Dawn

Gwendel left the castle infirmary and headed toward his office. He had left an unconscious Yuri lying near the bed where Geisela frantically worked over Wolfram. This day was not unfolding as he had first envisioned when he began squiring the delegate from Franzia around. Gwendel could feel his brow furrow as he thought about the surprises of the day. Granted the day’s greatest surprise, Yuri’s return, while unexpected was certainly welcome.

The resulting chaos and tragedy, however, were most certainly not. In light of the afternoon’s events Gwendel knew he and Gunter were going to have their hands full trying to maintain the kingdom’s equilibrium amongst the resulting shock waves. Gwendel sighed he figured he could forget about the short camping trip he had been planning with Gunter. He reached the office door and opened it startled to see Gunter and the Great Sage bent over a map on the desk.

“Ah, Gwendel, come sit and join us.” The Sage beckoned with a smile and a gesture towards the nearest chair. “I see you have already been patched up, you’re feeling alright now though; right?”

“I am fine. The arrow merely grazed me. I have been assured I will be feeling better when the effects of the esoteric stone have passed.”

“Good.” Gunter shot a smile of relief towards Gwendel at the news. “The Great Sage and I have been handling the initial fall-out from this afternoon’s tragedy. The emissary from Franzia is resting in her chambers, she had already sent word to her country of the attack and reassured them that she is well and will be returning to them in a few days. Your mother, the former Maou, has generously offered us the use of her ship or the returning ambassador as she is already en route.”

Ken interrupted, “We understand that the representative from Diakun received a minor leg wound and is recovering currently in the infirmary as are their majesties Yuri and Wolfram. We received word through the spy network that Yozak believes the attack here in the castle was not an isolated event. There are reports that there were perhaps attacks launched in all of the countries involved in the Peace Conference.”

Gwendel shot a glare towards the Sage who shrugged and walked over to a pitcher and glasses to pour a drink; and again took over, “We are still waiting on confirmation of that of course, but we will need to keep the possibility in mind until it becomes fact.” He paused for a minute to trace his eyes over Gwendel’s face before continuing, “I am glad to see that you are recovering Gwendel. Do you know how Yuri or Wolfram are doing?”

“When I left Yuri was unconscious, but appeared fine. Geisela was still working on Wolfram.” He paused to take a breath and swallow past a mysterious lump in his throat, “I do not believe she holds out much hope for his recovery.”

There was a sudden crash as the pitcher slipped from Murata’s grasp and shattered against the stone floor, drawing both Gwendel’s and Gunter’s attention.

“Sage, are you-“Gwendel was cut off in his query as Murata turned to them fully, his hands gripping the edges of the table beside him. His shoulders pulled tight as the rest of his body was wracked with a sudden tension.

“I knew when I saw her hit that Greta was dead, but I never thought-“ Murata swallowed reflexively against a suddenly dry throat. He sank into the nearest chair as his legs suddenly felt weak. “I didn’t see that he’d been hit. I saw the blood, but I thought it was hers, Greta’s, not his; never his. I’m sure Yuri never imagined. Oh Gods, when he wakes up-“ Murata raised a hand to run it through the bangs that fell across his forehead.

Gunter had moved forward beyond the desk that separated him from Gwendel. He took a place on the arm of the chair in which Gwendel sat and as the Sage fell silent he explained, “When I first arrived at the chapel after Wolfram called for me all I could see was the blood. I didn’t even see Greta at first. It wasn’t until Wolfram moved that I could see her, but it wasn’t until he collapsed that I realized he’d been hit too. After that my only concern was trying to reach Geisela in time.”

His voice suddenly died as he saw that both the Sage’s and Gwendel’s eyes were on him. Once he’d begun speaking he’d forgotten their presence in the room and had been speaking more for his own concern than theirs. He tried to steer the conversation back to another topic at hand. “It does bring up a question for you though, Gwendel, with His Majesty unconscious and Wolfram’s health in question; you are Greta’s only-“

“We will not be discussing anything of that nature.” Gwendel’s voice was a harsh scrape. He shifted to the other side of the chair, placing distance between his body and Gunter’s. He could feel Gunter tense at his side at the action but kept his eyes turned away focusing instead on the eyes of the Great Sage as he sat drooping in the chair. “A more prevalent question would be I think: Why are you here Sage?”

Murata straightened in the chair, narrowing his eyes upon Gwendel as he smiled a brittle smile and asked in a mockingly cheerful voice, “Why, Gwendel, are you not happy at the return of your Maou?”

Gunter immediately saw the danger in this continued line of questioning and stepped in. “We are of course overjoyed at both yours and His Majesty’s return. We are merely inquiring at the timing. Given the events of this afternoon and the actions of the assassin, we need to know if your return was precipitated by another as yet unknown force that may bode ill for the people of His Majesty’s kingdom.”

Murata felt his body lose some of its tension as he broke out a sharp bark of laughter. “You really are the kingdom’s best political weapon, Gunter. I don’t believe that Celli even with all of her considerable charms has a tongue so gilded and agile in verbal warfare.” He paused to catch his breath and noticed that even Gwendel had a small smirk of agreement on his face at his assessment of Gunter’s abilities.

“If you are asking me if I knew that our absence would not be permanent when we left Shin Makoku, then yes. I knew we would be returning. However there was business that needed to be finished back on Earth before Yuri could return and commit himself fully to this world. As soon as circumstances could accommodate, we returned. Granted it seems that our timing leaves a great deal to be desired, but we are back now and up until a few hours ago I would have said that Yuri would be better for his absence.”

Gunter could literally feel his limbs twitch with the need to ask the Sage more questions about his return but was denied as Gwendel instead gave voice to his own question aimed at the Sage’s enigmatic wording.

“You refer to Greta’s death then?”

“When Yuri wakes up I think we will need to watch him very closely. Travel between the worlds is still very disconcerting and he may still be feeling physically ill from his return. But I am more concerned with his reaction to the news of Greta’s death, as well as the news of the assassin’s death and that of his kind. Yuri is very powerful and though the Maou has known death, that knowledge that he directly killed and is responsible for the death of so many will not sit easy with him.”

Murata paused as he watched understanding flood into both Gwendel and Gunter at his words. “I believe Wolfram would be able to comfort Yuri through his grief over Greta’s death and his guilt over his own actions. Even Conrart would be a comfort to Yuri in this time, but with his absence and Wolfram’s health uncertain, I find myself questioning Yuri’s ability to cope with so many difficulties at once. If Wolfram’s fate is in such jeopardy that even Geisela questions it, then I truly am concerned for the fate of both Yuri and our kingdom.”

*****

His head was fuzzy. He felt as though every muscle in his body was wrapped in lead, weighing him down, making him sink. He was drowning and he knew it. It was the kind of knowledge you have in that last moment of waking sleep. Right before the alarm goes off and you know you have to get up but you don’t want to because you know something bad will happen if you do.

Like your bike will have a flat tire on the way to school and you’ll be late or the water will suddenly go cold on you in your shower and you’ll slip and fall and hurt yourself. Or that knowledge that you’re sick with the flu and as long as you stay asleep you won’t have to face just how miserably ill you feel. It’s an irrational knowledge true, but that doesn’t make it any less uncanny for its accuracy.

He knew all of this, in the back of his mind. It all made sense to him as he struggled to swim through the murky abyss that held him immobile. His heart accelerated and his lungs began a steady pull as he fought to rise to the surface. His ears popped as the sounds around him suddenly became audible. His eyes blinked open and saw the room around him cloaked in darkness with just the barest light spilling from a table across the room. He turned his head to follow the faint glow and could see a woman sitting at a long heavy table. Her chin cupped in her hand as she looked over a massive book that lay before her.

He blinked his eyes, clearing that final bit of sleep from them as he refocused on the woman’s face. He knew her, she was Geisela; that’s right. He was back in Shin Makoku. He had returned. His arrival in the water garden of the west courtyard came back to him. As did the feeling of hugging Greta in his arms before-he froze.

Like a giant wave, Yuri felt it all come back to him. The little cry from Greta as she went limp. The warm of her blood as it spilled across his hands and arm. The look on the laughing man’s face as he’d held him up. The darkness of his soul as he saw through the man’s eyes all the planning, the deception, the murder. Yuri felt his stomach heave as he recalled his own actions, his judgment. He turned to his side quickly and moved his head to the very edge of the bed he was in.

He felt weak, very weak, but if he was going to throw up he’d rather not sit in it. Wolfram would never let him live it down if he threw up on himself. He felt his brow wrinkle. ‘That was odd,’ he thought, ‘Why am I alone in the infirmary? Why is Geisela the only one here. I would think Wolfram would have made them move a chair in here so that he’d be close to me when I woke up. Maybe he’s in the bathroom or something.’

A new thought occurred to Yuri and his confusion lifted. ‘That’s right, he was her father too.’ Yuri knew he had been closer with Greta than Wolfram had, but he had a vague recollection of passing her still little body to Wolfram before the grief and rage had sent him walking toward the smiling man. Surely since Wolfram wasn’t here he was probably saying his goodbye’s to Greta and making her final arrangements.

He nodded to himself, ‘Definitely a state funeral’. ‘She deserves nothing less than that, Wolfram will take care of it for me.’ He had complete trust that is friend would see him through this difficult time. He felt numb right now from the day’s events and expending as much energy as he had. But he knew that it would only be fleeting. The grief would come back when the numbness left it was only a matter of time.

‘But,’ he smiled softly, ‘I’m home now. I have everyone around me now and even if it’s not easy in the beginning, we’ll make it through. I know we will.’ His smile faded as his little pep talk died away and the lethargy came creeping back into his limbs. He moved his head slightly angling away from the light across the room. He further bent his neck to focus on a vague outline at the corner of his eyes.

It took a moment before shock had him suddenly sitting and turning his body fully toward the other bed that was occupied. His mouth dropped open as he took in the sheets that draped the petite blond laying like a porcelain statue. Yuri held his breath willing the figure to move, he tried to quiet the sudden rushing of blood in his ears as he waited, and watched, and counted; trying to see the sheets on the ivory chest move. But they weren’t. There was no movement. He couldn’t see any breathing. He wasn’t breathing!

“Wolfram!”

**A/N**
Who loves angst? (I do-I do) Okay maybe not, but I do like a rounded story and I have to make up for the gratuitous amounts of wild and crazy funky monkey sex that's coming up later somehow; don't I? (author ducks the rotting veggetaion currently being thrown for killing off Greta.) Seriously though, you guys should have been in the coffee shop as I was talking myself through the plot and justifying knocking her off. There was a lady there who was giving me some really strange looks! Did I mention I talk outloud to myself? No? Hmmm, that may explain the looks...Oh well, trust me though Greta had to go. And I know that this past chapter may have seemed a little on the boring side (like the first few) but it was necessary. Otherwise things are goign to happen and people are going to react and you're going to be sitting there thinking, WTF?!? Where did this come from? This is totally OOC! Or maybe not, but hey it sounded good; right?

Thanks to AliceM: Hopefully this will be another early moring bright spot! And, yes, Greta is dead; and Wolfram-well that's all I'm saying.

Thanks to Gabby: Thank you so much for your review, I hope I can keep you interested! (crosses fingers like mad)

Thanks to Wendera Jade: I'm hoping no one saw THAT coming! LOL And you're right, it's going to get interesting...hehehe

Thanks to Lee: Thank you for reading! I'm glad you like it so far, I like it when characters ARE characters, so your review really gave me a happy dance.

Thanks to Moonrosesa: Thanks for reading, you have really good questions. I'll try to answer in order, YES NO YES and you'll have to wait and see for the rest of it.

Thanks to Luna the Lunatic: Thanks for giving it a shot, I know the first couple are a little dense but I appreciate you sticking with it. And yes, I am E-vile I have offed the pipsqueak. Mwau-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha and that's all I'm saying.
p.s. You really need to stop giving out plot spoilers in your reviews though. *wink*wink*nudge*nudge*