A Moment In Time (Larry Stylinson)

The Castle

Louis sticks his fingers in his mouth and whistles for his great lolloping ball of fur to return. Clifford looks up, head cocked to the side as though he's completely forgotten where he is, that Louis was with him, or that he's even a dog; sometimes Louis does wonder what goes on inside his brain. Louis shakes his head fondly and jangles his leash sparking Clifford into a gallop, ears flopping in the breeze and tongue hanging out. Louis loves him dearly, but he isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.

The foggy moor is quiet at this time of the day, just them and a few birds braving the cold, damp dawn. He was never much of a morning person when he was growing up, but being here, with all this open space and nature, has changed him. Every day holds such promise, every sunrise bringing excitement for what will unfold.

Clifford comes to a halt, wagging his tail and panting hot, steamy breaths out into the air. "Come on, Cliff. Let's head home and see what Harry's got cooking for breakfast," he says and Clifford takes off toward home. Louis hurries to catch him up, the dewy grass sinking slightly beneath his feet.

He lets his mind wander back to that night in Sheffield, the night that changed everything. He remembers it with fondness and awe. Niall and Liam had bailed them up as soon as they'd gotten backstage, ushering them into Harry's dressing room, which just so happened to be the closest lockable room, and grilling them about what had just transpired on stage.

Harry and Louis had stuck to their prepared story; that they'd recently been trying to resolve things between them in secret and working through their issues, which had the added advantage of being absolutely true. They just perhaps neglected to reveal the when and where of it happening and that a strange mystical force had been involved. Regardless, their friends were thrilled, shocked for sure, and perhaps not entirely convinced by the lack of detail in their story, but ecstatic nonetheless.

Their Made In The A.M. promo had gone surprisingly well. Fans had noticed the change with him and Harry of course—from barely acknowledging each other to joking around and being comfortable in each other's space—and they had welcomed it with enthusiasm. They didn't hide their newly reignited friendship, but they hadn't flaunted their true relationship either. That was just for them.

That was nine months ago now. Nine months of pure bliss away from the spotlight, holed up in their house in the Scottish Highlands. Although, house is probably a misleading term for where they now live.

They'd been backstage at the Jingle Ball in LA, on the home stretch of their promo tour and with Christmas just around the corner when Harry had burst into their shared dressing room and shouted that he'd found it. It , as it turns out, was a castle. Yeah, a fucking castle . Rundown, and in desperate need of restoration, it was isolated and beautiful and so perfect that he and Harry had instructed their lawyers to negotiate a deal immediately.

The castle comes into view as they reach the crest of the hill and the air is sucked from Louis' lungs just like it always is when he sees it from a distance. The once-imposing structures have lost some of their grandeur as the years have beaten them down; weather and time the toughest of foes. But they're making headway to return it to its full glory.

It had taken a couple of months to make one section livable; a kitchen and drawing room, two bedrooms, a bathroom and a studio. It's more than enough for the two of them and Cliff and means they can be onsite while the rest of the work is being done.

Built in the late seventeen hundreds, the high walls topped with turrets surround a central courtyard where a grand fountain sits. The number of bedrooms and reception rooms rivals a decently-sized hotel and the secret staircases, hidden passageways, and concealed rooms will make for a children's wonderland when they eventually start a family.