黒い

Kuroi

By: Maeleene

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Wolfram had never worn so much black in his entire life.

In his childhood as the Maou's son, he could have worn all the black he wanted. He was a royal prince, after all. But his mother insisted on bright, lively colours instead. To her, black on children was depressing, not regal at all, and Wolfram barely gave the concept a second thought anyway. By the time he realized the significance and majesty of the colour, Wolf imagined he'd feel awkward wearing even just a little of it. As the years went on, he settled for a simple blue (a colour he'd grown to fancy) and gave black little thought.

When Yuuri Shibuya showed up, clad head to toe in the shadowy colour, he had to resist gaping. Even his eyeswere black. And if that wasn't strange and shocking enough, becoming the Maou's fiancé certainly was. He supposed he was expected to wear hints of black then, as any other consort might, but he knew as well as Yuuri did that the engagement was a joke.

Dressing in such a dark colour would imply something. Dressing in such a dark colour would mean he was actually expected to wed the wimp.

Throughout his life, Wolfram had worn a full spectrum of colours. Bright reds, calming greens, dazzling blues, deep burgundies, regal violets, and golden yellows. Even pinks and periwinkles and other such girly shades. He'd worn many colours even after Yuuri came, but he'd never worn the colour of the Mazoku's royalty.

So it came as a mighty shock to Wolfram when the tailor draped yards of satin black over him, testing shades and measuring him. And all the while, Yuuri sat on the bed in their room, a carefree grin on his face as he swung his legs back and forth, back and forth, delighted by the dumbfounded look on the prince's face.

Did he not understand what he was implying?

The tailor left with a spring to his step and a bold of deep black silk cradled in his arms, and Yuuri called a cheerful thanks after him. Then he waved carelessly to his fiancé and left to hunt down Greta.

That had been nearly a week ago, and the prince had nearly forgotten the traumatizing incident.

Now, Wolfram carefully buttoned the tiny black buttons on the cuffs of his sleeve, fingers trembling ever so slightly as he looked at himself in the mirror. The blouse was really cut quite nicely, tailored to show off his broadening shoulders and straight waist. Simple darts in his favourite blue accented the endless midnight fabric, a general relief to see. He didn't think he could stand the shirt if those darts had been any other colour. The neck was long with no cravat or tie, all simple and clean like Yuuri's own garb. No flourishes or decorations or chains of rank and status. His skin looked pale and his eyes looked brighter. Such contrast! He bit his lip, unsettled by it all.

"Waaah! You look great!" Yuuri exclaimed, closing the door behind him. When had he entered?

Wolfram scowled. "You wimp! Don't you know what this means?" He asked, gesturing to the offending shirt.

Yuuri tilted his head. "What do you mean? It's just a new shirt. I thought you'd like it…."

There was a scowl, an eye twitch, and for a moment, the Maou was sure Wolf was more like Gwendal than he originally suspected. And then a defeated sigh and a slump. "Nevermind, Wimp." And he plopped onto the bench in front of the mirror.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" Yuuri exclaimed, lifting his hands to reveal a package wrapped in a simple white cotton.

"Another surprise? I don't know if I can take anymore…" the prince mumbled, turning and taking the light bundle into his hands. "What is it?"

"Open it and find out!"

With a frown on his lips, Wolf slowly began to untie the bow. Though he was terrified of anymore black, he was curious about this second gift. Peeling away the layers of white, he found a soft, simple jacket of blue—his blue. The blue of his uniform and the blue of the subtle accents on his silky new shirt. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, then spread until his eyes lit up and a small laugh escaped.

"I thought you might feel weird wearing all that black," Yuuri said with a sheepish grin. "I know I do sometimes, and I'm used to it."

Without further ado, the jacket was slid over the blouse. It didn't cover up the black completely, but it certainly made it less shockingly apparent. He tied the white ties into a simple bow, adjusting the sleeves fondly, and then looked in the mirror again.

Much better! he decided, and then gave his wimpy king a grin of his own. "Thank you."

Yuuri smiled and jumped up, tugging excitedly on Wolfram's wrist. "Now come on! Let's go show Greta. She's been dying to see you all day, and I finally have a break from all that paperwork! Can you believe how much there is? I don't know if my hand will ever fully recover…."

Yuuri rambled on, not really expecting replies, and Wolfram let himself be dragged down the hallways without complaint. The black cuff of his blouse peaked out from beneath the jacket's sleeve, the shade nearly matching his monarch's own clothing. So lost was he in the comparison of colours that he didn't notice the secret smile gracing Yuuri's lip and the slight tightening of the fingers circling his wrist. The king was not as unaware of the implications such a colour suggested as the prince thought, but he didn't have to let Wolfram know that.

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A/N: Started this a while back when I saw the first episode of the OVA, but the ending was so atrocious that it needed to be rewritten.

Did anyone else notice how much black Wolfram gets in his new, shiny outfit? I was really excited about it. I was like, "Black! Black! He's wearing black!! Ooooooh, the scandal of it all!!" And thus this was created.

For those that don't know, kuroi means 'black' in Japanese.