The river was calm, slowly moving through the twist and turns of the mountains. There wasn’t a bridge in sight on either horizon, which meant they had to walk until finding one or just swim across the river. Jinki wrinkled his nose as he moved towards the banks. They didn’t really have the time to just walk until there was a bridge and with the river as calm as it was crossing it shouldn’t be that much effort. The only thing he was not looking forward to, was the wet and slowly drying clothes. Especially since soon there would be snow falling. He was just about to step into the water when Jonghyun, sounding nervous, spoke from behind him. “Could we try to find a bridge?”

    Jinki turned, hand on his hip as he squinted in the sunlight beaming down on them. “It’s just a little water Jonghyun, and there’s no guarantee there is a bridge North of us.”

    “Please?” Jonghyun was rocking a little on his feet, trying not to look at Jinki in the eye. “I don’t know how to swim, okay?”

    He was in the middle of a deep laugh before he realized the man was serious. “Well . Alright, we won’t swim, but we can’t look for a bridge.”

    “Then what do you propose we do, Jinki? It’s not like it’s frozen.”

    There was a glint in the mage’s eye and it worried Jonghyun for a moment. “Yet.”

    “Yet?”

    Jinki just grinned as blue frost swirled around his fingers and palms. “Just hold onto my robes, okay?”

    He could feel the anxiety rolling off Jonghyun in waves almost as the man stepped closer to him. His fingers curled tightly in the back of Jinki’s robes. Then the frost shot from his fingers, freezing the water of the river under them. “Is this safe?”

    “I don’t know. Never tried it.”

    “Jinki that-” But his voice stopped abruptly as he was forced to follow as his grip was tugged with Jinki’s movements over the freshly frozen water. “If I fall in I will climb on your lightweight to survive.”

    “Good to know you still don’t trust me.” Jinki quipped as the continued across the river. Soon they were stepping onto the other banks and the ice behind them began to melt as it was swept downstream. “You can let go now, Jonghyun.”

    Jonghyun’s gaze lifted to find Jinki’s face as he glanced over his left shoulder, soft white hair moving with the breeze, and then to his hand that was still tightly gripping his robes. Coughing roughly he quickly released him, looking at his feet in embarrassment. “Thanks for not making me swim.”

    “We all have our fears, Jonghyun. I can’t fault you for yours as if I don’t have some of my own.” Jinki hummed quietly before heading to find the dirt road a few feet away. “Are you coming?”

    Swallowing thickly he nodded, “Of course.”

---

      With the moon steadily rising above them, if Jonghyun hadn’t finally sparked a fire, Jinki would have had to intervene or freeze to death. Jonghyun made a little sound of happiness at his success, falling back from the growing flames onto his bottom with a big smile on his face. “Told you I could make fire.”

    “Took you long enough.” Jinki teased, moving to put the cast iron pan on top of the flames to heat the already slightly seasoned fish meat. “At least come mid sun tomorrow we should be in Windhelm.”

    “Yes. It’s been a while since I’ve been within her walls.”

    “I’ve never been.” Jinki quietly comments.

    Jonghyun’s eyes were so big it was almost comical. “You’ve never been to the oldest city in Skyrim? Don’t you like history and stuff?”

    “I have had no reason to go within those walls. Until you requested it, I was going to by past it altogether.”

    His eyes had narrowed by then, squinting as he asked. “You support the Imperials, don’t you?”

    “I promise you that my avoidance of that city has nothing to do with my position on this civil war plaguing this land.” Jinki flipped the fish skillfully before quietly concluding, “Or my lack thereof.”

     “It’s odd that you have no stance Jinki.”

      "For the most part, I stay at the College completing my research. Every so often I venture out to meet with the mages of the various courts or to investigate a long-forgotten tome, but otherwise, I ignore the day to day grievances of your land.” Jinki looked over at him through the flames seriously. “One is just the puppet of the Thalamor and the other would see my head on a spike just for not being a nord. I cannot condone either.”

      “The Thalamor are your people.”

      Jinki shook his head roughly. “A Thalamor killed my mother Jonghyun. My race maybe, but my people are the mages of the College.”

      Silence fell then, an awkward tension descending between them before Jonghyun spoke softly. “I’m sorry I insinuated Jinki.”

      “It’s quite alright. We both have our pasts.” He flashed a little smile, looking a lot younger than Jonghyun knew he was. “The fish is ready to eat.”

      Although Jinki continued to be kind and soft in conversation, Jonghyun still felt as if he had struck a chord in the usually calm and collected Mage.

----

    The sun wasn’t even fully above the mountains when Jonghyun was awoken to Jinki’s curses, the jumble of yelling and the sound of ice shattering against a target. “Honestly Jinki what in- Oh .” Jinki was currently hiding behind the thick trunk of the tree his bedroll had been laying in front of. His hair was in disarray, falling from the usual clips he used to keep it from his face. Jonghyun didn’t even work on getting his plate on as he grabbed his ax and pushed off the ground, using Jinki’s ice storm as cover to get close to him. The mage grimaced. “About time you woke up.”

    “I’m a heavy sleeper, what can I say?” Jonghyun’s grin widened when Jinki groaned. “So, what do we have?”

    “Three bandits. There are two archers in the far trees, and one with a sword waiting until he can get close enough to attempt to gut me.” Without looking he set another ice storm toward the bandits, lips pressed together in a thin line. “If I step from around this tree I’m going to get bum rushed.”

    “Can you make one of those mm ice men?”

    “Atronach? Yes.” Jinki squinted, “What are you thinking?”

    “They don’t know I’m here. Your spell has blocked their line of sight so,” Jonghyun whispered, “Send in the ice man. I’ll go around and get the archers.”

    Jinki, looking not the least bit convinced, sighed. He held out both of his hands and standing there was a seven foot tall humanoid of ice. Jonghyun had a split second of fear before he snapped out of it as Jinki mumbled. “Now would be a great time.”

    “Try not to get killed.” Jonghyun’s voice was soft and rushed as he slipped to the left around the tree.

    As he left Jinki’s eyes closed as he took a deep breath, before rolling to his left, ice spike already forming in his palm. “Alright, Nitwit, come get me.”

    “I sure do love killing mages.” The swordsman hissed as he blocked the ice atronach’s blow. Arrows were being lodged into the thick ice and Jinki hoped it held up until Jonghyun held his end of the bargain.

    Jinki smirked, power rising through his chest, eyes ablaze. The power was unleashed just as he said, “You’ve never fought the Archmage.” Even if his voice couldn’t be heard over the hiss of ice swirling through the air. The atronach stumbled a little but resisted most of the blow as the bandit flew and smacked harshly against the rock of the hill. He searched where he knew the archers to have been before, seeing one disposed of, but then he heard Jonghyun call out in what sounded like pain before the other archer was seen crumbling from a blow.

    Jonghyun’s white tunic was stained red as he stepped from behind the tree. His ax was held in his left hand, his right limp at his side because of the arrow sticking from that shoulder. He grimaced, forehead covered in a slight sheen of sweat. “Don’t look at me like that. It’s nothing.”

    “Are you going to let me at least take it out for you before you play all macho?” Jinki asked eyebrow raised. He was trying really hard not to show how concerned he was for the man.

    Softening, he admitted, “Okay, maybe it might hurt like a .”

    He was helping Jonghyun sit near their camp when he gently asked, “Can I heal you?” It was the first time in their short time as companions that he had asked to use his magic directly on Jonghyun. He wasn’t quite sure how it would be taken.

    Jonghyun’s head whipped up to look at him, only for him to hiss as it moved his shoulder. “I’ve never been healed with magic.”

    “If we dress it, you won’t be able to swing your ax, let alone wear your armor.” Jinki scowled. “It could get infected.”

    With a deep sigh, he waved his left hand, gesturing him to go on. “I forgot how much arrows hurt.”

    “At least it’s fully through you.” Jinki reached up and peeled some back from the trunk before handing it to Jonghyun with a small smile. “I’d bite on that.”

    He slowly placed it between his teeth, attempting to speak, “What why d-” And then Jinki was breaking the arrow in half and ripping it from his shoulder. His jaw clenched tightly, almost painfully, as he bit on the bark with a muffled groan. The bloody pieces of arrow were tossed into the grass and Jinki’s hands were held one on either side of the wound.

    “Every Mage has a different signature with their magic. I’d like to think mine is.. Calm. It’ll hurt for a moment and you might be disoriented with flesh repairing itself.” Jinki studied his features, “Ready?”

    He took a deep breath and nodded. Jinki’s magic descended over him and there was a split second of pain, but then the warmth and tranquility fell over him. Jinki had been right to say his magic signature was calm. He wasn’t going to tell him that though. As Jinki stepped back and his magic went with him, Jonghyun rolled his shoulder experimentally. With the pain all the way gone, he smiled shyly up at Jinki. “Thank you.”

    “I’m not all fire and destruction.” Was Jinki's soft reply, the man already moving to get his things together to depart for Windhelm. “I’d eat something before you do anything else. You may be woozy.”

    Before he could really move an apple was being tossed into his lap. He could see Jinki was smiling from under his falling hair as he bent down to look in his pack.

----

    The ancient stone walls loomed before them. Jinki seemed increasingly uncomfortable as they got closer to the open gates of the city. The sun was beating down, even with the small flurry falling around them. Jonghyun went to speak with the blacksmith about the sword he acquired in the Dwemer ruins and to repair his ax, leaving Jinki to his own devices. He thought about possibly going and getting them a room in the inn, but he had heard stories from a dark elf mage back at the college of the way the people here treated non-nord species and wasn’t quite ready to deal with that if Jonghyun wasn’t there as buffer of some sort.

    Instead, he saw a dark elf in his peripheral and decided to inquire about a friendly merchant to sell to. The woman took one look at him and smiled knowingly. “There’s a shop in the Dark Quarter that’ll buy whatever you have to sell and a place for a drink if you don’t feel welcome in Candlehearth.”

    He smiled softly. “How’d you know?”

    “Even I who has lived here most of my life rarely feel welcome in the marketplace or that Inn. You have that look about you.” She smiled, “I can show you if you’d like.”

    “I would greatly appreciate that. Thank you.”

----

    Jonghyun was sitting on the steps in front of Candlehearth inn when Jinki stepped from around the corner. He looked positively exasperated. “Where have you been? I thought you’d have gotten a room.”

    “I was having a drink in the Dark Quarter.” He replied easily.

    “The Dark Quarter?” Jonghyun wrinkled his nose. “That place has only gotten worse. Repairs never seem to happen.”

    “And they probably never will.” Jinki softly stated as the doors to the inn opened and the sound from inside caused Jonghyun not to hear his words.

    “What was that?”

    “Nothing,” He flashed a smile before gesturing toward the doors. “After you?”

    Jonghyun eyed him suspiciously before getting up off the cold ground. “I got a room. There was only one available.”

    Jinki followed without comment, eyes flicking to the patrons of the inn from under his hood. Jonghyun stopped at the last door on the left of the hallway, quickly twisting the key into the lock. “I’ll take the floor. You should rest well with it being your first time being healed with magic.”

    “Don’t be so ridiculous.” Jonghyun huffed, “It’s a double bed. As long as you aren’t a clinger, we can share. Besides, the last time we had a room you slept on a bedroll to make sure I didn’t choke on my own vomit. If anything you should have the bed.”

    “I don’t know, you drool.” Jinki teased, his mood lightening a bit being in their room.

    “Oh shut up.” Jonghyun was smiling though. “Get settled and I’ll go get us dinner.”

    “And bread... If they have some.”

    “Best part of an Inn beside the bed is, the bread.” He slipped from the room then and Jinki exhaled roughly. If he could spend the next 12 hours or so locked up in this room, he’d be all the more content. The man who had threatened the woman he was with for just walking kept flashing in his consciousness. He had almost burnt the man to a crisp just out of disgust, but he didn’t need to get arrested in a city such as this. He wasn’t even sure now if Jonghyun would have even bothered to stick up for him if he had.

    He took the time of Jonghyun going to get them dinner to change out of his robes. While the thickness of the garment was great for the cold, unforgiving landscape of Winterhold, in a well-heated inn it was almost sweltering. He tied his hair up into a tiny ponytail with a piece of ribbon he found and sat at the small table provided with the room. When Jonghyun returned Jinki expected him to have ale or mead to drink, but he had some type of fruit juice for the both of them. He flashed a little grin. “I figured a sober night would do us good.”

    After taking a small sip Jinki ventured to ask, “So, are you afraid of the water?”

    Jonghyun groaned around his spoon, chewing his stew and swallowing before whining, “I thought we weren’t going to talk about that.”

    “You know my fear of spiders. It’s only fair.” He commented, stirring his own stew slowly.

    “Not the water per say, just drowning in it from my lack of swimming knowledge.” Jonghyun swallowed thickly, tongue running over his lips. More often than not he was noticing the attractiveness of the other. With his hair from his face, his jaw could be seen easily. The swell of his cheeks and the deepness of his eyes. Such a pretty color too. “Thanks again for not forcing me.”

    “With all that armor without knowing how to swim, you’d have sunk to the bottom like a rock.” Jinki smiled over the rim of his bowl as he lifted it to drink some of the broth. “You protected me from the Spiders. I’ll protect you from the depths of water.”

    Jinki was such a compelling mystery wrapped up in a nice little package. Jonghyun could tell he was more than just a simple mage, that he had a dark past just by the scars he could see from the open collar of his simple shirt and the rolled up sleeves, but he couldn’t make himself ask. One’s past was theirs to share if they desired. He knew first hand how guarded one could be with it. “What side do you want?”

    “Hmm?” Jinki’s eyes flicked to the loaf of bread between them as if asking if that’s what he was referring to.

    Jonghyun snorted, “I meant the bed Jinki.”
     "Oh.” His cheeks were a cute shade of pink as his lips softly formed the word. He then mumbled, looking at his stew. He was almost cute. "Doesn't matter."