a/n: sorry this was supposedly smaller and less cheesy but the playlist changed and soft acoustics make me sentimental. so yeah sorry, i'm sorry. I'm also awful with long pieces.. sorry

*Tolkien elves are immortal, celebrate their conception day and not the actual birthday, and they don't have curly hair

*all the locations here are either a play on actual lotr locations or translations for a different idiom.

*i messed up a lot of things about middle earth story and blablabla but whatever. 

It's just not always that a strangers come near the wood realm.

No, who's he trying to joke with, nobody ever comes to the wood realm. It's too far away from the human kingdom, too deep into the forests of the north, yet too far away from any mountain, from the cold, to any dwarf think of visiting.

(not that Kyuhyun is complaining. Humans are always too dumb, and dwarves are just... no)

The woodland realm, more often called Greenwoods, it's one of the few pure elven kingdoms, beside Valfenda and Lórien. It's localized, as the name says, within the woods of the north, after the misty mountains. Kyuhyun would say that it's a great place to live, even with the orcs invasions here and there, and, sometimes, giant spiders. Well, for an elven prince that counts as a way to pass time, killing such horrible fiends.

Strangers aren't commonly seen, and when they are, the king either kills them or lock them up in the dungeons.

So, when a stranger with coal black hair and the strangest dark red robes ever is seen walking around the king's domains as if he's just a passerby, well, Kyuhyun is surprised. Who could this be, why are his clothes so different, so not-from-here (or from anywhere, really. Kyuhyun's been living for three thousand years, and he thinks he can say he's seen a bit of everything from the world, but not that).

He is intrigued, but not enough to ask the stranger, so he goes to talk to his father instead.

-

"This is someone from lands far, far away from here," his father had said with his solemn voice. He answers to the name of Yesung, and should be regarded with most respect. 

-

Yesung doesn't seem to walk through the palace, he spends his time out, on the open. From a two day observation, Kyuhyun observes that the stranger has taken a special liking to the gardens, he reads much about the elven language, and is eager to talk to anyone who's willing to listen. His eyes light up each time he spots or learns something "new", just like others are so, so curious to listen to his own culture and funny accent.

From an even closer -- bordering stalker -- inspection, Kyuhyun assumes the stranger has a different aura of sorts. From a close circle around him, the air seems different. He suspects it's an enchantment of sorts, probably. Magic is a long gone knowledge, ever since the great wizards disappeared from this age.

When Yesung revives a plant with a whispered song, though, he's forced to believe that maybe it could be magic.

-

Even though Kyuhyun seems to know an awful lot about Yesung and his daily routine (if it can be called routine when the other seems to spontaneity do whatever he wants), they never talked to each other. Kyuhyun is the youngest son, thus he wasn't needed or requested to talk to their guest, nor did he ever feel compelled to do so out of his own good will. Yesung didn't seem to notice him at all, also.

He's surprised when he finds the stranger on his chambers, holding his head as if it would fall from his shoulders, seeming lost and confused. He stays rooted to his place beside the door, trying to think of what he should say or do because this is so not what he was expecting and it's way too late to deal with it, and he's just not ready for this, but Yesung doesn't seem to notice his presence at all, so he is forced to make himself known with a small and awkward "hey".

It's like a whole new world has open before Yesung's eyes, as he turns around with such huge eyes. 

They stare at each other for awhile before the raven's eyes turn into small slits as he smiles.

"Good evening."

Kyuhyun eyes him dumbly, mesmerized by the husky, low voice. It's too different, and he fell for it. He nods, still confused to his newly found liking of the stranger. Yesung doesn't seem bothered with his silence though, "I am lost." He now knows why so many girls are so mesmerized by him, his accent it's just adorable, "could you help me find the way back to my own chambers?"

The other eyes him with innocence and expectative for some time until Kyuhyun finds his voice (and sense) again to mumble an "yes, yes. Sure", and lead him back to the guests rooms.

Later he'll wonder how, just how Yesung could walk so far from his destination to end up on his room, the farthest.

--

It seems that gagging up unattractively actually leaves out a good impression, since Yesung seems to notice him a lot more after that. He seems to catch Kyuhyun whenever the other is trying so subtly steal glances at him (the raven smiles, small and polite while the elf acts as if nothing happened, going back to whatever he was doing). 

And it is after a week that Yesung would approach him, offering Kyuhyun a cup of warm tea.

Kyuhyun never liked the taste of it, but he doesn't have the heart to refuse since Yesung climbed all the stairs to the observation tower just for this. He scoots a bit to the side, a silent permission slash question for the other to sit beside him with his own cup of tea.

"Good evening." Yesung says looking at the elf beside him rather than the beautiful night sky, he's never paid attention to this one. He's so different from the rest, with young, childish features in place of the ethereal, timeless beauty he's seen everywhere. His dark brown hair doesn't seem to go over his shoulders, curling here and there, while most of them have long manes that reaches their waist or below. He doesn't seem like a high elf at all. 

The elf sighed, he could feel Yesung's curious gaze analyzing every little trace of him; "I'm adopted, if you're wondering," his true home was completely slain a long time ago, when he was twenty and something years old. He was devastated when the news reached Valfenda -- where he was studying for the moment. The lord there offered him home, and there he stayed until his fifties, until the woodland realm king and his wife took him to their kingdom, where they thought he'd feel better along the company of the moon and the stars. Valfenda was too much like his old home, too bright, too warm.

He heard Yesung gasp, making him divert his gaze to the other just to see his cup of tea falling him his hands, down meters and meters since they are sitting at the borders of the tower. While Kyuhyun couldn't feel bothered by it, Yesung seemed devastated, "I am so sorry!"

Kyuhyun shrugged and went back to his stargazing.

"I'm Jongwoon." Yesung started after some minutes of silence, "I mean, that's my true name."

"And I am Kyuhyun, as you must already know."

He could see Yesung -- Jongwoon nodding from the corner of his eyes, the raven's own eyes still glued to him, "any special reason as to why --"

Jongwoon looks to the sky then, out of curiosity as to why would the other still be watching the stars. "I'm a good singer." The tea has long gone cold, and Kyuhyun settles to leaving it beside him instead of holding it with both hands. He doesn't say a word but hums in acknowledge, expecting Jongwoon to keep the conversation going. "It means I'm a good singer."

--

They do get closer, and closer. Kyuhyun joins Jongwoon on his morning walks, Jongwoon would follow Kyuhyun to the observation tower every night, the ritual of a few words shared while their gazes focus solely on the sky. It's a process of weeks until they deem each other "friends", and as soon as that happens, Jongwoon is gone. Back to his homeland. 

And Kyuhyun's life goes on, in eleven years their world almost ends once, the last dragon dies from the hands of men, the woodland queen dies, and his soul is too scattered for him to rest. His love life is still void of anything, his sisters believes he was a betrothed before being born, and his spouse was gone with the rest of his kingdom. It isn't delusional  to think like that, but Kyuhyun doesn't feel like that is the truth, his heart seems to not have a owner, that's all. 

(because he's seen the depression that has fallen upon his king after losing his beloved, and Kyuhyun feels that his one is somewhere along here, still)

He sees Jongwoon in a trip to Valfenda, he's got all the wrinkles Kyuhyun doesn't, and he's still the brightest. 

Their gazes find each other, and they smile. Kyuhyun looks away first, but it's been ten years or so to Jongwoon, he's missed the prince. 

"Good evening!"

This time Kyuhyun smiles at that, because eleven years can make someone change a lot, even an elf. He's all the charisma and diplomacy he didn't have then, having to deal with all the problems while his king perished to his broken heart. 

"Good evening, indeed."

Jongwoon seems surprised, because he remembers a prince that preferred silence, whose voice was quiet and small. This Kyuhyun talks with the strenght of a lord, but his face is as young as it was years then, and his smile is the same reserved one from their small talks at the top of the observation tower.

They walk around the palace -- away from the big commemoration happening on the town square. They talk, sharing their stories from those eleven years, the night goes on, and even if Jongwoon is almost falling asleep, because he's still just human, unlike Kyuhyun, he needs sleep. He rubs his eyes here and then, and Kyuhyun thinks of sending him off so he could sleep but then Jongwoon mumbles a small song, and, like years ago, the air feels different, too tight and Jongwoon seems revitalized. The other, sensing his confusion, chuckles without taking his gaze away from the stone floor, "I guess nobody told you, I'm, well, a priest."

"Differently from here, my land -- the east -- we have a different religious vision." Jongwoon goes on, without giving Kyuhyun space to talk, "we dedicate shrines to them, we give people away to tend to their shrines, and they lend these special people, their priests, some powers." He furrows his eyebrows for a second, thinking of how to phrase that better, because magic is not normal here. "Not... powers, but magic. Not like those spells, or the great wizards magic, but still magic. On a lesser scale? We -- we sing odes to them, and sometimes they concede us small graces."

"You sing and magic happens?" 

"No. I mean, kind of."

Kyuhyun nods, and the raven tries hard to not correct him, because it sounded too simple, and it is a complex process, of giving your life away for the gods, and so on. Sing and magic happens it's too far from the mark, for him. At least the reaction is better than when he visited the Lonely Mountain and the Durin dwarves that lived there, they thought he was the next necromancer and almost killed him, if the woodland king didn't save him. 

They don't stop strolling around Valfenda, but Kyuhyun did change the subject of their talk.

The next time they meet is during the funeral of his king, on the Greenwoods. Kyuhyun didn't show up to the funeral itself, exiling himself at the palace. Jongwoon went out of respect for the king, the one that saved his life once and lent him home for months. 

He also wanted to see Kyuhyun, for some reason he doesn't quite know.

Kyuhyun was lost, and the crown fell upon his hands -- him being the only heir that didn't leave the kingdom. He was alone now. The king, even with his heart and soul broken as it was, he was still there -- and now, he's alone. And that is probably his newly found biggest fear.

He's alone.

When Jongwoon finds him dandling dangerously from the borders of the observation tower, when the priest begs him, don't do this, when he hugs him, Kyuhyun just succumbs to it, the prince doesn't know what he was going to do, but Jongwoon's hugs are warm and inviting, it's all he thinks he needs for now.

He makes Jongwoon stay with him, he's still lost, but Jongwoon's singing anchors him to his duties, and that he does.

--

It's been two years, and that's a blink of an eye to Kyuhyun, but it's a long time for Jongwoon, a long time and his first gray hair (he's only thirty and that's not even so old but he's suddenly very scared and Kyuhyun making jokes out of his stress is not helping).

They're the greatest friends, but most of the court sees it from other eyes. They don't question love, they don't make it a rule, like men and dwarves do. 

Kyuhyun knows about it, his ears are sharp and the maids aren't as quiet as they think they are. He doesn't mention it do Jongwoon though, because Jongwoon is a man, and he knows what men think about love.

It is also not like he thinks about any of what the maids think he does with Jongwoon. He doesn't, and wouldn't want to.

It's on Kyuhyun's conception day that he thinks he's lied to himself. While he'd have a big party, with people from every kingdom coming to, and so on, and so on, he didn't expect Jongwoon to make a smaller one the day before. It's just the two of them and a small cake the priest brought to him, he lets Jongwoon hug him, and while the first time his hands stood at his sides, now he warps his hands around Jongwoon's waist in a light grip as he chuckles, saying a small thank you. He thinks that it should be a weird thing for a man to hug like that, but the other doesn't say a word about it. Maybe the raven already got accustomed to the elven ways? Or maybe he was thinking too much.

Jongwoon says he's sorry for the lack of a gift, but he didn't see anything that he thought Kyuhyun would like. The -- now -- king whines and Jongwoon promises to find something until tomorrow. Kyuhyun knows he won't, but it's always good to poke fun at the other.

They eat the cake at the observation tower. It's cold, and Jongwoon is shivering, so Kyuhyun throws him his coat. He's used to the cold, anyways.

"I've been living here for years and I still can't believe how cold this place is."

The elf chuckles as he gets another slice of cake, "how's your land, then?"

Jongwoon seems to have stopped shivering, he smiles a bit while remembering his roots, "it's warm, always warm. It doesn't even snow!" 

It never snows on the Greenwood realm either but he doesn't comment about it, humming to let Jongwoon know he did pay attention. After that, silence stretches between them, yet it's too comfortable to just stay like this, enjoying each other's company. But, of course, Jongwoon thinks silence leads to awkwardness and boredom, so he speaks.

"There's this thing going around the palace..." Only now Kyuhyun notes that Jongwoon's accent is long gone. "They, uh, they say we're..." The elven king settles his plate at his side, he doesn't look at Jongwoon, just at the sky, like always. He senses the hesitance, and that's what he was expecting, because Jongwoon is a man. "W-we're lovers."

He opts for a curt "yes", because he doesn't know, he can't guess if Jongwoon is disgusted with this, or something else.

"Are you okay," Jongwoon stops himself mid his speech, "don't you feel bothered with it?"

Kyuhyun glances to Jongwoon, who's fiddling with his -- now made from elven silk -- robes before answering, "Like my people, no, I don't feel bothered by it." He then bids his friend good night and leaves the other to his thought.

--

The next day he's so requested to this and that and all the other little things about his party, and then to greet all his guests that he doesn't see much of Jongwoon. Maybe that's good, it doesn't leave him space to think and over think if their last talk will change something. If Jongwoon is truly like most of his kind.

Later, when the party has already started, Jongwoon approaches him with a smile and a hug, Kyuhyun once again holds his waist, he wishes him happiness and leaves soon after. Kyuhyun doesn't see much of Jongwoon during the party after that.

-

Another year passes, and at the age of thirty one Jongwwon realises he stayed three whole years beside Kyuhyun just because the king asked him to, he realises he forgot a great part of his own language, that all he can think is that his life should be like this. Because this is okay. 

He wouldn't mind eternity being this.

And he wouldn't mind if Kyuhyun was part of this eternity.

It's when they're both enjoying a calm afternoon that Jongwoon thinks he's not bothered by it. Kyuhyun is beautiful with all his differences, and he listens as much as Jongwoon needs him to, they've been friends for too long, and even if they rarely ever touch each other more than their hands, they spend such a long time together, and none of them has ever been with someone else. He can't say the palace's maids are wrong to think they are that close.

Kyuhyun has this why-aren't-you-talking look, one eyebrow arched, and Jongwoon can only look slightly apologetic, because he's paying attention to all the small details he's never given much of a second glance before, because he's thinking of everything. Back to his homeland, to his old life, such thoughts were a crime. He'd be killed and the gods would hate him forever, yet he's willing to suffer if he'd get Kyuhyun to hold him for a third, fourth, fifth time.

Not long after that epiphany of his, a week after, actually. He kissed Kyuhyun. Kyuhyun was being his boring self, talking about statistics and this month's expenses, he tended to do that when he himself was bored and wanted people around him to do something about it. Such act angered Jongwoon, always. The king was especially handsome today, and that didn't help Jongwoon in the least. 

So he got up and kissed Kyuhyun, because something told him to do it. His mind was a mess, and the sad sindarian poetry book he was reading didn't help.

He walked away from the study room with heavy, fast steps, retreating quickly to his own chambers. He could hear Kyuhyun yelling behind him, and he knew the king could easily catch up to him, but Kyuhyun didn't even try.

They don't talk about it, it's not like Kyuhyun has time for it. A war erupt from the north. The Iron Hills are almost taken over by orcs, and Kyuhyun knows he shouldn't send help, the Iron Hills were anything but friendly to his kin, but he was much different from his father. He not only sent a great part of his army to aid the dwarves, but also enough provisions to both the army and civilians. 

After that he's had to keep contact with Valfenda, Golindor and his representant at the Iron Hills, he didn't have time to discuss with Jongwoon about the kiss.

It takes him a month or so until he has time for himself, he's sent Joonmyun as his other representant at Golindor's council, even thought he could easily trust Jongwoon to take care of his kingdom and go himself to the council. While the dwarven realm is safe once again, the lands around it are not and all three races are working to wipe out the plague that is the orcs, therefore a council was called.

As soon as another needless reunion is over, he finds himself searching over for Jongwoon, which isn't a hard task, he doesn't leave the palace grounds, and he hates closed places, which leaves a few options like the gardens or one of the observation towers, the first is more likely since Jongwoon is no fan of heights. He's at the west wind garden, leaning on a old oak he's seen grow into the huge tree it is now. Jongwoon's eyes show uncertainty and worry, but Kyuhyun smiles and sits beside him. thankful for the silence, and for the calm breeze that ruffles his hair.

"Good afternoon, Jongwoon." He's still proud to say that he's the only one to call the other by his true name. "How are you?"

Jongwoon coughs a bit before answering, "fine, my king." It feels foreign on his tongue, never having adressed to Kyuhyun formally before, "you?"

"Missing you."

"O-oh."

They're both admiring the sky, like it always is, or they should because Jongwoon cannot stop looking at Kyuhyun every second or so. There's silence for three minutes or so before Jongwoon needs to speak.

"About the kiss --" he tries to start, but Kyuhyun cuts him; "we should do it again." 

And Kyuhyun is looking at him, like he never did before, because each time they'd talk, Kyuhyun would look up, and never to him. But now he's got the king's intense gaze on him and he can't breathe, Kyuhyun smiles at him and all the raven can reply is a meekly "okay".

They both lean in, slowly but surely, it's sweet and chaste, but he loves it.

He closes the distance between their lips once again, a hand on his king's shoulder. 

"I don't feel bothered either."