CHAPTER 2: Off To Another World

A young, or shall I say, old girl kneeled in front of me. Her long, silver like hair was peacefully resting on her back, her hands were folded. She looked at me, her eyes longing for something. An answer. The words she spoke slowly entered my mind.

"Yuuri Heika. Please, guide us through this confusing era, and let us know who to put in your place, as the new Maou." My mind was racing. I knew the Maou's powers had yet to awaken in my son, and that may be I was making a mistake by granting him two elements. But not even I could tell the future.

"The lake," I said. "You must give him water from the lake."

"Well she started it," Ronja said angrily, pointing a finger on his cousin Leandra von Voltaire. She was just as angry as him, having her hair almost burnt off. Those two surely did not know how to stay out of trouble, and together they were truly such an awful pairing.

"I don't care who started it," I said calmly. "Now tell me in turn what happened."

"She," Ronja started. "She told me she'd learnt how to use Maryoku. And I got jea- I mean, she challenged me. That's what happened, so it's her fault!"

"That's not true," Lea protested. "You burnt off more than thirty percent off my hair. I can never show myself in public, not ever again because of you, Ronja Shibuya!" Ronja smirked.

"Was about time someone cut it for you," he said harshly.

"How dare you-"

"Lea," a frustrated Günter said to his oldest daughter. "Don't speak like that to His Majesty." No words escaped her lips, but they weren't completely shut as she pouted at Ronja, who gave her an ugly glare. I sighed, shaking my head at the two youths. Ronja brushed his hand through his hair whilst smirking at his cousin, to make it clear how he'd burnt hers off.

Wait, burnt off her hair? Magical duel? Did that mean.. No, it couldn't be. I waved at the three, standing in front of my bed.

"You may leave. Günter, escort Ronja to his room and bring Lea with you."

"My room?" Ronja asked, sounding rather displeased with my decision. "Aren't I supposed to be crossing swords with Yozak this afternoon?"

"You are," I said. "But for leaving such damage on your cousin's beautiful hair and refusing to apologise, and since I need to discuss an urgent matter with Gurrier, you will spend the whole afternoon in your room. Günter, you may join him, he needs to catch up on his sewing lessons." Ronja mumbled something in reply, and the three of them disappeared.

I clenched my fist, gritting teeth thinking about the fact that Ronja had inherited my element, not Yuuri's - not the Maou's. Did this mean that Yuuri had chosen someone else to take his place? Would there be another Maou, a completely different person who not even I had been told of?

"What's the meaning of this, Yuuri," I whispered under my breath. No, it wasn't possible that he had chosen someone else than Ronja, his own flesh and blood. Our flesh and blood.

"Geika." I looked up, meeting Yozak's blue eyes. A grin was plastered all over his face as usual, and as he had been chosen for the important task of protecting Ronja he surely needed to be the first one to know. I breathed deeply, before speaking my mind.

"Ronja is not Yuuri's successor," I said, hearing the disappointment in my voice. I didn't like it, Yuuri was still my husband and I should respect his wishes. It was just, Ronja was my life now and when he heard about his father's decision he would be so disappointed, hell even I was. Yozak's mouth dropped wide open, the grin erasing from his face.

"What are you saying? There must surely be a mistak-"

"Well it isn't," I replied, cutting the orange haired man off. "Ronja has inherited my element, fire. He has not got the Maou's powers within him." Yozak nodded in reply, straightening his back.

"What will you have me do, Geika?"

"You have to see Ulrike. She and the maidens are the only ones who can communicate properly with Yuuri." I pushed my blonde hair back, closing my eyes. I heard Yozak make his leave. Silence. I smiled to myself, remembering quieter times, when Ronja had still been a kid. Before I had, well, what should I say, disappointed him, he'd been a completely different kid, happy and well.

Passing the library, I heard Ronja's laughter. I smiled to myself, daring to peek through the small opening in the door. The black haired boy was standing next to one of the chairs, the chair that I recognized to be Yuuri's old favourite. While studying with Günter, he would always be in it, no place else.

My mouth dropped wide open when seeing Ronja's smile turn to a hard facial expression, a facial expression that had never found place on his face before. His eyes were cold, the entire expression on his face was. The small hand placed on the chair, quickly disappeared. He looked up, noticing me. I smiled, opening the door to walk over to him. I sat down on the chair, lifting him up and placing him on my lap.

"What's the matter, Ronja?" I asked. His black eyes met mine.

"Hahaue," his tiny voice said. "When will father be home from his journey?" I bit my lip.

I tightened the grip around my pillow, remembering how Ronja used to see 'things' when he was little. I had both horrible and wonderful memories with them, this one being one of the worst. However, he had grown from seeing those 'things' but I didn't know whether to be grateful or not.

"The Kotsuhizoku are surely fast to make a three days ride on a couple of hours only, Geika," Ulrike said. I had taken Ronja to Shinou's temple where he was granted water from the forest lake. I scanned my son who was sitting at the edge of the fountain, reading about love and Mazoku, as demanded by Günter.

"Of course," I replied. "But one thing puzzles me." Ulrike smiled.

"You're wondering how Ronja can have both water and fire as his elements, aren't you?" I nodded.

"That the Maou's powers awakened in him when drinking the water from that lake is one thing, but how is it possible for a Mazoku to have two elements?" My eyes once again wandered to Ronja, who was still reading. His black hair was blowing slightly in the wind, but it didn't seem to bother him or interrupt the studying.

"I don't know," Ulrike replied. "Yuuri Heika must have a special purpose for your son."

"Which worries me," I sighed. I didn't want my son to get involved with something dangerous, or do something that he'd later regret. He was only fifteen after all, he had his whole life ahead of him.

"And your husband wouldn't either," she said. "I don't think you should worry too much, Geika."

"I have to agree with Ulrike, Geika," a familiar voice said from behind us. I turned around, facing Yozak.

"Yozak," I greeted. "I haven't had a chance to thank you for going to the lake with the Kotsuhizoku yet, have I?" He shook his head.

"Even though I don't like flying, you don't have to thank me," he said. "I will be just as dependent of the Maou as anyone else in the future." I smiled.

"That's probably true."

I closed the book when a certain someone sat down beside me. I looked up, meeting Lea's eyes. She seemed to have forgotten that I had almost ruined her hair, she was smiling widely but for some reason I didn't like it. I knew she had something in mind, on top of that she was interrupting the reading. I sighed.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Wonderful weather, isn't it," she smiled.

"If you're still angry about your hair, then allow me to say that you look great," I said sarcastically, to make her leave. She poked my nose, the spooky grin still not erasing from her face.

"I recognize that tone, Ronja," she replied. "But like I said, wonderful weather, isn't it? It's so warm, maybe you should take a bath."

Before reaching to react, she pushed me into the pond. I angrily threw the book in her direction, but she giggled as I missed. She turned around when Günter called her name, yelling something at her. He was so loyal, that Günter von Christ, I enjoyed the way he always yelled at Lea when she'd done something wrong.

I was about to get up when a whirlpool appeared beneath me. My mouth dropped wide open, and I was about to call for Hahaue when the whirlpool sucked me down. Before knowing it, I was under water, wondering how a black hole could exist in the fountain. Then, a light appeared.

I happily rubbed my chest with soap, how I loved to bath. I smiled, singing softly under my breath as I didn't want my mother to hear me sing. If she did, she would be all over me later, telling me to perform in front of her and Dad, she'd probably even call my brother. I pushed my dark brown hair back, scanning the room to find a bottle of shampoo.

"Mum," I yelled. "Mum, where's the shampoo?"

"Call me Mama, Yo-chan," she replied from downstairs. I sighed, rolling my eyes.

"Where's the shampoo, Mama?" I asked.

"In the left locker, next to the sink."

I was just about to get up from the bath when noticing bubbles at the end of the tub, where I had my feet. Something black appeared between them, and from the water came a black haired and eyed boy. My mouth dropped wide open, and so did his. I quickly covered my private parts with a hand, not really knowing what to do or think. The boy said something weird in a strange language I'd never heard before, I think he was trying to ask or tell me something.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you're saying," I said politely, trying to stay calm. I mean, who wouldn't be freaked out if someone suddenly appeared in your bath tub? Especially if you were in it.. Naked.

"You speak Japanese?" he asked. For some strange reason I was surprised that he could talk Japanese since he'd first spoken another, weird language that I'd never heard of. Surprisingly, he also looked Japanese, and reminded me of someone I'd seen before - but his question surprised me even more.

"Where am I?"

Authors note: Sorry if this chapter is confusing and stuff, and sorry for not updating earlier. Since school is pretty much killing me, I won't be able to update every day like I did writing Our Farewell, but I'll try my best to update at least once – twice a week.