𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 ; beauty under the sunset.

Hisirdoux had slept the best he had in a while.

Usually, it'd take him hours to calm himself down and drift off to the realm of dreams, but this time he had fallen asleep oddly quickly. Maybe it was because he felt calm and collected, or it was because he enjoyed sleeping next to someone he won't admittedly say he adored in a way he couldn't explain.

Xavier usually awoke hours after Hisirdoux, and was required to be dragged off the bed before Merlin reached his quarters. At the moment, it was a stormy Saturday morning, rain pattering on the roof and thunder shaking the land. These were the days that Merlin allowed them to rest and do as they pleased.

Hisirdoux had no intention of moving from where he currently laid, buzzing with joy as his arms looped around the shorter sorcerer. Not even the foul weather could ruin this, no matter how many times the lightning flashed behind the stained windows and the wind howled behind the doors.

"Douxie?" Xavier mumbled, words slurred and drowsy. He glanced up for a moment, eyes squinting before flopping back into his arms. He sighed as he fell back to sleep, unbothered by the dull ache in his ankle. Hisirdoux made it his priority to make sure the wound healed, because Xavier was just as stubborn as Merlin, refusing help from others.

As soon as he woke up, Hisirdoux failed to fall back to sleep. As blissful as it was, he had to get up to start the day, even if the weather dampened the mood. He slipped his arms out from the loop they were around the other, getting up leisurely and stretching his arms.

Xavier muttered under his breath, eyes still closed as he groaned. "Where are you goin'? I was comfortable..." He groggily asks, pulling on his sleeve.

"I'll be back, don't worry." Hisirdoux replies, cheeks tinted pink as he pulls the fur blanket over the snoozing boy. Xavier grumbles, curling up on himself as Archie takes his place with a quick pounce. Hisirdoux slips into his slippers, gliding across the marble floor as there was a knock on the door.

Morgana steps in without a word, an enticing tray of food in her hands. She sets it down on the circular table, glancing at Hisirdoux who ravages through the drawers, pulling out length gauze and cotton. Her gaze softens, smiling as he walks back over to the sleeping sorcerer and pulling off the fabric from his ankle.

It had only been a couple months since they befriended each other, and were already showing heart-warming care for one another. Hisirdoux was awfully careful trying not to jostle Xavier too much as he wiped off the dried blood and wrapped his ankle again.

"You're too sweet, Hisirdoux." She says, "You're good at taking care of people rather than yourself."

"I've been told." Hisirdoux laughs, giving her a quiet goodbye as she eventually wanders out of the room like a ghost. His stomach growls, suddenly craving the steaming toast left on the table. He peeked over to Xavier, still snoring with Archie curled up by his stomach.

He got himself ready for the day, plopping down on a chair as he feasted on one of the toasted pieces of loaf. It had become a slow habit to glance over occasionally at Xavier, even at the smallest of movements. Maybe it was the tensing worry that he hadn't treated his wound correctly, or Xavier had more injuries than just deep claw marks.

But he knew Xavier wouldn't lie to him, ever. They trusted and depended on each other, like how Xavier called out his name, just moments away from being dragged to be a brute's dinner. He must have been too indulged in his own thoughts, because a yawn startles him and lodges a piece of toast in his throat.

"A━Are you okay?" It's Xavier, sitting up as Hisirdoux spat out the bread. He scrunched up his nose, pulling the blanket off himself and limped towards him. Hisirdoux was still in a coughing fit, nodding as his eyes stung with tears.

"Fuzzbuckets..." He chokes out eventually, embarrassed. "Sorry, I just caught something in my throat."

"You scared me," Xavier frowns, eyeing the piece of bread. "Death by toast...not really the way I thought you'd go."

"You shouldn't be standing." Hisirdoux says, desperately wanting to move on from his near-death experience.

"Why not?" Xavier huffs, crossing his arms. "I'm fine, Douxie. Just a couple marks, nothing more."

"But you're in obvious pain." Hisirdoux counteracts. Xavier had made uncomfortable expressions in his sleep, moving his leg a lot to find a sleeping position that won't make him feel like he's dozing off on a bed of needles.

Xavier knew that Hisirdoux was very persistent in helping him heal, even if he had gotten an injury that was a single scratch or a bruise. Hisirdoux had a big, soft heart. Which meant no matter how many times Xavier would repeat himself, Hisirdoux would not let up.

"Alright, Doctor Casperan." Xavier rolled his eyes, limping towards the bathroom. Hisirdoux had a cheeky grin on his face, patiently waiting for the grumpy sorcerer as he set out for breakfast. He came limping back in, plopping down on a leather stool.

"As your doctor, I recommend you stay in bed." Hisirdoux begins, a sly smile appearing. Xavier groans, leaning back with a laugh. He kept his fingers wrapped around the cup, shivering slightly at the lack of heat. "And keep yourself wrapped up."

Hisirdoux slips out of his seat, picking up the fur blanket and keeping it wrapped around the other. Xavier gave a grateful nod, taking a sip of his mint tea. "You're more of a servant than a doctor at the moment."

"So sweet of you." Hisirdoux chuckled, gathering the leftovers once Xavier had finished eating. He dropped them on a desk as the sorcerer stumbled back into bed. Archie had long awakened, leaping from his comfortable space on the duvet to snack on the toasted leftovers. The cat shows no care about leaving a mess of crumbs as he pounces back to bed.

Hisirdoux settles back on his seat, flipping through numerous spell books. The apprentice starts to teach himself, while Xavier watches with an amused gaze. Normally, Hisirdoux would spend his days settled between a pile of books, strumming a broken ukulele. Today, he decided to spare Xavier from his musical rhymes and teach himself a few handy tricks.

"What are you doing?" Xavier asks, rolling to his stomach and propping himself up. He watched with an amused expression as Hisirdoux set out numerous things on the table, glass of herbs, bowls, dried minerals. Many Merlin allowed for his errand boy to use with care.

"Experimenting!" Hisirdoux says, plopping back down to the rickety stool as he swipes his fingers across the magical dial on his wrist, many symbols appearing and disappearing. Archie and Xavier watched from the comfort of their bed, knowing any of Hisirdoux's 'experiments' would end in mayhem and mess.

"So, you're going to mix a bunch of ingredients in hopes of some ground-breaking discovery?" Xavier snorts, lips twisting into a coy smile.

Hisirdoux gives him a light-hearted scoff. "Yeah, how else did Merlin figure out all these insane spells?"

"Mixing ingredients for the hope of the unknown sounds..." Archie goes silent for a moment, yellow eyes darting to the ground. "Dangerous."

"Pfft." Hisirdoux snickers, leaning back on his chair. "It'll be alright, Arch. It's just some harmless spells I'm going to copy."

The cat seemed to visibly relax, crawling further into the blanket just in case of anything unfortunate. Xavier watches with obvious interest, his legs kicked up in the air as Hisirdoux flipped through a spell book, humming to himself.

"This won't end well." Archie murmurs.

"I know." Xavier chuckles, moving his hand to scratch the back of the cat's ear. Archie audibly purrs, melting into the mattress. "It's just funny to watch."

He averts his gaze back to his friend, observing Hisirdoux pour excessive amounts of remedies and herbs into a massive bowl placed upon the oak table. Puffs of purple and green wisps would swallow the edges of the table before retracting back into the bowl. The apprentice made a puzzled look, as if something were wrong.

"I think I did it wrong." Hisirdoux frowns, eyes narrowing down on the page. "It was supposed to show off some crazy illusions and all, but all I saw was a puff of smoke."

Xavier raises an eyebrow as Hisirdoux pours out the dark substance carefully to start again. With a sigh, he rolls off his bed and walks towards Hisirdoux. Placing a hand on the table, he drags the book to himself, eyes flicking through the detailed spells and chants all written by Merlin's skilled mind.

"Did you add rose water?" Xavier asks, pushing aside some glass jars.

"Oh." Hisirdoux bites his tongue, almost out of embarrassment. "Right, sorry. I think I skipped that part."

Xavier snickers, limping towards a cabinet where they kept basic herbs and substances, nothing dangerous enough to harm them. His gold eyes land on the pink tinted bottle, a cork screwed on tightly to contain the wondrous smell of roses inside.

Hisirdoux tries to take it out of his hands, but Xavier tuts, shaking his head with a sly smile. "I'll help you, since your first attempt didn't go so well."

"You're supposed to be resting..." The other murmurs, silently objecting to his friend's movement around the room and the lack of care he has for his own health. Xavier pulls a chair over, handing the rose water to Hisirdoux as he carefully instructs him.

"Just do everything all over again, but add half a spoon of rose water, and there you go." Xavier says as Hisirdoux does as he's told, repeating the process all over again. When light pink and dark blue wisps of smoke emerge from the bowl, Xavier watches with awe as the smoke covers the entire room.

"A━Are you sure we did it right?" Hisirdoux coughs, slightly alarmed when the smoke envelopes them in darkness. It was almost like Xavier could sense the other's panic, so seconds later, Hisirdoux felt a cold hand squeeze his own reassuringly.

"Relax." Xavier mumbles, just as the darkness begins to light up. Small dots above them glow in a gold and white hue, twinkling under the blanket of darkness surrounding them. "And I'm sure you did it right, Douxie."

Hisirdoux's eyes shine with astonishment at the dots ━ which he later realizes were stars. He looks down to the ground, the marble tiles had long vanished and instead were the ocean floor. The entire room had blended into a completely different scene, the calm sea waters beneath their feet and stars that glimmered in the dark.

"Woah." Hisirdoux whispers faintly, just as Archie peeped up from the safety of his blanket. The cat makes a startling sound, delving back down into the bed. With a small smile, Xavier watches Hisirdoux fondly as the other takes in the wonder around him. They had still not dropped their hands, but neither seemed to notice.

Seconds later, the ocean floors and the twinkling stars vanished, dark puffs of smoke vanishing into thin air as they returned to the gloomy day they were originally in. The crackle of thunder and the harsh patter of rain brings them back to their senses.

"You keep learning and eventually you won't even need spell books, Doux." Xavier says after seconds of silence.

Hisirdoux grins, turning his head back to Xavier. His eyes land on where his own hand feels oddly warm, his fingers still entwined with the other's. Hisirdoux stammered on his own words, dropping Xavier's hand with a shy smile. Xavier gives him a clueless and puzzled look as Hisirdoux rubs the back of his head.

"Sorry." Hisirdoux eventually says, growing more embarrassed by the minute.

"You're weird, you know that?" Xavier shakes his head fondly, punching Hisirdoux's shoulder playfully. He turned around and limped back to his bed. Hisirdoux felt as if a rock was lodged in his throat, preventing him from uttering a word or sound. He nodded silently, messily tidying away everything on the table.

Merlin's apprentice wasn't very aware of how he was feeling at that exact moment. It would make sense for it to be an embarrassing feeling as he clutched his best friend's hand like his life depended on it. But then again, the lingering warmth that remained on his hand made his heart thump in a way he could not put to words.

Hisirdoux swallowed thickly, eventually retreating to his own bed that felt awfully cold without anyone beside him.

🌙

By the time both boys awoken from their morning slumber, the sun had already began to set behind the misty clouds and spiked mountains. The rain had long stopped, the grey clouds cleared from the sky and Camelot came back to life once again.

Xavier blinked, sitting up slowly. He glances to where Hisirdoux slept quietly, curled up in his blanket. The faint light of the sun streamed through the coloured windows as Xavier opened it, shivering at the warm summer's air that danced along his skin.

Small droplets of rain formed puddles, the smell of wet grass hovered through the air as sounds of Camelot's usual chaos disrupted their few seconds of peace. He slid out of bed and ignored the ache in his leg as he brushed his hands against his rumpled clothes.

"Hey," Xavier mumbles to Archie, who pounces from his cat bed and lands on the ground. The cat jumps and rests on his shoulder, licking his paw and readjusting his glasses. Xavier glances once more to Hisirdoux's unmoving body, before slipping his shoes on gently and opening the large, oak door.

"Time flies." Archie says, watching Camelot buzz from above. "It's already the evening."

"Which means we have absolutely nothing to do." Xavier huffed, propping up his elbow on the balcony fence. Archie pounces off his shoulder and sits on the stone fence instead, stretching his own bony limbs. From within their bedroom, Hisirdoux had long awakened after hearing the thud of a door closing.

With bleary eyes, he shifted his gaze from the wall on his side to around the room, pursing his lips when he saw that Xavier had yet again disregarded his concerns about his injured leg. At this point, all Hisirdoux could do was roll his eyes instead of bothering Xavier about it, since the boy couldn't care less.

Hisirdoux stumbles over to the door, rethinking to a couple hours back as he pushes the door open. His eyes land upon Xavier's shadow only a couple feet away, where he was sitting down on a bench with their beloved cat next to him. Hisirdoux didn't know whether to join the other two awkwardly or do something else to save him from potential embarrassment.

He looks around his surroundings, taking in the sight of his home. The sun had not yet set fully, so there was this ripple of colours in the sky, from pinks, oranges and reds. It was probably the best sunset he had seen in a while. The crowd beneath his home clearly admired the scene as well, many young people, especially aspiring artists, viciously scribbling with their ink feathers.

"Douxie?" A voice calls from his right, bringing him back to his senses. Xavier gestures him over without a word, a small smile on his face. Merlin's apprentice walks over, sitting beside the other as he fiddles with his fingers. Xavier could read Hisirdoux like an open book, so his display of awkwardness puzzled him.

"What's up with you?" Xavier asks, leaning in a little. Archie seems to do the same, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.

"Nothing!" Hisirdoux replies, almost defensively. Xavier seems taken back, eyes widening a little. "I mean━ I'm okay."

"If you say so." Xavier mumbles, watching Archie climb into Hisirdoux's lap. Xavier shifts his gaze back to the sunset in front of them, swinging his legs as he did. Hisirdoux bit his lip, flickering his gaze between the setting sun and the boy beside him as he stroked Archie's fur to calm his nerves.

After moments of silence, Hisirdoux cleared his throat as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to snap, I mean it. I'm just really tired."

"It's okay." Xavier smiles, more genuine than forced. He turns his gaze back to the setting sun, relaxing his tensed shoulders. Hisirdoux doesn't bother to look away, not even for a split second. The scar that runs across his cheek and blinds Xavier's left eye is some-what mesmerizing.

He had never questioned him about it, feeling as if it would be rude. The boy seemed self conscious of it, trying to conceal it when he's out in public by keeping his head low. He'd often get stares from children and elders who knew no manners. Xavier would face certain directions when talking to someone, only showing one side of his face.

So to see Xavier not attempting to hide his scar in this moment had meant he was completely trusting around Hisirdoux. It felt honourable, in a way.

"Can I ask you something?" Hisirdoux says, eventually gathering the courage to ask about the wound. Xavier nods, tearing his gold eyes away from the ethereal scene in front of them. "How did you get your scar?"

Xavier is silent for a few seconds, furrowing his eyebrows as he chewed on his lip lightly. Hisirdoux almost immediately regrets bringing it up, silently cursing at himself in his head as he tries to conjure up an apology.

"It doesn't really matter." Xavier chokes out. "Just an accident when I was younger."

"Oh." Hisirdoux replied, as casually as he could. When they were finally getting somewhere past awkwardness, Hisirdoux had to mention something potentially personal. Xavier turns his face the other way, staring at the ground. Hisirdoux doesn't know why he suddenly raises his hand, gently grabbing Xavier's chin and facing it towards him.

The boy's gold eyes widen with surprise as Hisirdoux brings his hand back down. "Y━You always do that, y'know? Look the other way because you want to hide it."

"I know." Xavier whispers quietly, his eyes drooping a little. "I can't help it, it's a habit."

"You don't need to hide it..." Hisirdoux murmurs, watching Archie jump off his lap and crawl back inside their bedroom. "It doesn't look bad. You're still...uh, pretty with or without it."

"Pretty?" Xavier laughs, cheeks tinting to a light pink as he tilts his head. Hisirdoux stutters over his words, his fingers threading to his hair to keep them back from his red face. The boy felt more embarrassed than before, regretting his poor choice of words to describe his admittedly attractive friend.

"I mean, y━yeah." Hisirdoux nods, nervously chuckling as Xavier's lips twisted into a playful smirk. The soft glow of the sun's orange light that illuminates Xavier's face only makes him seem more unreal and ethereal in Hisirdoux's view. "This is embarrassing."

"I think it's sweet." Xavier chimed as Hisirdoux hid his face behind his hands. The gold-eyed boy wraps his own hands around Hisirdoux's, bringing them down with a giggle. "You're one of the only people who can look at me straight in the eyes rather than stare at the ground."

Hisirdoux smiles broadly, shaking his head with fondness while he kept his eyes focused on the hands that were wrapped around his own. "It's not hard." He whispers, just as they enter a state of silence. It's not awkward, it's the type of silence you'd bask in to gather your thoughts or admire something silently.

"Are you done yet?" Archie interrupts, his head visible from the doorframe. Both boys turn their heads to the door, Hisirdoux giving the cat an unimpressed and some-what annoyed look. "You both have been sitting there for an hour, and I haven't had a single bite of roast salmon since morning."

"Alright, alright." Xavier scoffs, taking back his hands and hopping off the bench. Hisirdoux soon follows him inside, glaring at the smug cat who now was sitting up straight on a stool. Xavier rolls on to his bed, bringing a book up to his chest and flicking through the pages calmly despite having a heart-to-heart with Hisirdoux seconds ago.

"You couldn't have waited at least another ten minutes?" Hisirdoux says through gritted teeth, his tone bitter and sour.

"I wanted to spare you from humiliation." Archie explained, his feline eyes observing the human bring out a bowl of cut fish. "You looked like you wanted to kiss him."

Hisirdoux chokes on his breath, alarming Xavier who shoots a worried look in their direction. Archie remains silent and stoic, but as soon as Hisirdoux stops coughing, he returns with a sly smile.

"I did not." Hisirdoux blurted out quietly, pushing the bowl aside and crossing his arms. "We were just speaking like friends. You're just overthinking things."

"Me?" Archie snorts, walking over to the bowl and nibbling on the leftover fish. "You spoke like a lovesick fool, Hisirdoux. Are you finally at that stage of teenage crushes?"

"I'm not even going to start this with you." Hisirdoux groans, walking away from the purring cat. He hears Archie mutter something inaudible, but the teen wasn't bothered to deal with his 'truthful' nonsense. He ends up rolling beside Xavier, pressing his face against the pillow.

"What happened?" Xavier inquired, closing his book as he turned to the other.

"Just Archie fussing over fish." Hisirdoux lied, digging his finger into the wool blanket. He paused briefly, before opening his mouth to ask: "How's your ankle? I completely forgot about the injury."

Xavier glanced down to his ankle, moving his leg around a little. "It's fine, just a fading ache is all. Thanks to you, of course."

"Glad I could help." Hisirdoux grinned, toothy and genuine. They end up talking for another couple hours, in the comfort of each other's presence. The sun had now fully set behind the jagged mountains, covering the kingdom in a blanket of darkness, their only natural light being the glimmering stars splattered over the sky.

Xavier was lulled into a soundless sleep minutes before, lips parted slightly as he clutched the book he was reading hours earlier to his chest. Hisirdoux had not yet slept, busying himself by stroking Archie's matted fur and musing over his muddled thoughts. Eventually, he sits up to blow out a candle on the nightstand, unbothered to leave Xavier's bed.

They slept next to each other once, no harm in doing it again.

He slowly pulls the book out of the sleeping boy's hands, dropping it on the floor tiredly as he layed back down. Pulling the dark red blanket over each of them, Hisirdoux felt the warmth he lacked when he slept in his own bed, realizing that he indeed liked to sleep next to Xavier.

It was a flustering thought to admit, especially when he was already so confused about how he felt during the past few days. But maybe, the boy speculated, it was normal wanting to be this close to another.

Hisirdoux sighed, squeezing his eyes shut. He could argue with himself another day, but right now, he just wanted to sleep into another dreamless night, void of any worry or disturbance.