushing Yuuri's. The maou was quickly running out of focus.

"Yes! I mean, no, well, yes, but… You're drunk. I'm taking advantage of you."

"Who's taking advantage of who?" Wolfram asked, cocking an eyebrow. Or that was what Yuuri thought he was trying to do. He wasn't very good at it, and the other eyebrow half rose with it. It was an adorable expression. And a good point. And Wolfram managed to dispel any other doubts Yuuri might have had pretty quickly by leaning down and biting his ear playfully.

That was dispelling coherent thought more than doubts, but Yuuri actually squeaked in answer and Wolfram giggled. He flicked his tongue out at Yuuri's earlobe. "My Yuuri."

"Yeah." Yuuri blushed and shuddered a little as Wolfram moved down from his ear, over his neck. Oh, wow. He gave up. "Yours."

"Good." Wolfram nuzzled him, but broke off midway to yawn. "Damn. Now I'm sleepy."

"Well, you are drunk." Yuuri tried to swallow his disappointment.

"Uh-huh, and it's weird. I only had two glasses."

"What?" Yuuri tried to snap his head back to focusing.

"Two. One with dinner, and then one from the bottle Mael brought. Don't know why he was all excited about it. He's usually a wine snob, but it was kind of too sour." On a whim, he nipped Yuuri's neck again. Roughly. Wolfram liked making Yuuri jump. "Will you tuck me into bed?"

"Um…"

"Please?"

Oh, he'd learn to deny Wolfram's pouty face someday, but the superhuman effort would have to be undertaken later. Yuuri picked Wolfram up, stumbling only a little as he made the two steps toward the bed. He'd lost weight, and Yuuri had gained a little muscle, but he was still kind of deadweight. Deadweight that nuzzled Yuuri's chest in an interesting way indeed while he was being carried.

"Thanks, Yuuri." Wolfram grinned and lay his head down. "Even wimps are sweet sometimes, you…" His voice dissolved into a yawn and he was asleep. Yuuri sighed. Lush.

Except… two glasses? Even Yuuri could down two glasses without more than a little head rush. He hadn't noticed that Mael had brought wine. But he hadn't been sitting near Mael. Sort of on purpose. Had he done something to it? Yuuri suspected him immediately, but he couldn't see any great advantage to making Wolfram drunk quickly. It was a bit embarrassing, but Wolfram had Yuuri to take care of him.

And it had been very nice. Yuuri briefly wondered if he could get Mael to do it again before he shook his head. He should go check on things, see if there was any tampering. He kissed Wolfram's forehead and left the room. Dinner had broken up and been cleared, and Yuuri didn't see any bottles left lying around. He turned to head back upstairs and puzzle over it a bit more, but as he started through the door, Gunter ran into him.

He looked horrified as Yuuri stumbled back a bit. "Your Majesty! I apologize sincerely!" He bowed so low Yuuri thought his nose must have hit the floor. "I beg your pardon and will make restitutions in the near future."

"Um, that's fine, I don't need any." Funny. Usually Gunter wanted all restitutions made right away. "Is something the matter?"

"Your wise discernment is as precise as ever, Your Majesty." Gunter frowned. "I haven't seen my brother since dinner. I agreed to help Gwendal reorganize the guard detail for tonight due to a cold that's been afflicting several of the men, so I was occupied as the meal ended. And Arianwyn isn't in his room."

"Oh." Yuuri didn't think there was a reason to worry. Arianwyn was usually running every which way. Why would he settle down right after dinner? "Is he usually back in his room?"

"Not usually, Your Majesty, but he's been sniffing and I asked him to come see Giesela. Arianwyn tends to react badly to colds, and he knows it. He doesn't want to be stuck in bed for a week." Gunter sighed. "How is Wolfram?"

"Asleep. I'll help you look for Airhe-Arianwyn." It would be something vaguely useful to do. Even if the elder Von Christ had probably just gotten distracted by a shiny pebble.

"Your Majesty is so gracious." Gunter bowed and didn't try to convince Yuuri he had luxurious, kingly things to do. He must have been more than a bit worried. In retrospect, Arianwyn had sounded a little congested at dinner.

Arianwyn was not in the throne room (where he liked to admire all the ornamental swords mounted on the wall and then proceed to criticize their balance if he could figure out how to take them down to swing), raiding the kitchen, or roaming the courtyard. He didn't usually hang around anywhere else. Gunter was starting to fret seriously as they walked back into the castle.

There was an odd sound from down the hall. Yuuri would have thought it was a cat. Except that cats said baa, and there probably weren't any dragons around. He ran ahead a few paces, ignoring Gunter's politely inquisitive noise. The door it came from again as he reached it led to a space too big to be a closet and too small to be a room where the maids stored spare furniture. Yuuri considered a moment and then opened the door.

He wished he hadn't. Well, no, he was glad for Airhead's sake he had, but there were images he wanted burned on his retinas, and images he did not. A drunk, flushed Arianwyn sitting on a dusty table with his shirt half off being kissed by Mael was definitely a vision he would like torn from his memory and burned so it couldn't injure anyone else. Yuuri stared for a moment, frozen.

Arianwyn was a flirt, but he didn't like Mael. No one liked Mael. Mael, who had brought wine to dinner that had knocked Wolfram nearly senseless after one glass… There was something to that, but Yuuri couldn't really work out what it was.

He didn't have to. Gunter swept past him without even apologizing for brushing against His Gracious Majesty and punched Mael on the jaw, knocking him backwards. "Your Majesty, if I may beg a boon, could you assist my brother?"

"Um… sure…" Yuuri was almost completely sure he shouldn't let his subjects get into a fistfight. Mael was taking a swing back at Gunter. He had a decent right hook, but Gunter was fast. He got out of the way. Yuuri dodged around them and headed over to Arianwyn. "Want to get off the table?"

"Yeah, but the ground's far away." He looked very out of focus. Yuuri wondered how much of Mael's wine he'd drunk.

"Um, just hop down. I'll catch you." Yuuri put out his hands. Arianwyn took them and immediately fell on Yuuri. He'd been expecting it, and Arianwyn was tiny, so the maou actually managed to keep his footing. He wished Arianwyn would fasten his shirt back up, but he didn't look up to it. Yuuri gingerly reached over and secured the top button, which solved most of the problem. Lucky Wolfram was passed out at the moment, though.

Yuuri pushed Arianwyn hurriedly from the room. The fight was beginning to get serious. He felt on one level that it was better they work it out this way. There might be bruised cheeks and egos, but no one was likely to be seriously injured, and it might iron out bad feelings. Even Yuuri could guess it wouldn't end there, though, and Mael seemed to hit pretty hard.

"Stop it, you two!" He picked up an abandoned shoe and chucked it at Mael's chest. All his baseball practice paid off and he actually managed to hit the bastard where he'd planned. It was only a shoe, but it was enough distraction for Gunter to… get in another swing. Ideals of peace and universal camaraderie were one thing, and attempting to entrap his older baby brother quite another!

"Gunter!" Yuuri knew the man would sulk for a month if the maou raised his voice to him, but what other choice did he have? "Stop it now!" He really didn't want to separate them. Two trained, adult warriors, angry as they both clearly were, could plow over Yuuri unless he let the Maou out. And he did not want to raise a broken furniture golem!

Gunter seemed to snap to his senses, but not all the way back. He calmed down, but only enough to throw his sword at the floor at Mael's feet. There was a long moment wherein Yuuri wasn't sure if it was going to be picked up, when he tried to think of something magical to say to diffuse the situation. But he had nothing. Gunter's fury was clearly justified. Talk about taking advantage of someone.

Mael looked reluctant, but he picked up the sword. Yuuri realized later than turning down a duel in front of the maou would have lost him a lot of face, or at least in Mael's little world of status and competition it would have.

Yuuri swore under his breath. But at least a duel would be organized, even if there had been far too many around here lately. Having even the younger Bielefelds in residence seemed to cause that. "Alright, can that be settled until tomorrow? Please? Can it be?" Yuuri looked back and forth between them. "Gunter? Maybe you should take Airhead to bed?"

"Wise and just, Your Majesty." Gunter didn't even seem to be paying attention to Yuuri. The phrase was randomly constructed out of words he generally used toward the maou. He stalked out of the room and picked up Arianwyn, who seemed to have fallen asleep in the hallway. A moment later, Mael slipped out of the room as well, leaving Yuuri confused, angry, and very much on edge.

And the next morning, the whole castle knew. Yuuri found that out after disentangling himself form a Wolfram who seemed to not know if he should be apologetic or smug, but definitely knew that clinging to Yuuri was his best plan. They went down to breakfast together, arm in arm with Greta skipping ahead of them. Conrad and Gwendal met them before they were even off the stairs.

Seeing this would be a grown-up conversation, Greta went on her way. She was hungry.

"Wolfram?" Conrad smiled a little stiltedly at his younger brother. "How's the head?"

"Fine!" He tried to stick his nose in the air, but the sudden jerk of his head was too much for him and he grimaced with pain. He wasn't as badly hung over as Yuuri had seen him before, at least.

"As it ought to be." Conrad lifted his arm, and was holding a bottle about three-quarters full of a dark red liquid. "Anissina's tested this. Apparently it's been tampered with rather severely."

"I guessed." Yuuri tried to look completely neutral about that, but Wolfram was turning red and there was nothing he could do about it. "Um… Did he do something to make it stronger?"

Conrad looked slightly awkward, which was a very odd expression to find on that serene face of his. "Not exactly. It's laced with a love potion."

"Lust." The word was a growl. Yuuri had half forgotten Gwendal was there. He was good at vanishing into the woodwork. But now that he had the maou's attention, it was hard to look away from him. He looked absolutely furious. Yuuri had seen him this angry only once before, when Hube had still been considered a traitor on the run.

Even Conrad looked at little surprised at the anger in his elder brother's voice. "That's… more accurate, yes. It's essentially human magic. Would have very little effect on most mazoku. Which I assume is why about half of this bottle is made up of the potion."

Yuuri shivered. Suddenly the last night didn't seem like it had been so pleasant after all. It was one thing if Wolfram had been drunk. Then he was himself. If it had been outside magic working on him… That was a very different story. They exchanged hurried glances, and Wolfram's eyes told about the same story. Ouch.

Conrad paused, leaving time for anyone to say something in reply. Yuuri and Wolfram were busy being mortified, though, and Gwendal was glowering, clearly trying to keep his temper in check. Petunia was on the floor, but her mouth was full of a mooched cookie and only Josak seemed to be able to speak rat anyway.

"According to Anissina, this can be rather dangerous. Arianwn is still asleep, and likely to be ill for a few days. And if you and Gunter hadn't caught him, I'm sure Mael would have been quite successful."

"Um, at what?" Yuuri had been biting back confusion for the whole night. He'd admit Arianwyn was quite pretty, but Mael had the money and clearly had had the inclination to buy pleasant, attractive company for an evening. Why risk the wrath of all the powerful, irritable people he had managed to tick off with this little debacle?

Conrad started to answer, but Gwendal cut him off. "If he'd succeeded in compromising Arianwyn's honor, marriage would have been the only solution." His voice was very deep and he was still glowering into space.

Compromising his… oh. Yuuri swallowed. Oh. Well… then… He didn't know why he was surprised. It was Mael they were talking about.

"It would have been a scandal, but still there'd be only one solution." Conrad frowned at Gwendal again, apparently as confused as Yuuri at the strength of his reaction. Everyone was mad, but Gwendal apparently wanted to gut Mael and leave his intestines out to dry. "And as Gunter's been putting through the paperwork to transfer the family title back to his brother—"

"He's what?" That was news to Yuuri. That seemed like a bad plan. A very bad plan. Arianwyn as one of the Ten Aristocrats?

"It technically should go to him, dope," Wolfram said, apparently done being shocked and back to being irritated. He hated having headaches. "Besides, that'll leave him free to spend all his time and energy making you slightly less of a wimpy disappointment." Wolfram smirked, and Yuuri cringed slightly. This was a very bad plan. Even if Wolfram was apparently loosening up a little. Or maybe he was less jealous and protective if Gunter wasn't immediately before them.

Speaking of which… "Where's Gunter?"

"Preparing for his duel." Conrad sighed. "No dissuading that, I'm afraid."

Yuuri really wanted to try. Gunter would probably listen to him if he insisted. They could really hurt each other. But what Mael had been trying to do had been reprehensible. He deserved to be defeated and humiliated. Yuuri reminded himself to trust people and look for goodness, but there didn't seem to be any he might find. Any at all.

"I'm going to talk to Gunter." He had to do something. Yuuri had no goals in mind. He might just agree with Gunter. This was confusing. Much harder than saving the world from impersonal evil forces. People were confusing. "Where in the castle is he?"

"The armory." Gwendal shook his head. He seemed to have gotten his fury slightly under control. "I'll accompany you."

"Alright." Yuuri paused. He knew where the armory was. "Why?"

"I've arranged to stand as his second." Yuuri didn't know what that meant, but Conrad looked slightly annoyed and Wolfram not much short of shocked.

He hated to display his ignorance, but… "What's that?"

"A second takes over in the event of the… serious incapacitation or death of a duelist." Wolfram was scowling. "It's an archaic practice that's almost never used in modern duels… unless someone expects death to be the end of it!" His voice rose in pitch quite a bit.

"It would also do to hammer home a definite importance and vendetta involved." Conrad looked uneasy. "Who suggested this? Mael or Gunter?"

"I wasn't informed. But I overheard Mael commanding one of his guards to stand as his and offered." Gwendal was walking quickly away and not looking back. Yuuri hesitated even to follow him. Gwendal might be given to crankiness, but there usually wasn't such an edge about it. First Conrad, now Gwendal. Did he have anyone left who was even-tempered and dependable?

Friend Rat darted across his path following a ringing shriek, and Yuuri smiled a bit. Well, alright, but the Josak brand of dependability wasn't exactly what he'd had in mind.

Gunter was in the armory and had actually forgone his flowing white robes for once. Well, as much as was possible for him. He was wearing dark purple leggings and a loose, white tunic that hung halfway to his knees, and his hair was actually tied back. He was staring at the sword in his hand and from the looks of him might have been doing just that for ten minutes. Or an hour.

Yuuri glanced at Gwendal. Still scary. "Gunter?"

"Yes, Your Majesty?" He looked over and tried to smile.

"Um… Please promise me you won't kill him? I know what he did was horrible, but I…" Gunter knew. He knew what Yuuri wanted for the world, and that if it didn't apply at home, it was meaningless. And Yuuri knew he didn't have to make the speech. Not to Gunter.

There was a pause, then Gunter smiled and bowed. "I promise." He meant it, too. Yuuri could tell. "But Arianwyn… needs protection."

"Yeah." Yuuri agreed about that. "But thank you." Gunter beamed and bowed, delighted at Yuuri's kindness, and proceeded to talk about it for a few minutes. He seemed almost back to normal. But the maou guessed he was still a bit rattled. "Um, when are you supposed to start dueling?"

"About five minutes ago." Gunter went a bit red. He'd gotten distracted what with cheerleading for Yuuri. He hurried out, grabbing his sword from a chair. Gwendal blinked a few times (he still looked as intense and furious as ever, too) and followed.

Mael had one of the soldiers he'd brought with him as a second, and looked very impressive. That seemed to really be his greatest talent. He was posing more than anything else, swinging a blade experimentally as his long hair and his gold and blue coat caught the wind. Bastard. From above Yuuri's head, someone shouted "Gut him, Gungun!"

Arianwyn was standing on a balcony, looking rather ill, with Giesela hovering behind him. Yuuri smiled, but was startled to hear it shouted again from over his left shoulder. Right into his ear, actually. He put his hand up to cover it and turned to look confusedly at Wolfram. "Ouch."

"Oh. Sorry. But don't be such a wimp. Cut his face off!"

"How would that even work?" Yuuri could only hope this situation could be contained. He was going to have to institute a limit on duels around here, clearly. Yuuri watched in increasing horror as Gunter and Mael faced each other, and the seconds faced each other (Mael's looked suitably terrified as Gwendal glowered at him, which was nice), and Wolfram and Arianwyn seemed to be competing over who could be more bloodthirsty. Dorcas raised his hand to signal the start of the duel.

"Hey, Shibuya!" Ken was abruptly at his shoulder. "Ulrike and I found some worrisome energy patterns arising in human country. Not like their usual magic, but not a lot like maryoku, either. It's definitely confusing and probably bad. Do you have a minute?"

"Um…" Yuuri just blinked for a moment. "How did you even get in?"

"A rat opened the gate."

Josak leaned over Yuuri's shoulder. "Did you give her a cookie?"

"No, should I have? Anyway—"

Yuuri shook his head. "Murata, we're sort of about to have a duel, and it requires my attention, so…"

"Oh." He seemed to notice the poised combatants for the first time. "Well, alright. Here." He pulled a coin out of his pocket. "Josak, call it in the air."

"Heads?"

"Okay." He attempted to elegantly flip and catch the coin and missed it cleanly. Unphased, he dropped to his knees and read it off the ground. "Heads. Gunter wins, redhead loses. Shibuya comes with me right now."

As he stood up, Wolfram caught him by the collar. "Whose fiancé do you think you're dragging around?"

"Yours, of course. And he is the maou and is going to come and take care of his kingly business immediately." Sparks seemed to shoot between the two for a moment, and then some kind of truce was reached. Wolfram let go, still scowling, and nodded. Ken adjusted his shirt. "Come on."

"But the duel…"

"If they won't kiss and make up you can scold them later. Come to the temple and bring your prisoner." He looked quite serious, and more than a little tired.

"Alright…" Yuuri looked over his shoulder. Gunter put his sword back in its sheath and nodded serenely. Gwendal marched past him and blacked Mael's eye, then whirled before there could be a response and marched back into the castle. Wolfram actually smiled, and Yuuri decided it would be safe to leave them alone for a while.

Lady Celi emerged beside Arianwyn and grinned. Yes. Safe. If not for everyone involved. Yuuri felling into step next to Ken. "You mean Candide?"

"He's the one who attacked Wolfram?"

"Yes." Right, bring that up. Yuuri shivered.

"Exactly Candide, then. Whatever it is that Ulrike and I sensed, its heart is right in the middle of the human territory where the move to end the alliance and get back to slaughtering mazoku is strongest."

Note: I know I'm going to hear about that fluff scene. I don't know why people see Wolfram as submissive. Is it the blond curls? Because he's the most pushy, controlling bastard in Shin Makoku. And Yuuri's a wimp. And that is all as it should be, as far as I'm concerned. So I guess we shall call this one Wolfi, not Yuuram. Sounds cuter, anyway.