Happy V-day maria_chan!!
Title: Compliance
Fandom: Kyou Kara Maou
Pairings: Yuuri/Wolfram, Conrad/Yozak, Gwendal/Gunter
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 3900
Prompt: Wolfram is being prepared for his wedding night to the king. I know in some cultures there is a point were the bride is taken away to be prepped as per the groom's wishes of how he wants his bride. Kink would be submission to Yuuri, Wolfram's acknowledgment that he is giving his body to his king. Other characters may be involved in the preparation and adding to Wolfram's sexual anticipation
For: maria_chan
"Wolfram..." Conrad was using his exasperated, big-brother voice. "That tradition died out ages ago when women tired of being treated like mere objects for their mates' enjoyment."
...And that, Conrad realized, was exactly the problem. Wolfram's devotion to his king, his fiance, his husband-to-be-in-less-than-a-day was such that he would gladly submit himself to anything that Yuuri asked of him. Except that Yuuri hadn't asked him to do anything, of course. Yuuri would never ask such a thing. It had taken him all these years to finally go through with something as pure, innocent, and beautiful as a wedding. How in the world would he ever muster up the courage (and the arrogance, Conrad mentally added) to ask for... For what Wolfram was offering to him?
Wolfram hmmphed and crossed his arms over his chest. He didn't expect someone so dispassionate as his brother to understand. Had his brother ever even had a girlfriend? Julia didn't count. And, aside from her, he just spent all of his free time in Yozak's quarters. Probably being really lame. Conrad wouldn't know what it was like to be young and in love and morally obligated to make one's lover as happy as was humanly possible.
"Fine," Wolfram grumbled, "if you won't ask Gunter for me, I'll just ask him myself."
Conrad sighed to himself as Wolfram stomped from the room. Poor, Gunter, he thought to himself. What a shock the poor man was in for.
***
It really wasn't his fault that he broke the fine wedding china. That's what he would tell Gwendal come the first of the month when they went over the expense account together. It was Wolfram's fault, Lord von Bielefeld and his foul, filthy mouth and where did the young people these days unlearn manners so thoroughly and so quickly, that's what he'd like to know.
Gunter swept up the pieces, hoping that there was still time to replace them, as Wolfram sat sulkily in a chair across the room. The willful brat was asking Gunter to delve into chapters of textbooks left untouched for lifetimes. At least for as long as Gunter had been working at Blood Pledge Castle, at any rate. Surely, he was not so daft as to think that brides were still...prepared for their most private night, and by complete strangers, no less! And surely he was asking Gunter of all people to help him with this? Gunter's face flushed red again. Oh, some days, he wished he'd never come under employment here.
"Please," he said quietly, "think of his majesty."
Wolfram groaned, equal parts embarrassment and frustration. "I am!"
Gunter frowned and turned to face him. "His majesty would no sooner ask this of you than he would ask the humans to offer up their first-born sons to the demon tribe as sacrifices. He loves you for who you are."
Wolfram sighed. "Show me the books," he said. He almost added, "please."
***
Wolfram settled deep into the hot water. According to two of the three texts which he had consulted, the ritual often began with a bath. Not bad. He could easily handle that. He didn't know what the big deal was. It's not like he was being tortured. How bad could a hot bath be?
The texts had recommended that Wolfram be fully accompanied throughout the ritual. Gunter had, with much flailing and sputtering and blushing, refused the role. But he had said that he would find somebody else who was appropriate. Wolfram was appeased.
So it was no big deal. All the old people in the castle were treating him like some dumb kid, and he hated nothing more than being treated like a dumb kid. He'd just get his bath, his preparation, his full night's sleep, and by the following midday, he'd be married to Yuuri and all would be well.
Behind him, he heard the door open. Careful footsteps padded across the floor, then splashed softly into the water. When Wolfram dragged the warm, wet towel off his eyes, he was startled by the man in the water with him.
"Yozak?!"
"Mm!" Yozak looked rather pleased with himself. He held up a small wooden bucket full of soaps and creams. "I hear I'm supposed to get you cleaned up."
***
"And nobody understands," Wolfram said slowly, like a drunk. His body was too relaxed for his voice to sound as angry as he would have liked.
His back was resting against the side of the royal bath. Yozak was seated on the floor behind him, his feet in the water, Wolfram situated between his knees with his arms draped over Yozak's legs. Wolfram was a little surprised to find that Yozak shaved his legs. They were so smooth.
Yozak scrubbed his fingers through Wolfram's sudsy hair, humming his response to Wolfram's complaints. If being a spy had taught him anything, it had taught him how to keep his mouth shut. Not that Wolfram was really listening to him anyway.
Yozak didn't entirely understand why he'd been assigned to this particular post. How degrading. Conrad would be paying for this one for a long, long time. Still, it wasn't without its perks. His fingers found a tangle in Wolfram's hair and tugged hard. The young, relaxed prince grunted his dissatisfaction, but did nothing else. Yozak snickered in his head.
Of course, this was the easy part. The grooming, the exfoliating, the moisturizing. Hell, he did this all the time for himself. It was sort of relaxing, regardless of which end you were on. But what would come next... ("For me?" Conrad has asked him, sounding so exhausted. "For Gunter? The poor man is just beside himself. And it would make Wolfram blessedly quiet and then he's...Shinou, help me...his majesty's problem.) Yozak had beaten and seduced great men who could have been his friends into giving up their terrible secrets, all in the name of his kingdom. And he would do just about anything his Captain asked of him, but this seemed so pointless and exploitative. Wolfram was so young. And so stupid.
Yozak sighed and patted Wolfram on his warm, moist shoulder. Nothing to be done about it. "Come on, kid. Stage two."
***
In all the years Yuuri had been coming to Shin Makoku, his presence on Conrad's bedroom was something of a rarity. Yet, there he sat, his hands hanging between his knees. He was smiling softly, almost secretly, but he and Conrad had no secrets, so that wasn't it.
Conrad lowered himself to sit beside Yuuri, one friendly hand on his shoulder. "Your majesty." They had long ago moved beyond all attempts to change Conrad's naming habits.
Yuuri turned his face up at Conrad, every bit the man Conrad had known he would become. "It's tomorrow," he said simply, lacking much of the uncertainty that his voice had held when he was just a boy. Conrad smiled warmly, reassuringly, and said, "Yes. It is. I trust you are nervous?"
"Mm," Yuuri said, glancing away. Then, more firmly, "Thank you. For so much." It had been Conrad to whom Yuuri had gone with his early fears. At first, he had feared that he could never return Wolfram's intense feelings. Then, he had feared that maybe he was. Later, he would go to Conrad with nerves about setting a date, with certainty that this was exactly what he wanted. Conrad had seen it all.
"I guess I'm not so much nervous," Yuuri said, "as I am concerned. ...Does that make any sense?"
"It does, your majesty. Those are very mature feelings. Very appropriate feelings, I should think, for the evening before one's wedding to his beloved."
Yuuri blushed a little, but fought down the stammering that would have dominated in his younger days. "I do love him," he said firmly, with only a little embarrassment.
"Of course." Conrad failed to mention the bewilderment of the rest of the castle at that fact. Besides, Yuuri probably knew anyway.
"But he's been ignoring me!" Yuuri's outburst was very unexpected. "Any other day, I can't get a moment's peace! But I haven't seen him all day -- the one day...okay, the second day I want to see him the most!"
Conrad bit back a chuckle. Then he bit back the urge to explain to Yuuri Wolfram's whereabouts. Then, deciding it wasn't exactly a secret if he just avoided the details, he said, "He's not ignoring you, your majesty. He's merely spending some time with Yozak to prepare. Pre-wedding jitters, you know."
***
Gwendal von Walde rubbed at the tight, wrinkled space between his dark eyebrows, the source of his frequent headaches (physiologically speaking), the source of his mother's concern. As far as he was concerned, his work day had ended when he had closed the door to his office. No more paperwork, no more worries for another day. Actually, make that two, what with the wedding and all. Except that Gunter didn't quite see it that way.
He was currently pacing back and forth across the bedroom floor, gesturing grandly with his hands, his long hair swaying along behind him. "You wouldn't believe the shock he gave me!" He chose, for the moment, to leave out the bit about the china. "Prepare me, he says. Prepare me! Like it's such a simple request!"
Gwendal grunted his agreement. Or his disagreement. Or whatever. It didn't matter to Gunter. He just continued to stalk about, back and forth in front of the bed until Gwendal reached out one strong hand and grabbed his wrist. Gunter stopped mid-rant, looking almost surprised to see Gwendal still there. He sighed dramatically.
"Really," he said, crawling in next to Gwendal and nuzzling against his chest, "he should just get used to it the same way the rest of us did."
"Mm," Gwendal grunted. Definitely agreement this time. "Lots of practice," he said, blowing out the candle beside the bed and burying his hands in Gunter's hair.
***
It was becoming very clear by the expression on Wolfram's face that he was beginning to understand that maybe this wasn't the most brilliant of his ideas. Yozak almost felt sorry for the kid. Then he remembered all the years of annoyance, all the times that he and Conrad had tried to have some alone time without the little brother tagging along. Conrad had always had -- still had -- a soft spot for Wolfram, but Yozak was a little less forgiving.
Which made it maybe a bit rewarding to harass him a bit. Wolfram was sitting on a bed specially prepared for the occasion. He was dressed in his frilly, pink nightgown. And, if Yozak did say so himself, his skin looked radiant. His face, on the other hand, looked positively terrified.
Yozak felt a little like reiterating that this was so utterly unnecessary that it was laughable. But Conrad had warned against such tactics. ("It will just make him even more determined," he had said, "remember how poorly telling him to get lost worked when we were kids?") Still...
"Hey, kid," he said, sitting cautiously at the edge of the bed, "you don't need to do this. I sure as hell don't want to do it for you. I mean, I was nervous enough the first time your brother and I... The first time I did something like you're going to do tomorrow. You don't need to add all this extra anxiety."
Wolfram stared at him for a moment, then rolled his eyes. "Let's get on with it."
Yozak sighed. "Fine then. The blindfold it is."
***
As it turned out, Conrad wasn't any good at keeping even marginally secret-like things from Yuuri.
"He's what?!" Yuuri's face was a particularly unique shade of pink, one Conrad hadn't seen since the day the young king had been presented with his kingly undergarments. Ah, coming of age. Conrad didn't know if he should train his face into the kindly smile of a confidant, or into the serious countenance of a charge. Eventually, he settled on a delighted smirk.
"It's fine, your majesty. Yozak is tending to him as we speak."
"He's what?!"
Okay, bad approach. "Don't worry. Yozak is highly trained. The man is a professional when it comes to dealing with such touchy situations."
It was true. Conrad trusted almost no one as much as he trusted Yozak. He knew that Yozak would devise a way to both appease Wolfram's jitters and preserve the honor of the impending marriage. So, it was with absolute confidence that Conrad promised Yuuri, "All is under control, your majesty."
But Yuuri was not so easily pacified. "No! No, it isn't! How can he be such an idiot sometimes?" Then he turned to Conrad, all wide-eyed and boy-like, and suddenly he looked the way he had when Conrad had first reuinted with him in Shin Makoku. "Are you sure you can't talk some sense into him?"
***
Yozak had never seen Wolfram in battle, but he had seen him spar with his small group of subordinates. And he'd been convinced that the boy could look no fiercer than he did during those fights. That was, until he'd seen him blindfolded and tied to the bed. Wolfram's face was as pink as Yozak's ever was under the influence of rouge. He bared his teeth and tugged at the restraints.
"Is this necessary," he asked, his voice angry and commanding.
Yozak frowned at thumbed through the text on the bedside table. "That's what the book says, boss."
Wolfram sighed, then relaxed a little. If it was for Yuuri, then he could endure this humiliation. He could hear Yozak's rough fingers flip a few pages in the book.
"Now, the books says nothing about oil," he said in light, amused tones, "but trust me. You'll want to use it."
In the blackness, Wolfram heard Yozak pull something out of his pocket. He heard a cork pop out. Then he heard a knock at the door. The mattress shifted as Yozak got up and crossed the room. He heard the door open, and he tried to make out what the voices were saying, but he couldn't. They didn't talk for long, though. Soon the door shut and Yozak made his way back over to the bed.
"You got a pardons, kiddo," he said cheerfully, unable to hide the relieved tone of his voice, "seems we have a revised list."
Wolfram felt Yozak untie the blindfold and his world flooded again with light. His hands were released and he watched Yozak look over the paper list in his fingers. "Well?"
Yozak smiled. "Looks like we've already taken care of the first thing on the list. Bubble bath, check!"
Wolfram nodded gravely.
Yozak continued. "This, the Pre-Marital Bridal Preparation Creed with Amendments as Signed into Law by Shibuya Yuuri Harajuku Furi, Twenty-Eighth Maou of Shin Makoku, recommends that the bride follow his or her hot bath with a hearty meal and some fine wine before returning to his or her fiance's quarters for a well earned back rub."
***
Early in his life, Yuuri had often felt that he had accomplished nothing of any real merit. But, over the years, he had come to recognize many of his successes: bringing relative peace between the demon and human populations, maintaining strong family ties back on Earth, raising Greta into a bright and lovely teenager. Still, making Wolfram appear in his bed chamber looking properly shamed and humbled would have to count amongst the achievements of which he was the proudest. Wolfram lingered near the door, his face pink with embarrassment. And Yuuri just sat on the edge of their bed and smiled at him.
"Thank you for coming," he said finally, and Wolfram muttered something unintelligible before stalking over to sit beside Yuuri. "Lay down," Yuuri instructed him.
When Wolfram complied, Yuuri crawled up to him and rolled him over onto his stomach. Wolfram watched him over his shoulder. He grimaced when Yuuri pulled from his bedside table a small vial of oil. He popped the cork. Then he gently pushed Wolfram's head back onto the pillow and pulled up the bottom of the nightgown. Wolfram could feel the fingers of one warm hand trail down his back, over his bottom, down his thighs. Then the oil hit his back. Slow, thick drips dotted down his spine, cool at first, then warmer.
He bit back a moan as Yuuri's hands began to work the oil into his skin, releasing the tension held deep in his muscles. Yuuri's hands had grown broader in the years they had known each other. More like a man's hands than a boy's, and they covered much of Wolfram's back. This was hardly the first massage that Yuuri had ever given Wolfram, but something was weightier about this one. More meaningful.
Wolfram could feel the warmth of breath grow closer as Yuuri leaned forward and kissed the back of his neck. He kissed down Wolfram's spine, pressing his lips to each bump of vertebrae. He kissed down the curve of Wolfram's bottom, and started to slide the fingers of one hand up the inside of Wolfram's thigh. Closer, closer, and Wolfram yipped and jerked away. He rolled over, blushing furiously, trying not to remember how humiliating it had been to think of doing this with Yozak.
Wolfram noticed that Yuuri looked especially grown up with his shirt off. Those long hours of fencing with Conrad, the baseball team back home, the physical labor put into rebuilding human communities in Shin Makoku -- they'd all contributed to the broader shoulders and the lean, strong muscles. But, when his face broke into a wide, delighted smile, then a deep, rumbling laugh, he looked like such a boy. And Wolfram wanted to hurt him in his stupid face. But, for the sake of pre-wedding-night aesthetics, he just glowered silently.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Yuuri said breathlessly, fighting to catch his breath, "I'm sorry, but that's...that's really extraordinary, Wolfram."
And Wolfram socked him not so playfully on the shoulder.
"Hahaha, owww," Yuuri whined, gripping his arm.
"Shut it, wimp."
Yuuri laughed and shifted until he was straddling Wolfram's hips. He leaned forward with his hands splayed on Wolfram's chest. He grinned wide and warm, and Wolfram had to blush and look away.
"I'm really flattered," he said, leaning forward to kiss Wolfram's mouth, "that you would do this for me. But, as usual, you have no sense of moderation." He chuckled. "So you've embarrassed yourself. Now what?"
And, for all of Wolfram's tough exterior, he'd allowed Yuuri to see him cry enough times that Yuuri had lost track of which number this would be.
"Hey," he said, laying down against Wolfram's chest, "hey, come on. I'm just kidding. Really. We don't have to do anything at all. You're going to be my husband now -- that's all I want."
And Wolfram blubbered against his neck for one, two, three breaths, then pulled away to wipe his face.
"I just wanted to do this right," he said, his voice much more controlled than he had expected.
Yuuri smiled at him then with such warmth and compassion. Usually that wimpy look pissed Wolfram off, but since he himself had just been sobbing, he felt a little more generous. Yuuri slid his fingers through Wolfram's hair.
"This is right," he said, "just being here together. This is where you should be spending the night before our wedding -- with me."
"You," Wolfram said, averting his embarrassed gaze, "are such a wimp."
Yuuri grinned and leaned forward to nip at Wolfram's neck. "I know," he said playfully. Then, "Hey, show me what your books taught you."
And he flopped down on the thick mattress, his legs splayed. A few years ago, such intimacy would have embarrassed Yuuri to the point of fleeing the scene, but now it excited him. Wolfram evaluated him for a moment, then crawled on top of him.
"Well," he said almost shyly, and placed the vial of oil back in Yuuri's hand, "I think we start with this."
***
Yozak knew that he and Conrad made a good team. They had a well honed knack for saving each others' skins. But Yozak was seldom so thankful for the help as he'd been that night.
"But don't think this is a free pass or anything, Captain," he said as he clambered into bed beside Conrad, "you still owe me for even thinking of going along with this in the first place."
Conrad snickered and slid an arm under Yozak's neck. "You're a good subordinate, Gurrier."
Yozak barked laugher. "Subordinate, is it? I'll show you subordinate..."
In the dark, they wrestled for a moment, hands grasping and swatting, teeth snatching for skin. Conrad laughed as Yozak finally got an arm solidly around his waist and flipped him face down on the mattress. Conrad felt him settle between his thighs and caress a hand up his legs, over his ass. Yozak licked a trail from his tail bone to the nape of his neck, then back down again, his tongue straying a bit lower than the place it had begun. Conrad groaned and pressed back against him.
"Now, Captain," Yozak purred into his ear, readying his fingers at Conrad's opening, "just how sorry are you about assigning me my last mission?"
***
Wolfram knew that, come the next morning, he would feel like such a hypocrite, but he didn't care. He would just have to marry in white. It was just a silly Earth tradition anyway.
Beneath him, Yuuri moaned and bucked his hips, reaching his hands up to caress Wolfram's chest, his throat, his face. Wolfram could feel his king, his fiance, his friend moving inside of him. He bit his lip, dropped his head back.
He raised and lowered himself with his thighs, pressing his knees deeper into the mattress, balancing himself with his hands on Yuuri's chest. Yuuri's hands were working him into a frenzy: caressing him, rubbing him, stroking him until he was thrusting into the grip.
Yuuri moved more frantically, too. His hips jerked up from the mattress. His mouth hung slack. And, so unlike the shy boy he once was, he never broke Wolfram's gaze. He just kept staring, mouthing words of affection in between the groans and the gasps and the passionate Earth expletives that Wolfram didn't fully understand. He didn't need to. When Yuuri gritted his teeth and thrust up hard one last time, Wolfram knew exactly what he meant. He leaned forward to kiss him, all breathless and needy and, with a few more quick movements of Yuuri's hand, Wolfram found his own release.
Wolfram glanced around anxiously for something to clean up with. But Yuuri laughed softly and pulled him down onto his chest. "We can take a bath in a minute," he said quietly, "just...let me do this for a bit. It will make me happy."
And Wolfram complied with this request because that's all he really wanted.
Fandom: Kyou Kara Maou
Pairings: Yuuri/Wolfram, Conrad/Yozak, Gwendal/Gunter
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 3900
Prompt: Wolfram is being prepared for his wedding night to the king. I know in some cultures there is a point were the bride is taken away to be prepped as per the groom's wishes of how he wants his bride. Kink would be submission to Yuuri, Wolfram's acknowledgment that he is giving his body to his king. Other characters may be involved in the preparation and adding to Wolfram's sexual anticipation
For: maria_chan
"Wolfram..." Conrad was using his exasperated, big-brother voice. "That tradition died out ages ago when women tired of being treated like mere objects for their mates' enjoyment."
...And that, Conrad realized, was exactly the problem. Wolfram's devotion to his king, his fiance, his husband-to-be-in-less-than-a-day was such that he would gladly submit himself to anything that Yuuri asked of him. Except that Yuuri hadn't asked him to do anything, of course. Yuuri would never ask such a thing. It had taken him all these years to finally go through with something as pure, innocent, and beautiful as a wedding. How in the world would he ever muster up the courage (and the arrogance, Conrad mentally added) to ask for... For what Wolfram was offering to him?
Wolfram hmmphed and crossed his arms over his chest. He didn't expect someone so dispassionate as his brother to understand. Had his brother ever even had a girlfriend? Julia didn't count. And, aside from her, he just spent all of his free time in Yozak's quarters. Probably being really lame. Conrad wouldn't know what it was like to be young and in love and morally obligated to make one's lover as happy as was humanly possible.
"Fine," Wolfram grumbled, "if you won't ask Gunter for me, I'll just ask him myself."
Conrad sighed to himself as Wolfram stomped from the room. Poor, Gunter, he thought to himself. What a shock the poor man was in for.
***
It really wasn't his fault that he broke the fine wedding china. That's what he would tell Gwendal come the first of the month when they went over the expense account together. It was Wolfram's fault, Lord von Bielefeld and his foul, filthy mouth and where did the young people these days unlearn manners so thoroughly and so quickly, that's what he'd like to know.
Gunter swept up the pieces, hoping that there was still time to replace them, as Wolfram sat sulkily in a chair across the room. The willful brat was asking Gunter to delve into chapters of textbooks left untouched for lifetimes. At least for as long as Gunter had been working at Blood Pledge Castle, at any rate. Surely, he was not so daft as to think that brides were still...prepared for their most private night, and by complete strangers, no less! And surely he was asking Gunter of all people to help him with this? Gunter's face flushed red again. Oh, some days, he wished he'd never come under employment here.
"Please," he said quietly, "think of his majesty."
Wolfram groaned, equal parts embarrassment and frustration. "I am!"
Gunter frowned and turned to face him. "His majesty would no sooner ask this of you than he would ask the humans to offer up their first-born sons to the demon tribe as sacrifices. He loves you for who you are."
Wolfram sighed. "Show me the books," he said. He almost added, "please."
***
Wolfram settled deep into the hot water. According to two of the three texts which he had consulted, the ritual often began with a bath. Not bad. He could easily handle that. He didn't know what the big deal was. It's not like he was being tortured. How bad could a hot bath be?
The texts had recommended that Wolfram be fully accompanied throughout the ritual. Gunter had, with much flailing and sputtering and blushing, refused the role. But he had said that he would find somebody else who was appropriate. Wolfram was appeased.
So it was no big deal. All the old people in the castle were treating him like some dumb kid, and he hated nothing more than being treated like a dumb kid. He'd just get his bath, his preparation, his full night's sleep, and by the following midday, he'd be married to Yuuri and all would be well.
Behind him, he heard the door open. Careful footsteps padded across the floor, then splashed softly into the water. When Wolfram dragged the warm, wet towel off his eyes, he was startled by the man in the water with him.
"Yozak?!"
"Mm!" Yozak looked rather pleased with himself. He held up a small wooden bucket full of soaps and creams. "I hear I'm supposed to get you cleaned up."
***
"And nobody understands," Wolfram said slowly, like a drunk. His body was too relaxed for his voice to sound as angry as he would have liked.
His back was resting against the side of the royal bath. Yozak was seated on the floor behind him, his feet in the water, Wolfram situated between his knees with his arms draped over Yozak's legs. Wolfram was a little surprised to find that Yozak shaved his legs. They were so smooth.
Yozak scrubbed his fingers through Wolfram's sudsy hair, humming his response to Wolfram's complaints. If being a spy had taught him anything, it had taught him how to keep his mouth shut. Not that Wolfram was really listening to him anyway.
Yozak didn't entirely understand why he'd been assigned to this particular post. How degrading. Conrad would be paying for this one for a long, long time. Still, it wasn't without its perks. His fingers found a tangle in Wolfram's hair and tugged hard. The young, relaxed prince grunted his dissatisfaction, but did nothing else. Yozak snickered in his head.
Of course, this was the easy part. The grooming, the exfoliating, the moisturizing. Hell, he did this all the time for himself. It was sort of relaxing, regardless of which end you were on. But what would come next... ("For me?" Conrad has asked him, sounding so exhausted. "For Gunter? The poor man is just beside himself. And it would make Wolfram blessedly quiet and then he's...Shinou, help me...his majesty's problem.) Yozak had beaten and seduced great men who could have been his friends into giving up their terrible secrets, all in the name of his kingdom. And he would do just about anything his Captain asked of him, but this seemed so pointless and exploitative. Wolfram was so young. And so stupid.
Yozak sighed and patted Wolfram on his warm, moist shoulder. Nothing to be done about it. "Come on, kid. Stage two."
***
In all the years Yuuri had been coming to Shin Makoku, his presence on Conrad's bedroom was something of a rarity. Yet, there he sat, his hands hanging between his knees. He was smiling softly, almost secretly, but he and Conrad had no secrets, so that wasn't it.
Conrad lowered himself to sit beside Yuuri, one friendly hand on his shoulder. "Your majesty." They had long ago moved beyond all attempts to change Conrad's naming habits.
Yuuri turned his face up at Conrad, every bit the man Conrad had known he would become. "It's tomorrow," he said simply, lacking much of the uncertainty that his voice had held when he was just a boy. Conrad smiled warmly, reassuringly, and said, "Yes. It is. I trust you are nervous?"
"Mm," Yuuri said, glancing away. Then, more firmly, "Thank you. For so much." It had been Conrad to whom Yuuri had gone with his early fears. At first, he had feared that he could never return Wolfram's intense feelings. Then, he had feared that maybe he was. Later, he would go to Conrad with nerves about setting a date, with certainty that this was exactly what he wanted. Conrad had seen it all.
"I guess I'm not so much nervous," Yuuri said, "as I am concerned. ...Does that make any sense?"
"It does, your majesty. Those are very mature feelings. Very appropriate feelings, I should think, for the evening before one's wedding to his beloved."
Yuuri blushed a little, but fought down the stammering that would have dominated in his younger days. "I do love him," he said firmly, with only a little embarrassment.
"Of course." Conrad failed to mention the bewilderment of the rest of the castle at that fact. Besides, Yuuri probably knew anyway.
"But he's been ignoring me!" Yuuri's outburst was very unexpected. "Any other day, I can't get a moment's peace! But I haven't seen him all day -- the one day...okay, the second day I want to see him the most!"
Conrad bit back a chuckle. Then he bit back the urge to explain to Yuuri Wolfram's whereabouts. Then, deciding it wasn't exactly a secret if he just avoided the details, he said, "He's not ignoring you, your majesty. He's merely spending some time with Yozak to prepare. Pre-wedding jitters, you know."
***
Gwendal von Walde rubbed at the tight, wrinkled space between his dark eyebrows, the source of his frequent headaches (physiologically speaking), the source of his mother's concern. As far as he was concerned, his work day had ended when he had closed the door to his office. No more paperwork, no more worries for another day. Actually, make that two, what with the wedding and all. Except that Gunter didn't quite see it that way.
He was currently pacing back and forth across the bedroom floor, gesturing grandly with his hands, his long hair swaying along behind him. "You wouldn't believe the shock he gave me!" He chose, for the moment, to leave out the bit about the china. "Prepare me, he says. Prepare me! Like it's such a simple request!"
Gwendal grunted his agreement. Or his disagreement. Or whatever. It didn't matter to Gunter. He just continued to stalk about, back and forth in front of the bed until Gwendal reached out one strong hand and grabbed his wrist. Gunter stopped mid-rant, looking almost surprised to see Gwendal still there. He sighed dramatically.
"Really," he said, crawling in next to Gwendal and nuzzling against his chest, "he should just get used to it the same way the rest of us did."
"Mm," Gwendal grunted. Definitely agreement this time. "Lots of practice," he said, blowing out the candle beside the bed and burying his hands in Gunter's hair.
***
It was becoming very clear by the expression on Wolfram's face that he was beginning to understand that maybe this wasn't the most brilliant of his ideas. Yozak almost felt sorry for the kid. Then he remembered all the years of annoyance, all the times that he and Conrad had tried to have some alone time without the little brother tagging along. Conrad had always had -- still had -- a soft spot for Wolfram, but Yozak was a little less forgiving.
Which made it maybe a bit rewarding to harass him a bit. Wolfram was sitting on a bed specially prepared for the occasion. He was dressed in his frilly, pink nightgown. And, if Yozak did say so himself, his skin looked radiant. His face, on the other hand, looked positively terrified.
Yozak felt a little like reiterating that this was so utterly unnecessary that it was laughable. But Conrad had warned against such tactics. ("It will just make him even more determined," he had said, "remember how poorly telling him to get lost worked when we were kids?") Still...
"Hey, kid," he said, sitting cautiously at the edge of the bed, "you don't need to do this. I sure as hell don't want to do it for you. I mean, I was nervous enough the first time your brother and I... The first time I did something like you're going to do tomorrow. You don't need to add all this extra anxiety."
Wolfram stared at him for a moment, then rolled his eyes. "Let's get on with it."
Yozak sighed. "Fine then. The blindfold it is."
***
As it turned out, Conrad wasn't any good at keeping even marginally secret-like things from Yuuri.
"He's what?!" Yuuri's face was a particularly unique shade of pink, one Conrad hadn't seen since the day the young king had been presented with his kingly undergarments. Ah, coming of age. Conrad didn't know if he should train his face into the kindly smile of a confidant, or into the serious countenance of a charge. Eventually, he settled on a delighted smirk.
"It's fine, your majesty. Yozak is tending to him as we speak."
"He's what?!"
Okay, bad approach. "Don't worry. Yozak is highly trained. The man is a professional when it comes to dealing with such touchy situations."
It was true. Conrad trusted almost no one as much as he trusted Yozak. He knew that Yozak would devise a way to both appease Wolfram's jitters and preserve the honor of the impending marriage. So, it was with absolute confidence that Conrad promised Yuuri, "All is under control, your majesty."
But Yuuri was not so easily pacified. "No! No, it isn't! How can he be such an idiot sometimes?" Then he turned to Conrad, all wide-eyed and boy-like, and suddenly he looked the way he had when Conrad had first reuinted with him in Shin Makoku. "Are you sure you can't talk some sense into him?"
***
Yozak had never seen Wolfram in battle, but he had seen him spar with his small group of subordinates. And he'd been convinced that the boy could look no fiercer than he did during those fights. That was, until he'd seen him blindfolded and tied to the bed. Wolfram's face was as pink as Yozak's ever was under the influence of rouge. He bared his teeth and tugged at the restraints.
"Is this necessary," he asked, his voice angry and commanding.
Yozak frowned at thumbed through the text on the bedside table. "That's what the book says, boss."
Wolfram sighed, then relaxed a little. If it was for Yuuri, then he could endure this humiliation. He could hear Yozak's rough fingers flip a few pages in the book.
"Now, the books says nothing about oil," he said in light, amused tones, "but trust me. You'll want to use it."
In the blackness, Wolfram heard Yozak pull something out of his pocket. He heard a cork pop out. Then he heard a knock at the door. The mattress shifted as Yozak got up and crossed the room. He heard the door open, and he tried to make out what the voices were saying, but he couldn't. They didn't talk for long, though. Soon the door shut and Yozak made his way back over to the bed.
"You got a pardons, kiddo," he said cheerfully, unable to hide the relieved tone of his voice, "seems we have a revised list."
Wolfram felt Yozak untie the blindfold and his world flooded again with light. His hands were released and he watched Yozak look over the paper list in his fingers. "Well?"
Yozak smiled. "Looks like we've already taken care of the first thing on the list. Bubble bath, check!"
Wolfram nodded gravely.
Yozak continued. "This, the Pre-Marital Bridal Preparation Creed with Amendments as Signed into Law by Shibuya Yuuri Harajuku Furi, Twenty-Eighth Maou of Shin Makoku, recommends that the bride follow his or her hot bath with a hearty meal and some fine wine before returning to his or her fiance's quarters for a well earned back rub."
***
Early in his life, Yuuri had often felt that he had accomplished nothing of any real merit. But, over the years, he had come to recognize many of his successes: bringing relative peace between the demon and human populations, maintaining strong family ties back on Earth, raising Greta into a bright and lovely teenager. Still, making Wolfram appear in his bed chamber looking properly shamed and humbled would have to count amongst the achievements of which he was the proudest. Wolfram lingered near the door, his face pink with embarrassment. And Yuuri just sat on the edge of their bed and smiled at him.
"Thank you for coming," he said finally, and Wolfram muttered something unintelligible before stalking over to sit beside Yuuri. "Lay down," Yuuri instructed him.
When Wolfram complied, Yuuri crawled up to him and rolled him over onto his stomach. Wolfram watched him over his shoulder. He grimaced when Yuuri pulled from his bedside table a small vial of oil. He popped the cork. Then he gently pushed Wolfram's head back onto the pillow and pulled up the bottom of the nightgown. Wolfram could feel the fingers of one warm hand trail down his back, over his bottom, down his thighs. Then the oil hit his back. Slow, thick drips dotted down his spine, cool at first, then warmer.
He bit back a moan as Yuuri's hands began to work the oil into his skin, releasing the tension held deep in his muscles. Yuuri's hands had grown broader in the years they had known each other. More like a man's hands than a boy's, and they covered much of Wolfram's back. This was hardly the first massage that Yuuri had ever given Wolfram, but something was weightier about this one. More meaningful.
Wolfram could feel the warmth of breath grow closer as Yuuri leaned forward and kissed the back of his neck. He kissed down Wolfram's spine, pressing his lips to each bump of vertebrae. He kissed down the curve of Wolfram's bottom, and started to slide the fingers of one hand up the inside of Wolfram's thigh. Closer, closer, and Wolfram yipped and jerked away. He rolled over, blushing furiously, trying not to remember how humiliating it had been to think of doing this with Yozak.
Wolfram noticed that Yuuri looked especially grown up with his shirt off. Those long hours of fencing with Conrad, the baseball team back home, the physical labor put into rebuilding human communities in Shin Makoku -- they'd all contributed to the broader shoulders and the lean, strong muscles. But, when his face broke into a wide, delighted smile, then a deep, rumbling laugh, he looked like such a boy. And Wolfram wanted to hurt him in his stupid face. But, for the sake of pre-wedding-night aesthetics, he just glowered silently.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Yuuri said breathlessly, fighting to catch his breath, "I'm sorry, but that's...that's really extraordinary, Wolfram."
And Wolfram socked him not so playfully on the shoulder.
"Hahaha, owww," Yuuri whined, gripping his arm.
"Shut it, wimp."
Yuuri laughed and shifted until he was straddling Wolfram's hips. He leaned forward with his hands splayed on Wolfram's chest. He grinned wide and warm, and Wolfram had to blush and look away.
"I'm really flattered," he said, leaning forward to kiss Wolfram's mouth, "that you would do this for me. But, as usual, you have no sense of moderation." He chuckled. "So you've embarrassed yourself. Now what?"
And, for all of Wolfram's tough exterior, he'd allowed Yuuri to see him cry enough times that Yuuri had lost track of which number this would be.
"Hey," he said, laying down against Wolfram's chest, "hey, come on. I'm just kidding. Really. We don't have to do anything at all. You're going to be my husband now -- that's all I want."
And Wolfram blubbered against his neck for one, two, three breaths, then pulled away to wipe his face.
"I just wanted to do this right," he said, his voice much more controlled than he had expected.
Yuuri smiled at him then with such warmth and compassion. Usually that wimpy look pissed Wolfram off, but since he himself had just been sobbing, he felt a little more generous. Yuuri slid his fingers through Wolfram's hair.
"This is right," he said, "just being here together. This is where you should be spending the night before our wedding -- with me."
"You," Wolfram said, averting his embarrassed gaze, "are such a wimp."
Yuuri grinned and leaned forward to nip at Wolfram's neck. "I know," he said playfully. Then, "Hey, show me what your books taught you."
And he flopped down on the thick mattress, his legs splayed. A few years ago, such intimacy would have embarrassed Yuuri to the point of fleeing the scene, but now it excited him. Wolfram evaluated him for a moment, then crawled on top of him.
"Well," he said almost shyly, and placed the vial of oil back in Yuuri's hand, "I think we start with this."
***
Yozak knew that he and Conrad made a good team. They had a well honed knack for saving each others' skins. But Yozak was seldom so thankful for the help as he'd been that night.
"But don't think this is a free pass or anything, Captain," he said as he clambered into bed beside Conrad, "you still owe me for even thinking of going along with this in the first place."
Conrad snickered and slid an arm under Yozak's neck. "You're a good subordinate, Gurrier."
Yozak barked laugher. "Subordinate, is it? I'll show you subordinate..."
In the dark, they wrestled for a moment, hands grasping and swatting, teeth snatching for skin. Conrad laughed as Yozak finally got an arm solidly around his waist and flipped him face down on the mattress. Conrad felt him settle between his thighs and caress a hand up his legs, over his ass. Yozak licked a trail from his tail bone to the nape of his neck, then back down again, his tongue straying a bit lower than the place it had begun. Conrad groaned and pressed back against him.
"Now, Captain," Yozak purred into his ear, readying his fingers at Conrad's opening, "just how sorry are you about assigning me my last mission?"
***
Wolfram knew that, come the next morning, he would feel like such a hypocrite, but he didn't care. He would just have to marry in white. It was just a silly Earth tradition anyway.
Beneath him, Yuuri moaned and bucked his hips, reaching his hands up to caress Wolfram's chest, his throat, his face. Wolfram could feel his king, his fiance, his friend moving inside of him. He bit his lip, dropped his head back.
He raised and lowered himself with his thighs, pressing his knees deeper into the mattress, balancing himself with his hands on Yuuri's chest. Yuuri's hands were working him into a frenzy: caressing him, rubbing him, stroking him until he was thrusting into the grip.
Yuuri moved more frantically, too. His hips jerked up from the mattress. His mouth hung slack. And, so unlike the shy boy he once was, he never broke Wolfram's gaze. He just kept staring, mouthing words of affection in between the groans and the gasps and the passionate Earth expletives that Wolfram didn't fully understand. He didn't need to. When Yuuri gritted his teeth and thrust up hard one last time, Wolfram knew exactly what he meant. He leaned forward to kiss him, all breathless and needy and, with a few more quick movements of Yuuri's hand, Wolfram found his own release.
Wolfram glanced around anxiously for something to clean up with. But Yuuri laughed softly and pulled him down onto his chest. "We can take a bath in a minute," he said quietly, "just...let me do this for a bit. It will make me happy."
And Wolfram complied with this request because that's all he really wanted.