FIC: Into the Indefinite Sky : CH 6 (Yuuram, AU)
Happy Mother's Day to all of you women with kids. Probably aren't many reading this, but there could be! I'm sending this while working on my own Mother's Day gift (as I'm broke so I make things), and decided to post this early for the occassion. Enjoy!
Title: Into the Indefinite Sky
Author: S.P. Kathrine
Anime: Kyou Kara Maou
Genre: AU, Angst/Drama, Romance
Pairing: YuurixWolfram
Rating: M-MA (R-NC17)
Chapter: Chapter 6 (06) / ???
Warnings: Angst, Non-Consensual Sexual themes (referenced/implied), AU, OOC Wolfram, possibly OOC everyone else (and a few Warnings I can’t mention without ruining the plot)
Summary:
Wolf had spent his life believing that he was meant for servitude. His master was strict, and often cruel, but he never thought he could be anything more than what he was. One night changes everything and he is thrown into a world that he knows nothing about and given a life he never thought he could have. But a secret he keeps could only throw his life into further turmoil and not to mention the Demon King…
BETA: nekokatechan
Crossposted @: kkm_wolframfans
Other chapters can be found : here
Chapter 6 - Revelation
Wolf had never known that a bath could be so revitalizing. Yuuri had left the room shortly after making his oath of honesty and protection, going off to find this ‘Gisela’. He had finished undressing and followed the sound advice to not try to remove the bandages. Next, he had carefully lifted himself over the edge of the tub and then lowered himself into the steaming water.
At first it had felt as if his entire body was being scalded, although he usually washed dishes in hotter water. He had hesitated due to the unexpected heat, but continued to seep down into the liquid that was quickly changing from clear to foggy grey. The bandages soaked up the water as soon as the edges touched, the cuts throbbing from the contact. Once he was finally seated, he clutched the edges of the bathtub and took calming breaths, allowing the sweet scent in the air to relax him again.
A washcloth was draped over a metal vine protruding from the wall beside the counter that held the soaps and oils, and Wolfram grabbed it, dipping it generously into the water. He looked at the soaps and searched for the simplest one to use, as it would be less likely to irritate the cuts that littered his body that way. There was one towards the center that had nothing save a beautiful golden yellow flower that had been painted on the label. While all of the others that Yuuri had set out had words and special ribbons or something else added to them, this bottle was naked in comparison.
He picked it up and carefully twisted the cork from inside. The smell didn’t hit him immediately, for it was a soft, rather than intense, fragrance. Strangely, it seemed almost familiar to him. Looking into the bottle, he saw that the oil was also a clear yellow color, just as the flower on the front. He poured a dollop into his palm and rubbed it with his fingers, watching as it bubbled. That meant it was probably a soap of some kind.
Wolf used it to bathe with the cloth, although he was very careful when nearing his back. He’d rather not rub anything into his wounds. His hair had been the hardest part. By then the water had turned a strange mix of pink, grey, and brown, but he wanted to at least rinse the dust from his hair. He scooted forward towards the front of the tub and tried to brace himself as best as possible with one hand at his nose before lowering backwards into the water, eyes closed.
His back didn’t touch the bottom, as the tub was so deep and wide that he could submerge himself without having to sink that far. He lifted himself up quickly, as the water was still quite warm and felt like a sharp sting to whiplashes near his neck that had not been wet before. When he did, his face was covered by his now drenched hair. Taking a deep breath, he raked fingers through the split ends and broken strands and went about finishing his bath.
Once he was finished, he felt around at the bottom of the tub and pulled out the drain plug. As the water emptied, he carefully dried himself off as much as possible and then went to the clothes Yuuri had brought him, which were now laying on a shelf with the unused towels. There was a pair of smooth, black slacks, so unlike the roughness of his usual clothing, a simple white shirt that buttoned up the front and on the wrists. Beneath the outfit was a strange piece of black cloth that Wolf did not recognize. Looking about once more though, he realized that Yuuri had not given him any undergarments.
Well, Wolf conceded with a slight blush. It would be indecent to wear someone else’s undergarments. His face burned even more at the thought. And so he put on the pants and set the shirt aside, not seeing the point of wearing it when Yuuri was sending someone to look at his back. He’d just put it on when the woman was finished. And as if his thoughts had been heard, a knock came to the door.
“Wolf?” A voice-Yuuri’s-came muffled through the door. “Are you finished? Because I brought Gisela and we’ll wait until you are.”
The blonde almost nodded at the question, but then reminded himself that he wasn’t supposed to keep silent anymore-and the fact that they couldn’t see the nod if he had. “Yes,” he called out. “I’m ready.” But he wasn’t really.
The door opened and Yuuri was there with the same smile he had been wearing when he’d left, open and comforting. He entered and behind him came a young woman with green hair and green eyes. She smiled at him tentatively, although with the same openness. She bowed to him, which caused him to step back in confusion. People did not bow to him. Perhaps it is custom here, he concluded.
“It is a pleasure to meet you,” she told him as she straightened. “I am Gisela, one of the Mazoku Healers.”
“I am Wolf,” he said, unsure of what to do. And so he began to bow to her in return.
“Don’t do that!” she exclaimed and he jumped, startled by her outburst. There was a fierce look in her eyes now, and gone was the calm, docile façade that had entered the room with her.
“What?” he asked.
“You shouldn’t bend over like that!” she pointed out. “Yuuri said that I needed to look at your back and doing such things will only injure it more.”
The blonde glanced at Yuuri, who waved his hands before him as if to say, “I didn’t mean for her to act this way.” He brought his attention back to the woman, only to find her right beside him. This startled him even more and he backed away a few steps, only to have her grab his arm.
“Don’t move,” she told him, and he knew from her tone that no argument would be had.
And so he stood there, allowing her to look over him with the critical eye that only one in the medical or artistic professions could have. She surveyed his face, his arms, and then his back. “You’re far too skinny,” she said objectively. “And it’s obvious that it’s from lack of proper nutrition rather than anything natural. You have abrasions and contusions all over your upper body, and from what I can see through the wet and bloody wrappings, your back was injured badly and has not yet healed. And yet you rode a horse for two days straight! I should take Conrad to task over this!”
“He doesn’t know,” Yuuri explained.
This only angered her. “And why not?” she asked. “This is serious! What if it is infected or something worse?!” She then looked at Wolf, hard glare in her eyes. “You should have told someone!” She leaned in a little, only to get a strange glazed look in her eyes. The blonde watched her apprehensively for she seemed to pull herself from whatever had taken hold of her, releasing his arm and stepping backwards.
But then she looked down and Wolf followed her eyes. She was staring at his necklace. “What’s that?” she inquired. Instinctively, his hand went to the twine rope that held the pink stone.
“It’s mine,” he told her with a hiss in his voice.
“But…” she was still staring at the stone and Wolf decided that he wanted her gone as soon as possible.
Yuuri must have sensed his unease for he stepped in right then. “Gisela, please just look at his back,” he implored her.
The green-haired woman agreed distractedly and circled the blonde so that she could see his back completely. “It’s good that the bandages are still damp,” she said. “It will be easier to remove them. Heika, I will need your help.”
“Right,” Yuuri moved forward.
Gisela placed her hand where the bandages were closed with a metal pin. She undid the pin and removed it, holding the wrappings in place as she set it down. “Now, Heika,” she directed, “I am going to start unraveling the cloth. I will bring it from behind as painlessly as possible and you will bring it back to me from the front. All right? Good.”
And so they went. The process was lengthy, as they wanted to avoid pulling off too many of the scabs that had formed at the edges of the bandages. The closer they got to the end, the harder it was for Wolf to remain still. The bandages were stuck together by the blood and while the wetness made it easier, it did not completely remove the pain he felt. And he could not cross him arms because then Yuuri would be unable to get to the wrappings.
“Put your arms on my shoulders,” Yuuri instructed after glancing up at his face. “That way you can grip something if it hurts too much. I don’t mind.”
“Yuuri?”
The raven-haired boy just shook his head. “Don’t worry. I can handle it.”
Wolf took him at his words and hesitantly placed his hands on the other boy’s shoulders. As Yuuri was kneeling in front of him while Gisela did so behind, it made him feel extremely awkward. He was glad that the Mazoku could not see the color that stained his cheeks. Gisela gave a particularly sharp tug at a piece of cloth that was stuck to his back and he gasped, hands automatically squeezing the flesh they held.
Yuuri gave a yelp then, leaning forward. Wolf quickly removed his hands. “I’m sorry!” he apologized, hands moving reflexively to protect his person from whatever retaliation Yuuri might mete out.
“It’s okay!” the other grabbed his hands. “That was my fault. I told you to use my shoulders, but didn’t think about how strong you could be.”
Wolf knew he was blushing from the image-Yuuri on his knees holding his hands between his own-but hid it as best he could. “I’m not strong,” he stated, “you’re just a wimp.”
“Am not!” the other boy huffed.
“Heika,” the tone was back in Gisela’s voice. “We need to finish.”
The boy seemed more frightened of her than he’d been of Wolf earlier. “Anou… Right, yeah, sorry…” He then went back to unwrapping the cloths.
A tug was felt, and though it was not strong, the blonde braced himself. This was the last of it, he was sure, and that meant that it would hurt more than the rest.
“Please, Wolf-san,” Gisela said. “I know this will hurt, but I will try to get it over as quickly as possible.
“All right,” he nodded jerkily. She looked back at the last strip before her and took a deep breath, grabbing the edge and pulling with as much force as she could. The shock took the breath from the blonde boy’s lungs and he threw his head back. The cloth came off and he collapsed, falling into Yuuri’s arms.
“Done,” she then said a smile in her voice.
Wolf couldn’t bear to look at her without homicidal thoughts arising at that moment. He instead gazed up at Yuuri, who was holding his shoulders now. “See?” he said. “That wasn’t so bad. You didn’t even cry.”
I want to hit him in the face, was the former slave’s first reaction. “You‘re worse than a crying baby,” he growled. “It hurt more than when I got those lashes. Not everyone cries like you when they’re hurt, wimp.”
“Don’t call me that,” Yuuri frowned. “Geez, you’re starting to get mean. What happened to the shy guy from earlier?” Of course the last part was spoken under his breath in an attempt to keep Wolf from hearing it-even though he still did.
“This is good,” Gisela stated as she reassessed his back. “Well, it’s not good, because some of these are still bleeding, but there’s not infection setting in. I can heal them without any trouble.”
“Leave the scars,” Wolf told her, making sure she knew what he wanted.
Gisela looked up at him over his shoulder and gave a noise of acceptance. “This won’t take long at all,” she said. Wolf turned his head as far around as he could to watch her, but the decided against it. Instead he turned his eyes to the left and watched her in the mirror. Her hands were extended towards his back a strange glow was emanating from them. She moved them closer to his back and there was a spark, as if a pink lightning bolt had just attacked her.
Then he felt the heat as if he was being thrown into a fire. Wolf let out a strangled gasp of surprise and Gisela jumped back. Yuuri stared at them both. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “What happened? What was that light?”
The green-haired woman did not answer immediately, staring questioningly at Wolf’s back. She then took one of her hands and lowered it to his shoulder blade where a particularly deep gash had been reopened by removing the bandages. Within inches of contact, the sparks came and Wolf let out a whimper of pain.
“Stop!” he almost shouted. “Whatever you’re doing, stop!”
Yuuri seemed as if he wanted to speak, but his attention was diverted by the strange glow coming from Wolf’s chest. Both boys lowered the gaze and were shocked to find that the blonde’s necklace was glowing. The stone gave out a soft pink light that could have almost been overlooked, if not for the oddness of it. As the glow brightened, Wolf felt himself growing tired, as if his body was floating in a deep lake.
“Wolf?” Yuuri called to him, but he didn’t answer. The drowsiness blanketed him and he let it, sinking into the tranquility he felt, not aware enough to stop himself from collapsing into Yuuri’s arms once more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He felt consciousness return to him and the comfort of the softness all around him. He was lying on his stomach on what had to be the softest piece of furniture he’d ever been on. Why do I always find myself fainting like some dainty woman? was the first though that came to his mind. This hasn’t happened so often for years. Then he heard the voices that were speaking not too far away from him. At first, he couldn’t understand what they were saying, but the more aware he became, the clearer were the words.
“-dead.” Serious. Anger.
“But he’s not. That means that it has been enchanted in some way…or he really is just a half-Mazoku that coincidentally looks like Wolfram.” Soft. Calm. Conrad.
“He’s Wolfram. That is my son. No one could look so much like-” Insistent. Feminine. The voice halted and he could then feel someone’s presence closing in on him and the sound of footsteps.
“Good evening. I hope you slept well.” Conrad. He had been caught.
Reluctantly, he opened his eyes and turned his head so that he could see the three who had been speaking. It was indeed Conrad, but with him were the blonde woman and raven-haired man he’d met when he’d first arrived. All stared at him. He evaluated his position on what he now knew to be a bed, and the fact that he back was wrapped once more. What had happened to the bathroom? Where was Gisela? Where is Yuuri?
“What happened to me?” he asked.
“You lost consciousness when Gisela was healing your back,” Conrad replied. “She rewrapped it with fresh bandages and we brought you here so that you could rest.”
“Where is Yuuri?” this came out more demanding than he intended.
“Heika is with Greta,” the chestnut-haired man explained. “She saw us bringing you in and was worried about you. Heika went to comfort her and explain that you would be fine.” Then he smiled in the came, all-knowing way that Hilde often would. “If you would like, I have someone let him know you are awake and wish to see him.”
Wolf nodded at him and the man turned to leave the room. Inches from the door, it was opened from the opposite side, a small form shooting through it into the room.
“Wolf!” Greta exclaimed as she hurried to his side. “I was afraid! You were sleeping and your back was covered up! Does it hurt?”
He shook his head. “I’m fine, Greta,” the words were reassuring and calm. “My back doesn’t hurt. It’s just something old that aggravated while in the bath.” To prove his point, he shifted and pushed himself up, sliding his legs over the end of the bed. Once he was in a sitting position, he smiled at her. “See?”
“Are you sure?” she inquired, eyes somewhat doubtful. The blonde wondered what could put so much suspicion in a child’s mind and why he hadn’t noticed it in her before.
“Gisela said that it would be fine,” Yuuri touched her shoulder. “He just needs to rest.”
“Good,” she said, leaning forward and giving him a gentle hug, careful of the bandages.
Conrad spoke to her. “Greta, could you find Günter, Gisela, and Geika? I think it would be best if they were here.” She nodded, her head rubbing against Wolf’s chest. She pulled away from him and hugged her father before leaving the room.
“What happened to me?” the blonde asked moments after the door shut behind the little girl.
Yuuri looked to the others for the explanation, as if he could say what had occurred. The woman kept her distance, which confused Wolf, as she had near asphyxiated him at their first meeting. The man in the green uniform did not speak either. Once more, it was Conrad who took up the job of ambassador between the sides.
“The stone of your necklace reacted to Gisela’s maryoku, her energy,” he explained. “It repelled her attempts to heal you and drained your energy doing it.”
He didn’t understand. “M-my necklace?” he repeated. His hand went his bare chest, clutching the stone pendant. “I-I’ve had it since I was a child,” he disagreed. “It wouldn’t hurt me.”
“Where did you get it?” Yuuri asked him.
Wolf’s eyes were downcast. “My mother gave it to me. She said it belonged to my father...before he died.”
A slight noise came from the woman when he said this. It was obvious that it upset her, but he wasn’t going to deny his memories for someone he didn’t even know. I had a mother and she had died, he reminded himself. Even if…Even if they’re telling the truth, she’s the only mother I remember and I know she loved me enough to die for me.
The knock on the door was a welcome distraction. It was pushed open and Gisela entered with two others at her side. One was a tall man with long, flowing silver hair wearing a large robe-like cloak. The other…seemed very familiar. It was a boy, who looked to be the same age as he and Yuuri, but it would be hard to tell seeing as he was Mazoku. His hair was black and his eyes were the same. I think I’ve seen him before…
“It’s good to see you awake,” Gisela said. “I’m very sorry that I couldn’t heal your back, but I did put a healing ointment on it before bandaging it once more.”
“Thank you,” he expressed his gratitude. “I don’t even feel it.”
“The ointment is very good at numbing the pain,” she replied.
The new arrivals moved towards the bed and the silver-haired man bowed. “I am Günter von Christ,” he introduced himself. “I am the Maou’s tutor and advisor.”
“Pretty much he tries to lock Yuuri in a room with books and paperwork,” the boy smiled as he waved at Wolf. “You probably don’t recognize me. Maybe it would be easier if I had blonde hair?”
Wolf’s eyes went wide with recollection. “You were with us at the inn!” he exclaimed. “You left with the red-haired man.”
“Yeah,” he grinned, hand going to scratch the back of his head. “I’m Murata Ken, but your can call me Murata or Ken.” Then it was as if most of the merriment had faded from his voice and his features. “Would I be allowed to inspect the stone on your necklace?”
The blonde didn’t want to let him. He held the pendant even tighter in his hand and shifted his eyes to Yuuri. The raven-haired boy stood beside the bed patiently, as if waiting for whatever decision he came to. “I… My mother made me swear to never remove it,” he said at last. “I‘ve kept that promise for seventy years and I aim to keep it for many more. Not even fear of Mas…Verik finding it could force me to remove it.”
“Then don’t,” Murata told him. “I would hate to have you break a promise to your mother, and I don’t even need to your take it off to look at it.”
Wolf gave an unenthusiastic nod as he released the stone from his hand, and the other boy advanced to the bed. He bent over so that he could inspect the stone more thoroughly without removing it, but did touch the stone and twist it about in his hand. Thankfully, the rope was somewhat long in length or else Wolf would have felt extremely uncomfortable with Murata’s proximity.
“I was right,” the boy said at last. “This is a piece of Houseki.”
“Houseki?” Wolf frowned. “Isn’t Houseki that magical stone they keep mining out of Svela?”
“The stone that can kill a Mazoku,” Murata nodded.
“That is what we don’t understand,” the raven-haired man finally spoke. “If that is Houseki than he should be dead. No Mazoku can stay around a piece of Houseki for so long without becoming ill or dying.”
“It’s enchanted,” Murata explained. “Some spell was cast on it, so that rather than work as the normal Houseki, it would suppress maryoku and drain it only when needed confronted with someone else’s maryoku.”
“What?” It seemed that both Wolf and Yuuri were confused by the conversation.
The blonde’s brow wrinkled with deep thought. “I…I thought that Houseki only hurt full-blooded Mazoku,” he replied. “It’s never hurt me, my mother, or my brother.”
“No,” Murata shook his head. “This stone has been enchanted to do the exact opposite. It wouldn’t hurt a Mazoku, but rather suppress them. Houseki hurts Mazoku because it drains their maryoku for power. That’s why Mazoku can’t use their special abilities in Human territories. But this piece…it only suppresses the energy instead.”
“But I’m not a full-blooded Mazoku,” he pointed out.
Murata shook his head. “For this stone to work the way I think it does,” he said, “you would have to be.”
Ooooo... Little cliffy. Next update will be Friday. My LAST day of high school. Yay me!
Title: Into the Indefinite Sky
Author: S.P. Kathrine
Anime: Kyou Kara Maou
Genre: AU, Angst/Drama, Romance
Pairing: YuurixWolfram
Rating: M-MA (R-NC17)
Chapter: Chapter 6 (06) / ???
Warnings: Angst, Non-Consensual Sexual themes (referenced/implied), AU, OOC Wolfram, possibly OOC everyone else (and a few Warnings I can’t mention without ruining the plot)
Summary:
Wolf had spent his life believing that he was meant for servitude. His master was strict, and often cruel, but he never thought he could be anything more than what he was. One night changes everything and he is thrown into a world that he knows nothing about and given a life he never thought he could have. But a secret he keeps could only throw his life into further turmoil and not to mention the Demon King…
BETA: nekokatechan
Crossposted @: kkm_wolframfans
Other chapters can be found : here
Chapter 6 - Revelation
Wolf had never known that a bath could be so revitalizing. Yuuri had left the room shortly after making his oath of honesty and protection, going off to find this ‘Gisela’. He had finished undressing and followed the sound advice to not try to remove the bandages. Next, he had carefully lifted himself over the edge of the tub and then lowered himself into the steaming water.
At first it had felt as if his entire body was being scalded, although he usually washed dishes in hotter water. He had hesitated due to the unexpected heat, but continued to seep down into the liquid that was quickly changing from clear to foggy grey. The bandages soaked up the water as soon as the edges touched, the cuts throbbing from the contact. Once he was finally seated, he clutched the edges of the bathtub and took calming breaths, allowing the sweet scent in the air to relax him again.
A washcloth was draped over a metal vine protruding from the wall beside the counter that held the soaps and oils, and Wolfram grabbed it, dipping it generously into the water. He looked at the soaps and searched for the simplest one to use, as it would be less likely to irritate the cuts that littered his body that way. There was one towards the center that had nothing save a beautiful golden yellow flower that had been painted on the label. While all of the others that Yuuri had set out had words and special ribbons or something else added to them, this bottle was naked in comparison.
He picked it up and carefully twisted the cork from inside. The smell didn’t hit him immediately, for it was a soft, rather than intense, fragrance. Strangely, it seemed almost familiar to him. Looking into the bottle, he saw that the oil was also a clear yellow color, just as the flower on the front. He poured a dollop into his palm and rubbed it with his fingers, watching as it bubbled. That meant it was probably a soap of some kind.
Wolf used it to bathe with the cloth, although he was very careful when nearing his back. He’d rather not rub anything into his wounds. His hair had been the hardest part. By then the water had turned a strange mix of pink, grey, and brown, but he wanted to at least rinse the dust from his hair. He scooted forward towards the front of the tub and tried to brace himself as best as possible with one hand at his nose before lowering backwards into the water, eyes closed.
His back didn’t touch the bottom, as the tub was so deep and wide that he could submerge himself without having to sink that far. He lifted himself up quickly, as the water was still quite warm and felt like a sharp sting to whiplashes near his neck that had not been wet before. When he did, his face was covered by his now drenched hair. Taking a deep breath, he raked fingers through the split ends and broken strands and went about finishing his bath.
Once he was finished, he felt around at the bottom of the tub and pulled out the drain plug. As the water emptied, he carefully dried himself off as much as possible and then went to the clothes Yuuri had brought him, which were now laying on a shelf with the unused towels. There was a pair of smooth, black slacks, so unlike the roughness of his usual clothing, a simple white shirt that buttoned up the front and on the wrists. Beneath the outfit was a strange piece of black cloth that Wolf did not recognize. Looking about once more though, he realized that Yuuri had not given him any undergarments.
Well, Wolf conceded with a slight blush. It would be indecent to wear someone else’s undergarments. His face burned even more at the thought. And so he put on the pants and set the shirt aside, not seeing the point of wearing it when Yuuri was sending someone to look at his back. He’d just put it on when the woman was finished. And as if his thoughts had been heard, a knock came to the door.
“Wolf?” A voice-Yuuri’s-came muffled through the door. “Are you finished? Because I brought Gisela and we’ll wait until you are.”
The blonde almost nodded at the question, but then reminded himself that he wasn’t supposed to keep silent anymore-and the fact that they couldn’t see the nod if he had. “Yes,” he called out. “I’m ready.” But he wasn’t really.
The door opened and Yuuri was there with the same smile he had been wearing when he’d left, open and comforting. He entered and behind him came a young woman with green hair and green eyes. She smiled at him tentatively, although with the same openness. She bowed to him, which caused him to step back in confusion. People did not bow to him. Perhaps it is custom here, he concluded.
“It is a pleasure to meet you,” she told him as she straightened. “I am Gisela, one of the Mazoku Healers.”
“I am Wolf,” he said, unsure of what to do. And so he began to bow to her in return.
“Don’t do that!” she exclaimed and he jumped, startled by her outburst. There was a fierce look in her eyes now, and gone was the calm, docile façade that had entered the room with her.
“What?” he asked.
“You shouldn’t bend over like that!” she pointed out. “Yuuri said that I needed to look at your back and doing such things will only injure it more.”
The blonde glanced at Yuuri, who waved his hands before him as if to say, “I didn’t mean for her to act this way.” He brought his attention back to the woman, only to find her right beside him. This startled him even more and he backed away a few steps, only to have her grab his arm.
“Don’t move,” she told him, and he knew from her tone that no argument would be had.
And so he stood there, allowing her to look over him with the critical eye that only one in the medical or artistic professions could have. She surveyed his face, his arms, and then his back. “You’re far too skinny,” she said objectively. “And it’s obvious that it’s from lack of proper nutrition rather than anything natural. You have abrasions and contusions all over your upper body, and from what I can see through the wet and bloody wrappings, your back was injured badly and has not yet healed. And yet you rode a horse for two days straight! I should take Conrad to task over this!”
“He doesn’t know,” Yuuri explained.
This only angered her. “And why not?” she asked. “This is serious! What if it is infected or something worse?!” She then looked at Wolf, hard glare in her eyes. “You should have told someone!” She leaned in a little, only to get a strange glazed look in her eyes. The blonde watched her apprehensively for she seemed to pull herself from whatever had taken hold of her, releasing his arm and stepping backwards.
But then she looked down and Wolf followed her eyes. She was staring at his necklace. “What’s that?” she inquired. Instinctively, his hand went to the twine rope that held the pink stone.
“It’s mine,” he told her with a hiss in his voice.
“But…” she was still staring at the stone and Wolf decided that he wanted her gone as soon as possible.
Yuuri must have sensed his unease for he stepped in right then. “Gisela, please just look at his back,” he implored her.
The green-haired woman agreed distractedly and circled the blonde so that she could see his back completely. “It’s good that the bandages are still damp,” she said. “It will be easier to remove them. Heika, I will need your help.”
“Right,” Yuuri moved forward.
Gisela placed her hand where the bandages were closed with a metal pin. She undid the pin and removed it, holding the wrappings in place as she set it down. “Now, Heika,” she directed, “I am going to start unraveling the cloth. I will bring it from behind as painlessly as possible and you will bring it back to me from the front. All right? Good.”
And so they went. The process was lengthy, as they wanted to avoid pulling off too many of the scabs that had formed at the edges of the bandages. The closer they got to the end, the harder it was for Wolf to remain still. The bandages were stuck together by the blood and while the wetness made it easier, it did not completely remove the pain he felt. And he could not cross him arms because then Yuuri would be unable to get to the wrappings.
“Put your arms on my shoulders,” Yuuri instructed after glancing up at his face. “That way you can grip something if it hurts too much. I don’t mind.”
“Yuuri?”
The raven-haired boy just shook his head. “Don’t worry. I can handle it.”
Wolf took him at his words and hesitantly placed his hands on the other boy’s shoulders. As Yuuri was kneeling in front of him while Gisela did so behind, it made him feel extremely awkward. He was glad that the Mazoku could not see the color that stained his cheeks. Gisela gave a particularly sharp tug at a piece of cloth that was stuck to his back and he gasped, hands automatically squeezing the flesh they held.
Yuuri gave a yelp then, leaning forward. Wolf quickly removed his hands. “I’m sorry!” he apologized, hands moving reflexively to protect his person from whatever retaliation Yuuri might mete out.
“It’s okay!” the other grabbed his hands. “That was my fault. I told you to use my shoulders, but didn’t think about how strong you could be.”
Wolf knew he was blushing from the image-Yuuri on his knees holding his hands between his own-but hid it as best he could. “I’m not strong,” he stated, “you’re just a wimp.”
“Am not!” the other boy huffed.
“Heika,” the tone was back in Gisela’s voice. “We need to finish.”
The boy seemed more frightened of her than he’d been of Wolf earlier. “Anou… Right, yeah, sorry…” He then went back to unwrapping the cloths.
A tug was felt, and though it was not strong, the blonde braced himself. This was the last of it, he was sure, and that meant that it would hurt more than the rest.
“Please, Wolf-san,” Gisela said. “I know this will hurt, but I will try to get it over as quickly as possible.
“All right,” he nodded jerkily. She looked back at the last strip before her and took a deep breath, grabbing the edge and pulling with as much force as she could. The shock took the breath from the blonde boy’s lungs and he threw his head back. The cloth came off and he collapsed, falling into Yuuri’s arms.
“Done,” she then said a smile in her voice.
Wolf couldn’t bear to look at her without homicidal thoughts arising at that moment. He instead gazed up at Yuuri, who was holding his shoulders now. “See?” he said. “That wasn’t so bad. You didn’t even cry.”
I want to hit him in the face, was the former slave’s first reaction. “You‘re worse than a crying baby,” he growled. “It hurt more than when I got those lashes. Not everyone cries like you when they’re hurt, wimp.”
“Don’t call me that,” Yuuri frowned. “Geez, you’re starting to get mean. What happened to the shy guy from earlier?” Of course the last part was spoken under his breath in an attempt to keep Wolf from hearing it-even though he still did.
“This is good,” Gisela stated as she reassessed his back. “Well, it’s not good, because some of these are still bleeding, but there’s not infection setting in. I can heal them without any trouble.”
“Leave the scars,” Wolf told her, making sure she knew what he wanted.
Gisela looked up at him over his shoulder and gave a noise of acceptance. “This won’t take long at all,” she said. Wolf turned his head as far around as he could to watch her, but the decided against it. Instead he turned his eyes to the left and watched her in the mirror. Her hands were extended towards his back a strange glow was emanating from them. She moved them closer to his back and there was a spark, as if a pink lightning bolt had just attacked her.
Then he felt the heat as if he was being thrown into a fire. Wolf let out a strangled gasp of surprise and Gisela jumped back. Yuuri stared at them both. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “What happened? What was that light?”
The green-haired woman did not answer immediately, staring questioningly at Wolf’s back. She then took one of her hands and lowered it to his shoulder blade where a particularly deep gash had been reopened by removing the bandages. Within inches of contact, the sparks came and Wolf let out a whimper of pain.
“Stop!” he almost shouted. “Whatever you’re doing, stop!”
Yuuri seemed as if he wanted to speak, but his attention was diverted by the strange glow coming from Wolf’s chest. Both boys lowered the gaze and were shocked to find that the blonde’s necklace was glowing. The stone gave out a soft pink light that could have almost been overlooked, if not for the oddness of it. As the glow brightened, Wolf felt himself growing tired, as if his body was floating in a deep lake.
“Wolf?” Yuuri called to him, but he didn’t answer. The drowsiness blanketed him and he let it, sinking into the tranquility he felt, not aware enough to stop himself from collapsing into Yuuri’s arms once more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He felt consciousness return to him and the comfort of the softness all around him. He was lying on his stomach on what had to be the softest piece of furniture he’d ever been on. Why do I always find myself fainting like some dainty woman? was the first though that came to his mind. This hasn’t happened so often for years. Then he heard the voices that were speaking not too far away from him. At first, he couldn’t understand what they were saying, but the more aware he became, the clearer were the words.
“-dead.” Serious. Anger.
“But he’s not. That means that it has been enchanted in some way…or he really is just a half-Mazoku that coincidentally looks like Wolfram.” Soft. Calm. Conrad.
“He’s Wolfram. That is my son. No one could look so much like-” Insistent. Feminine. The voice halted and he could then feel someone’s presence closing in on him and the sound of footsteps.
“Good evening. I hope you slept well.” Conrad. He had been caught.
Reluctantly, he opened his eyes and turned his head so that he could see the three who had been speaking. It was indeed Conrad, but with him were the blonde woman and raven-haired man he’d met when he’d first arrived. All stared at him. He evaluated his position on what he now knew to be a bed, and the fact that he back was wrapped once more. What had happened to the bathroom? Where was Gisela? Where is Yuuri?
“What happened to me?” he asked.
“You lost consciousness when Gisela was healing your back,” Conrad replied. “She rewrapped it with fresh bandages and we brought you here so that you could rest.”
“Where is Yuuri?” this came out more demanding than he intended.
“Heika is with Greta,” the chestnut-haired man explained. “She saw us bringing you in and was worried about you. Heika went to comfort her and explain that you would be fine.” Then he smiled in the came, all-knowing way that Hilde often would. “If you would like, I have someone let him know you are awake and wish to see him.”
Wolf nodded at him and the man turned to leave the room. Inches from the door, it was opened from the opposite side, a small form shooting through it into the room.
“Wolf!” Greta exclaimed as she hurried to his side. “I was afraid! You were sleeping and your back was covered up! Does it hurt?”
He shook his head. “I’m fine, Greta,” the words were reassuring and calm. “My back doesn’t hurt. It’s just something old that aggravated while in the bath.” To prove his point, he shifted and pushed himself up, sliding his legs over the end of the bed. Once he was in a sitting position, he smiled at her. “See?”
“Are you sure?” she inquired, eyes somewhat doubtful. The blonde wondered what could put so much suspicion in a child’s mind and why he hadn’t noticed it in her before.
“Gisela said that it would be fine,” Yuuri touched her shoulder. “He just needs to rest.”
“Good,” she said, leaning forward and giving him a gentle hug, careful of the bandages.
Conrad spoke to her. “Greta, could you find Günter, Gisela, and Geika? I think it would be best if they were here.” She nodded, her head rubbing against Wolf’s chest. She pulled away from him and hugged her father before leaving the room.
“What happened to me?” the blonde asked moments after the door shut behind the little girl.
Yuuri looked to the others for the explanation, as if he could say what had occurred. The woman kept her distance, which confused Wolf, as she had near asphyxiated him at their first meeting. The man in the green uniform did not speak either. Once more, it was Conrad who took up the job of ambassador between the sides.
“The stone of your necklace reacted to Gisela’s maryoku, her energy,” he explained. “It repelled her attempts to heal you and drained your energy doing it.”
He didn’t understand. “M-my necklace?” he repeated. His hand went his bare chest, clutching the stone pendant. “I-I’ve had it since I was a child,” he disagreed. “It wouldn’t hurt me.”
“Where did you get it?” Yuuri asked him.
Wolf’s eyes were downcast. “My mother gave it to me. She said it belonged to my father...before he died.”
A slight noise came from the woman when he said this. It was obvious that it upset her, but he wasn’t going to deny his memories for someone he didn’t even know. I had a mother and she had died, he reminded himself. Even if…Even if they’re telling the truth, she’s the only mother I remember and I know she loved me enough to die for me.
The knock on the door was a welcome distraction. It was pushed open and Gisela entered with two others at her side. One was a tall man with long, flowing silver hair wearing a large robe-like cloak. The other…seemed very familiar. It was a boy, who looked to be the same age as he and Yuuri, but it would be hard to tell seeing as he was Mazoku. His hair was black and his eyes were the same. I think I’ve seen him before…
“It’s good to see you awake,” Gisela said. “I’m very sorry that I couldn’t heal your back, but I did put a healing ointment on it before bandaging it once more.”
“Thank you,” he expressed his gratitude. “I don’t even feel it.”
“The ointment is very good at numbing the pain,” she replied.
The new arrivals moved towards the bed and the silver-haired man bowed. “I am Günter von Christ,” he introduced himself. “I am the Maou’s tutor and advisor.”
“Pretty much he tries to lock Yuuri in a room with books and paperwork,” the boy smiled as he waved at Wolf. “You probably don’t recognize me. Maybe it would be easier if I had blonde hair?”
Wolf’s eyes went wide with recollection. “You were with us at the inn!” he exclaimed. “You left with the red-haired man.”
“Yeah,” he grinned, hand going to scratch the back of his head. “I’m Murata Ken, but your can call me Murata or Ken.” Then it was as if most of the merriment had faded from his voice and his features. “Would I be allowed to inspect the stone on your necklace?”
The blonde didn’t want to let him. He held the pendant even tighter in his hand and shifted his eyes to Yuuri. The raven-haired boy stood beside the bed patiently, as if waiting for whatever decision he came to. “I… My mother made me swear to never remove it,” he said at last. “I‘ve kept that promise for seventy years and I aim to keep it for many more. Not even fear of Mas…Verik finding it could force me to remove it.”
“Then don’t,” Murata told him. “I would hate to have you break a promise to your mother, and I don’t even need to your take it off to look at it.”
Wolf gave an unenthusiastic nod as he released the stone from his hand, and the other boy advanced to the bed. He bent over so that he could inspect the stone more thoroughly without removing it, but did touch the stone and twist it about in his hand. Thankfully, the rope was somewhat long in length or else Wolf would have felt extremely uncomfortable with Murata’s proximity.
“I was right,” the boy said at last. “This is a piece of Houseki.”
“Houseki?” Wolf frowned. “Isn’t Houseki that magical stone they keep mining out of Svela?”
“The stone that can kill a Mazoku,” Murata nodded.
“That is what we don’t understand,” the raven-haired man finally spoke. “If that is Houseki than he should be dead. No Mazoku can stay around a piece of Houseki for so long without becoming ill or dying.”
“It’s enchanted,” Murata explained. “Some spell was cast on it, so that rather than work as the normal Houseki, it would suppress maryoku and drain it only when needed confronted with someone else’s maryoku.”
“What?” It seemed that both Wolf and Yuuri were confused by the conversation.
The blonde’s brow wrinkled with deep thought. “I…I thought that Houseki only hurt full-blooded Mazoku,” he replied. “It’s never hurt me, my mother, or my brother.”
“No,” Murata shook his head. “This stone has been enchanted to do the exact opposite. It wouldn’t hurt a Mazoku, but rather suppress them. Houseki hurts Mazoku because it drains their maryoku for power. That’s why Mazoku can’t use their special abilities in Human territories. But this piece…it only suppresses the energy instead.”
“But I’m not a full-blooded Mazoku,” he pointed out.
Murata shook his head. “For this stone to work the way I think it does,” he said, “you would have to be.”
Ooooo... Little cliffy. Next update will be Friday. My LAST day of high school. Yay me!