Chapter Text
Come morning, when Dimitri wakes up, he's so very careful to move Khalid off of him and keep him covered and under the blankets as he goes about collecting his things from around the room utterly silently. Once he's finished and dressed in his riding cloak and gear, he sits down on the edge of the bed and gently shakes Khalid's shoulder. "Khalid, wake up for me," he murmurs.
Khalid blinks awake and is almost alarmed, at first, at how not alarmed he is. Normally, he wakes quickly and at the smallest sound. Today, all he feels is warm and groggy. And then he remembers--Dimitri's waking him up because he's about to leave. Khalid yawns and sits up, shivering as the blankets fall into his lap. His hair's a wild mess of curls and goosebumps are crawling up his arms in the chill, but he's smiling. "Good morning."
It doesn't slip past Dimitri's notice. He smiles in return and starts to lean over to drag the blankets behind Khalid and up over his shoulders--but stops, as he remembers what he has folded in his lap. "Good morning. Had I not promised I wouldn't... I would have left you sleeping. You looked so peaceful..." He can't help but stroke a thumb across Khalid's cheek and comb his fingers lightly through his hair, trying to tame it just a little. He leans in and presses a kiss to Khalid's lips, then to his forehead.
"See, I knew you'd leave without waking me up if I didn't say anything." Khalid shakes his head, fond.
"We'll be departing for Faerghus soon, but... there is something else I wished to leave with you. Both for practical reasons, and... sentimental ones alike."
Khalid lifts his eyebrows. "Oh? What is it?"
Dimitri moves to unfold what's in his lap. When he leans back in again, it's to wrap Khalid in a cloak. The details are hard to see in the dark of the room, but Dimitri says, "These sorts of cloaks... they are special in Faerghus. Their color denotes an ally of House Blaiddyd and grants passage through our lands. No soldier on our side of the border will think you to trespass while you wear this." And seeing Khalid in it makes Dimitri smile, as he adjusts it to sit properly on his shoulders. "And, should you truly come all the way to Arianrhod... it will suit you well, and keep you warm in our weather."
Khalid reaches over to the bedside table to light his candle again so he can see the color more clearly: a rich, vibrant blue not too dissimilar to Dimitri's own cape. Khalid runs his fingers over the warm fabric and looks up to give Dimitri a grateful smile with a tinge of wonder in it. He cups Dimitri's face in both hands and kisses him again. "Thank you. I will treasure it."
Dimitri lets himself melt into it just a little, knowing that if he allows it to go on for too long, he'll end up dooming himself... When he pulls away, though, he lets their foreheads touch and his eye close. "When you travel through the Alliance, and then through Faerghus... so long as you maintain a distance from the southern border, you and your men will be safe. Promise me that you will not endanger yourself more than necessary."
"I promise, but only if you'll promise me the same thing. I don't want to get to Arianrhod just to hear bad news. I hate bad news." Khalid smirks, but the words are completely sincere.
"...I promise you. Your arrival in Faerghus will see celebration, not tragedy." Dimitri glances at the window, gauges the time, and sighs. "We'll be going. Get your rest, Khalid... you have your last negotiations before you yet."
"Yes, Your Princeliness." He reaches up to place both hands on Dimitri's shoulders and give him the traditional Almyran greeting and farewell--a kiss to both cheeks--before he wraps his arms around Dimitri's neck in a quick hug. "Travel safely. I'll see you again soon."
"I will. I'll await you in Arianrhod... codladh sámh, Khalid."
Dimitri speaks with his father about the Almyran troops coming straight to Arianrhod mere minutes after their entourage is on the road back to Faerghus. And long after that conversation ends, he's still thinking about the Almyran prince.
Meanwhile, contrary to what he told Dimitri, Khalid doesn't get back to sleep that morning without the other man's warmth and soft breath to lull him. Instead, he takes breakfast with Hilda and gushes to her in hushed tones about Dimitri--and really, she could have acted at least a little surprised, just to spare his pride. But she's happy for him, and he's happy for himself, too.
In a week's time, Dimitri receives a letter sealed with the royal crest of Almyra and written in Khalid's casual hand. Most of its several pages detail the troops and supplies he intends to bring to Faerghus, confirming that he will be leading them and working out logistics. But the final page, folded separately from the rest, is just a small note that reads: Thinking of you. -K
With a soft smile on his lips, Dimitri pens a letter in response. It's at least twice the length of the other prince's missive, but that's because the separate and personal part of it is several pages in and of itself. He writes about the warm reception he's planning for the Almyrans--and, more specifically, Khalid himself--when they arrive, and that he hopes the feast will be up to Khalid's standards. He writes about how beautiful the snowfall is, and how lovely it will look blanketing the countryside for their journey, and how he's thinking of Khalid as well... He hadn't meant to make it so lengthy, but it-- The words just got away from him, he supposes. Still, he omits nothing when he sends it.
Khalid's hope of seeing Dimitri within the moon was unfortunately a bit too optimistic. It takes ten weeks to prepare everything on both ends of the trip, and another fortnight to ride from Almyra across Leicester and most of Faerghus to reach Arianrhod. It would have been a faster and easier journey to fly there, but Khalid refused to risk the health of their wyverns in the Kingdom's unforgiving cold, especially not knowing how long they'll be staying. True to Dimitri's word, the blue cloak Khalid wears grants them unquestioned passage through every Faerghan territory, and even a few nights of hospitality along the way whenever they have the good fortune to run across a lord's manor at the right time of the evening. Despite its usefulness, he can't escape Nader's teasing about it; he never actually told Nader about his relationship with Dimitri, but he somehow knew anyway. He did tell Siril, who in characteristic fashion focused on the practical things, like whether Khalid would be able to keep from daydreaming about Faerghus' prince long enough to strategize. (Khalid chased him into a snowbank for that one.) Also true to Dimitri's word, the snow is beautiful, but Khalid could have done without it actually falling on him for several days straight.
Finally, the day comes when Dimitri's scouts report the Almyran army's approach. Dimitri and his people scramble to have everything ready by the time the prince at the army's head rides through the gates of the Silver Maiden with his honor guard. Seeing Khalid again in person--wearing that cloak--fills Dimitri with a soft but restless feeling. It's a struggle to keep himself from rushing over as soon as the man dismounts his horse and sweeping him into his arms, but he manages it. It's an even greater struggle when Khalid approaches him with a wide, warm smile and greets him with those same traditional cheek kisses as before...especially when Khalid is clearly lingering on them a little too long. Dimitri fights not to grin like a loon, maintaining his princely solemnity. "Prince Khalid. I'm glad to see that your journey brought you here safely. I have made arrangements for boarding you and your men in our barracks. You all must be tired, after your trip."
“Oh yes, we’re very tired. Definitely.” Khalid isn’t winking, but something in his tone is, somehow. "But before we retire, allow me to introduce my retainers. This is General Nader the Undefeated; I'm sure you've heard of him, as he is the strongest warrior in Almyra save the king and queen themselves."
Dimitri most certainly has heard of him, if mostly as Khalid's combat instructor in his childhood anecdotes. But he gives the man a polite little bow. "Certainly. It is an honor, General."
"Likewise," says the sturdy, broad-shouldered man with the ready grin as he bows a little in return. "Kha--I mean, His Highness, has told me all about you, Prince Dimitri."
Has he, now... With the unsubtle way Nader's looking at him, Dimitri has a feeling he knows precisely what Khalid has told him. But he simply nods.
"And this," Khalid goes on, "is Siril." He ushers forward a teenage boy of maybe 15 or 16, who looks up at Dimitri with an unimpressed gaze. He bows, though, as is proper, and simply says, "Hi."
"Hello," Dimitri replies with a smile, charmed somehow by that brevity. "Now," as he turns his attention back to Khalid, "I fear I must entertain your company for a time longer, so that we might discuss how your troops will be deployed here, though I'm certain there will be plenty of time for rest between the end of our discussion and the feast that we've prepared for you."
"Ah, speaking of the feast--" Khalid gestures for someone to bring one of the horses from the supply train, laden with packages and parcels of varying shapes and sizes. "Please accept this offering as Almyra's contribution. We are humbled by your generous hospitality, Prince Dimitri, and wish to repay it in kind."
Dimitri thinks he can see a hint of impatience in Khalid's eye, serene as he seems; he knows by now that the Almyran prince has little love for Fódlan's brand of formality. "Of course. I will have my men handle it for you." He turns to gesture beyond the fortress' gates. "If you would come with me, we have much to discuss, Prince Khalid."
Much the chagrin of both of them, Dimitri's expected to give the visiting prince at least a short tour of the facilities. He keeps it as brief as he dares and makes sure to end it by kindly escorting Khalid to what will be his chambers, a few doors down from Dimitri's own. He graciously accompanies his guest inside, no doubt to show him the various amenities available to him.
Or, in reality, to shut the door behind them and waste no time in pinning Khalid against it by the shoulders and capturing his lips in a long-awaited hungry kiss. It comes as no surprise to Khalid, but Dimitri still manages to leave him breathless by the time they eventually part. He thinks that, perhaps, no amount of time would change the way Faerghus' prince takes his breath away. He grins. "I take that to mean you've been anticipating my arrival, just a little?"
"I-I haven't stopped thinking about it." Dimitri is honest as ever, if still embarrassed by the words. He ducks his head against Khalid's shoulder and pulls him into a fierce hug. "You don't know how relieved I am to see that you're safe..."
Khalid pulls Dimitri close in return, still dazed from this sudden greeting and the confirmation that yes, this is still happening and Dimitri does still want him...he feels almost feverish. “Likewise. I didn’t doubt that you’d hold the line, but seeing it for myself is reassuring.”
Dimitri gently sweeps Khalid into his arms and moves toward the bed, so he can sit and cradle the man in his lap. "How long do you think you'll be able to stay?"
Khalid wraps his arms around Dimitri’s neck and basks, indulgent, in the touch and the warmth. Oh, he's missed this. “Well, we did promise to lend you our aid until the war is resolved, one way or another.”
Dimitri's eye goes wide. "You... do you mean to say you will be staying here? For that duration?" He's trying not to get his hopes up, because it seems so much more likely that he's misunderstanding, but... wouldn't that be such a wonderful thing? To have his fellow prince beside him through thick and thin, through victory and defeat, no matter the hardships? How much more bearable it would make this endless conflict...
“Why not?" Khalid says, caressing Dimitri's cheek with his fingers. "I’ve been working my entire life for this alliance, I don’t intend to leave anything to chance. Besides, I wouldn’t abandon you in the middle of a war.”
"I-I just... I had not anticipated..." But a big, goofy grin spreads across Dimitri's face as he squeezes Khalid's waist with one arm. "I was preparing myself to... have to say goodbye again. Soon, I mean. But if you are staying... I haven't the slightest objection."
Khalid grins back. “Good, because you couldn’t get rid of me if you tried, not after I’ve come all this way.”
"Mm. I can only wonder how long it will be before you're complaining about the cold. I imagine you won't sound so enthused come nightfall..."
Khalid laughs. “Oh, I’ve been complaining about the cold the entire way through your icebox of a country. But I have faith that you can come up with ways to keep me from freezing.” He leans in close to press another kiss to Dimitri’s lips.
Dimitri melts into it, letting his hand drift just a little lower on the other man's back. "I certainly intend to do everything I can to keep you warm." He’s back for more kisses between words, now, as though to demonstrate his point. "We have hearths in every room, our garments are trimmed with the most luxurious furs in Fódlan..." A kiss. "Our cooking is hearty and far spicier than anything to have graced the halls of Goneril's estate, not to mention that our walls here are built with the sturdiest of stones, and reinforced each year to keep out the cold..." Another kiss. "And, well. Were we to share our accommodations again, I sincerely doubt the rest will be necessary."
“Mm...that all sounds lovely, but you’re right—one tall, handsome prince is all I really need.” It's Khalid's turn to return for another kiss to prove it, slow and languid. “Ah yes, I feel warmer already.”
"Mmm... which reminds me that I ought to show you to my own chambers." Dimitri's goofy grin makes its way back onto his face as he stands, reluctantly setting Khalid back on his feet just in case they should be seen. Once he ducks his head into the hallway and confirms that they're alone, though, he takes the other man's hand and leads him down the corridor to his own room, at the end. Khalid is so charmed by it that he finds no words to say as they walk; it’s another thing he’s never really done before, holding someone's hand this way, and he finds it unbearably romantic.
Naturally, Dimitri's rooms here are more personalized than those he occupied at the Goneril estate, but not by much. They're no bigger or more elaborate than any of the other rooms here save for the fact that they contain only a single bed, like Khalid's room, and not the bunks his soldiers use. But he anticipated the other prince's arrival, of course, and the floor and walls are covered in soft furs to keep heat in. He's brought a significant portion of his own library from Fhirdiad, too--to keep himself occupied on the few occasions he'll need to, but more so for Khalid's benefit, if he's honest.
Dimitri crosses the room to his writing desk and pulls an ornate key from the drawer, only to deposit it in Khalid's palm. "I keep this room locked, but... you may enter as you see fit, of course."
Khalid's eyebrows lift as he looks up at Dimitri in surprise, and no small bit of wonder, and just a hint of disbelief. “You’re...giving me a key to your chambers?”
"I keep odd hours. Usually, when I'm here, I stay up quite late... most of my nights I spend conducting our interrogations or walking the walls. I will not always be here when you return after your day, and... perhaps more reasonably, you will need a way to lock the door when you wake up later than I." He gives Khalid a small smile. He's definitely aware that it's quite a bold thing to do, but it isn't as if it's much bolder than letting Khalid sleep in the same room, the same bed, is it?
Khalid finds those reasons all very practical and reasonable, if predicated on the assumption that he’ll be sleeping here with Dimitri, but still...it feels like a very intimate gesture, and displays an enormous amount of trust. He swallows and closes his hand around the key almost reverently, nodding. “Thank you, Dimitri.” He’s sure he couldn't really explain the kind of overwhelming appreciation he has for this, so he doesn't try.
"Of course." Even if he doesn't completely understand, Dimitri can tell from that subtle little bewilderment that it means something, at least. He smiles softly and takes a second to adjust Khalid's cloak so that it sits on his shoulders more fully. "When I said that we had business to attend to, I wasn't being entirely untruthful. We should discuss how your troops will be deployed, but... later."
“...yes, later. Please. For now...” This gesture too, adjusting his cloak, feels so incredibly sweet and personal compared to what Khalid's used to. He catches one of Dimitri’s hands before it can retreat from his shoulder and brings it to his lips to kiss the knuckles, gauntlets or no. He’s new to this, still, but he’s certainly read plenty of tales of epic romance. “For now, let me just enjoy your company.”
It surprises Dimitri enough to widen his eye, but his smile returns quickly. "How, then, does tea sound? When he arrived, my companion Dedue saw fit to bring me plenty of his home's richest varieties, and I imagine that you must be hungry after your trip... the greenhouses here are wonderful too, perhaps there..." And soon he's drifting off into his thoughts as he thinks through the perfect date, even with Khalid standing right there.
Khalid watches him daydream with an amused smirk. “Those all sound great.” Then, in an excessively formal tone with a mock-bow, he goes on: “I would be honored to take tea with you, Your Princeliness.”
This bit of silliness snaps Dimitri out of it. His smile is giddy as he escorts his...guest? To the greenhouse, after he goes rummaging through his things for the tea Dedue gifted him and finds a staff member to request the necessary supplies brought to the gardens. Luckily for Khalid, the greenhouse is kept warm with magic, and Dimitri finds a lovely corner shrouded in greenery and adjacent to a small pond installation for them to settle in for tea.
They fall back into their usual quiet conversation so easily, and now sometimes Khalid leans forward to rest his hand over Dimitri’s on the table, or rests his chin in his hands just to look at the other prince, with his crystal-blue eye and the sentimental little smiles he shows no one else, silky blond hair falling over his face in fetching strands... Khalid feels like a ridiculous schoolboy, but it's such a buoyant feeling that he barely cares. After a time, he says, “You know, I’m not the most religious man, but I’ve got to hand it to the gods of fate this time, crossing our paths the way they did.”
Dimitri takes a moment to think about it. "Hah... I must agree. I never imagined I would have come away from that negotiation with a friend, much less... someone like you." He reaches past the teapot to gingerly take Khalid's hand in his own, squeezing it gently. "... I never thought that I would have something like this."
Khalid squeezes back, letting an introspective smile spread across his face. “You may find it difficult to believe, but I never thought I would, either.” He remembers that he deflected the question the last time they talked about it... but for now, he settles for saying, “The gods haven’t always smiled on me, so it’s a welcome change of pace, heh.” He doesn’t really believe that the gods had all that much to do with it, but it’s a nice thought, anyway.
To think that Khalid considers his company, his...companionship something akin to a blessing...it stirs butterflies in Dimitri's stomach to hear it. "I feel the same. If there is a Goddess or some other deity out there, I have a great deal to be cross with them about, but... this to thank them for, too, perhaps."
Khalid chuckles, feeling weirdly shy for a moment and covering it up by stuffing half a pastry into his mouth to avoid having to say anything until he recovers. “Well, I intend to make the most of this opportunity they’ve handed us if they exist. And if they don’t, we can pat ourselves on the back for finding each other all on our own.”
Dimitri's about to say something about how he's never had such good fortune before in his life, but suddenly the door flies open and he half-stands from his seat, hand twitching toward the sword at his belt. Khalid’s followed suit--even faster, actually, already fully standing with one hand reaching into his jacket for the knife Dimitri gave him by the time hurried footsteps bring Annette rushing into the room, eyes shining with excitement. "Your Highness! There you are! I heard we had a--" She spots Khalid and practically squeals. "You! I mean, a guest! Why didn't you introduce him to us?"
Dimitri raises a slow, meaningful brow. "I intended to... after some time to discuss matters. Alone."
Annette blinks at him for a few seconds until she processes this, at which point her face flushes red. "O-oh. Oh. I'm so sorry, Your Highness, I didn't mean to interrupt, I--"
"It is fine, Annette." Dimitri breathes out a quiet, indulgent sigh.
Khalid finally manages to put on his Diplomacy Smile and sit back down. “Hi, I’m Khalid. Sounds like you’re Annette.” She seems friendly enough, and he'd love to get to know Dimitri's generals and friends, but not now. Fortunately, Dimitri gets up to gently steer her from the room, reassuring her all the while that there will be plenty of time to meet and chat during the feast, but that right now they have time-sensitive matters to discuss about the Almyran troops... Once she's gone, Dimitri sits back down with a hand over his face in embarrassment.
“Wow, I didn’t know I had fans already in Faerghus," Khalid says. "I’m flattered that she was so excited to meet me for...some reason.”
"It is... not every day that we plan feasts here, Khalid. And I couldn't exactly gather the food and supplies for it without notifying my inner circle. I have had nothing but good things to tell them about you, so..."
“Ah, well, I can’t argue with that. Though it’s certainly a first, heh.”
"Technically, by accepting that cloak, you are... more or less their peer, in this country. You would hold a similar station to theirs, as sons and daughters of our most powerful noble families. It isn't too outlandish to say that..." Dimitri gives Khalid a small, nervous smile. "You are one of us, in a way. In an official capacity, I mean to say. Not a position that a foreign noble has ever held, and certainly not a noble from outside of Fódlan."
You are one of us. Khalid doesn't think he could form words even if he could find any to say. He stares openly at Dimitri, subtly drawing the cloak closer around his shoulders without thinking. Were he a different--or younger--person, he might have cried with the overwhelming joy crashing over him like a wave. He's...never been 'one of' anyone before. Not his father's people, nor his mother's. Not even the royal family, not when the best he can say about his siblings is that a few of them don't actively hate him. Sure, his rational mind is aware that what Dimitri's talking about is a political designation, not a personal statement. But the way Dimitri says it, the way he looks at Khalid as though there could be nothing more personal in the world, makes him feel...wanted. Welcome.
But Dimitri's no mind reader, and the look Khalid's giving him sets off alarms in his mind. What if he's committed some kind of grave offense, an insult to Almyran royalty, somehow? Does Khalid think he was trying to deceive him, by not explaining all of this before? "I...hope that is all right. I did not quite realize the extent of it, not until I was...here, in Faerghus proper again." The truth is, he wasn't thinking about the political ramifications at all when he gave Khalid that cloak, because he was busy imagining what the other prince would look like dressed in blue, and thinking about how the garment could keep the man warm on his travels in Dimitri's absence...he's starting to babble now, he can tell, but he can't stop himself. "Such gestures do have significance in our culture in general, it's merely... the color, in this case. This--" He pinches the edge of his own cape and holds it up, so that the threads catch the light in a way that makes it easier to see its shimmer, "--this blue is that of House Blaiddyd, and marks those of our family. So in order to designate those distinguished parties we hold as allies, we chose a similar color..."
“It’s...” Khalid clears his throat. “It’s more than all right. I...could not have asked for a warmer welcome to Fódlan than this. I’m...thank you, Dimitri, for...for making me feel at home here.” He smiles too, faintly but sincerely. He glances down at the cloak’s color briefly, wishing he didn’t sound like some kind of stammering fool. Pull yourself together, he thinks in a voice that sounds suspiciously like his mother's in his head. “I hope to truly earn that trust in time.”
"If you will be staying with us here and helping us in this war, I have no doubt that you will." Dimitri, in turn, can hear Felix's scolding about how easily he trusts, but he's able to brush it off quickly, by now. When his smile widens, it's blindingly genuine. "I want to make a world... where you could see a place like Fódlan as your home, too. Where it won't matter which side of the border you stand on for you to feel welcome."
“...that’s my dream,” Khalid agrees, wondering how anyone in their right mind thought the prince of Faerghus was anything but the sweet, kind, open-hearted man sitting here at the table with him. “I thought about coming here when I was much younger, you know. To the Alliance, I mean, in an unofficial capacity, to meet my grandfather Oswald von Riegan. I might have ended up as his heir, if I had.” He rests his chin on one fist, thoughtful. “The reason I almost did was because I don’t really feel welcome on the Almyran side of the border, either. The reason I didn’t ...well, I’m not really sure.”
"And... that is because of your heritage, is it not?" It's solemn, when Dimitri says it, and he doesn't try to hide the way his smile fades into something more morose. "My father says that in his youth, when we first allied with Duscur and mixed marriages became commonplace, it was a frequent sight to see the children of such unions... unhappy. There were many who tried to twist their stories into narratives of unhappy family lives as opposed to mistreatment by those outside of the family, but... we were able to move on, in time. Not completely, of course. But enough to make progress, and we continue to." Dimitri reaches across the table to take Khalid's hand. "Almyra can be the same, I know it. I know that you know it, as well... Perhaps even that, your hesitation, was a blessing in disguise to help us reach this point, here and now."
“Progress.” Khalid smiles and squeezes Dimitri’s hand firmly. “To change minds and hearts, without war and strife. You’re right - I do know that we’ll get there, even also knowing that it will take more than my lifetime to truly break down all the walls. We’re shaking their foundations. When you come to Almyra, I want to make you feel at home there, too.”
"I'm certain I will, with you beside me." As if to punctuate the statement, Dimitri scoots his chair around the table until they're sat right next to one another, never letting go. Khalid grins at how utterly cute that is. "Having you here," Dimitri goes on, "it feels like a dream... I wish I could show you Fhirdiad, but Arianrhod has its own beauty, too."
"Once we win this war, you'll be able to show me anything you want, and then I'll do the same in return. A series of grand victory parades, perhaps?"
"Hm. Perhaps." Dimitri lifts Khalid's hand to kiss his knuckles.
Khalid pulls Dimitri's hand into his lap and holds onto it there. "I am looking forward to seeing Arianrhod and meeting your people. Just...maybe not right this second."
"Ah... of course." That little reminder melts Dimitri's heart, and when he leans down to rest his cheek against Khalid's head, it's to hide the lovestruck look on his face. He lifts his cup of tea and takes a long few sips to hide the huge smile he knows would be blooming on his face if he didn't occupy his mouth with something else. "Tomorrow, I will be back to my usual routine here. Long days, that means. Though... unlike in Goneril, I am not in any particular rush to find sleep..."
Khalid relaxes against Dimitri and sips at his tea, too. "And tomorrow we really will need to hash out deployments and supplies, and all of that madness. But today, I'm in no hurry to sleep either. I'm barely in any hurry to leave this room, to be honest...unless you had somewhere else in mind for us to continue our little chat." His expression grows impish.
"Well, it is just as much a conversation between allies as it is between friends." Not that 'friends' completely encapsulates whatever they are to one another, now, but Dimitri's not about to hash that out here, with Khalid still present. "And there is not a place more private than my quarters. Were we in Fhirdiad, decorum would dictate we use my audience chambers... thankfully, we are not in Fhirdiad."
"Ah yes. Decorum and I don't get along that well at the best of times, so I suppose it's a good thing it's spending all its time in Fhirdiad." Khalid grins. "And of course, we simply must have privacy, two important royals such as ourselves."
"Mn. It's of the utmost importance, really." Even if they weren't alone, the cloak Khalid still wears does a good job of hiding the hand that rubs gently along his side. Dimitri lowers his voice, then: "I would never complain about getting time alone with you."
"What a coincidence," Khalid says just as quietly, holding his gaze steady as he looks up into Dimitri's eye and lightly settles one hand on the other man's thigh, also hidden by the cloak. "I've been waiting to get some more time alone with you since you left the Locket."
"Have you, now." Dimitri immediately tells himself that the greenhouse is not the right place for this, but can he really help it if Khalid's hand on his thigh is pretty convincing? He leans down a little, unconsciously tightening his grip on Khalid's waist, and ends up pulling him the slightest bit closer until they're truly sat hip-to-hip. "... you have spent a great many nights wandering through my thoughts, in kind."
Khalid takes in a quiet but swift breath. "Hmm, I do have a tendency to wander. So do my thoughts, sometimes, especially late at night when I can't sleep." He slides his hand up just a fraction. "They found you pretty often, too."
With the way they're sitting, Dimitri can't see much around them. His eyepatch is facing the rest of the greenhouse and the entrance at the far end of the room, but he's confident after a few moments of listening that there's nothing, no footsteps down the hall or anything of the sort. So he leans down and catches Khalid's chin between his fingers to pull him into a kiss, more forceful than the sweet little pecks from earlier, especially once his hand slides down enough to squeeze his hip and the side of his thigh, instead.
A quiet whimper escapes Khalid as he lets Dimitri tilt his head back and succumbs to the kiss, bringing one hand around to cling loosely to the back of Dimitri's neck. His fingers clench just a bit where his other hand still rests on that thigh, and although he really ought to be just as cautious as Dimitri is, he leaves all that to the other prince--it's his fortress, after all. Khalid's just going to follow his lead.
Dimitri is tempted--very tempted--and despite knowing that they shouldn't get too into things out here where anyone could stumble upon them just as Annette did... now that he has Khalid in his arms again, he's going to cherish it, even if only briefly. In a second, he's haphazardly pulled the other man off of his seat and into the air, then against the edge of the table, though the brunt of his weight is held up by Dimitri's hand under his thigh. Khalid hums, pleased, into Dimitri's mouth as he's lifted effortlessly--still quiet, but... When Dimitri pulls away from the kiss, he dips his head down to Khalid's shoulder and sighs against his neck. "We should not... but I am sorely tempted."
Khalid fiddles with the collar of Dimitri's jacket with one hand--just playing with it, for now. "Should not, huh? Who made that rule? And here I thought you were in charge here..." He's clearly teasing, almost taunting--but of course, if Dimitri really doesn't want to do this here, he's perfectly fine with waiting a few minutes. Still, 'sorely tempted' describes the way he feels right now, too...he nips very lightly at Dimitri's lower lip with his teeth, so briefly.
"Do not test me, Khalid." It's low, a playful grumble, and if Dimitri's hips twitch the barest amount... "I may be in charge here, but I do not wish you to miss the banquet I went to such great lengths to plan for you, and if I start now... there will not be nearly enough time before I am done with you."
Khalid's breath catches, at both the words and the sound of Dimitri's voice--like a growl, but much more inviting than the way he once gave such terse responses back when they first met. "Well, they can't start without us, can they?" he murmurs, and the hand at Dimitri's collar unclasps the top clasp--just the very top one. For now. "I, for one, am very curious to see what you have planned that's going to take so long..."
"They could. Very likely would. That is a great deal of food to simply let go to waste..." Dimitri pauses and chuckles a little, giving himself a few seconds to shrug off his embarrassment before he says, "I've had three months to think of what I wish to do to you. I promise you, I could certainly fill an evening." Is that an odd thing to admit to? Surely, thinking of him that way isn't odd...how could I not? I hope that isn't strange to him...
Khalid groans. "With a promise like that, how can you possibly expect me to behave myself?" Whoops, he's undone a second clasp.
"If you do not behave, we may not get to do much of anything. This fortress is filled with soldiers." Even as he says it, though, Dimitri snakes a hand up the back of Khalid's tunic, mindful of his gloves and gauntlets, to let his hand settle at the small of his back. "I'm certain they wouldn't take kindly to watching us ravish one another in the halls--or this greenhouse, for that matter."
"Oh, I don't know, two princes' passionate escapades sound like the perfect fodder for an epic tale to me..." But even before the words are out of his mouth, Khalid's blushing at the way Dimitri phrased that (and, frankly, his own phrasing...) and arching back into his hand. "I'd say why don't you tell me all these things you're going to do to me, but if you tell me I'll want you to do them right now." And a third clasp is undone under his fingers.
"I may not have much choice, should you keep undressing me." Dimitri doesn't seem to mind it at all, though, and even pushes his chest out slightly into Khalid's hand.
"Hmm, guess I'd better keep doing it, then." And true to his word, another clasp comes open under the Almyran prince's fingers.
Soon, Dimitri's other hand carefully slides out from underneath Khalid's thigh and instead drags the cloak from his shoulders, then tugs just slightly at the collar of Khalid's tunic in turn. "... we've still a few hours before our dinner," he says, leaning in close and brushing the shell of Khalid's ear with his lips. "Perhaps we will not get through everything... but we could attempt to get through some of it."
The warm breath against Khalid's ear gives him pause as he shivers; Dimitri's voice seems to travel all the way down his spine, and by the time his hand starts moving again to finish opening Dimitri's jacket and push it away from his shoulders as far as he can from here, his muscles are beginning to tense pleasantly. "You've got to start somewhere," he agrees, a little breathless.
"Mm," Dimitri agrees, before getting out of his chair and kneeling at Khalid's feet. "I believe I will start here." Khalid's eyes widen slightly as Faerghus' prince takes great care in freeing his rapidly growing arousal from his trousers and leans forward to take it carefully into his mouth. It's not long before Khalid's tangling a hand in Dimitri's silky hair and biting his own lips to keep quiet as best he can while Dimitri shows off his enthusiasm after several months of separation.
Afterward, Dimitri is clearly very satisfied with his efforts. He licks his lips and covers one of Khalid's thighs with kisses, rubbing gentle circles into the other with his thumb. Soon, he kisses his way up to Khalid's face and pecks him on the lips, before breathlessly teasing, "We really will be late to your feast if we keep this up."
Khalid leans back on his hands on the table, sweaty and panting for breath, hair mussed and grinning lazily. "But what kind of guest would I be, Your Handsomeness, if I stopped now and left you wanting? Especially after you did such a good job...so rude of me." He tugs Dimitri back in for a deeper kiss, if a more languid one.
Dimitri will never not indulge him in a kiss, so he waits until after he's pulled away to make his point: "I think we could both use what time we have left to freshen up." He plants a kiss along Khalid's jaw as his hands put the other man's clothes back in order for him, then clasp his own jacket back up afterward. "There is always after dinner."
"I can't say you don't have a point..." Khalid reaches up once Dimitri's moved on to his own clothes to run his fingers carefully through the tangle that he made of Dimitri's hair while he was grabbing and pulling it, trying to smooth it out as best he can. "After dinner, then. It's a date." He winks.
"I look forward to it, as always." Dimitri gives him a soft smile. "Though I hardly intend to leave you to get back to our rooms alone." He carefully helps Khalid down from the table, then pulls the cloak back over his shoulders to try and hide how disheveled his clothes are now.
Khalid doesn't need the help with all these things, of course, and if it were anyone else he'd wave them off, but he lets Dimitri do it anyway; it's kind of nice to let someone else take care of him for a change, he thinks. Especially someone as sweet and gentle and strong and maddeningly attractive as Dimitri... "Good, that means I don't have to take my eyes off you for a little while longer." He resists the urge to take Dimitri's arm on the way out of the greenhouse. Just in case. As he pointed out, there are others here.
"Should all go to plan, you won't for the rest of the evening. Did you believe I would be sat at the head of the table without you?" Dimitri's cautious as they move through the halls but, true to his suspicions, nearly everyone who could intercept them is already preparing for the feast. They arrive in their wing of the fortress without issue, now with Khalid's luggage having been delivered to his room. "I didn't want to even entertain the thought of having you anywhere but beside me."
The things Dimitri says... It's starting to get just a little overwhelming, but in a good way; in a way Khalid wouldn't change. Even if he occasionally needs to remind himself that being treated like...well, like royalty, here doesn't mean that someone's trying to wheedle favor out of him or butter him up to take sides against their rivals, or...whatever. It just means that Dimitri cares about him, and when he can manage to fully take that in, it's a warm feeling. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be." He brings a hand up to the strands of hair flopping into his face and smiles, wry. "You were right, I definitely need a bath."
"Hah. Well, we have time." Dimitri himself doesn't need to bathe, really, but if Khalid needs help washing his hair... Dimitri wouldn't mind plopping a pillow down next to the tub to help him. "What was it you once said? 'Fashionable lateness'?"
Khalid laughs. "I did say that. And I'll admit, I do relish the idea of making a grand entrance with you after everyone else is seated. This is quite the turnaround from all your worries about being late, though."
"Ah, well, if it's fashionable..." The truth is that Dimitri could hardly bear to deny Khalid anything at all, and as he ushers the other prince through the door into his chambers, a memory about that cloak he's wearing pricks at the back of his mind, too fuzzy to fully recall. Just the vague notion that there's something important he's forgetting about it. What could it be...?