Chapter Text
Everyone knew how harsh the winters of Faerghus were, but personally, Miklan’s least favourite month was spring.
Winter was hard, sure. Blistering cold winds and heavy snowstorms made travel nearly impossible as far north as Gautier territory, and he’d had plenty of experience outside in those conditions thanks to his father’s ‘survival training’, which he was well convinced were nothing more than thinly-veiled attempts to have him die of exposure out in the woods, just like sending him to the border to fight against Sreng was obviously just a way to try and get rid of him.
But spring?
With spring came rain, and with rain came things like flooding and mud, on top of the weather remaining stubbornly cold enough to cut right through his fleece-lined coat when the wind blew.
Of course, things were made more difficult by the fact that he and Glenn were deep within the mountains, far west of their home territories and skirting the coastline. The cold air rolling in off the sea only made matters worse, but they couldn’t afford to go any further inland, and they especially couldn’t afford to follow the more well-travelled roads that would no doubt be in much better shape.
They were wanted men, after all.
Miklan’s horse, his sturdy and surprisingly docile mare Daisy who Glenn had ‘liberated’ for him from the Fraldarius stables when they had run off into the night together just a few weeks ago, didn’t complain when Miklan brought her to a stop on the muddy hillside as he pulled out their map to try and get his bearings.
Glenn’s horse, a temperamental stallion named Morchant who had been meant as a stud before Glenn had decided he was his, nickered impatiently like the whiny brat he was.
Glenn brought him up next to Daisy so he could peer over Miklan’s shoulder at the map, and Miklan angled it so he could get a better look.
“We should be somewhere around here,” he said, pointing to a spot in the middle of the mountain range.
On one side of the mountain range was Kleiman territory; although the amount of land he controlled was very small, Miklan still had no desire to get too close, since he was notoriously a friend and political ally of his father and would no doubt be on the lookout for the two of them.
On the other side was Duscur. Even though Duscur was an ally of the Kingdom of Faerghus on paper, and the current king was especially vocal about forming a strong relationship with the independent nation that bordered their kingdom, Miklan couldn’t say he knew much about the place. The nobles of Faerghus weren’t really interested in teaching their children about the culture of such a small and politically insignificant place, and Miklan’s family hadn’t been interested in teaching him much of anything, except some very important lessons about how awful people could be to each other.
Miklan’s finger traced a line down beyond the mountain range and into Duscur proper. It was a risky prospect, but they didn’t have much choice. The supplies they had taken with them from home were running low, and there were too many days where their hunting and foraging didn’t turn up enough to feed the both of them to risk letting that go much longer. They needed to find some place they could resupply, but stopping in any villages or towns in Faerghus when there was no doubt still an active manhunt on the lookout for them…
Well. There were stupider ideas, probably, but Miklan couldn’t think of what they were at the moment.
He didn’t know a single word of Duscan, and frankly had no idea how your average Duscan villager would react to some random travellers from Faerghus wandering in, but it was still the best option they had.
Of course, the map wasn’t helpful in the slightest, because why would the average Faerghan cartographer care about mapping a bunch of remote Duscan villages?
At the very least, he was pretty sure they had crossed the border a few hours ago; that meant that it was a lot less likely they would run into someone looking for them.
“Keep your eye out for somewhere we can stop for the night,” he said, and Glenn leaned back so he could give Miklan a cheesy mock salute.
“Yes sir,” he said in what sounded like a terrible impression of his father.
Miklan snorted and reached out to give Glenn a playful shove, but he was already taking off ahead of him, as fast as Morchant was willing to go on the treacherous muddy ground that wasn’t even a path.
“Save being cute for when we get there,” he said. “We might need that charm and pretty face of yours, since we don’t speak the language.”
Glenn laughed, the sound disappearing into the distance as he rode ahead, and Miklan smiled as he followed.
By the time they came to a village, resting at the foot of the mountain, the sun was starting to set.
Even though the village was technically very close to the border, it was obvious that they weren’t a busy place; judging by the size they saw from above, it was probably no bigger than a few dozen families, surrounded by thick forest and rocky land that still managed to have a few small farms.
When they got close to the village, the two of them dismounted their horses, since the packed dirt roads of the village clearly weren’t made with people riding their horses directly into the village in mind.
People stared at them as they walked by, further evidence that the village wasn’t exactly used to visitors, but they walked on because they didn’t know what else to do. It wasn’t like a village of this size would have some place for travellers to stay, and since it was getting dark soon, that was their first priority.
Miklan stopped an old man and tried his best through gestures and sketches on a bit of scrap paper to get directions to somewhere they could spend the night, and the man knew just enough Fodlani to point them in the direction of a house at the far end of what could sort of be called the main road.
When they got to the house, they were surprised to find an old woman standing in front of it, with a girl about their age standing with her and offering her arm to help keep her steady.
“So, you’re our surprise guests, hm?”
Miklan was surprised to hear the woman speaking Fodlani, but he recovered quickly. He bowed his head apologetically.
“We’re sorry for any intrusion,” he said, looking at Glenn out of the corner of his eye to make sure he was doing the same. “We’re just travellers looking for a place to spend the night and a place to resupply.”
“My, my, how exciting. We so rarely get travellers here,” the old woman cooed. “Won’t you please come in? I’ll have my granddaughter brew us some tea.”
“Uh…”
The old woman turned to hobble back into her house before Miklan or Glenn could say anything to that. The two of them looked at each other, but before they could even say anything to each other, the girl looked back at them while holding the door open for them.
“Are you two coming in?” she asked, startling them back to attention.
“Uh… Where can we…?” Miklan held up Daisy’s reins. The girl didn’t say anything, but nodded towards a fence at the side of the small house before disappearing inside, leaving the door ajar.
“Should we…?” Glenn nodded at the open door.
“I don’t see why not,” Miklan replied, even though the whole situation was… Very strange, and he wasn’t really sure what was happening.
Was this just Duscan hospitality? It actually made him feel a little guilty…
They tied Daisy and Morchant’s leads to the fence.
“Just hold on for a little bit, girl… I’ll be back with something for you to eat soon…”
Daisy looked at him with her big doe eyes and nickered at him as he cooed at her. Glenn went through the same motions with Morchant, who kicked up more of a fuss, and the two of them followed the old woman and her granddaughter into the house.
It was a simple little house, cozy and well lived in. There was a fire already going in the hearth, and as soon as they stepped into the house Glenn shivered. Miklan felt a chill run up his spine at the same time. Even though it was spring, it was still damp and cold outside, but they had adjusted to it over the weeks; with only small campfires to warm them at night, at first kept small to avoid detection on the road and then because the only wood they could find was too damp to make a proper one, they had mostly aimed for staying warm enough not to get sick.
“Please, sit down. Make yourselves comfortable. For a pair like you, it must have been a long and difficult journey to get to a place like our quiet little village.”
The elderly woman was prodding at the fire with an iron poker. The smell of wood smoke was pleasant, and the gentle crackle of a real fire was enticing enough that Miklan paused only long enough to be polite before he happily accepted the invitation.
“Now, what could bring two young men like yourselves all the way out here?”
The woman took a seat in a comfortable armchair as they sat on a well-worn couch in front of the fire.
“We’re just passing through,” Miklan said immediately, trying to sound as casual as possible.
Did he think this elderly Duscan woman in an incredibly remote village that they had stumbled on entirely by accident was a spy who was going to turn them over to his father? No, even he wasn’t that paranoid.
On a practical level, though, telling people they had just met that they were fugitives from an angry lord was just… Not a good idea.
“It must have been a difficult journey at this time of year,” the woman said with a hum. “You two certainly look like you’ve had a long and difficult journey.”
Miklan had never been the sort of noble son who was dressed up and paraded around at functions— in fact, his father had been content to keep him as out of the spotlight as possible, and if it hadn’t been for the fact that Glenn had latched onto him when he had, he probably wouldn’t have had much contact with the rest of noble society at all.
And yet, that little nagging voice in the back of his head that sounded like his disappointed father told him that he was a complete mess and he should be ashamed of himself for going into someone’s home looking the way he did. It wasn’t like he and Glenn had had any chance to bathe or wash their clothes except in freezing cold rivers, sparingly…
Glenn laughed, making Miklan almost jump in his seat because he was caught up in his own head. Glenn’s hand settled on his shoulder, giving him a little jostle, and Miklan looked over to see him smiling.
As alway, that smile made his heart skip a few beats— the same way it had since they were kids and Miklan didn’t even know what the weird fluttery feeling in his chest and the pit of his stomach meant, and the same way he knew it would for the rest of his life, if he was lucky.
Between that and the feeling of Glenn’s hand on his shoulder, that sudden wave of anxiety that swept over him melted away.
“Well, the weather definitely didn’t help us out at all,” Glenn said, slipping into that effortless charm that he always said was because of his father’s influence, but Miklan knew better. There was a big difference between the mask he’d seen Glenn wear whenever he was dealing with political things and the natural charm he had when he wasn’t trying so hard to please.
Glenn liked to say that Miklan was better at dealing with people, which was flattering, but he didn’t think it was true. Glenn just had less tolerance for bullshit than he did. He didn’t have to have the high tolerance for being pushed around that Miklan did, and Glenn could have a nasty temper when he was pushed far enough.
That smile, though? Those bright blue eyes? Maybe he was biased, but Miklan was sure there was no way anyone could resist that.
“Like Miklan said, we’re just passing through. We don’t plan to stay long. Oh!” Glenn instantly turned just sheepish enough to be adorable. “Sorry, that was rude of us. I’m Glenn. This is Miklan.”
“Hello. Thank you for having us,” Miklan said, because he didn’t know what else to say.
“It’s a pleasure, Glenn, Miklan.” The woman bowed her head to the two of them. “I am Ulea, the elder of this village. And this—” She gestured to the girl who had been with her before, who had just walked in carrying a tray with four steaming cups of tea. “Is my granddaughter, Sadia.”
The girl nodded to them as she set the tray down on a low wooden table in front of them, picking up her cup of tea and carrying it with her as she went to sit on the arm of her grandmother’s chair.
She had a neutral, unreadable expression as she stared at them and sipped her tea— already unnerving enough, but the longer Miklan looked at her, the easier it was to see the gleam in her eyes, an almost sparkle as she stared at them.
“Unfortunately this village is too small to have an inn or anything of the sort where you could stay, and the nearest one is half a day up the road. But we would be happy to let you stay here.”
Ulea smiled at him in the way Miklan would imagine a kindly grandmother would smile— he didn’t actually have any firsthand experience with one, and none of the older women who had worked for his family had ever shown much kindness to him in fear of earning his father’s ire.
“That would be very generous of you,” Miklan said, feeling like the offer was too good to be true. “We have money, we can pay you—”
“No, no. Don’t worry about anything like that.” Ulea reached for her tea and blew gently on it to cool it. “When I heard from the village children that there were strangers on their way here, I must confess that I was quite excited. We so rarely have anything interesting happening here… And you two will need that money for your supplies.”
Miklan opened his mouth to protest; it was already a generous offer, and he had no desire to take advantage of that. Accepting charity wasn’t exactly a strong suit for either of them, either.
But then Ulea said, “If you’re absolutely determined to repay me somehow, though, I wouldn’t turn down a little extra help around the house. I have trouble with a lot of the housework, you see, and Sadia only has one pair of hands— two more could be quite helpful.”
“We would be happy to help,” Glenn said, giving him another little shake. He was smiling as brightly as ever when Miklan looked over at him, but there was a sharpness in his eyes that Miklan couldn’t help but read as a warning.
He repressed a grimace. Maybe Glenn was right; maybe he was too paranoid. And they needed a place to stay. Him being uncertain about the motives of someone offering them something nice for once wasn’t going to get them a place to spend the night.
Besides, some housework and labour in exchange for a place to stay for a night or two— it didn’t seem like such a bad deal for either of them, right?
“Wonderful. Sadia, would you show these nice young men where they can get settled? And then can you run down the road and get something for their horses to eat? I’m sure the poor creatures are every bit as tired as their riders…”
“Yes, grandmother.”
The girl got up, setting her tea down and staring at them.
“If you follow me…”
Miklan and Glenn looked at each other, then set aside their own barely touched tea to follow Sadia.
Miklan still wasn’t sure how he felt about the situation, but he did know one thing: sleeping on something other than the muddy ground sounded great.
Glenn made a downright sinful noise as he dropped onto the mattress spread eagle, and melted into it like a pat of butter on hotcakes.
“That was amazing…” he moaned, squirming around on the bed until he was so comfortable he felt like he was never going to get out of bed again.
Miklan sat on the edge of the bed untying his boots. Glenn almost shoved him off the bed, wanting to tell him not to get it dirty, but he was feeling way too content to be mean even as a joke.
Instead he put his hand on Miklan’s back, rubbing between his shoulder blades. Miklan grumbled something that he didn’t understand, so he rolled over to knock his forehead against his lower back.
“What was that?”
“You don’t have to sound so excited because of a bath, you know…”
Glenn let out a surprised bark of laughter. He couldn’t see Miklan’s face from this angle, but he could guess by the way the tips of his ears were starting to turn pink that his whole face was going red, and he gave him a few mockingly consoling pats on the back.
“Can you really blame me?” he asked, squirming a little more. “It’s been so long since we’ve had a chance to have a real one…”
It wasn’t exactly the big, fancy bathroom from back home, but after weeks of bathing in freezing rivers and ponds, even a simple but hot bath felt downright divine.
Of course, he was going to have to get used to it— he had known exactly what he was giving up when he had left with Miklan, and he had left behind a lot more important things than the chance to have a hot bath. But was it really so bad for him to enjoy a little indulgence when he had the chance…?
“You know, once you get washed up, you could help me make those noises for other reasons…”
Glenn grinned as he walked his fingers up Miklan’s spine and felt him shudder under his touch.
“G-Glenn…! We’re guests.”
Miklan whirled on him, and Glenn just grinned at how red his face was— it was almost as red as his hair!
“We can be quiet,” he said, finally sitting up so he could drape himself across Miklan’s back.
Even though Miklan hadn’t bathed yet and his clothes were all dirty, Glenn couldn’t help himself— he actually liked the smell of him like this, all musky and manly…
Was that perverted of him? Maybe. Miklan wasn’t going to judge him for it, though.
“We absolutely cannot be quiet,” Miklan replied, but leaned back into his touch anyway. “You’ve definitely proven that already.”
“Only because I’ve never tried!” Glenn wrapped his arms around Miklan from behind, leaning in to kiss his throat. “I bet you I could do it. C’mon, Mik… Don’t you want to find out?”
“I—” Miklan shuddered and swallowed, interrupting himself. “Glenn, we can’t—”
Just as Glenn was about to ask ‘why not’, a knock at the door startled them.
Instinctively, from years of experience, Glenn jumped away from Miklan and practically threw himself to the far end of the bed.
His heart was racing from ingrained anxiety and he saw Miklan tense up the same way as he got up to answer the door.
It made his heart ache, though… The whole reason they had run away in the first place was so they wouldn’t have to worry about anything like that anymore. He supposed that after everything, it was only natural for those instincts to still be hanging around when they hadn’t been away from home for long… And still…
Glenn sat up and tried to peer around Miklan as he opened the door. Sadia was standing there.
“Grandmother wanted me to remind you to throw out the bath water when you’re done,” she said. Even though she was big— as tall and as wide as Miklan, with a serious face— her voice was soft and quiet, so Glenn could barely here her from his side of the room. “And to let you know that one of us will come and wake you up when it’s time for breakfast.”
“Thanks,” Miklan said. “Are you sure there’s nothing we can do right now…?”
“Grandmother will think of something in the morning,” Sadia said. “For right now, you two look tired. You should get some rest.”
“Alright. Thank you again.” Even though that seemed like the natural end of the conversation, Sadia was still standing there. “Was there… Anything else…?”
“...No. I’m sorry. I was just thinking about how interesting it is to have people from Faerghus staying with us.” Sadia smiled, and even though Glenn could barely see it from where he was, it definitely made her look a lot less intimidating. “Goodnight, you two.”
“Goodnight, Sadia!”
Sadia waved over Miklan’s shoulder and Glenn waved back as she excused herself.
Miklan closed the door as soon as she was gone, and waited a few seconds for her to be out of earshot before he said, “Not to be rude or anything, but… That was weird, right?”
“A little weird, yeah,” Glenn agreed as he flopped back onto the bed. “But, I mean… Ulea said that this place doesn’t get many visitors, right? Being out in the middle of nowhere like this. She’s probably just not used to having people she doesn’t know around.”
Miklan made an uncertain noise, and Glenn wanted to ask him what was going through his mind when he sighed and grabbed the second of the two towels Sadia had brought them.
“Better go take a bath while I have the chance,” he said. “You might not want to wait up for me, you look pretty tired.”
“Aww, and miss the chance to tease you some more? I think I’ll wait up for you,” Glenn said, squirming to again get comfortable on the soft mattress. “But hurry back, alright? You know I get lonely without you.”
Miklan laughed as he threw the towel around his neck, and Glenn winked and blew him a kiss to make him laugh even harder.
“I won’t keep you waiting long,” he said as he reached for the door, but before he stepped out he said, “Love you, Glenn.”
“Love you too, Mik.”
Glenn smiled as Miklan disappeared into the hallway. Even though he’d mostly been teasing him, he was pretty sure that after everything they had been through—
Well, he had a feeling he wasn’t going to be able to get a good night’s sleep without Miklan by his side for a long time.
Miklan felt two things fighting inside of him from the moment the kind village elder Ulea offered them a room to stay in while they restocked and got things in order— one was relief that they found somewhere that was so generous so quickly, and one was suspicion along with a creeping sense of dread that settled over him like a damp blanket and wouldn’t leave him alone.
It was only natural, he supposed. They were on the run; they had so far managed to dodge both of their families’ men and anyone else they had on the lookout for them, but there had been a few nights where Miklan was absolutely sure they were going to get caught.
Not that he thought the nice little old Duscan granny was a spy for the Faerghus nobility or anything ridiculous like that. He just… Couldn’t shake that feeling of apprehension that seemed to catch up with him every time something seemed too good to be true.
And it didn’t help that her granddaughter had been acting weird from the moment they had arrived.
He had tried to ignore it. Like Glenn had said, it was probably just because she wasn’t used to visitors, especially people from Faerghus. When she had stared at them when they had first been invited into the house, it was easy to just write it off as curiosity. Even the way she had lingered and followed them around that night was, while strange, easy enough to explain.
But the unsettling feeling stayed, and as they went about their business, it only got worse.
They woke up and joined Ulea and Sadia for breakfast, and Miklan let Glenn take the lead carefully skirting around some of Ulea’s questions.
Sadia stared at them in silence the entire time, and Miklan did his best to take Glenn’s advice and just ignore it.
After they helped clean up from breakfast, Ulea had a small list of chores she needed help doing around the house; things that she couldn’t do, and which Sadia struggled to do by herself.
Even though he hadn’t been loved, Miklan had certainly been provided for the way any other noble son would be, even if it had been mostly an after thought; he didn’t have a lot of experience doing house repairs. But it was only fair, and how hard could it be?
With every bit of repair or cleaning they did, Sadia was there helping, which was all well and good since he and Glenn only had the most basic idea of what they were doing— but Miklan could still feel Sadia watching them the entire time.
He didn’t mention anything to Glenn— one, because he didn’t want to worry him when it was entirely possible that it could be nothing, and two, because he knew his boyfriend would just tease him for getting all worked up about it.
When they were through with the chores Ulea had asked them to do, she looked extremely pleased, and Miklan was glad that they were able to do something to repay her kindness— partly because he would have felt too guilty to accept it otherwise, and partly because it helped settle his paranoia that there was some kind of ulterior motive.
In fact, she looked pleased enough that Miklan couldn’t even think of a good excuse to say no when she said, “Sadia can help you with your shopping. Most of the people in this village don’t speak Fodlani, so it would be good for the two of you to have a translator.”
Sadia just nodded to her grandmother’s suggestion. Miklan said something that was probably a thank you, while most of his attention was focused on shoving down that uneasy feeling.
Sadia took the lead when they left the house, taking them down the main path towards the bigger stretches of rocky farmland they had seen from above when they had first spotted the village from the mountain.
“We don’t have a general store or anything here,” she explained as they made their way down the first small hill, walking carefully to avoid slipping in the mud left behind by recent rain. “Anything we don’t make or grow ourselves, we trade for when the travelling merchants come to the village twice a month, but if you’re just looking for some basic travelling supplies we should be able to get them from the farms around here.”
She brought them to the farms, and helped them get dried meat and other preserved foods, as well as some other essentials that Miklan hadn’t even thought of but which would be especially helpful if they were going to follow the coastline around Duscur before heading back into Fodlan proper.
Considering she didn’t seem to get out of the village much, it was weird that she would have thought of something like that before him, but since she was acting a lot less weird than she had all morning and was definitely being helpful, Miklan decided not to think about it too much.
They left the farm with packs considerably more full, and whether it was because of the farmer’s generosity or Sadia’s haggling— Miklan had absolutely no idea what they were saying to each other, after all— they still had more than enough of the gold they had swiped before leaving home to not have to worry about funds for a while yet.
Of course, they would have to worry eventually— the money wouldn’t last forever— but it was nice to know they still had a bit of a net to cover them while getting far enough away from their fathers that they didn’t have to spend every night in fear of getting dragged back home.
They had just stopped to sit on a big, flat stone and enjoy a simple lunch Ulea had given them when Glenn said, “Hey, Sadia, how do you and your grandmother know Fodlani, anyway?”
Miklan wasn’t sure whether that counted as a rude question or not, but Sadia seemed to light up when he asked.
“My mother and father dealt with a lot of traders,” she said as she cut a heavy looking block of cheese into neat cubes that she doled out on the cheesecloth Ulea had wrapped their meals in. “Sometimes from as far away as the Alliance. They learned the language to make it easier, and taught it to me so I could help them. And when I came to live with grandmother, I taught her, too.”
“Traders, huh?” Glenn said between practically stuffing his face with wildberry jam spread on fresh bread. Not that Miklan could blame him; Ulea’s food was definitely the best thing they’d had since they left home. “Is that why you know so much about travelling supplies and things like that?”
“Kind of…”
Miklan quietly listened to the conversation as he ate his own lunch. It made him feel guilty, actually, that he had felt so uncomfortable with Sadia without even trying to talk to her.
Considering what most people had always thought of him, it felt especially unfair, and made him doubt what Glenn always said about him being better with people. Especially since it seemed to come so naturally to him by comparison… Meanwhile, Miklan never even seemed to know how to start a conversation.
“My family died a few years ago,” she explained. “That’s why I came to live with grandmother Ulea.”
“Oh… I’m sorry to hear that.”
Glenn looked to Miklan like he was pleading for him to get him out of the conversation he had started, but Miklan just gave him as subtle of a nudge as he could. Sadia wasn’t looking at them anyway; she was staring off into the distance.
“Thank you. Actually, before I came to live here, my family and I lived even further up in the mountains because of what my parents did for a living,” she continued. Miklan could see the sadness in her eyes and in the way she was staring off into the distance, but there wasn’t any hesitation in her voice when she spoke, like it was the remnants of a wound that had healed but still ached sometimes. “Just the four of us… Myself, my parents, and my brother. But I always wanted to travel. My parents always took us with them when they travelled to nearby villages and towns for trading, and I always thought it would be so interesting to go and see other places…”
She stared down at her lap, steadily picking apart a piece of bread, which she tossed to some of the birds that were pecking in the grass nearby.
“After… What happened, I came here to live with my grandparents. My grandfather died just last year, though, so it’s just me and grandmother.” She shook her head. “When I first came here, I was too young to go anywhere or do anything on my own, and now that it’s just me and grandmother… I would feel bad leaving her all alone here. Everyone else in the village would help her, I know that, but I’m the only relative she has left, so… I’ve had to put my dreams of seeing more of the world on hold, at least for now.”
A blanket of silence fell over them, where the only sounds they could hear were the wind whistling through the tall grass at the side of the road, and the chirping of the birds who wanted more bread.
Then, Sadia laughed.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “That was a lot to tell you, right? You both look surprised. I guess people from Faerghus don’t talk as openly about themselves as people here do.”
“Yeah… Something like that.”
Miklan and Glenn laughed, too, although— at least for Miklan— it was more of a nervous laugh than anything.
“I hope it wasn’t too strange or anything,” Sadia said, her own laugh getting nervous, too. “We don’t get many visitors around here, so I’m not used to people not knowing. I guess… Having the two of you staying here just reminded me of that. About wanting to travel, I mean.”
Miklan felt something hot rise up in his stomach and his chest. On the one hand, he felt guilty about the fact that he’d felt so uneasy around her all day; since she lived in such a small village where everyone clearly knew each other, and knowing now about her family, it only made sense that she would want to get out and see more of the world.
On the other hand, though… Under the guilt, he could feel a layer of anger, too. It felt sick and raw in him, and it inspired even more guilt in a vicious cycle, because this girl who had been so nice to them couldn’t possibly know the truth— how could she when they hadn’t told her, hadn’t told anyone?
He didn’t wait for Glenn to come to his rescue, though, even though his easy laughter would probably help; it was unfair of him.
“I think we would trade places with you if we could,” he said, though he couldn’t quell his paranoia that he was saying too much.
He could feel Glenn’s eyes on him, but he didn’t have to look up to know that he was just as surprised by what Miklan was saying as Miklan was.
But— Sadia had told them about her family, so it was really only fair, right?
“...I thought as much.”
He had been expecting either for Sadia to ask more questions, or for her to just politely move on from the topic; that threw him for a loop.
“The way you kept avoiding grandmother’s questions,” Sadia said, giving them the answer to a question they hadn’t asked. “That, and the fact that you two don’t really look like any ‘travellers’ I’ve ever seen before. You’re obviously not traders, you don’t look like people travelling for the fun of it, and you don’t act like mercenaries— not to mention you’re all the way out here, where no one ever bothers to come. The most obvious answer was that you were running away from something.”
“...That obvious, huh?” Miklan winced, and Sadia laughed.
“A little bit. But don’t worry. Your secret is safe with me… As long as mine is safe with you. Agreed?”
“You mean the fact that you want to leave the village?” Glenn asked, sounding pretty adorably confused.
“People would probably understand,” Sadia said with a shrug. “But I would rather no one know until I’m absolutely sure about leaving, you know?”
“We won’t tell anyone,” Miklan assured her. “I mean— we couldn’t even if we wanted to, right? You and your grandmother are the only people here who speak the same language as us.”
Sadia laughed. Even though she had a serious face, it really lit up when she was happy. Maybe she had just been that intensely focused on them so far.
“Maybe we could do something about that. As long as the two of you are men of your word, of course.”
“Our lips are sealed.”
Miklan mimed doing exactly that, and Sadia laughed.
The sick feeling in his stomach lifted.
Glenn didn’t understand why Miklan seemed to think he was the charming one between the two of them. Sure, he had picked up a few things from the lessons of politics and diplomacy his father had taught him, but it had never really come naturally to him; when it came to the nobility of Faerghus, it didn’t really make much of a difference since politics were all games of pretend to them, but for average people?
Maybe he could be a bit awkward, but it was endearing, and compared to Glenn who only ever either thought way too hard about saying things exactly right or didn’t care about what he was saying at all, it was just so effortless for Miklan.
There were so many things that pissed Glenn off about the way Margrave Gautier had always treated Miklan, but high on the list was how he’d never understood how talented and smart Miklan was. Maybe he didn’t know all the ins and outs of noble politics— mostly because he’d never been taught— but Miklan was good with people. He looked gruff and unapproachable, and sometimes when he didn’t know what to say he could come off as brusque and a little blunt, but he had an easy way of talking to people that had never come naturally to Glenn.
Besides— Glenn knew he was good looking, but Miklan was pretty much impossibly handsome, and that had to help, right?
After their little adventure out to the farm to get their supplies, Glenn had expected Miklan would want to make preparations to leave as soon as possible. After all, he had clearly been feeling uncomfortable from the very start— suspicious, maybe, of the generosity they were being shown.
He had mixed feelings about the fact that he didn’t seem too eager to leave.
On the one hand… The past few weeks had been brutal. It wasn’t like Glenn was a stranger to being out of doors, but having to struggle to live off the land, avoiding any sign of people for fear that if they got too close to a village or town they might run into knights who would drag them back home?
Glenn knew it was going to continue being difficult going forward, at least for a while, and that it would be easier if he just tried to get used to it, but was it really so terrible to enjoy the brief reprieve the stay in the village was giving them?
On the other hand, even though Miklan had been acting very strangely around her at first— now he and Sadia seemed to be the best of friends.
That should have made him happy, of course. Miklan deserved all the friends in the world, something his cruel father had denied him, and it had really only been by luck that the two of them had been allowed to get as close as they had when they were kids. And it wasn’t like he suspected anything untoward. Miklan was as dedicated to him as Glenn could ever imagine someone being— and he had never shown any interest in women at all. In fact, Miklan had always been afraid that a fate not dissimilar to his own but far less kind awaited him— being married off to the daughter of whatever nobleman Augustus Gautier most wanted to curry favour with, in hopes that maybe his children would have the Crests he didn’t have the luck to be born with.
But for the past few weeks, Glenn had Miklan’s undivided attention. It was just the two of them and their faithful steeds, alone together on the empty road, huddling together for warmth and finding comfort in each other even though living off the land was hard. They had run away from everything they had ever known, just so they could be together— no matter how hard it was, it would be worth it.
Sadia had offered to teach the two of them how to speak Duscan. She didn’t ask for anything in return; it seemed like that kind of generosity was just the norm here in this small village where everyone knew each other and they had nothing to fear from the outsiders who had suddenly appeared.
So far she had only taught them a few basic phrases, but Glenn felt like they were doing pretty well considering they were learning a language from the ground up. Miklan took to it faster than he did, which didn’t surprise him. He was always smarter than people gave him credit for.
In return, Sadia just seemed to… Enjoy their company. She hung around them a lot, helping them with the chores her grandmother needed help with, telling them stories, and not seeming to care that they didn’t talk much about themselves or their pasts.
She was obviously lonely, which made Glenn feel guilty about being jealous. Though she seemed to get along well with everyone in the village, she mostly seemed to spend her time either with the two of them or helping her grandmother. Ulea was very old, and she had some kind of problem with her hips; she needed a lot of help around the house, so Glenn could see why Sadia was reluctant to leave, no matter how much she obviously wanted to.
He had a feeling that was the biggest reason they hadn’t left yet, even though it had been nearly a week.
“Is something wrong, Glenn?”
He was helping Sadia in the kitchen. Glenn wasn’t much of a cook, but Sadia seemed determined to get him to help, and he was pretty decent at chopping vegetables— even if he kept getting distracted by both the delicious smell coming from the pan she was tending to, and his own thoughts.
“Not at all,” he said, smiling as pleasantly as he could.
Sadia stared blanky at him, then turned her attention back to the pan.
It was a few more minutes of admiring the fragrant aromas (Glenn had really taken a liking to Duscan food since they arrived, even though it had been almost too much for him less than a week ago) before Sadia spoke up again.
“It’s about Miklan, isn’t it?”
“What’s about Miklan?”
Sadia laughed. “You have a weird look on your face, Glenn. And it’s the same weird look you always get on your face when Miklan and I are spending time together.”
She didn’t sound accusatory. In some ways, that actually embarrassed him more; he couldn’t fall back on getting defensive.
But before he could say anything in response, she launched right into, “The two of you are lovers, right?”
He was glad they were talking about this now, before they were eating, because he probably would have choked on his food otherwise.
“Wh-what…?”
“You don’t have to hide it, you know.”
“We— we weren’t trying to…”
We weren’t trying to hide it, was what he was trying to say, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to say the actual words.
It was only partly true, after all.
They had left home because they wanted to be able to live freely together as a couple, but the more Glenn thought about it, the more he realized that ever since they had come to the village they had kept their distance from each other any time they were around other people. They only acted especially romantic when they were behind closed doors, alone…
It was instinct for them at that point, of course. Ever since Glenn had first experimentally kissed Miklan— before stomping on his foot and running off— it had been a game of what they could get away with balanced with no one ever finding out, especially their fathers or anyone who would tell them.
Glenn was sure his own father would have given him a stern lecture about his duties as the heir of the Fraldarius family, and his betrothal to Ingrid… But if Miklan’s father had ever found out?
Glenn didn’t even want to think about what would have happened.
“...Is that why you two left home?”
It was actually kind of scary how intuitive Sadia was. Or maybe the two of them were just way worse at hiding things than Glenn thought. After all, most of their experience hiding things were from his father, who was oblivious at the best of times, and the Margrave, who didn’t care at all about what his eldest son did as long as it didn’t embarrass him.
He chewed on his lower lip, wondering if it was okay for him to say something. Miklan had been dancing around the subject any time anyone asked. It could be dangerous to say something, too; though he very much doubted anyone from House Gauter or House Fraldarius would come looking for them in a middle of nowhere Duscan village, but it was better to be safe than sorry. They had no idea how their fathers had reacted to their disappearance, after all… And they didn’t want to get anyone in trouble for sheltering them.
But Miklan liked her, and they had all promised to keep each others’ secrets. Maybe that was good enough?
“...It was one of the reasons,” he admitted, still reluctantly. “It’s… Complicated. My life was pretty much already decided for me from the day I was born, and Miklan wasn’t supposed to be a part of it, which I wasn’t willing to accept. So we decided to run off together.”
He didn’t tell her about Miklan’s family, the Hell he had endured growing up, the fact that Miklan had asked him to run away with him because he thought Glenn would be sent off to die but the real reason Glenn agreed was because he was afraid Miklan would be.
The Margrave had tried before, after all— sending an untrained teenager with a poorly-equipped and outnumbered military force to defend the border against a hostile neighbour. The fact that Miklan had made it out alive, surely against the Margrave’s wishes, was a testament to how strong and smart and brave he was.
But all of that— all of the suffering he had been through— wasn’t Glenn’s story to tell.
“Your family wouldn’t have let the two of you be together?”
She sounded so genuinely confused— and it made Glenn feel almost nauseous in his jealousy.
Things were obviously so different here, for her— just like things were different for the people who weren’t born into the crest-bearing noble houses, people who wouldn’t be forced into arranged marriages because they carried the entire future of their family name on their shoulders.
“I was betrothed,” Glenn explained, wondering if Sadia would even understand the concept— he wondered how much a girl from the Duscan mountains would know about noble culture. Did they have anything similar? He doubted it. “My father expected me to marry a girl a lot younger than me, and it was all decided when she was still an infant, and I was too young to really understand it. On top of that, me marrying another man would have been… Unheard of. At least in families like mine and Miklan’s. It’s not a problem for most people.”
“...Oh.”
The look on Sadia’s face— confusion, surprise, maybe a bit of pity— was so ridiculous that Glenn didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
But both of those would have been rude, so he did neither and just shrugged.
“...Sorry. I guess that’s what Miklan meant when he said you guys would trade places with me, huh?”
Glenn shrugged again.
“I don’t really know what Faerghus is like—” Sadia said, then stopped herself. “Well, I guess I don’t really know what anywhere is like, except for this village. But people around here aren’t like that. They won’t care about the two of you being a couple. So don’t worry about it, okay?”
Not worrying about it was easier said than done, since Glenn hadn’t even realized he was worrying about it until she had asked him that— but the thought was nice, so he just said, “Thanks, Sadia.”
Miklan’s head snapped up when he heard the door open, but he relaxed when it was Glenn who stepped inside, closed the door behind himself, and leaned back against it while smiling.
“And what is the most handsome man in all of Fodlan up to right now, hm?”
“I don’t know, what are you up to?”
He was sure the sound of Glenn laughing was the most beautiful sound in all of Fodlan. Maybe in the entire world.
“Smartass,” Glenn said, his voice as honey sweet as if he was calling him darling or my love, which he basically was. Glenn had a sharp tongue on him, but on the inside he was as sweet as molasses and as soft as silk.
At least, for him he was. Miklan had seen Glenn get angry before. He didn’t plan to be on the receiving end of it any time soon.
His boyfriend wandered over to where he was sitting on the floor with their packs and every one of their belongings spread out in front of him. Their clothes were freshly laundered; their food and other basic supplies were nicely wrapped up; and the valuables they had taken from their homes to sell and barter with were organized as best he could.
Lying on the floor in front of him was their map, marked up as carefully as he could manage. Glenn leaned down to wrap his arms around his shoulders, pressing a kiss to the back of his head.
“Does this,” Glenn paused to gesture vaguely at the map. “Mean what I think it means?”
“We have to leave some time,” Miklan said. “The weather is nice, so we won’t have to worry about getting rained out on the road. And if we follow this road here, we’ll be able to follow the coastline like this…”
Miklan traced his finger along the line he had drawn with the help of a more proper map Ulea had loaned him, showing Glenn the path they would take.
“Now that we’ve properly crossed the border, we won’t have to worry about patrols or anything like that, so we won’t have to avoid the main roads. That means we can stop and resupply more regularly…”
“Mhm, mhm…” Glenn made little noises of affirmation as he nodded, even though Miklan knew from the tone in his voice that he was only half paying attention, and he was really more talking to himself anyway. “I’m surprised, though… I thought you would want to stay a bit longer.”
There was something in the tone of his voice that sounded… Weird, but Miklan couldn’t quite place it. And he was immediately distracted anyway, by Glenn pressing repeated kisses to the back and top of his head.
He leaned back into Glenn’s embrace as Glenn knelt on the floor behind him instead of standing, and made a noise in the back of his throat.
“We can’t stay here forever,” Miklan repeated. “And as nice as it is here… It’s starting to feel like we’re taking advantage.”
Even though Ulea kept insisting they were welcome to stay as long as they wished, Miklan couldn’t get rid of that nagging feeling. Sure, they were helping out around the house, but it just… Didn’t feel like enough.
“You know…” Glenn hummed as his kisses travelled lower, sending a chill up Miklan’s spine as his lips pressed against the back of his neck. “We could just stay here. I’m sure we could find some way to earn our keep. It’s peaceful here… We wouldn’t have to worry about the nobility or Crests or anything about Fodlan…”
When Glenn said it, it sounded so tempting that Miklan almost gave in on the spot. And it wasn’t like he hadn’t thought about it.
But even if it was incredibly unlikely, there was always the chance one of their fathers could track them down… Not enough time had passed for him to truly feel safe anywhere. He wasn’t sure there would ever come a time where he felt like that, not while Augustus Gautier was still alive.
“You think you could make it as a goat farmer?”
He meant it as a joke— but he couldn’t quite manage to keep the levity in his voice. Glenn obviously noticed, because he squeezed him tightly from behind.
“I think,” Glenn said, leaning in so he was speaking right into his ear— normally something that would also send shivers up his spine, but this time his tone was so soft and comforting that it just sort of made him melt. “That I would be happy going anywhere and doing anything with you. I wouldn’t have run away with you otherwise. So what is it that you want?”
Miklan wanted to say that he wanted whatever made Glenn happy, because it was true; it was what he wanted more than anything, to see Glenn smile and laugh and be free and not have to be crushed under the weight of the future his well-meaning but blind father had planned out for him.
But that would have just led the conversation in circles, so instead Miklan just sighed and said, “I don’t know what I want. Except that I want to be with you.”
Glenn laughed and Miklan basked in the sound of it again. “Good answer,” Glenn said. “But based on all of this, it seems like you’ve already made a choice.”
Miklan looked at their measly collection of worldly possessions laid out in front of him, and the map route he’d drawn. He sighed again, and Glenn laughed again, and leaned over his shoulder to press a kiss to his cheek.
“It’ll be an adventure,” he said, rocking the two of them back and forth.
Miklan wasn’t sure he would say that, necessarily, but he did feel like he wasn’t ready to settle down quite yet— even though the idea of a cozy house just for the two of them sounded so tempting it sort of took his breath away for a second.
Later, he promised silently, to both himself and Glenn. Once he could afford to give Glenn the life he deserved without either of them having to give in to the expectations of nobility. They might have given up their noble titles— for all his ever really applied— but Glenn deserved a comfortable life.
In the meantime, though…
“When do you want to leave?” Glenn asked.
“The day after tomorrow,” Miklan replied. “As long as the weather holds up.”
“The day after tomorrow it is, then.” Glenn gave him another squeeze before releasing him and standing up; Miklan instantly missed the touch.
He didn’t have to wait for long to have it back, though; Glenn crouched down to grab his hand, then tugged him to his feet, and started pulling him back towards the bed.
“And day after tomorrow means you have all of tomorrow to figure the rest of this out,” he said, loosely grasping Miklan’s wrists as he crawled into bed, surprisingly adept considering he was walking backwards the entire time. “So for now… Just lie down and relax with me for a bit. I want to have you all to myself for a little while… While we still have a nice, comfortable bed.”
“Glenn…”
“Keep saying my name like that, though, and we’ll be doing more than just relaxing.”
“Glenn!”
Glenn laughed, and then silenced any more protests he might have had by pulling him down on top of him and kissing him until they both ran out of breath.
“Are you certain there’s nothing we could do to convince you to stay?”
“Sorry, but no. We’ve overstayed our welcome long enough; it’s time for us to get out on the road.”
When Miklan offered Ulea his hand to shake, she grasped it in both of hers and squeezed firmly.
“You couldn’t possibly overstay your welcome,” Ulea said, shaking her head. “But if your journey has to take you elsewhere, I won’t try to hold the two of you back. Just know that you’re always welcome here. I’m sure Sadia feels the same way.”
“Where is Sadia, anyway? I haven’t seen her since yesterday.”
Miklan looked around like she was going to be hiding around the corner or something.
“She said she was going to take your things to the stables and prepare your horses for the journey,” Ulea said. “Truth be told, I think she’s a little sad that the two of you are leaving. She’s become quite attached to the two of you.”
Glenn reached down to take his other hand and give it a squeeze. Miklan wasn’t sure whether it was meant to reassure him, or whether it was for Glenn’s sake.
He’d done a good job at trying to hide it, probably because he didn’t want Miklan to feel guilty, but Miklan could tell he had been a little upset at first because Miklan got so caught up with Sadia that he started paying less attention to him; thankfully he would have plenty of time to make it up to him while they were on the road.
“Thank you for everything, Ulea.” Glenn reached out with his other hand to place it on top of Ulea’s, until it was just one big pile of their hands. “If we’re ever in the area again, we’ll be sure to drop by.”
“You are most certainly always welcome,” she said.
They exchanged a few more thanks and pleasantries before Miklan took a look at the position of the sun in the sky and realized they would need to get on the road soon if they wanted to make it to their first destination before night fall.
They said their final goodbyes to the elderly woman who had been so kind to them for their entire stay, and Miklan found it was hard to drag himself away even when he knew it was time to go— but Daisy and Morchant were waiting, and they had made up their minds.
They made their way down to the stable that one of Ulea’s neighbours had let them use, and standing there holding the reins of both of their horses, with their tack already arranged, was Sadia.
Miklan had gotten a lot better at reading her expressions since the first day they had met, which hadn’t been that long ago but felt like almost a lifetime. Still, the way she was looking at them now— it reminded him of the first day, when she had that flat expression with the glimmer in her eyes, only now it looked more like a shine.
“They’re all ready to go,” she said as she handed each of them the reins to their horse. “They don’t seem to like being cooped up much— especially not your fancy boy here.” She looked to Morchant as she handed him to Glenn. “I guess they’re eager to get back out on the road.”
“Must be,” Miklan agreed, even though he was pretty sure they weren’t talking about the horses anymore.
Even though she smiled at him when he said that, he finally realized what didn’t look quite right— it didn’t show in her face, but her eyes looked like she was about to cry.
She was holding herself back because she didn’t want to make them feel guilty about leaving, not when she knew why they had to go, not when she wanted the exact same thing for her own reasons.
Miklan handed Daisy’s reins to Glenn and gave Sadia a hug.
She was surprised for only a brief second before she hugged him back. He didn’t linger long but gave her a few firm pats on the back before pulling away, and surprisingly, Glenn handed him the reins for both horses and went in to give her a hug too.
“If you do ever decide to head out on the road, try looking us up. We’d be happy to have the company.”
“Well, if you two don’t make yourselves too hard to find, I just might do that.”
They all laughed together at that, and Miklan could tell Glenn meant it, even though Sadia made a good point. They were on the run, after all…
But maybe some day soon they wouldn’t have to be on the run all the time. It was a nice thought.
“I’m sure grandmother already told you this, but you’re always welcome to come back,” she said. “You know. If life on the road gets too hard for you.”
“We appreciate it,” Miklan said, which was an understatement, but what else could he say?
Glenn effortlessly mounted Morchant, the unruly stallion only giving the slightest toss of his head and snort of protest before Glenn’s cooing calmed him down. Daisy just nickered placidly as Miklan got onto her back and pet her.
“Well, whatever ends up happening,” Sadia said, walking along with them to the end of the road that led out of the village. “I have a feeling we’ll be seeing each other again soon.”
“If we’re lucky,” Miklan agreed. “But for now— Goodbye.”
Sadia’s eyes went wide as he spoke Duscan for the first time outside of their lessons, and for a moment he was worried that he had accidentally said something offensive instead of a simple farewell— but then Sadia burst out laughing, louder and more genuine than he had heard from her the entire time they had been there so far.
“Sorry, sorry,” she said, still being overtaken by giggles. “Your accent is just— so bad. You should probably work on that…”
Miklan turned bright red and turned to focus on the road, especially when Sadia’s giggling caught and Glenn started too.
“Your pronunciation was okay though!” she said. “Just try to sound a little less like you’re speaking through a mouthful of cabbage stew.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he keeps practicing.”
Glenn and Sadia laughed at his expense a little more, and Miklan decided to just let it roll off his back— as long as the two of them were happy, that was what mattered.
When they reached the end of the village, Sadia stopped. She was fiddling with the hem of her shirt, and kept chewing her lower lip. She looked like she wanted to say something— or, specifically, like she was holding herself back from saying something.
But the moment passed and she just smiled at the two of them.
“Good luck out there,” she said. “I’m sure the gods will watch over both of you until we can meet again.”
Miklan hadn’t had much luck with gods watching over him before, but… When Sadia said it, he couldn’t help but believe her.
And even if it wasn’t true, he had Glenn by his side— and that was all that mattered.