Kings [A Medieval AU]

Chapter Twenty-Six - Viride

"Dan, look. That's Viride."

Dan snaps out of his daydream and glances at Phil before looking to the horizon, where a castle looms against the setting sun. Torches are mounted on the wall around the city, flickering by the gates. Phil reaches over from his horse and places a hand on Dan's knee, meeting his gaze. He doesn't say a word, but Dan understands. Phil will be right beside him the whole way. He doesn't have to be nervous.

The caravan proceeds towards the gates of Viride and Dan takes a deep breath, calming his nerves. He rides close to Phil, trying to look regal and collected while on the inside, he's freaking out. Phil holds his hand for as long as they can, smoothing his thumb over his skin as a small form of encouragement.

"Who goes there?" one of the guards demands.

"King Philip of Divum and King Daniel of Tenebris, here for a meeting with King Seán," Phil replies smoothly.

"Good evening, your majesties. Please, proceed." The guard bows, holding it for a moment before straightening up and cupping his hand around his mouth. "Open the gates!"

The huge metal gates creak open and the caravan heads inside. Dan exhales, reaching over and taking Phil's hand again.

"You said that like you've said it a thousand times."

"I was rehearsing it in my head the entire time we approached," Phil replies with a grin, making Dan laugh.

They head through the winding roads of Viride towards the castle, passing farmers and children and animals of all kinds. Dan takes it all in, realizing with a start that he's never actually been to a kingdom outside of Tenebris and Divum up until this point. Phil has probably travelled all over the place, visiting different kingdoms, and Dan has stayed trapped in the two places he's come to see as home. After this, he should really go and visit other kingdoms if they'll let him.

They reach the front doors of the castle and dismount, leaving the servants and guards to deal with their horses while Dan and Phil head inside. The large, oak front doors are swung open and they walk in, coming face to face with a green haired, blue eyed king with a golden crown. A red cloak hugs his shoulders and swishes around his legs, much thinner and less bulky than Dan or Phil's cloaks. He's several inches shorter than both of them, but he makes up for it in regality alone.

"Welcome back," King Seán says in a lilting Irish accent.

"It has been quite some time," Phil replies, shaking his hand.

King Seán's gaze turns to Dan, and immediately he feels like curling up into a ball and disappearing. "Who is this?"

Phil steps back and places a hand on the small of Dan's back. "This is King Daniel of Tenebris. His arrival in my kingdom is quite the tale, so remind me to inform you of it before we leave."

Seán nods and shakes Dan's hand. "Well, it is nice to meet you. My kingdom has not communicated with a Tenebrisian royal in decades."

"My kingdom has not communicated with any royals in decades, so this is definitely a step forward for us," Dan replies.

A faint smile tugs at Seán's lips, but it doesn't reach his eyes. Phil's eyebrows furrow and he approaches the king of Viride, touching his shoulder gently and leading him away. Dan follows, trailing behind ever so slightly. "We will discuss kingdom matters tomorrow. Tonight, we discuss more personal matters."

Seán exhales and leads the two kings to his office. A large window backs his desk, much like Phil's office, and lets in the light of the setting sun. A sitting area rests off to the side and Seán gestures for them to settle in before moving off to light the fire. Green magic swirls from his fingers, and with a flick of his wrist he creates a spark in the fireplace that turns into a flame. With warmth starting to flood into the room, he moves to light a few candles that sit on various surfaces around the room.

"Seán, are you alright?" Phil asks, blue eyes trained on the Irish king.

Seán shrugs a bit. "You shouldn't worry yourself."

Phil continues to watch him and Seán sighs, finally taking the seat across from the two kings. He clasps his hands in his lap, meeting Phil's gaze with his own pained blue eyes.

"We got a letter a few days ago that my brother, the last of my siblings, was killed in battle. My mother... she isn't taking it well. She took ill soon after, and I do not know whether or not she will make it."

Phil inhales sharply. "I am so sorry."

"Thank you."

Dan glances from Phil to Seán, unable to say anything of comfort. Phil's hand rests on his thigh and Dan covers it, the touch calming him a bit. Seán glances at their hands and then to Phil, his head tilting to the side ever so slightly.

"You were going to explain why King Daniel is here, Philip."

"Ah, yes," Phil replies with a small smile. "I, uh, might have kidnapped him initially due to pressure from my advisors and a need for his kingdom's food. There was also quite a bit of suspicion due to his magic's colour. However, the longer he stayed in Divum, the more I realized how much I loved him and how wrong we were to do what we did."

Seán's lips quirk into the faintest of smiles before falling away. "I have never thought of Divum as the kind of kingdom to kidnap people."

"We usually aren't. It was a very strange couple of months."

Seán huffs a laugh and glances to Dan. "Tenebris has black magic, correct?" Dan nods and the king of Viride hums. "Sounds mysterious. I guess I can understand why a kingdom as superstitious as Divum would think you were evil."

"Hey, I'm right here," Phil teases, his eyes sparkling. King Seán grins for a moment before it falls away again, the smile barely reaching his eyes. Phil reaches over and touches his knee, leading Seán to meet his eyes. "Hang in there, okay? It will all be alright."

"I know. It just... doesn't feel that way right now. Maybe it will be better when I find myself a husband," Seán replies with yet another small, faint smile.

Phil grins. "Definitely. Now, I'm very tired and I think Dan is as well, so we're going to retire for the night. We will discuss kingdom matters tomorrow."

"Excellent. A servant will lead you to your quarters," Seán states. He stands and the other kings follow suit, shaking hands with him before heading out into the hallway. Sure enough, a servant girl with a thick Scottish accent leads them to their room and gives them a few tips on how to navigate the castle before bidding them goodnight.

Phil discards his cloak and sits in order to pull his boots off, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. "I've never seen him so... emotionless and sad before. He's usually much more cheerful. I should be doing more to help..."

Dan hangs his cloak up and settles on the floor in front of Phil, forcing the king of Divum to look at him. "You're doing a good job, Phil. Everything you're saying is comforting, and listening to him is one of the best things you can do. Don't fret too much, okay?"

Phil exhales and reaches out, running his fingers through Dan's hair. The king of Tenebris leans into the touch with a small smile. "Okay. Thank you, Dan."

"No problem, Phil."

The king of Divum pulls Dan close and kisses him, one hand still in his hair while his free hand trails to his hip. Dan kisses back, trying not to fall over and crush him along with the chair he's in. When they part, Dan settles on his lap as gently as possible and snuggles against his chest with a sigh.

"Sometimes, I wish I was smaller so this would be easier," Dan murmurs.

Phil chuckles and holds him close, resting his head against Dan's. "We should go to bed. I'm about to fall asleep right here."

Dan groans softly and pulls himself to his feet before helping Phil up. As the king of Divum moves off to change into pyjamas, Dan pulls his boots off and changes into his own pyjama pants. Once they're both changed, they climb into bed and snuggle up to one another, falling asleep to the sound of crackling fire.