Jongin woke up with Kyungsoo in his arms, the mortal boy’s face pressed into the crook of his neck. Moving slowly as not to waken his sleeping lover, Jongin carefully untangled their bodies. He padded across the dark room to draw back one of the many curtains that shielded the eastern walls, letting a small slip of light to filter into the room. Outside the sun was barely starting to peek over the horizon, a thin line of gold. With a clap of his hands the curtains pulled themselves up, ties moving on their own,  and glass windows swung themselves forward, inviting into the room gentle morning breezes and the beginning of sunlight.

“Oh, my,” a soft, feminine voice said at Jongin’s shoulder, and he turned to see an ethereal young woman with saffron robes and cascading ringlets the color of the gold. The goddess of dawn landed lightly beside him, her wings fluttering slightly. “Oh, my, my, my. He’s a beauty.”

“Hello, Eos,” Jongin chuckled as he turned his gaze back onto the object of his fellow god’s scrutiny. Kyungsoo looked like a slumbering angel as he curled in the vast bed, his pomegranate-red lips pulled into an unconscious heart-shaped smile. The soft hues of morning surrounded him with tender glow, mellow highlights of blush pink, lavender, and blue. “He is, isn’t he?”

“Where on Earth did you find him?” Eos said in wonder. “Mortals who can match an immortal’s beauty are few and far in between, and yet this young boy does more than just match.”

 Her eyes traced along Kyungsoo’s sleeping form before lifting them to meet Jongin’s. She noted the loving look in the god’s eyes and the smitten expression on his face, smiling. “You’ve fallen in love with him, have you not?”

“Was that ever in any doubt?” Jongin murmured as he spread his own wings. He looked pleadingly at the goddess of dawn, who gazed back at him with knowing blue eyes. “Eos, please don’t let Luhan know about this.”

“I won’t breathe a word,” she promised, “And I will talk to brother Helios to ensure his silence as well. By the way, I brought the items you requested from Athena. She said Minseok helped.”

With a wave of her hand a wooden chest appeared, which Jongin opened to reveal an assortment of finely woven clothes. At the top of the pile lay a beautiful chiton of the finest ivory threads, its fabric gleaming like pearl in the light. It was threaded with delicate gold designs, and atop it was a lovely circlet, no doubt fashioned by Minseok himself. The circlet and chiton were evidently made as a match.

“I believe they suspect something,” Eos said quietly, “Or at least Athena does. After all, it is not every day that you, the elusive god of love, come to request anything of his fellow immortals. It is usually the other way around.”

“I know Athena probably already knows what’s going on,” Jongin said as he admired the goddess of wisdom’s incredible craftsmanship. “There is not doubt why she is called the cleverest of the gods. But I do not believe she will say anything. It’s no secret she holds little regard for gossip.”

Eos smiled, placing a rosy hand on his shoulder. “Whatever happens, I hope it ends well for you,” she said sincerely. “You’re an old friend of mine, I would know better than anyone else that you deserve your happily ever after.”

“Thank you, Eos,” Jongin said gratefully as the goddess of dawn pulled him into a gentle hug. He cast one last glance back at Kyungsoo, who was still far away from the waking world. “I must go to Olympus, I have business to attend to.”

Eos nodded, and together they spread their wings and flew into the sky, disappearing into the vast expanse of the heavens.

Kyungsoo woke up in a haze of strange contentment. He shifted beneath his covers, enjoying the feeling of soft silks around his body and the touch of sunlight against his skin. Eyelashes fluttering, he yawned, fingers seeking the warmth of his mysterious husband. He frowned as his hands failed to make physical contact with anything but the plethora of bed-sheets that surrounded him.

Forehead furrowed, he sat up, finding himself in a sea of white. The room he had felt was a prison the night before proved to be a palatial room. It faced the sunrise, the Eastern walls consisting of ceiling-to-floor windows, all of which were open. Thick, gauzy curtains were pulled back, fluttering slightly in the breeze, and the whole room was lit with a golden glow. On the northern side, there sat an elegant dressing table, complete with body-sized mirrors and a large wooden chest. The bed Kyungsoo sat one was a circular one large enough to fit ten men comfortably, and had a canopy supported by four intricately carved gilded columns. He saw the doors he had been led through the evening before, swung wide open to reveal the spiraling staircase.

As fantastic as the room was, it was also very empty. There was no hint of his husband anywhere.

Kyungsoo crawled out of the bed, feet finding purchase on the cold marble floor. He pulled a sheet around him like a cape, sighing as he caught sight of the remnants of his clothes on the floor. There was a chest sitting by the dressing table, and he meandered over to it. Upon opening it he found it full of clothes of different colors, all of which were beautifully made. The one on top was obviously the most elegant. It looked like something he would have worn to his own wedding. After a moment of hesitation he put it on, placing the accompanying circlet on his head as well. It fit him perfectly.

He studied his reflection in the glass, head tilted. It was simpler than the chiton his tailors back home had made, but for some reason infinitely more beautiful.  The ivory chiton ended at his knees, golden designs spanning across his shoulders and along the bottom hem. The circlet on his head was made of thin gold chains, studded here and there with iridescent pearls that gleamed among his ebony hair. His hair was mussed and his eyes were still puffy, but he looked every bit a prince on his wedding day.

Wedding.

His heart throbbed painfully. Quickly he shed the chiton and folded it, placing the circlet back in its former position. He chose a different chiton, one that didn’t remind him of family’s tears and his own fear, one that didn’t remind him that what was supposed to be the happiest day of his life had turned into a nightmare. One that didn’t remind him that he was, despite his husband’s promises of love and protection, still in the unknown, and still far, far away from home.

After eating a quick breakfast, Kyungsoo took to wandering the halls once again. For hours and hours he drifted aimlessly, climbing up staircases and down staircases, walking through doorways and out them again, the palace becoming a blur of white. Finally he found a room with an enchanting view of the palace garden and the sky, and lay there, watching as the sky transformed from day to evening. Then Zephyrus appeared again, leading him to the dining room, which was once again laid out with a mouth-watering feast. Kyungsoo wasn’t that hungry, though, picking absently at his food while Zephyrus stood quietly. The young mortal boy wondered why he never saw anyone but Zephyrus during the day, and why the wind god was here in the first place. Surely he had things more important to attend to than the whims of a mortal boy.

“Zephyrus?” Kyungsoo ventured carefully as he pushed away his plate. “I was wondering… Why do you serve my…husband?” The word felt strange on his tongue, foreign, though admittedly not altogether unpleasant.

Zephyrus turned to look at him, his pale eyes understanding. “He saved my life,” the wind god said as Kyungsoo perked in interest.

“Please continue,” he said earnestly, and Zephyrus laughed gently.

“I fell in love with a young prince, a youth named Hyacinth,” he began, his eyes taking on a melancholic mood. “Yixing fell in love with him too. Of course, this was before Yixing had found Joonmyun, back when he was known for his many paramours. We vied for his love, and Hyacinth chose Yixing. I became…very jealous.” His tone turned bitter, and his usually pleasant disposition seemed to darken a tenfold. Unconciously fingers clenched, and Kyungsoo watched with worry as the god took a few deep breaths.  “I knew Yixing would throw him away eventually, and I couldn’t bear to see the one I loved suffer from a broken heart. Envy also drove me mad, and in a fit of desperation and rage, I killed him. I killed Hyacinth.

“Yixing was furious, of course, but the Master protected me. And I have served him ever since,” Zephyrus said, smiling slightly at Kyungsoo’s attentive, wide-eyed gaze, though his eyes were still heavy with guilt and sadness. Silence overcame the room as Kyungsoo turned the story over in his head thoughtfully, staring at the flickering candles without actually seeing anything. Zephyrus, too, seemed deep in thought, and it was after the world outside had well and truly blackened that the young wind god finally broke the silence. 

"Master Kyungsoo, if I may be so bold to say so," he said, his eyes reflecting the glimmer of the floating flames. "My Master isn't an unkind man. He may be mischievous and vindictive at times, but he is not unkind. Pardon me if it seems too forward, but I think you could come to love him. He is not undeserving."

Kyungsoo sighed, staring at the table, studying the many dark grains that spanned across the surface. “I will do my best,” he said, remembering his husband’s promise to set him free if that was what he wanted. This man had saved a wind god from on of the Olympians, it seemed he was kind and compassionate. Surely he would keep his promise. “Will you take me to see him now?”

With a smile Zephyrus nodded, clearing the table with a clap of his hands before leading him away.

The day had been a fair success. He had went to Minseok's forge and requested another commission, one which the kind god of  blacksmiths had been all too happy to oblige to. He had seen Athena, as well, who had given him a shrewd but gentle gray-eyed stare before she swept back into the Coucil of the Gods. He had also run into Luhan, who had questioned him on his sudden absence, to which Jongin answered he was taking a little break. Luckily the god of beauty didn't bring up his personal vendetta against Kyungsoo, merely nodding before disappearing after Athena. 

Now Jongin sat up in the bed as the door opened, Kyungsoo coming through with far more confidence than he had the night before. It was clear he couldn’t see, judging from his unsure steps and the hands he held out in front of him. Chuckling, Jongin approached him, scooping him into his arms like a princess. Kyungsoo squeaked in surprise, his eyes wide, as they settled together onto the bed.

“Hello, Kyungsoo,” Jongin said, brushing aside an errant strand of hair. “Why the sour face?”

Jongin wanted to coo at the disapproving expression on the boy’s face, Kyungsoo’s plush lips pursed in the most adorable pout. Giving into his urges, he tapped those lips lightly with his finger. They were even softer than he imagined.

“You weren’t here when I woke up this morning,” Kyungsoo muttered as his husband wound strong arms around his waist.

“I’m sorry,” Jongin apologized as he absently Kyungsoo’s hair, the human boy shifting slightly in his hold, smiling fondly as he yawned. “Are you tired already?”

“No,” came Kyungsoo’s reply as the boy rested his head on his shoulder, drawing the covers up to his chin. “Not yet.”

“In that case, do you want to tell me what you did today?” Jongin asked, his heart melting as Kyungsoo hesitated before beginning a brief description of his wandering.. As he listened to Kyungsoo’s uncertain rambling, he smiled contentedly, surprising the boy in his arms by pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. Kyungsoo was, though a bit reserved, clearly not as afraid as he had been the night before, and more comfortable in Jongin’s presence. It was a cliché start, but a start nonetheless, and the start, Jongin hoped, of something wonderful.

~oOo0oOo0oOo~

A/N: I'm sorry about this crappy update. D: I kind of got into a slump, but I think I'm back on track now. >.< 

On a side note, I decided that instead of going through the changes I made to the plot of Cupid and Psyche in individual author's notes, I'm going to compile a list of the most important changes I made and the reasoning behind them, in case anyone wonders why I did what I did. It will be posted at the end of the story, after the epilogue, so yeah! XD 

For those of you who enjoy wolf!au fics, please check out my oneshot Little Red Riding Hood! :3 shamelessly advertises OTL