10:
Rage – a white hot flare within the pit of his stomach seemed to ignite every
fiber of his being. And yet, he couldn’t help the dull sense of liberation and
exhilaration that filled his heart. It had taken a lot of manipulation and
coaxing to ‘escape’ Shibuya’s stronghold on his spirit but he never would have
thought in a million years that it would be this easy to break through. It
could only mean that Shibuya himself was becoming more receptive to the idea of
being a partner with Wolfram. This new development was definitely going to make
things so much better and easier between them. However, for all his freedom, he
doubted Shibuya would let him savor this minor victory and for that he was
determined to make the best of it while he was now awake.
As he ran, he tried to view the new world he had come into. It was definitely a
far cry from the life he had once lived. It was so much noisier and the air
even smelled different. And to make matters worse, the ‘magic’ that surrounded
him in this time was something he couldn’t quite comprehend. Take for instance
the things called ‘cars’ – carriages that moved without horses - or better yet,
the ‘trains’ and the ‘planes’. How were they able to fly without magic?
Impossible! Or perhaps it was a new kind of magic…something more powerful and
more advanced than he could have ever hoped for. He frowned in consternation,
wondering what evil forces could be lurking in the background. It was clear
that the Great Magicians in charge of this world were powerful and ruled the
masses from their unseen castles! It would only make sense that they were the
ones responsible for sending their minions to torture the weaker ones.
That’s how they came here, he deduced, eyes widening in growing
understanding. The Great Magicians must have sent their henchmen in the form
of these so-called baseball players and have tried to eliminate Wolfram because
of his power! But I won’t let them! I’ll stop them before they can take over
the world!
He quickened his strides, now wondering if he would be able to use his powers.
He hadn’t been free in a long time and he doubted his abilities would be up to
par. For all he knew, the Great Magicians of this place could have put up a
barrier to prevent him from using it.
With a soft grunt, he leapt from the top of the slope, somehow knowing that
this would be a short cut to the lake. In mere seconds, he could make out the
sparkling waters and the undeniable laughter from the evil minions. A quick
look around told him that there were only four of them. This fight would be too
easy…but…
Wolfram…where is he?!
He looked at the lake, a frown of concern now on his features as he sensed
nothing out of the ordinary. There were no sounds or screams for help and the
four minions in question were standing around and joking amongst themselves. It
definitely didn’t look as if they had pushed anyone or were torturing anyone at
all.
That’s because…that’s because….
His hands balled into clenched fists, the muscles of his neck and shoulders
tightening as a yell of unsuppressed fury erupted from the pit of his stomach.
His hair seemed to crackle with energy and the grass, trees and the very earth
beneath his feet, trembled and quaked at the presence of this angry young man.
“Where is he?!” he thundered, causing the players to spin around in confusion
with undeniable fear now etched on their features. “Where is he?!”
The boys gave breathless squeaks of terror and tried to hurdle in a tight
group. Never had they seen anyone this furious In fact, they had never seen this
person at all! They had asked the little brat to bring back that Shibuya fellow
but this was…who the hell was he?! And why was he in the same baseball
uniform?!
The demon king cracked his knuckles and took another step forward, narrowed
eyes now flashing with anger and determination. “No answer?! Then I shall crush
you until you show him to me! And I swear if you’ve drowned him, I’ll make sure
you never live to see another day.”
Wolfram sneezed…and sneezed again. Good grief! He couldn’t possibly be coming
down with a cold, could he?
“Good job, von Bielefeld,” Coach Chronos said as he counted the bats the blond
had returned. “You can go to the cafeteria for lunch now. I’m sure you must be
starving.”
Wolfram managed a small smile. “Thanks, coach.”
He whistled softly to himself as he made his way out of the equipment room. He
was in a somewhat good mood this afternoon, despite having to hit baseballs for
over two hours and then go through that blasted run around the field twenty
times. He hated to admit that running beside Yuuri had helped a bit. Knowing
the wimp hadn’t been energetic enough and kept whining at how long they had to
run had only fueled Wolfram’s resolve. He was sure that at some point, Yuuri
had almost passed out.
Hmph. And he’s supposed to be my King? What a joke.
Suddenly, he felt it – an unmistakable surge of power unlike anything he had
ever felt before.
No, you have felt it before. It’s the Maou – the demon king – he’s
here! He’s out! Yuuri…Yuuri’s let him come out! But…why?!
He staggered weakly and had to lean against a wall to catch his breath. It felt
like every nerve in his being was being tugged by invisible strings, pulling
him towards the direction of the lake he had just come from. There was
something definitely happening there and Wolfram knew he had to get there in
time before it was too late.
Yuuri…Yuuri! What the hell are you doing?!
“Wolfram!”
He lifted his head quickly at the sound of his name, noticing that it was
Keiichi running towards him. The older boy looked out of breath and there was
something in his eyes that confirmed Wolfram’s worst fears.
“You better come towards the lake,” Keiichi said, barely waiting for Wolfram to
follow as he took off in that direction again. “I couldn’t believe my eyes when
I saw it, but I think you should come see for yourself!”
Keiichi had seen a lot of weird things in his life – like the time he had
witnessed a one-legged man walking on a tight-rope when he was in grade school
or the time he had seen a road side accident where a fatality had occurred. He
would later tell his parents he had seen a woman – all bloodied and badly
wounded – walk out of the car. But his parents had specifically told him that
no one had survived the crash and as he grew older, he realized that he must
have seen the ghost of the dead woman. It went without saying that he never
told anyone about it since he never experienced such a thing again.
His ability to see auras, however, had always been with him. From the day he
could think, he had always noticed the pretty or murky colors that seemed to
envelope people and even animals. His parents had at least considered that
particular talent a gift but warned him not to go about bragging to everyone.
It was bound to get him in trouble or worse yet; men in white coats might take
him to some undisclosed location to use him as a scientific experiment.
Being able to read auras had helped him a lot. It was the only way he could
know those who meant him harm or good. Those with murky or grey colored auras
had the tendency to be troublemakers or bullies while others could be inflicted
with a kind of disease or illness that would lead them to their graves. Bright,
vibrant auras were reserved for babies or naturally good people. All other
colors reflected either one’s mood or general disposition and Keiichi was glad
to find that he was yet to be proven wrong in any reading.
However, he had never seen anything this strange and extraordinary in his life.
As the man – who was dressed in Yuuri’s uniform – sped past him, Keiichi had
felt an enormous surge of energy and seen the near-blinding blue aura
surrounding him. His skin had broken out in goose bumps, his heartbeat pounding
with awe and yet fear. This person, whoever he was, was not someone to fuck with
and he pitied the people on the receiving end of his wrath. Things were bound
to get ugly fast.
He had tried to keep up with the mysterious man, but only managed to get to the
lake in time to see one of the older players being tossed away like a rag doll.
It didn’t even look like the dark-haired man had lifted a finger! Keiichi could
feel his heart in his throat and he dared not get in the fray for fear of his
life.
Could that really be Yuuri?! He can transform himself into something else?
Dear gods, this sounds like something out of a sci-fi show! But standing here
and admiring his fighting skills isn’t going to help! I’ve got to get Wolfram
to calm him down. It’s obvious he thinks the boys have done something to him.
If I can get Wolfram to pacify his anger, then things should be okay again.
And that was just what he had done. But as they now ran towards the lake, he
couldn’t help wondering if it was a little too late. He sincerely hoped the
mysterious man hadn’t done anything more than frighten the players. If they
ended up with several murders on their hands, poor Yuuri would be in more
trouble than they could ever imagine.
As they approached the slope, Keiichi knew they’d have to be careful since it
was a bit tricky, but to his amazement, Wolfram leapt from the top to the
bottom in a graceful motion, hardly breaking a stride in the process. Keiichi
gaped in awe, sure that for one brief moment; the blond’s features had looked
much older and worldly.
Just what the hell’s going on here?! Who are these two boys?!
“Yuuri!” Wolfram was screaming as he ran towards the dark-haired man. “Yuuri!
Stop…!”
The words died on his lips as narrowed dark eyes met his widened green ones. A
sharp jolt of awareness not unlike being shot with volts of electricity, raced through
their bodies. Time came to a merciful standstill as both men stared at each
other in genuine surprise. Wolfram had always known what he looked like. In his
dreams, he had met this man many times before and yet seeing him in person was
more than he could take. Those smoldering, beautiful eyes which had stripped
him naked with just one look were now blazing before him – just mere inches
away. It was more than he could take!
(I…I… don’t believe it! It’s really you…)
(I thought…oh dear gods, I thought you were dead! I was so enraged, Wolfram. I
couldn’t stand back and do nothing…)
(What are you talking about? I’m still here but you…you are still as impulsive
as ever, aren’t you?) He could feel his lips curving into a reluctant
smile, his heartbeat racing with undeniable pleasure. He took another step
closer, his body trembling with anticipation. Finally, finally they could be
together again!
The demon king tossed away the boy he had picked up, a matching smile on his
visage as he walked towards Wolfram. (Please forgive me, Wolfram. I only
wanted to see you…to touch you one more time…urgh!)
Damn it, Shibuya! Your…body…still…not…strong…enough…
“Yuuri!” Just like that, the spell was broken and Wolfram dove across the
distance between them to catch the falling boy. He gave a soft grunt as Yuuri –
now normal again – fell into his arms. The blond blinked rapidly, as if trying
to clear his mind (for he was sure he had blanked out a few seconds ago) and
held the comatose boy close to him.
Is he dead? He feels so hot. Maybe…maybe it’s a fever! Oh, God! What if he’s
sick?!
“Is he all right?” Keiichi asked as he finally caught up to the boys. He wasn’t
really sure of what had happened, but from his vantage point, it seemed like
the mystery man had fainted and transformed back to…well…Yuuri.
“What…what happened?” Wolfram asked in confusion. “He looked…that was…wasn’t…”
“We’ll figure out the details later,” Keiichi said quickly, noticing that the
knocked out players were slowly rousing from their stupor. “We’ve got to take
him to the clinic before those guys completely wake up. I think they’ll have
tons of questions and I definitely don’t have any answers right now.”
Too concerned and slightly fearful of what had just taken place, Wolfram was in
no mood to argue. He willingly relinquished his hold on Yuuri, allowing Keiichi
to cradle the boy within his arms and without another word to each other; they
made their way towards the welcoming lights of the low building in the
distance.
“Will he be okay?” Wolfram asked for the one-millionth time it seemed and
Keiichi had to hide his smile as he noticed the look on the doctor’s beautiful
visage.
“Yes, Mr. von Bielefeld,” she said, as she sat down, giving the boys a good
view of her shapely legs as she crossed them. “He just fainted and should be
awake in a few minutes. It must be a combination of heat and exhaustion. It’s
not uncommon with most baseball players you know.”
He glared at her obvious tongue-in-cheek comment before turning to look at the
pale figure on the bed. Wolfram knew he should have walked out of this room a
long time ago and yet he couldn’t get himself to move from Yuuri’s side. His
gaze drifted towards the hand on the white sheet, swallowing tightly as the
overwhelming urge to cradle it within his, washed over him.
I can’t hold him…not in front of everyone here. They’ll think I’m…that I
really like him or something.
With a determined nod, he folded his hands on his lap and stared resolutely at
Yuuri’s face, waiting and watching for any sign of movement. When that
happened, he would give Yuuri a good knock on his head for scaring him like
that. Just what the hell had he been thinking anyway?!
Why would he transform just for me?
“Doctor von Kleist,” Keiichi said, breaking into a sunny grin as he noticed
Yoichiro making his way towards the room. Wolfram’s ears picked up the last
name and vaguely wondered why it sounded so familiar. “I’ve been having some
tummy aches lately and I need some medicine.”
The green-haired woman rolled her eyes and gave a sigh. “Yes, yes, Keiichi.
Now, it’s your tummy aching. Tomorrow, it’s going to be your bladder in agony
and God knows what other ailment awaits you. Stay here and I’ll be right back.”
As the woman left the room, Yoichiro walked in slightly out of breath. “Any
news?” Keiichi asked.
“Yeah. It was all a trick,” the brown-haired boy said, as he reached for a
bottle of water. “The other players were admitted in the rooms down the hall
and I overheard them talking amongst themselves. They had sent the junior
player to Yuuri, so they could get him first before picking on Wolfram. But
they began saying that some other strange man had shown up to beat them up. The
man wouldn’t even give them a chance to explain and kept calling them evil
minions.”
Wolfram groaned in disbelief.
“…anyway, they say they don’t remember much of what happened,” Yoichiro
finished with a nod. “But they’re going to be looking out for the mysterious
guy who infiltrated camp to beat them. All the older players are going to be
extra cautious now.”
“Damn, this is bad,” Keiichi muttered. “They might go about thinking that Yuuri
hired someone for the job. At least no one but the four of us know that Yuuri
can change into this other thing…”
“The Maou,” Wolfram interrupted quietly He could see Yuuri’s lashes fluttering
weakly and he leaned closer as if moving in for a kiss.
“Huh? A what?” came the simultaneous replies from the older boys just as Yuuri
opened his eyes to look around him in a dazed and confused fashion.
“Wha…who…? Wolf…Wolfram?” he croaked, a small smile coming to his lips.
“You’re…auck! Aurgh!!”
“That’s what you get for making me so damn worried, you stupid wimp!” Wolfram
was bellowing as he continued to ruffleYuuri’s hair, with an arm around his
neck in a chokehold. “I’ll fucking kill you!”
“Go easy on him!” Yoichiro cried out as he and Keiichi moved to separate the
two. “You’ll really strangle him, Wolfram!”
“That’s the general idea!”
“Nooooo!”
“I don’t want to die…uck!”
“Shut up! I’m the only one with the right to kill you!”
The argument would have continued, if Gisela hadn’t returned with a bottle of
Pepto-Bismol. And seeing that the boys were all misbehaving, she kicked them
out of her office with a threat to have them wash the clinic floors for a week
if they ever showed their faces there again.
They had been childhood friends, college roommates and then lovers who had
vowed to be with each other until death do them part…or at least until the next
major world tour came along. While Conrad had focused on Business
Administration and baseball, Yozak had spent his time in the Arts, joining as
many drama clubs and acting classes as possible. It was all in an effort to
pursue his dream of becoming the Greatest Actor that ever lived. However, the
opportunity to become something even greater had come along and it had been in
the form of becoming a traveling companion for a superstar in the making. Being
Gunter’s personal manager/assistant was a tedious task and only Yozak Gurrier
was man enough to take on such a job. Actually, Yozak had to thank Conrad for
the high-paying gig. He had been introduced to Gunter during a family dinner
with the rest of Conrad’s clan, and the rest as they say is history.
Conrad had to smile at the picture his boyfriend made in his white tailored
suit with bright pink shirt and matching white fedora upon his orange locks.
Yozak definitely knew how to dress with style even though some of his outfits
over the years had left people fearing for his sanity. But Yozak had always had
a flare for the dramatic just like his boss, Gunter. Both men loved the stage
and could dazzle audiences with their performances. They were natural showmen,
destined to be loved by many. And yet, Conrad knew that at the end of the day,
he would always have one showman’s undivided attention.
He wrapped his arms around Yozak’s neck, grateful for the shadows that hid them
from prying eyes. “How long has it been?” he asked huskily.
“Nine months, three days and fifty-five minutes,” came the low drawl as Conrad
felt talented lips trail tender kisses behind his ear, down his jaw to rest in
the hollow of his neck. He trembled at the touch, pressing himself closer to
Yozak’s warmth as he fought back his cry of pleasure.
“Good to see your libido hasn’t suffered,” he gasped weakly, his hands fisting
the suit jacket, just as Yozak’s thigh thrust itself between his legs to grind
against him slowly. Ah! Beautiful torture. “Wo…would you like us to leave?”
Yozak smirked against the fevered flesh. “Hmm…I thought you’d never ask…”
“And just where will you be leaving to?” came the gruff question that had both
men pulling apart quickly only to meet the cold blue eyes of Gwendal. Conrad
could feel his cheeks growing hot and he was suddenly seventeen again, caught
with his pants down with Yozak doing what he did best. He still remembered the
stunned look in that visage and then angry explosion that had followed and
looking at Gwendal now, Conrad was sure his older brother would launch into
another blood-curdling tirade.
“Hi there, Big Brother Gwendal…” Yozak began with a wide grin on his visage. He
still had his arm around Conrad’s waist and if anything, he pulled the
brown-haired man closer to his body obviously refusing to let go.
“Since when did I become your brother, Yozak Gurrier?”
“Ouch. I’m hurt.” He made a face of intense suffering causing Conrad to stifle
a snicker and Gwendal’s frown to deepen. “I thought we were all buddies.”
“No, we aren’t. Conrad, I’m heading to the limo. I’ll talk to you tomorrow…”
“Oh, but you can’t leave yet,” Yozak said with a smirk, daring to place his
hand on Gwendal’s arm. “Gunter came here just to see you.”
The dark-haired man eyed the pale hand on his suit, his jaw working for a
moment before lifting cool blue eyes to the actor. “Please remove your hand,
Yozak. I have no intention of waiting around for…”
“Ah, here comes Gunter now,” Conrad said, looking over Gwendal’s shoulder with
a wide smile. “Gunter!”
“Conrad! Oh my! Is that really you?!”
Like a gossamer wind, the model seemed to float towards them, leaving behind a
smell of heady musk and wild roses. Gwendal gritted his teeth as he watched the
two men embrace, trying to ignore the effect of that oh-so-familiar scent as it
assailed his senses. He spun on his heels to make himself scarce when he felt
strong arms around his waist and the pressure of another body against his. He
gasped at the contact, eyes widening as a feather-light kiss brushed against
his jaw.
“And how you’ve grown and changed, Gwendal,” came the breathless whisper in his
ear. “I barely recognized you when I saw your picture the other day.”
Gwendal could feel his body flush with heat at the feel of Gunter’s arms and
lips against his flesh. He tried to pull away, forcing himself to remember that
this was the same man who left him so many years ago. There was no way in hell
he was going to let Gunter back in so easily. He had allowed himself to be
seduced at an age when he believed in dreams and fairytales. Well no more. He
was no longer that wide-eyed teenager who actually thought he could have a
future with a man he once loved.
(You never stopped…)
With great effort and a tight smile on his features, Gwendal pulled away from
the embrace and turned to face Gunter.
Don’t look into his eyes. Focus on something other than those eyes or else…
“I’m glad you’ve returned to Japan,” he began in a voice that was devoid of
emotion. “I’m sure you have a lot of things to do and unfortunately, so do I.
It was a pleasure…”
“I say we all get a drink,” Yozak interrupted with a snap of his fingers.
“There’s got to be a bar around here where we can hang out. Right, Conrad?”
Conrad, who had been watching the exchange between the former lovers, nodded
quickly. “Yes, there’s one around the corner. They’ve got great beer…”
Gwendal opened his mouth to protest when Yozak beat him to the punch again.
“Beer! My favorite beverage besides Conrad! Let’s go!”
He reached for Gunter’s arm, winking at Conrad, who promptly understood what he
planned to do. With a wide smile of encouragement, Conrad reached for his older
brother’s arm, ignoring the cold glare he received in return.
“Just relax a little,” he whispered into Gwendal’s ear. “It’s just one drink
and then you can go home.”
“Just one drink,” Gwendal muttered with great reluctance, his eyes darting
towards the fine strands of light purple hair before him. “Just one drink and
I’m going home…alone.”
Two big jugs of fine beer and several shots of vodka later, the four men sat
slumped against each other in the smoky bar, hidden in a cozy booth, away from
adoring fans or paparazzi. Ties and bowties were loosened, faces flushed with
the effects of good cigars and alcohol as they listened to either Gunter or
Yozak recount events of the past year. Gwendal and Conrad were more than aware
of Gunter’s fame, but they had no idea just how big the flushed man sitting
between them had become. He was going to be staring in a motion picture in a
few months and there were already talks of a television show with him in the
starring role. He had a few more appointments with famous fashion designers who
wanted the beautiful man for their Fall collections. All in all, things had
been crazy for Gunter von Kleist. There was hardly any time for himself let
alone a serious relationship with anyone.
Gwendal had buried his face behind a giant mug of beer at that news, refusing
to acknowledge just how much that pleased him.
“So…how’s the other one?” Yozak asked with a slur in his words. His fingers
were making quick work of the buttons on Conrad’s shirt even though the other
man was trying his best to push them away.
“The other one?” Gwendal asked with a raised brow. “What…?”
“I think he means Wolfram,” Conrad muttered as he now tried to shove Yozak’s
face away from him. It was hard to believe that the orange-haired man was his
junior by two years with the way he acted most of the time.
“What about Wolfram?” Gwendal asked, trying hard to ignore the sight of
Gunter’s chest being exposed as the older man slowly undid the top two buttons
of his shirt.
“How’s he doing? Where’s he?” Yozak asked.
“In a baseball camp…he wants to become a professional player,” Gwendal replied
with a hint of pride and smugness in his tone.
“Wow, that’s great!” Gunter said, clapping his hands in delight. “We should go
visit him! He’ll be so surprised to see us!”
“You can say that again,” Conrad muttered, remembering the last time Gunter had
visited and how Wolfram had poured thick globs of glue in the older man’s shoes
just because Gunter refused to play ball with him.
“You don’t need to visit him,” Gwendal muttered. “What I need is someone to go
there and keep an eye out…”
“Not that again,” Conrad whispered. He received a scowl for his efforts.
“What’s wrong?” Yozak asked with great curiosity.
“Gwendal thinks that there’s a boy who might have his eyes on Wolfram and he
fears that the boy might…well…”
“Oooh…”
An uncomfortable silence befell the table, before Yozak coughed lightly. “Well,
I think I can help you out. We’ve got about three weeks of free time, so I
don’t mind going over to…keep an eye on him for you.”
The other three men eyed him warily. “And just what do you plan to do, Yozak?”
Gwendal asked, trying hard to keep his sarcasm at bay.
The actor grinned and winked with a mischievous look in his eye. “Hey now,
don’t you know who you’re talking to?! I’m the best actor and disguise artist
this side of Japan. For you see, my dear friends,” He puffed his chest out
proudly and finished with a flourish. “You are looking at the soon-to-be new
cafeteria lady at Camp Royals starting the day after tomorrow!”
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