Waning sunlight warmed his face where the giant burning orb rested on the edge of the horizon, the top framed by the overarching foliage of the massive tree he was resting under.  His feet dangled in the air, body drifting gently in the vine swing seat, and his wings lay flat against his back, at rest and hanging behind him like iridescent, silken coattails.  It was so peaceful where he was, just sitting, taking in the sights and sounds, where fairies sang in the distance and birds added their musical call to the symphony.  A slight chilly breeze dried the fresh tear stains on his cheeks and he took a deep breath to-

                “Are you crying?”

                Peace shattered into a million tiny fragments and Byunghyun narrowed his eyes, the fingers of his right hand threaded between Daniel’s.  He kept his left hand coiled around the vine he was sitting in and denied it completely.  “No.”

                “Yes you are,” Daniel laughed, pulling Byunghyun closer so he could poke at the tell-tale signs on his cheeks, making them both sway more in the open air.

                “It’s the wind and the sun,” the wind sprite snapped, smacking Daniel’s hand away and wiping at the traitorous tears with his left hand, leaving him precariously balanced on his seat.

                “Aw.  I know it’s beautiful but I didn’t think you were that much of a softy,” Daniel teased as he kept them close, grabbing onto Byunghyun’s vine so they wouldn’t drift apart.

                “The sun’s too bright and the wind makes my eyes tear up.  You know that,” he muttered with slouched shoulders, wings fluttering in agitation.

                Daniel couldn’t help but laugh at the response.  “For a wind sprite, you’re pathetically bad at being in the air.”

                “And for a water sprite, you’re strange,” Byunghyun shot back, finally turning his direct attention on the other male.  Whereas he himself was tiny and somewhat ethereal – that was what everyone else said – Daniel was skinny and… shiny.  Messy, greenish hair crowned his head, the coloration partially extending to the rest of his body where scales comparable to that of a fish covered the back of his neck, down his spine and around the majority of his torso before they extended along the entirety of his lower body.

                “Because I like being in the air?” Daniel inquired, one greenish brow raised and prominent lips quirked to the side.

                “Yes!”

                “And why wouldn’t I?  You’re here,” he grinned with a shove that sent them both apart, swinging out and then in like a pendulum.

                “Hey!  Brat!” Byunghyun grumbled, brushing utterly unhelpful, pink bangs out of his eyes.  If he could change his hair color for more than a day, he totally would, but unless he paid a witch to bespell it, that wasn’t happening.  And he certainly wasn’t going to pay for that.  The greedy wenches wanted an arm and a leg.  Some of them meant it literally…

                “What?  You can fly if you fall out of your swing,” the water sprite snorted.  “Oof!” he exclaimed when they crashed back together awkwardly, flailing to grab onto the vines so they wouldn’t repeat the process.

                Byunghyun couldn’t argue that and he flexed his wings in response, enjoying the way the breeze slid between smooth folds like a hand caressing the surface.  Of course, then a hand actually was touching his wings and he tensed up.  “Daniel,” he warned, reaching out to tug on the folded fin on his companion’s back, thick spine hard against his palm.

                “Yah!”

                “That’s what you get.”

                “But you have such nice wings,” Daniel pouted, relinquishing his hold.  “They’re so soft and I want to pet them.”  He reached his hand back towards the delicate looking appendages, waving in childish pantomime.

                “No,” Byunghyun shook his head, catching Daniel’s hand and holding tight so he’d stop.

                “Please.”

                “No.”

                “Pretty please?”

                “No.”  The resistance between them crumpled when Daniel relaxed his arm, drawing them together again so he could plant a mischievous kiss on Byunghyun’s cheek.  “Ack!”

                “Gotcha!”

                “Dammit!”  Flustered, Byunghyun punched him in the shoulder instead and crossed his arms over his chest, looking away.

                Beside him, Daniel whined and rubbed at his arm, but didn’t try to touch Byunghyun again.  A quick glance to check on him found the water sprite giving him the kicked puppy expression and guilt exploded in his chest.  “Why are you so mean to me, Byungie?”

                “You’re just so random,” Byunghyun grumbled, relaxing his arms to let his right hand hang at his side, fingers beginning to reach towards Daniel.

                “Because I like you.  Why shouldn’t I be able to pet your wings or surprise you?” he questioned, giving Byunghyun a sidelong look.

                “It’s just strange,” he admitted, pulling his hand up to rest it on his leg, fingers splayed out over the thigh.

                “We both already know I’m weird,” Daniel chuckled as he swung himself back and forth, kicking his feet out and back to gain momentum.

                “Stop that before you throw yourself out,” Byunghyun warned, watching his companion, head swiveling back and forth to follow the motion.

                “You’d catch me if I did,” the water sprite stated with absolute certainty.

                “That’s what you think,” he mumbled in response, rolling his eyes when he knew it was a lie.  Of course he would.  Dumb, flightless sprite that liked to be in the air.

                “And you’re weird too, you know,” he added, pointing a finger smugly at the wind sprite.  “Because you like a water sprite,” he explained and stuck his tongue out, leaning to change the direction of his swing.

                “I’ll be damned if I know why,” Byunghyun chuckled once, cringing when Daniel’s new path brought him around so the water sprite could kick him on his way past.  “Oh, flaming thorn thistle!” he yelped, rubbing at his hip and glaring at his companion.  “What was that for?”

                Daniel’s smug expression only grew wider and he nodded, “Payback.  Now we’re even.”

                Quietly, Byunghyun fumed at the response and flapped his wings to send him straight towards Daniel so he could snag his vine and hold on, sending them circling in a large loop together.  “Come here, you,” he commanded, eyeing the taller male with their faces only inches apart.

                “Yes, Byungie?”

                Before he answered, the wind sprite used his wings to control their movement, settling them back into place where they’d begun initially.  He grabbed Daniel’s hand and threaded their fingers together once more, looking him straight in his brown eyes with golden swirls in the iris.  “I thought we came up here to watch the sunset together.”

                “We did.  See?” the water sprite pointed, nodding his head along to draw Byunghyun’s attention to the horizon where the orb was beginning to disappear.  Luminescent fire turned everything orange, the shade growing darker until it was nearly crimson as the sun sank at last beneath the edge of the earth.

                They both exhaled, releasing the breath they hadn’t even known they were holding, and smiled at each other, drinking in the dropping temperature and the change in music where evening dwellers took over with soothing lullabies and calming melodies.  “Look,” Byunghyun pointed up where lichen patches let off their own gentle light, winding erratic trails up the tree trunk in green and blue strands.

                “It’s prettier in the water,” Daniel murmured, tightening his hold on Byunghyun’s hand.

                “I beg to differ,” the wind sprite denied.  “If I could take you above the trees long enough, I would show you how wrong you are.”

                When his comment was met with silence, he looked over at his companion and his expression softened to see Daniel’s face in the dim lighting, peaceful and content.  His voice was what had gotten his attention first, planting the seeds of attraction long before he ever saw the aggravating sprite.  And then when he did see him, he wanted to pretend he hadn’t and that didn’t go so well because Daniel was nothing if not persistent.  Well, so was he, in all honesty, but he was fascinated by water and the other was fascinated by air so they kept running into each other.  Okay, maybe it was more a matter of them following each other rather stupidly but it turned into watching the sunset from the air and the sunrise from the water.  So here they were…

                “If I fell from here, you would catch me, right?” Daniel asked softly, pleasant voice washing over Byunghyun like a gentle rain.

                “Is that a serious question?” the wind sprite chuckled, shaking his head.

                “Yep.”  With no further warning, Daniel leaned back and slipped free from the vine, letting go of Byunghyun’s hand at the same time.

                “Daniel!” he shouted, flailing reflexively when his balance was upset.  Immediately after, he fell backwards and streamlined himself, using his flexible wings push himself faster.  The force of the chill wind made his eyes tear up again, blurring Daniel’s falling figure as he reached for him with both hands extended.

                He could vaguely see the water sprite reaching for him in turn, his face not worried in the least.  Their fingertips touched, lightly clasping before Byunghyun flapped hard and flung himself into Daniel’s arms, hugging him tight.  He cupped his wings to grab the air and lost his breath at the effect, jarring them both as if he’d hit a wall.  It as enough to right them but he struggled valiantly to stop their fall, working against their combined momentum and his own, insufficient strength.

                Byunghun dare not look down to see how close the ground was as he tried his best… and failed to stop them.  “Hang on Byungie!” Daniel warned, holding tighter.

                “Yah!” the wind sprite cried, losing his breath again when they crashed into water, submerging almost instantly.  Liquid tried to get into his mouth, pressing against the back of his throat so that he sputtered and coughed, beginning to panic for a moment as he was stuck underwater, completely disoriented and in need of air.

                And then Daniel’s hands were on his head, drawing him close.  Lips pressed against his and he opened his mouth, feeling breath stream in as they floated together.  It was too dark to see anything, which always made Byunghyun nervous, the shadows pressing in from all sides, but Daniel wasn’t worried and smiled against his mouth, the sensation obviously recognizable.  Grounded by his presence, Byunghyun calmed down and relaxed, going limp in the water.

                A hand grabbed one of his and Byunghyun held his breath while he let Daniel pull him along, towing him towards the surface.  When his head breached the top, he inhaled deeply and floated on his back, letting his eyes adjust to the poor light so he could see something.

                “You need to work on your catching skills,” Daniel teased directly at his side, water lapping gently against their bodies.

                “That was mean,” Byunghyun pointed a finger at his companion, giving him an uncertain glare which solidified when slightly glowing eyes gave him away.

                “Maybe a little bit, but I knew you’d catch me,” he explained, diving under Byunghyun to appear on his other side a second later.

                “You’re too heavy,” the wind sprite grumbled, perturbed he hadn’t been able to stop their fall.  It wasn’t too bad picking him up and flying around from a stand still but stopping them both was another matter entirely.

                “I could just say you’re not strong enough,” Daniel taunted back, splashing water at him playfully.

                “You’re too heavy,” Byunghyun reiterated, earning a delighted laugh from his companion.  “And now my wings are soaked.  It’s completely dark and why are we in here again?  Is it even safe?  Nothing’s going to try to eat us, right?”  He really didn’t like not being able to see in the water…

                Daniel swam around to plant himself direction in front of Byunghyun, putting his hands on the thin shoulders to hold him steady.  “I want to show you something.”

                “Eh?” he blinked, casting about with obvious skepticism since it was still dark and the water sprite had ignored every other question.

                “Do you trust me?” Daniel asked, drifting closer so that his hands slid to Byunghyun’s waist, keeping them in place.

                “I guess… I mean, yeah,” he amended when he felt Daniel’s disappointment.  “But there’s nothing here,” he gestured, still partially blind.

                “For now,” he agreed, gripping one of Byunghyun’s hands and holding it close.  “We’ve gotta go underwater though.”

                “Seriously?” the wind sprite groaned, frowning at the cool liquid surrounding him.  He was just glad it wasn’t particularly cold; he hated being cold.  Chilly was fine but much beyond that and he wasn’t having it.  Daniel chirped in a quick response.  “Ugh.  Fine.  But you better not let me drown,” he warned tensely.

                “Don’t worry,” Daniel assured him, running a palm over Byunghyun’s pink, drenched hair in a tender gesture.  “Now take a breath.”

                Byunghyun delayed for just a moment longer before he did as instructed and allowed himself to be pulled underwater, submerging them again.  He was reminded of Daniel’s presence by the connection of their hands and glimmers in the water where ambient light played off his scales.  Beyond that, he felt utterly blind.  His wings trailed behind him, a part of him and not as water dragged along the material, pulling him back and slowing them down.  It was frustrating and he couldn’t even pull them in effectively since the water just tugged them right back out.

                And just when he was about to pull Daniel up to ask for breath, the water sprite paused long enough to kiss him, bubbles emerging from behind his ears as he separated air from the water to give to Byunghyun.  Then he was gone and they were moving again, down and down so that pressure built uncomfortably in his ears and head.  He tugged on the sprite’s hand and shook his head, pointing at his ears.  There was no sound of confirmation but Byunghyun felt their direction change so that they moved horizontally instead.

                Another breath of air and they finally stopped with his back against a shelf of what he could only presume was sand.  Daniel floated close and pointed up where the barest glimmer of light was beginning to make its way into the enclosure.  Moonlight crawled down the stone wall that held the tree at the top up, eventually sparkling off the surface of the clear water.  As soon as the nocturnal rays filtered through the depths, colors began to blossom all around them.

                A luminous rainbow of lights bloomed along the wall in various shades of blue and pink, purple and green, turning the darkness into a pool of brilliance.  In awe, Byunghyun watched the stream of colors dance together, intermingling in the water like living creatures before them.  Daniel’s hand was firmly clasped around his and the sprite returned to breathe for him regularly, allowing them both to enjoy the splendor of the underwater show.

                Tiny, silver fish darted too and fro, adding their own special glimmer to the rainbow already present.  Rippling water distorted the light to grant it strange shapes and fluid movement, only adding to the illusion of a living performance.  And on the edges of his periphery, he thought he saw other water sprites, lingering near the floor and walls of the water; they kept their distance and he felt safe enough in Daniel’s presence to simply watch on.

                Slowly, the moonlight started to disappear, hidden behind the cover of the tree, returning the pool to darkness bit by bit.  Only then did Daniel pull Byunghyun up and back to the surface.  The wind sprite was quiet, gathering his thoughts and perfectly malleable to whatever his companion intended as they floated on the surface.  It was a strange sensation, feeling as if he was floating on top of the water sprite, but he essentially was as their fingers laced together and Daniel paddled them around in slow, lazy patterns while they both looked up to see the moonlight filtering through the canopy overhead.

                “What did you think?” Daniel finally asked, just as Byunghyun felt himself starting to drift off.

                “It was alright,” he spoke, the bright smile belying his less than enthusiastic words.

                “Byungie…”

                There was a note in his voice that made Byunghyun turn his head, giving his companion a more direct look out of the corner of his eye.  Green hair fanned out around his head, framing his face like the glow around the sun.  “I liked it.  It looks so different than when I’m in the air.  Thank you,” Byunghyun finally murmured, squeezing Daniel’s hands to reassure him further.

                “You’re welcome,” he smiled, tilting his head enough to kiss the wind sprite’s shoulder.  “Should we go to shore?” he asked with a glance towards solid land nearby.

                Byunghyun quickly nodded in agreement.  Swimming, or floating in this case, was not like flying and he felt more vulnerable than he cared to admit when he was in water.  When his feet touched the ground, he crawled onto a moss covered rock, wings dragging pitifully behind him with the tips still dangling in the water.  “You could have warned me.”

                “About what?” Daniel murmured, settling in place next to him so that their shoulders brushed against each other.

                “The water.”

                “I did.”  When Byunghyun turned a skeptical eye on him, he amended it.  “Okay.  Maybe I could have done better.  But you never tell me when you’re going to take me up,” Daniel reminded him.

                “That’s different.”

                “No it isn’t,” the water sprite shook his head.

                “I wouldn’t drop you, you know,” Byunghyun murmured, allowing himself to curl his fingers around Daniel’s.

                “And I wouldn’t let you drown,” the water sprite promised, using his free hand to pet Byunghyun’s hair and letting it linger against his neck.

                “It is really pretty down here,” Byunghyun admitted quietly, after a long pause.

                “And it’s really pretty up there.”

                “You’re not just saying that are you?”

                “Nope,” Daniel shook his head, flicking his companion with water droplets.

                Annoyed, Byunghyun wiped it off and gave a mournful glance at his wings.  At least they dried fast but for the moment he was quite grounded.  He reached back to snag one and pulled it forward, wringing the excess water off deftly.

                “I can help!” Daniel announced, shuffling around behind Byunghyun to capture the other wing with both hands.

                He stiffened up again and eyed Daniel who wasn’t looking at him while he pet the soaked wing.  A thought occurred to Byunghyun and he narrowed his eyes.  “Tell me you didn’t dunk us in the water just so you could pet my wings because you knew they’d need drying out.”

                Daniel hummed under his breath while he kept running his hands over the silky material.  “Maybe?”

                “Niel…” he warned.

                “Not entirely!” the water sprite defended himself, though he kept his hold on the appendage.  “I did want to show you,” he pointed at the water.

                Byunghyun sighed and put his face in his palm.  “Fine!  Fine.  Pet the damn things.”  He couldn’t help but laugh.  It was almost ridiculous.  Almost, except it was Daniel he was talking about.  “You are definitely not the easiest person to like all the time.”

                His statement brought a bark of laughter from the water sprite.  “Yeah, well you’re no swim in the spring yourself.”

                It took a second for him to remember what the description meant, but then his shoulders slumped and he nodded in mute agreement.  “It’s just the way I am,” he murmured.

                Long arms wrapped around him from behind and Daniel hugged him tight.  “I know,” he whispered in his ear.

                Byunghyun gripped the smooth arms with both hands and turned his head to look back, finding himself within inches of Daniel’s face.  The water sprite smiled harder when he did and leaned forward to kiss the side of his eye.  Byunghyun cringed and made a face.  “Tease.”

                “Affectionate,” Daniel countered smugly.

                “I’ll show you affectionate,” Byunghyun chuckled, twisting in his companion’s embrace so he could grab the back of Daniel’s head and kiss him firmly on the lips.

                The water sprite hummed in happy surprise and tightened his embrace with one arm, the other hand rising to rest against Byunghyun’s cheek.  “You win,” Daniel smiled when they broke apart just enough to breathe, foreheads still touching together.

                “Don’t I usually?” he couldn’t help but tease, lightly scratching his nails under Daniel’s hair.

                “When I let you,” the water sprite laughed in response.

                “As if,” Byunghyun retorted with a spark of challenge in his eyes.  He pressed forward, feeling slight resistance, and drove Daniel back so that he could lower him to the ground, pinning him in place.  “See?” he nodded, one brow quirked in satisfaction as he looked down at his companion.

                Daniel’s coy smile was anything but defeated.  “What makes you think I mind?”  He gave a significant look at himself and then back at Byunghyun, fingers curled gently around the smaller male’s biceps.

                Byunghyun blushed at the realization and bit his bottom lip.  “I still win,” he blurted in a rush, having a difficult time meeting Daniel’s intense eyes.

                A hand reached up to cup his cheek and the wind sprite flinched in surprise.  “Stay with me tonight?” Daniel murmured with a hesitant smile on his lips.

                The palm against his cheek was smooth and warm and Byunghyun placed his hand atop it.  He eased his fingers under enough to pull the hand away so he could kiss Daniel’s palm, smiling behind the improvised shield.  “If that’s what you want,” he whispered, moving their hands to press against his chest.

                “I do,” Daniel smiled, nodding encouragement.

                “Then I’ll stay,” Byunghyun promised, lowering himself down on top of Daniel, weight resting on his elbows as he kissed the other male.  Daniel responded in kind, pulling him closer while he hummed in satisfaction.