Hey guys. I know it's been a while since I posted anything, but I just couldn't find any inspiration lately. Now, however, I have found a new obsession. I have recently gotten in to the franchise of Kyo Kara Maoh! and I am absolutely in love with Wolfram and Yuri... Mostly their relationship, but dang is Wolfram cute.
Anyway. I wanted to try my hand out on a story for my new favorite franchise. This story idea popped into my head one night and it just wouldn't go away, so I knew I needed to write it to get it out.
It's a tragic story, and I wish it wasn't the first one I wrote, but I absolutely love how it came out. I hope you guys will still enjoy it.
Warning: Major Character Death.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the idea for this story... Well, maybe not the complete idea, but the way I shaped the story is my own.
Chapter 1: You Saved Me...
The sounds of battle were all around us. Men were dropping, both friend and foe, but there was nothing I could do. I didn't have Morgif with me, or any kind of weapon, and the Maoh inside me didn't seem to care, so my magic was not an option. As the king, I know I'm supposed to run, to get to safety, but I just couldn't move.
"Yuri!"
I spun around, eyes wide as I heard the clashing of metal, and saw that Conrad had blocked a sword that was aiming for my head. Without thinking, I take several steps back, and suddenly blue and gold fills my vision.
"What are you doing, you wimp," Wolfram yelled at me, but he didn't look back at me. He was posed in front of me with his sword in front of him, both of his hands clutching tightly to the hilt. "Why are you just standing there?"
"Wolfram, take Yuri and get out of here," Conrad said as he managed to push away the man he had been fighting, but the enemy just swung his sword at my Godfather again.
I knew there was nothing to worry about when Conrad was with me. He was the best swordsman in all of Shin Makoku, though that didn't make it any easier to watch him fight against a man that looked at us with a burning desire to kill.
"What?" Wolf cried out, and that brought my attention back to the matter at hand. "No way! I can still fight! Don't you believe in my abilities?"
Conrad managed to find an opening and strike a major blow on the man he was fighting, but then he turned his head towards his little brother with that all too familiar and gentle smile. "Of course I do. That's why I'm asking you to protect Yuri. There's no one I can trust more to do so."
I smiled at Conrad's comment, but when I looked at Wolf, I saw that his face was twisted in conflict. I knew what he was thinking. He wanted to prove to everyone, especially his two brothers, that he was a strong soldier, but bringing me into the equation was what always made Wolf hesitate. Wolf vowed to protect me, even when I never asked him to.
Wolf must have finally made his decision because he sheathed his sword and let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine."
When Wolf turned towards me, that determined and slightly worried look on his face made me smile. He was always so beautiful, even when he made a face like that. I took a step towards him without even thinking, but when Wolf's eyes went wide with terror, I froze.
"Yuri, look out!" Wolf cried out and he lunged forward, and before I could even comprehend what was going on, he grabbed me and spun me around.
Because of the sudden action, I lost my balance and felt both of us falling to the ground, and I unconsciously squeezed my eyes shut to prepare for the coming pain that was about to assault my body from the fall.
However, before I hit the ground, before the pain shot through my body, I heard the most sickening sound I think I had ever heard. I heard something flying toward us, my hearing apparently being stronger since my eyes were closed, but the sound of something burying into flesh made my stomach twist. One. Two. Three times. But what really made my heart stop was the cry that came from the boy in front of me.
I landed on the ground hard, that agonizing pain I expected shooting up my body from my butt to my legs and arms, but the pain in my head when it smacked into the ground was probably the worst.
After laying there dazed for a moment, I finally opened my eyes to see Wolf hovering over me, panting. His face was twisted in pain, and I saw a bit of blood trickle from the corner of his mouth. "Wolf?"
Wolf opened his eyes, those dazzling emerald green eyes staring down at me. "A-are you ok, Y-Yuri?"
My face twisted with confusion. Why did he sound like he was the one that fell? I was the one that hit the ground?
Wolf squeezed his eyes shut as he clenched his teeth, failing to suppress the groan of pain, then his head dipped down and he coughed. I suddenly felt something warm splatter against my chest and when I looked down my eyes went wide. Blood. Wolf just coughed out blood!
My heart raced and my breath quickened. "Wolf?" I asked in a panic and was about to reach up to him, but my hand froze when he looked back up at me.
Wolf's eyes shimmered with unshed tears and the trickle of blood had turned into a thick line that ran down his chin and dripped onto my chest. His face once again twisted in pain, but this time only a hiss escaped through his clenched teeth, but his eyes squeezed shut again. When he opened them again, the unshed tears from before rolled down his cheeks. "I'm sorry… Yuri."
My eyes went wide, and my ears suddenly stopped working, as if they didn't want to hear anything else, but I couldn't look away. Even though I couldn't hear what he said next, I saw his lips move, but my brain wouldn't register what they formed. I opened my mouth to try and ask him what he was sorry for, but before I could, Wolf collapsed on top of me.
Suddenly the sounds of the battle filled the air again, overwhelming me.
"Wolfram!"
Conrad's shout finally snapped me out of whatever daze I was in and I tilted my head to look down at Wolf. All I could see was the top of his head. "Wolf?" I asked in a shaky voice and wrapped my arms around him, placing my hands on his back. My eyes went wide when my fingers hit some kind of wooden poles that stuck out of his back, and I felt something warm and sticky coat my palms and fingers. I swallowed hard. I didn't want to see what it was, but the sudden iron tint to the air made my stomach twist. I hesitantly ran my fingers up one of the poles. It was small, but it also felt familiar. I tried to sit up a bit and peer around Wolf's head.
Arrows. Three arrows were sticking out of his back, and my eyes didn't miss the dark stain that covered Wolf's back. My head dropped back to the ground and I ignored the pain that shot through it as my hands moved up to Wolf's shoulder and I should him gently. "Wolf? Wolf! Come on, wake up!"
He didn't move. Didn't even flinch.
"Wolf!" My heart raced and I could hear its loud beats in my ears, drowning out the surrounding sounds. "Wolf, come on. This isn't funny," I said as I shook him again. I moved one of my hands back to his back and the other to the ground to try and push myself up, but I suddenly froze. Something was wrong. Something was missing. I wasn't feeling something that I knew should be there.
I stopped breathing when I realized what it was, but that only confirmed my fears and made my heart beat harder. He wasn't breathing.
I pushed myself up, my head swimming from the simple movement, but I ignored it and pulled Wolf out enough to look down at his face. My heart stopped. His face was pale white, almost ashy in color, and the blood that still trickled from the corner of his lips stood out even more.
I felt someone crouch down next to me and place their hand on my arm, but I batted it away, not daring to look away from the boy in my arms. "Wolf! No, please!" I cried out and my hand landed on his chest. It didn't rise at all. Tears burned my eyes and I had to blink them away when they blurred my vision. I moved my hand up to where his heart was and pressed down, praying that I would feel that steady beat beneath my fingers.
Nothing.
I looked back at his still face, his head just hanging there as I felt the hot tears roll down my face. "Wolf!"
"Yuri. We need to go."
I turned to see Conrad staring down at Wolf, pain filling his eyes. He had wrapped his hand around my upper arm, and even though he had said those words, he made no move to pull me to my feet. I felt Conrad's hand tremble on my arm, and even though he held them back, I could see the tears welling up in his eyes.
I looked back down at Wolf as my own tears still streaked down my face. This couldn't be happening. He couldn't be gone. I… I hadn't even told him yet. I squeezed my eyes tight and felt my magic rising in me. The Maoh inside me was furious, and I heard his agonized scream in my head.
As my breathing quickened, I pulled Wolf's body closer to me. The rush of magical energy that was begging to get out made my head swim. Then everything went dark.
I groaned as I turned my head, squeezing my eyes a bit tighter as the sun annoyingly tried to wake me. I reached out beside me, expecting to find a warm body, but when all my hand felt was cold sheets, I slowly opened my eyes. I frowned when I realized I was in my bed in the castle, but didn't see that familiar mess of blonde hair that I had gotten used to waking up to every morning.
I slowly sat up, looking around for the fire demon. "Wolf?" I called out, but there was no one in the room with me. "Why didn't he wake me up?" I let a yawn escape my mouth as I threw the covers off me, but before I could swing my legs over the side to get up, the memories of what had happened hit me hard and I closed my eyes and grabbed my head.
The battle. Wolf's cry. Wolf's face twisted in pain. The tears in his eyes. The blood.
My eyes shot open and my heart raced. "Wolf." I bolted out of bed and ran out of the room faster than I ever thought I could and ran down the hall. No. It didn't happen. Wolf was fine. He got hurt, but we were able to help him. They probably just put him in his room to rest. Yeah. He was in his room.
My feet carried me all the way to his room and I burst through the doors panting. "Wolf!" I scanned the room but didn't see him anywhere, and the bed in the middle of the room was empty. My heart beat faster and it rang loud in my ears. My eyes suddenly went wide. "The infirmary!"
I spun on my heel, almost losing my balance, and raced down the halls again. Tears burned my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. He was fine. Gisela probably just wanted to keep an eye on him.
I ran even faster, my feet starting to hurt a bit from running on the hard floor barefoot, but I didn't care. I didn't care about the pain. I didn't care about the people that shouted as I barely missed them. I didn't care to even utter an apology. I had to get to him.
As I rounded a corner, my eyes went wide as someone suddenly appeared in front of me, but I was moving way too quickly to stop the collision. I slammed into the person, feeling like I just hit a brick wall, and fell hard onto my butt. I cringed and squeezed my eyes tight at the pain that shot through my body.
"Yuri?"
I opened my eyes and looked up to see Conrad staring down at me with a shocked face. "Sorry, Conrad. I couldn't stop in time."
"It's alright," he replied as he helped me to my feet. "Are you ok? Why were you running?"
"I need to get to Wolf."
I expected him to give me that comforting smile and say that I shouldn't be running and that he would go with me, but all I saw was a pained look crossing his face. "Yuri…"
I took a step back. "I have to be there for him. He saved me, so I want to thank him. He's in the infirmary, right?" My heart was beating fast again as he just stared at me sadly.
"I'm sorry, Yuri."
My heart stopped and I could feel my legs shaking.
"I'm sorry… Yuri."
Wolf said those exact words right before… I shook my head. No. Wolf wasn't dead. He couldn't be dead!
I felt arms wrap around me, holding me tightly, and my legs gave out. The tears that stung my eyes rolled down my cheeks. "No." I didn't shout it, yet, that word felt so loud in my ears. "No. No no no no." I felt myself falling, but Conrad's arms just tightened around me. He slowly lowered me to my knees. "He can't… It's not true."
Conrad pulled me closer and I buried my face in his chest, my fists clenching tight in his shirt, and a loud sob escaped my throat. Conrad didn't say anything, just rubbed his hand up and down my back as I cried.
I wasn't sure how long we sat there, but I eventually took a deep, shaky breath and pushed away from him, wiping the tears from my face with the back of my hand. I looked up at him and saw evidence that he too had been crying. "Where is he?"
"Yuri, I don't…"
"I want to see him!" I said louder, and even though my voice shook, I pushed all of the authority I could into it.
Conrad just stared at me, then closed his eyes and sighed. "Alright. I'll take you to him," he finally said as he stood up, pulling me up with him.
I took another shaky breath in. "Thank you," I said in a much quieter voice.
Conrad wrapped his arm around my shoulder and led me down the corridor. I didn't pay attention to where we were going. I trusted him not to let me run into anything or anyone. I thought I was done crying, but as the images of Wolf lying in my arms, cold and unmoving, raced through my mind, I couldn't stop the tears. Why? Why did this have to happen? Why does he always insist on protecting me? Why does he always put himself in danger just so I wouldn't get hurt?
My mind went back to when Wolf was leaning over me. His face twisted in pain. The tears rolling down his cheeks. The last words he spoke. My eyes went wide as my brain finally deciphered what his lips were trying to say.
I love you.
My heart ached and I stumbled as I walked, feeling Conrad grab my arm to keep me from falling. I vaguely heard him say something, but I didn't hear it.
He loved me. Wolf loved me. He had never said those words before. Sure he hinted at it multiple times, and he was very passionate about our engagement, but he never actually spoke those words to me.
I clutched my shirt right above my heart, my fist shaking as more tears fell from my eyes. Why? Why didn't I ever tell him? Why did I constantly push him away? Why did I keep on saying that I didn't want to marry him? I learned quite a while ago that I actually did love him, so then why didn't I ever tell him. He loved me, but I never told him that I loved him back.
"..ri?"
He died protecting me, even though I did nothing but hurt him over and over again.
"...uri?"
My breathing was coming so quickly that my head started to spin, but the pain in my chest just kept getting worse. My fingers ached at how tight I was clenching them in my shirt.
Why didn't I just tell him? He died thinking that I never loved him.
My knees hit the ground and I squeezed my eyes so tight that they hurt.
Did he have any idea how much I cared about him? Did he think that I hated him because I kept trying to push him away? Why? Why did I keep pushing him away? Why?!
"Yuri!"
My head snapped up and I was staring into the worried eyes of my Godfather. I felt my face twist with the pain I was feeling and felt the tears roll down my cheeks. "Conrad…" I breathed out, but I couldn't finish that sentence. If I say it out loud, it makes it all true.
"You should go back to your room and rest," Conrad said as he pulled me to my feet, but my legs wouldn't support me. They shook violently, and if it wasn't for Conrad's hand on my arm, I would've fallen back down.
I shook my head. "No. I have to see him. I have to tell him…" I love him. He had to know. He had to hear me.
Conrad stared at me sadly for a few seconds, but then nodded. "Alright, but after that, I'm taking you back to your room to rest."
I just nodded as Conrad turned me and faced a large wooden door. Was this the place? Was this where my Wolf was?
Conrad pushed the large door open and my heart dropped into my stomach. A quick glance around the room told me we were in Anissina's lab, but my eyes immediately fell onto the large black coffin that sat on the side of the room, white mist spilling out from the sides. I remembered that box. It was where Anissina kept Gunter when he was hit by the Wincott poison. It was a cryo-box.
Even though my legs were still shaky, I pushed Conrad's hand off my arm and slowly walked over to the coffin. My heart shattered when I peered inside and saw Wolf's still body lying inside it. His skin was pale, his hair looked a bit darker, and he laid there with his hands clasped over his chest as if he were merely sleeping.
I fell to my knees right next to the box, not even caring about the pain that shot through my legs. I just stared at his beautiful face. I half expected him to open his eyes, give me that small smile that made my heart flutter, and call me a wimp for crying so much, but it never happened. He just lied there, completely motionless.
I reached out with a shaky hand and ran my finger down his cheek. He was so cold. His body was never this cold. Because of his fire magic, he always ran hotter than most people. It was amazing in the winter because he was like my own personal heater, though it sucked whenever I woke up sweating in the summer because he had rolled on top of me.
A small smile crossed my lips at the memory, but another tear rolled down my cheek. I would never get to feel that heat again. As I stared at his face, those last words he said to me kept ringing through my head.
I pushed myself up enough that I could bend over the side of the coffin and got closer. My lips hovered over his, the cold from the cryo-box biting at my face, but I didn't care. I gently placed my lips over his as more tears fell from my eyes. My lips seemed to stick to his as I pulled away as if he was telling me not to stop, but I knew that wasn't the case.
"I love you too," I whispered so that only he could hear me.
I felt someone pull me back and I wanted to protest it, but feeling the sting of heat that bombarded my face, I knew they were just worried I would get hurt by the cryo-mist.
"We placed his body in there to preserve it until the burial. We knew you would want to be there," Conrad said carefully.
I just nodded as I continued to stare down at Wolf's body. When Conrad tried to pull me away, that's when I did resist him. I didn't want to leave him.
"Yuri, let's get you back to your room. You need to rest."
No. What I needed was my Wolf back.
"Yuri," Conrad said in a quieter and gentler voice as he stepped closer to me. "Please."
I didn't want to leave, but I could feel the exhaustion quickly weakening me. I nodded my head once, and when Conrad tried pulling me away again, I let him.
"We'll leave his body there until you're ready."
Ready? I will never be ready to bury my best friend! I tried to turn my head to glare at him, but I didn't even have the energy to do that. I just slumped against him when he put his arm around my shoulder and let him guide me back to my room.
I didn't have the energy to do anything anymore.
There it is. Was anyone else in tears like I was? I really hate when I kill off one of my favorite characters, but I just couldn't help it. It frustrates me that Yuri constantly denies what is obvious to everyone around him.
Now, I do have a way to save Wolf if there is anyone interested. If so, please leave a comment and let me know and I'll add a second chapter. And who knows, if I get enough requests for it, I may make a sequel showing their relationship afterwards.
