Consequences of the Maou\'s Heart

Chapter 11

Yuri stared at the destroyed and charred remains of what had been a rather nice chaise lounge only a short time ago. Watching the smoke drift upwards in lazy swirls he wondered how his plans always blew up in his face when they directly involved Wolfram. He could persuade the most violent adversary to accept a peaceful resolution, organize relief efforts for a neighboring country, and even talk his mother out of dressing him like a girl. However, Wolfram always found away into his room, always found him when he tried to hide, and always knew when he was lying. Why in the name of Shinou Heika had he thought ending the engagement would be the simple calm event he wanted it to be?

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The inhabitants of Covenant Castle began to settle down for the second meal of the day as the sun passed its zenith and began to slowly push towards the horizon again. The whispers of the maids buzzed excitedly as they nibbled their lunches and traded gossip gathered from the various parts of the castle they had been working in. The kitchen staff grumbled and fussed as they served those in the dinning room and sent out meals to those to busy to get food for themselves. An unusually full dinning room had those in charge of getting food for the Maou and the others at the table disconcerted. Of those who usually took their lunches in their offices only Annisina remained locked away in her lab, working on her latest attempt at empowering women. Gwendal alternated eating and glaring at Yuri. Gisela sat next to a displeased looking Conrart as the two conversed in low tones. Murata yawned widely as he pushed food around on his plate aimlessly. Gunter worried his napkin in his lap, torn between extolling the wonders of the Maou and listening for the cries of the bad omen birds he swore he heard on his way to the dinning room. The tension in the room was near palatable and only broken by Greta’s occasional comment to Yuri about her morning studies. Though none of them drew attention to it, they all noticed the distinct lack of blonds at the table. Finally Greta asked the question that many of them wanted an answer to.

“Papa Yuri have you seen Wolfram? I haven’t seen him all day and he usually at least checks up on me every morning.” Her simple question drew the attention of everyone at the table.

“You know I haven’t seen him either. How about we go look for him after lunch?” The Maou smirked internally at his cleverness. With Greta’s cuteness on his side escaping from Gwendal’s paperwork nightmare would be a piece of cake, and he’d be able to make good on his resolution to spend at least some of the day with Wolfram. Gunter’s exclamation snapped him out of his thoughts of how to spend the afternoon.

“But Heika!! I had this afternoon’s lessons all planned out! We were going to discuss the economic effect of the great wool shortage during the reign of the eight Maou!” as usual Gunter missed the looks of horror and disbelief his statements caused on the faces of those around him.

“Um … Wow! That sounds so interesting!” Yuri forced out his words with false eagerness before continuing in more disheartened tone, “But I’m really starting to get worried about Wolfram.” Yuri being oblivious, as was his nature, failed to notice the glances passed between the older demons at the table. Conrart looked especially distressed, if the information Gisela had just given him was correct Wolfram already knew of Yuri’s intent. The advice he’d given the king that morning may no long hold perfectly accurate. The lack of fires in the castle meant Wolfram was reacting in an unexpected manner. In Conrart’s eyes an unpredictable Wolfram was a very grave thing.

“I concur Heika, his absence is peculiar and he was behaving strangely this morning. Though I’m sure a visit from his treasured fiancé will bring back the Wolfram we all know and love,” Gisela’s words dripped like sugar dissolving in acid. Her tone shocked Gunter and Gwendal as neither man was accustomed to hearing that level of menace in her voice. On the other hand Murata perked up substantially, he was sure that she knew something about the situation that was brewing.

“Ah ha ha… Thanks Gisela,” Yuri nervously used the healer’s comment to strengthen his case, “so it’s settled then Greta and I will find Wolfram after lunch, even if it means missing Gunter’s wonderful lesson on …um ….wool!”

“Oh well I suppose,” Gunter let his flighty mask drift away momentarily as he stared at his daughter, still distracted by the fact that she had spoken to the Maou in such a disrespectful tone.

“Perfect,” Gisela murmured mostly to herself. She didn’t really want the Maou anywhere near Wolfram, but the longer the blond had to plan the harder it would be to make those plans unravel and keep him alive. The rest of lunch passed without much ado and all too quickly the maids were clearing the table. Using the first opportunity Yuri excused him and Greta from the table and rushed out of the room. They ducked down a few random hallways; Yuri wanted to make sure no one would be able to find them before they found Wolfram.

“So where are we gonna look for Papa Wolfram first?” Greta asked innocently as they hurried away from the dinning room.

“Hum… good question. I’m not really sure where he hangs out when he’s not with me. How bout we ask around and see if anyone has seen him?” Yuri smiled at Greta before glancing around to see if he could find anyone to question.

“Yeah!” Greta exclaimed before spotting Dakauscas carrying a huge pile of laundry from one of the halls leading to the rest of the castle. She ran over to him and nearly knocked him over. “Dakauscas! We’re looking for Wolfram have you seen him?”

“Woah… ack… phew,” Dakauscas stammered as he regained his balance before answering, “Goodness Miss Greta! Well I saw him this morning with Sarg… Miss Gisela.”

“Poo that’s no good we need to know where he is now!” The young princess stomped her foot in a manner reminiscent of her blond papa.

“Well…” Dakauscas seemed torn before speaking, “I did hear one of the maids saying he was spending an unusual amount of time in his study, you might check there.”

“Did you hear that Yuri?! Let’s go!” Greta grabbed Yuri’s hand and took off towards Wolfram’s study at a near run. The Maou waved at Dakauscas as he was dragged off. Instinctively Dakauscas raised his hand to wave back at his king; unfortunately this caused him to drop the load he was carrying on the floor. A frustrated groan reached Yuri’s ear as they raced down the hall. When they reached the door to Wolfram’s study Yuri was breathing heavily and sweating. He wasn’t sure if he was getting old or if Greta had way too much energy, as she seemed to be perfectly fine.

“Wow Yuri you don’t look so good. I know, you check on Wolfram and I’ll go get you a glass of water. Bye!” Greta scampered off before Yuri could draw enough air to tell her he would be fine. After a few more deep breaths Yuri was able to compose himself and stared ruefully at the door. Sighing lightly he knocked on the door and waited a moment to see if he would get a response. When nothing happened he gulped nervously and tried the handle. Much to his surprise it turned with ease and he cracked the door open and peered inside. As his eyes swept over the room and did not notice any signs of Wolfram, he almost closed the door to continue his search when he heard a soft grunt coming from the far side of the room. Surprised he tip toed into the room feeling more and more like a burglar as he entered the room and closed the door.

“Wolfram?” he whispered. The only response was the sound of cloth shifting on the chaise lounge Wolfram used to torture his victims when he felt artistic. Still doing his best to keep quiet, Yuri crept over to the piece of furniture. He made his way to the front of the lounge and was greeted with the sight of Wolfram’s sleeping form. Once again Yuri was struck by the blond’s appearance. He looked like a character from a fairy tale, only Yuri couldn’t decide if he looked more like prince charming or sleeping beauty. Thoughts of sleeping beauty reminded the Maou of the kiss required to wake the princess which in turn reminded him of the kiss he’d have to give Wolfram to free them both. He nearly chuckled to himself as he envisioned the blond’s anger if he was woken up with such a kiss. He stared down at his fiancé, debating on the wisdom of waking the peacefully sleeping man at all.

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Meanwhile Dakauscas had picked up all of the laundry he had dropped and was continuing on his way. Just before he turned the corner he found himself nearly chest to chest with a flustered Gunter running full tilt.

“You there, which way did Heika go?” Gunter pointed at the surprised soldier nearly causing him to lose his grip on the laundry again.

“Ack! Oh dear! Lord von Christ sir! Heika and the princess were headed for Lord von Bielefeld’s study!” Dakauscas heaved a sigh as he watched Gunter take off in his hunt for Yuri. His relief was short lived, as he continued to turn the corner he found himself standing directly in front of Gwendal who had more wrinkles than usual marring his face and Conrart a step behind him. Years of military service had trained Dakauscas to salute whenever someone as high in rank as Gwendal entered his line of vision, so naturally he raised his right hand and did just that. The pile of cloth once again tumbled to the floor.

“Which way?” Gwendal demanded while scowling at the mess now in the hallway. Somewhat stunned Dakauscas, pointed towards the hallway Gunter had just rushed down. Gwendal nodded vaguely in his direction, the elder’s eyes and mind already turned towards the direction Dakauscas had pointed. Heavy footsteps echoed as Gwendal stomped after Gunter. Conrart offered a bleak smile before following his brother. Momentarily Dakauscas wondered at what had so many people in such a rush before he bent over to start picking up the laundry again.

“Dakauscas! What in the world are you doing?!” At the sound of his name uttered by Gisela, Dakauscas shot straight up nearly giving himself whiplash. “Get that stuff out of the hall this instant!” She paused a moment glancing angrily down the various hallways.

“Um Ma’am?” Dakauscas gulped as she turned her glare his way, “Heika and the others went towards Lord von Bielefeld’s study, if that’s what you’re looking for.” Before he even finished his sentence Gisela was off. Now near tears the soldier knelt on the floor to pick up his burden once again. As he gathered the last bit of fabric he griped the bundle tightly to avoid dropping it again. He began walking again slowly, making sure to keep an eye out for anyone coming from the direction all the others had entered from. Needless to say the finger jabbing lightly at his shoulder startled him terribly and he threw the laundry into the air. Cloth rained down as he turned around to see Murata’s sheepishly smiling face.

“Hi Dakauscas. Nice weather we’re having eh? You wouldn’t happen to have seen Yuri would ya?”

“Lord von Bielefeld’s study,” his words were nearly a whimper as he pointed in the general direction of Wolfram’s study.

“Ah I see. Thanks!” Murata grinned cheerfully before trotting down the hallway, he only got a few yards away before he turned around and shouted towards the once again kneeling soldier, “Oh by the way, you really shouldn’t throw stuff around in the hallways. It’s dangerous ya know.” The sage had trouble keeping the smirk off his face as he jogged away from the sound of Dakauscas’s enraged yell. With each step towards Wolfram’s study the urge to smile left him. Murata had a bad feeling about this whole afternoon, and he’d learned to trust his hunches.

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Yuri gazed at the sleeping form of his fiancé for a few more moments before resigning himself to waking the blond former prince. Greta and her boundless energy would be back soon and Wolfram could be dangerous when woken sharply. He bent down closer to Wolfram preparing to softly whisper his name to wake him up slowly. With the blond’s face so close Yuri decided that Wolfram was definitely sleeping beauty, because there was no way prince charming was this pretty. He opened his mouth to speak…

“HEIKA!!” Shouting Gunter burst through the door to Wolfram’s study. Wolfram’s eyes flew open and his body started to shoot into a sitting position. The door bounced loudly off the wall as Gunter ran towards the lounge and Gwendal’s form appeared in the door way with Conrart staring over his shoulder. Arms flailing Yuri attempted to stand up straight but somehow he slipped and found himself falling forward. A nearly inaudible growl worked its way out of Gwendal’s mouth as he entered the room with Conrart and Gisela ran in behind them. Yuri’s mind slowed down and he was able to process everything that was going on, yet as his decent halted he couldn’t seem to focus on anything but what had stopped him. Wolfram’s right arm was trapped between their bodies and his left was raised in the air with a few sparks forming in the palm. Yuri’s weight pressed them down on the lounge, Wolfram had turned his head when he made to sit up and now lay with his left cheek pressed into the upholstery. In the moment before the world sped back up, Yuri couldn’t help but notice how soft Wolfram’s cheek was under his lips. Everything was silent.

“Oh shit,” Murata deadpanned as he walked in on the tableau. As if those words set off a chain reaction everyone started moving and shouting. Sobbing Yuri’s name Gunter pulled the Maou off of Wolfram and hugged him violently, making sure to keep his body between his king and his lover’s little brother just in case Wolfram got violent. Gisela cursed a blue streak and started over to Wolfram’s side while Gwendal twitched violently. As if frozen Conrart couldn’t bring himself to move until he saw Wolfram’s arm begin to fall with a size-able fireball spinning in the palm of his hand.

“Wolfram!” Conrart ran towards his brother as lounge began to burst into flames. He grabbed at his brother and pulled him off the now brightly burning piece of furniture. The flames didn’t frighten him but the blank look in Wolfram’s eyes did. Yuri fought his way free of Gunter and grabbed a pitcher of water off the desk to throw at the fire. Simultaneously Gwendal called on his element and caused a thin layer of dirt and dust to wrap around the flames effectively smothering them.

“Your arm,” Wolfram’s monotone voice drew Gisela’s attention to the two brothers’ on the floor. Blisters began forming on Conrart’s hand and forearm where he’d reached into the fire to grab Wolfram. On the other hand Wolfram was untouched by the flames. Conrart cursed himself; of course Wolfram would be fine he was a fire wielder. He could have walked into an inferno and would have been fine but Conrart’s protective instincts took over.

“Damn it all,” Gisela cursed as she let her medical instincts take over, quickly pouring healing Maryoku into Conrart’s hand and arm. Conrart released Wolfram to allow Gisela to work. Thick smoke filled the room and Gunter flung open window to let it out. As the room cleared Yuri looked around taking the scene in.

“Um guys… where’s Wolfram?” Yuri couldn’t find the blond anywhere.

“He’s right he….” Gisela stopped mid-word as she noticed the spot where Wolfram had been sitting was now empty.

“He left,” Murata spoke from his spot near the door, “He seemed a bit under the weather.” With an annoyed grunt Gwendal stormed off in search of his brother. Gisela restrained Conrart for a few moments more, making sure his wounds were healed. The moment she let him go he took off as well and with a glare in Yuri’s direction she followed him. Gunter fluttered about nervously before making an excuse about getting the maids and practically ran out of the room. Yuri had a few moments to blink and stare at the suddenly very empty room.

“Papa… What happened?” Greta stood in the doorway, eyes wide and a glass of water in her hand.

“Yeah Shibuya what happened?” Murata’s glasses reflected the light as he made his way out of the room. “Hey why don’t you come with me princess, give your dad a chance to collect himself.” If she said anything back to the sage Yuri didn’t hear it. He stood in the middle of the room completely convinced the world was out to make his life as difficult as possible.

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AN: Well what can I say, tried to make this chapter feel a bit like the show usually does.