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You know there’s more than this provincial life, right?” Daichi chuckles softly at the familiar dry tone, looking up to meet the bright gaze of his Prince. Well, not his Prince, everyone’s Prince. Sugawara Koushi, the crown jewel of Karasuno.
Since they were teenagers Daichi and the Prince had been fast friends, bonding in the marketplace over the same old bread and rolls being sold day after day. They’d wanted so much more from their lives than stewardship of a kingdom and ownership of a family farm. They’d talked about adventures and dreams that no one else knew of, of exploring far off places of becoming more than the world wanted them to be. They’d shared their hopes for the futures they imagined, while staying silent about their dreams for a shared future. Of everything they discussed, lamented, and wished for, that one idea was too fragile, too frightening to even whisper aloud lest it melt in the air like mid-summer rain.
Standing, wincing a touch at the stiffness in his lower back, Daichi raises a hand to shield his eyes as he looks towards the front gate of his little family farm. “Prince Suga, you know I go on a million exciting adventures a year, right? I don’t actually live a— what did you even call it? A ‘provincial life’?”
“Books don’t count, Daichi,” Suga swings off of his horse, touching down to the packed earth of the well-worn dirt road lightly. He ties his horse loosely, opening the creaky front gate with practiced ease and he strides over to the row of plants thriving under Daichi’s careful maintenance. “What about going out and finding adventure in the great wide somewhere? And when are you just going to call me ‘Suga’?”
“Ah, well,” Daichi’s broad hand rubs across the back of his neck, no doubt smudging dirt and fertilizer all over. “The ‘Prince’ part is pretty important, isn’t it? ‘S your title and all?”
Suga’s laugh chimes out across the short distance between them, and Daichi’s face heats a little, the rising temperature of his skin having nothing to do with the midday sun. His- everyone’s Prince is a vision in the most royal of blues of his tunic, the delicate silver embroidery matching the starlight shimmer of his hair. Yet, with all his finery, his polished manners, and his charming smile, he’s here on Daichi’s farm; like he is every week, kneeling in the dirt to help prune leaves, water plants, and dig his own roots further into Daichi’s heart.
Daichi drops to his knees, shoulder to shoulder with his kingdom’s pride and joy and tries to breathe evenly through the firm grip Suga has on his heart as they chat. Suga complains about his latest lessons (who actually uses Latin anyways?) and Daichi fills him in on the book he’s rereading (the main character just met their love interest, but he won’t realize that until Chapter Three).
It’s a warm day, and Daichi tries not to notice as Suga wipes beaded sweat from his brow. He really should get Suga a sun hat or bonnet if he’s going to keep coming at the hottest part of the day— the Queen Mother would likely not thank him for adding to Suga’s light dusting of freckles. Daichi is already on thin ice in the kingdom as it is for these little visits and he doesn’t need another reason to be in trouble with the royal family. No matter what he had wanted to be as a teenager, he’s just a farmer now.
“How do you find the time to read books, Daichi? Much less re -read them?” Suga’s tone is playful, but there’s something wistful twined through it. Daichi knows Suga’s royal life doesn’t allow him much spare time between lessons and meetings and expectations at the palace. Suga probably could find time to read if he wanted, but it seemed that all of his spare time was spent sneaking out here, just past the city limits, to get dirt under his nails and tease Daichi until he’s as red as the tomatoes he sends home with Suga. Maybe it’s selfish of Daichi to take up all of Suga’s reading time, but he never can bring himself to send the Prince back home any earlier than the Prince wants to go.
“‘S not like I’m running here and there for everyone’s pleasure, Prince Suga.” He reminds Suga gently. “Once the sun goes down there’s lots of time to visit new places and meet new people.”
Suga’s laugh is still bright, but a little brittle, “Characters in a book can’t take the place of real relationships and real adventures, Daichi. If you’re ever bored after sundown, you can just come and visit me.”
There’s Suga’s usual tease in that tone, the sly prodding beneath the polished accent, but there’s something else there, too. It’s sweet and honest, betraying the kindness (and maybe a little loneliness) that lies close to the Prince’s bones, deep down in the core of him. The Prince does his best to keep that hidden from his formal life, but Daichi’s always been able to read him as easily as one of the dog-eared and lovingly worn books on his modest shelf.
“Yeah? I should just walk right through the front gates with a basket of corn and ask if the Prince has time to hang out?” Daichi knocks his shoulder into Suga’s with just enough force to send the Prince sprawling into the soft, damp earth they’ve been tending. He should probably hide his booming laugh as Suga scrambles to his knees, face beet-red and covered all on one side with dirt.
“Not with that attitude, Daichi. Front doors are for people who are nice to the Prince! You’ll have to climb up to my window with the rest of the rebellious suitors.” His eyes go wide as the last word rolls of his tongue.
But before he can try and patch over the bold inference, he shouts a sharp cry of protest as Daichi ruffles his hair fondly, grinding the dirt in further. They both know that this is the only place they can be like this, just two young men with bright eyes and pink cheeks. Daichi may not have wanted the family farm for himself, but he’s found he doesn’t mind keeping it for Suga. For him too, the farm makes a tidy profit and his future is secure enough, but the way Suga’s shoulders drop away from his ears, making more room for his biggest grin, that would make all the failed crops and all the bad harvests worth it every time.
*****
Late at night, Daichi is having second thoughts. What if he’d misunderstood or misinterpreted? He’s always been so sure of his ability to see through Suga’s words to his true meaning, but if he was wrong this time he was really in for it. Sneaking into the palace after dark? This isn’t exactly on the same level as sending the Prince home with a dirt stain on his tunic. He gulps once, heaving himself off of the flimsy trellis outside of the window he’s pretty sure is Suga’s. At least, it’s the window that used to be Suga’s when they were kids.
What had started in the marketplace as a simple misunderstanding (Suga had no idea you actually had to pay for apples off of the apple vendor’s cart) turned into a firm friendship based on trust and understanding. That incident was still one of the few times that Daichi had been able to tease Suga over anything, though they had continued to meet up in the market at every chance they got.
Before Daichi had inherited the farm, before Suga had been required to wear the thin silver circlet around his brow, they had moved from their friendly, teasing conversations at marketplace to bonding over the rigors of their studies at the palace library together. Suga read books on law and peace to prepare for his life as Prince and eventually King, and Daichi devoured books on health, wellness, and medicine for the schooling he had intended to go off to do. But life comes due, and Suga’s royal duties would have ripped them apart had Daichi’s family tragedy not struck first.
Neither of them had complained though, not to each other. Rather, they each bore up rather bravely under their separate, weighty mantels, finding ways to shift the weight around and see each other enough to keep their friendship alive.
Now, creeping into a dark room on heavy feet, Daichi wonders if maybe he should have spent more time reading up on espionage and what penalties await should he be caught breaking and entering into the palace near midnight. There’s no sign of life in Suga’s old chambers, and he supposes that should be a relief, at least he hasn’t found his way into the wrong bedchamber. He flushes hotly, not that he’s trying to find his way into Suga’s bedchamber, he’s just trying to find Suga.
He pads through the halls, unsure, until a familiar silver-bell laugh floats down one marble passageway. That has to be Suga, that has to be the way to find him. Daichi hurries, moving as fast as he dares to not make more noise, slipping into the door that the sound came from and clicking it shut gently behind him with a relieved sigh.
“D- Daichi ?” There’s no chime of silver now, only incredulous disbelief as Suga gapes at him from his seat at a large mahogany desk. There’s papers spread around him and a candle burning low. The lighting exaggerates the dark circles on the thin skin under his eyes, but Daichi thinks the glow in that rich hazel is more than just a trick of the flame. Something in his heart eases.
“You- uh- you haven’t been by the farm in a week or so.” (It’s been exactly three weeks, but who’s counting?) “I thought maybe it was time I paid you a visit since- since the sun’s down and I was bored at home?” It’s weak, the excuse. Daichi might as well have shouted ‘I missed you!’ and it would have had the same effect. But it’s worth it, he thinks, as Suga’s smile spreads, wide and true, as warm as the flush he feels creeping up his neck.
With a flourish, Suga is up out of his chair and striding over to where Daichi remains nervously standing in the doorway. He motions for Daichi to step aside, which he does with only a little confusion. Suga reads him clearly, a low chuckle escaping.
“Well, if you’re going to come for a visit I don’t want to have to host you in this terrible, stuffy office of mine. We’ll just have to sneak you down the three quick hallways to my rooms and I can ring for tea.”
This ‘terrible stuffy office’ of Suga’s comprised the size of three of Daichi’s modest farmhouse, along with an entire wall of windows, but what could he say to that? ‘No, don’t take me to your bedroom?’ Daichi may not have gotten to fulfill his dream of becoming a doctor, but he’s not stupid. He is, however, nervous.
“S-Prince Suga,” he starts to protest, unsure of what to say, but sure enough that they’ll likely get caught and if he’s not hanged for some kind of treason then Suga will certainly be in trouble. But Suga’s already pulling the door open and looks back at him with wide, hopeful eyes. He holds out one hand.
“Do you trust me?”
“What?”
“I said- do you trust me?”
Daichi should think about it, he should hesitate. Suga has been the only reason Daichi has ever gotten into any kind of trouble. It had started with the apple vendor at the market and only gone downhill from there. And yet, as he looks into Suga’s eyes, looking less burdened than usual without his silver circlet, he only has one answer.
His own hand stretches out, settling easily in Suga’s.
“Yes.”
Without another moment to spare Suga’s tugs him out of the safety of the closed room and sprints them down one hallway. Daichi’s full tilt run comes to a skidding stop and he nearly topples them both over as Suga pauses at the corner of the next passageway. They both hear the sound of heavy boots on the polished floors, and Suga quickly pushes them back behind a black tapestry bearing the kingdom’s orange crow heraldry. They’re breathing hard, and Suga leans tight against Daichi to keep the heavy woven wall hanging from bulging out and giving them away. Without thinking about it, Daichi’s hand comes up to tuck Suga’s face against his neck as they hold their breath as long as they can, waiting for the boots to fade into the distance.
Suga lets out one slightly manic giggle, and the sound is so enticing Daichi has to resist the urge to kiss it out of the Prince’s mouth.
They make it the rest of the way to Suga’s chambers without further drama, though Daichi can’t help but notice that Suga’s hand stays firmly wrapped around his own for the entirety of the short journey. They close the heavy oak doors to Suga’s rooms and laugh at the dramatics of their adventure.
“You know, you’re quick for someone of your,” Suga looks Daichi up and down in a way that’s one notch above friendly, “stature.”
Daichi is suddenly very aware that by being in Suga’s chambers, he’s in Suga’s bedchambers . He clears his throat roughly. “Yeah, not too bad for a guy one step above a street rat.”
Suga scoffs, “Oh c’mon, I don’t buy that. You’re pretty quick on your feet, Daichi, I’m impressed. Maybe I should get you to come back for swordplay lessons.” Suga’s eyes twinkle with too much mischief and Daichi has to pretend not to understand any kind of possible innuendo to his suggestion.
He reaches into the satchel that had been nearly forgotten in their flight across the east wing of the palace. “Maybe some other time, Your Highness. I’m a little out of breath for weapons practice, but I can show you the world.”
Suga’s eyebrow crooks at that. “Oh yeah? What part of the world?”
Daichi’s hands come out from the worn leather pouch with a small stack of books, “Any part- your choice. Tell me, Prince, now when did you last let your heart decide?”
Eyes softening, Suga runs a long fingertip over the books Daichi has spread out on the low table at the foot of his spacious bed. “Which one’s your favorite? That’s where I want to go.”
And Daichi takes him there. He’d really intended to bring Suga a book and have them read side by side, but he’s not complaining when he ends up reclining on the too-many-pillows-for-any-one-person at the head of Suga’s giant four-poster, reading aloud as Suga comments or questions the plot and characters. It would be aggravating, the interruptions, if it weren’t for the way Suga’s voice continued to grow more heavy and muffled with sleep.
Finally, around Chapter Five, just as the main character decided to take up her father’s sword and fight in his place, Daichi hears the soft flutter of a snore and glances down to where Suga has passed out fully, asleep and soft against the blankets. He smiles, a gentle thing Suga would certainly make fun of had he been awake, and smoothes his hand over the flyaway silver strands of Suga’s hair.
He’ll come back again as soon as he can to continue the adventure, and now he knows the right windows to climb into. Suga may not be able to visit the exciting places Daichi has read about, he may not even be able to visit as far as Daichi’s farm some weeks, but that’s okay. Daichi has no problem reading to him, it’s almost as good as sharing a real adventure together.
*****
How Suga had managed to convince him to leave the boundaries of the kingdom is still a mystery. It must have been a threat, or a bribe, right? Why else would sturdy, stoic Daichi have upended everything to follow a charming slip of starlight into the densely wooded forest at Karasuno’s western border?
Well, Daichi has had plenty of time to shake his and ponder that mystery as he spends the morning trailing that shooting star as Suga spun in circles between elation and guilt and back again.
The morning goes something like this:
“I can’t believe I did this. … I can’t believe I did this,” Suga mutters to himself as they trek over the wooded paths, staring up into the canopy in wonder. It’s a nice moment, soft and awestruck as Suga admires the light through the treetops and Daichi admires the unabashed glow on Suga’s excited face.
“I can’t believe I did this!!!” He shouts as he climbs a tree just to see as far as possible, Daichi’s heart in his throat. When had the Prince learned to climb a tree? Does he even know how to get down? (No, but he does know how to launch off the lowest branch into Daichi’s chest which is essentially the same thing as landing on solid ground.)
“Mother would be so furious. That’s okay, though, I mean what she doesn’t know won’t kill her?” He reasons out as he picks flowers from a nearby bush, braiding them into his horse’s mane with a determined air as Daichi chews thoughtfully on dandelion leaves. What are the chances Suga’s actually made peace with this wild idea of his?
Not good. The chances are not good. Daichi wipes his hands on his tunic before reaching out to rub gentle circles over Suga’s back as he sobs against his horse’s neck only moments later. “Oh my gosh. This would kill her.”
And so it continues:
“This is so fun!”
“I am a horrible son.”
“I’m going back.”
“I am never going back again!”
“I am a despicable human being.”
“Woo-hoo! Best. Day. Ever!”
By midday Daichi isn’t sure who was more worn out, Suga or himself. They’ve made it a good way across the forest, though with all of Suga’s emotional back-and-forth has come some physical backtracking as well. It’s not too far to a local tavern Suga has heard of, and they trudge their way there, even Suga’s noble beast dragging his hooves a little.
As the tavern comes into view, the horse digs all four feet into a halt, and no amount of Suga’s tugging, pleading, or threatening can force him to move. Daichi’s amused eyebrow raise doesn’t go unnoticed as Suga finally gives in and ties the reins in an easy knot around a sturdy tree branch.
“Glassheart will be fine here until we’re done,” he explains sheepishly, clearly ready to move on from the embarrassing full conversation he’d just had with a horse that could not talk back.
“Glassheart?” Daichi questions, “Seems like a poor name for a warhorse, Prince Suga?”
“Well, he’s a poor warhorse in general, so I’d say it’s fitting. And we’re not even in Karasuno, can’t you just call me Suga?”
Suga sniffs before stomping off to the tavern, and Daichi holds in a laugh. Maybe stopping here would be the right move to help perk them up and help get Suga back on the right track to home. For all his excitement and posturing, they both knew that Suga could not and would not abandon his kingdom. Karasuno loves Prince Suga, and despite Suga’s exhaustion or reluctance on some days, he loves Karasuno. Anyone with eyes could see it.
From the way Suga greets each child by name, to the way he allows the older matrons to pinch his cheeks and present their daughters to him, he is loved and beloved by more than just Daichi. No matter his selfish reasons for sticking to his little plot of farm, or for abandoning it to follow Suga out here, Daichi can’t be so selfish to choose his own happiness, his own adventure, over Suga’s comfort and the kingdom’s rightful heir. It’s easy to forget, sometimes, that Suga is the one who instigates these wild moments. They’re always so exhilarating, so exactly-what-Daichi-would-choose-to-do-if-only-he-knew-how that he loses the original plot of the moment in favor of his heart’s selfish cries for more time with Suga, more memories with Suga, more Suga .
Hopefully a drink and a meal will put his head back on his broad shoulders where it belongs. If Daichi spends any more time up in the clouds they’ll never make it back to Karasuno’s borders before their disappearance is noticed. However, the Snuggly Kitten isn’t exactly the safe haven he’d hoped to find.
They’re seated and served before they’re surrounded. Staring up at the ragtag group of thieves and brigands, the troupe has an air of mischief tinged with calculated intelligence, led by one particularly arrogant looking rogue with a tuft of dark hair obscuring one keen eye. Daichi is sure this is it, sure he’s led his Prince to his demise, when Suga’s voice, weary and forlorn, wobbles through the dank little tavern.
“Please. Haven’t you ever had a dream?”
What Daichi expects to hear is the metal swish of a sword being drawn, and he screws his eyes shut, his own courage failing at the idea of watching his lov- his Prince beheaded by these villains. It never even occurred to him that Suga left home without a weapon, not until this moment when they needed something most. Daichi isn’t asking for much— a sword would be nice, his scythe would be good, but hell, he’d even take a cast iron frying pan at this rate. Instead of the sound of violence, though, he hears the wooden plunk of a chair being pulled out, and he opens his eyes again to find a group of lost looking young men, no older than himself or Suga, all eagerly ready to spill their own dreams.
(Kai would like to quit and be a florist
Yaku does interior design
Kuroo is into mime
Kenma’s cupcakes are sublime
Inuoka knits
Fukanaga sews
Lev does little puppet shows
And Taketora collects ceramic unicorns)
It’s an emotional reckoning, all these men and their dreams. It gives Daichi pause and he feels Suga sit back, too. The rowdy group of new friends sees them fed and watered and sent on their merry way, but to what?
They’re just a farmer, a Prince, and a Prince’s cowardly warhorse facing down two paths. One that leads them onto new adventures and far-off places, but nothing like the home they love. The other takes them back to where they come from, but if they’re not the same people who left, is it really the same home?
Daichi feels a slim hand curl into his, and he looks to Suga, standing tall and proud. His shoulders set, his gaze firm.
“Daichi, I’m not going back.”
There’s a yawning chasm that opens in Daichi’s stomach. What can he do except follow Suga? But what will they do? How will they survive-
“Stop overthinking.” Suga’s voice is kind, if a little firm. “Daichi, I’m not going back to how things were.” He squeezes Daichi’s hand, and Daichi squeezes back without thinking. “Listening to them, hearing their stories and their hopes and their wants, I realized that I can do it. I can do the Prince thing, I can do the King thing. I can be good at it, too.”
Daichi’s heart swells at the certainty he hears in Suga’s voice and feels in Suga’s grip. It’s not tired or resigned, Suga sounds the way Daichi always heard him in his heart— confident, strong, capable. But Suga isn’t done yet.
“I can do it all, but not without you. Daichi… you’re my dream.”
Daichi’s throat is thick, and not from farm dirt or book dust. But he manages to choke out around it, “And you’re mine.”
*****
With bells ringing across every plaza and courtyard, you’d think Daichi would be a little distracted, and yet, he’s never felt more focused. One hand smoothes down the front of his white tunic, marveling still at the delicate black and orange embroidery. Even after nearly a year he’s not yet accustomed to the finery he’s permitted— no, expected to wear as the kingdom’s next healer-in-training (along with his other newer duties). But on today of all days, especially, he’s determined to look his best.
With one soft leather boot gripped in one hand, he searches. Looking behind tapestries, ducking into abandoned old rooms, he finds Suga with only an hour to spare in his old bedchambers. The one Daichi had snuck into week after week to read to him just last summer. He sits on the bed, one hand running softly over the plush bed cover, one boot on his right foot.
“Hey,” Daichi murmurs softly, not wanting to startle his Prince.
“Hey.” The response is met with a watery sniff, and Daichi doesn’t hesitate to move forward and cup Suga’s face in his free hand.
“What’s wrong?”
Suga looks down, lost and a little vulnerable. “I- uh. I seem to only have one shoe.” He looks back up with wet eyes and a tiny scowl, “And I thought we weren’t supposed to see each other yet.”
Daichi’s smile is as warm and rich as the plot of earth he’d turned into a community garden for the kingdom. He kneels in front of Suga, pulling the one bare foot out in front of him and sliding a hand up Suga’s calf before tucking his foot neatly into the boot he’s been carrying with him all morning.
“Look at that, a perfect fit.”
The hint of concern is still present in Suga’s hazel eyes, even as he relaxes at Daichi’s gentle touch and his found footwear. Daichi reaches up, brushing a thumb across one delicate-looking cheekbone.
“We’re not exactly the traditional type anyways, are we?”
A puff of a laugh leaves Suga’s chest and there’s only trace amounts of exasperation in it.
“No, I suppose we aren’t.” He stands up, wrapping his hand neatly into Daichi’s arm, his inverse in formal black with white and orange embroidery, and a mantle of dark feathers over his shoulders. “Now, shall we continue to buck tradition further?”
Daichi leans close, pressing a kiss to the top of that moonbeam-haloed head. “Are you saying you want to walk down the aisle together?”
The smile on Suga’s face is the perfect reward for Daichi’s quick understanding. “We’ve done enough waiting, haven’t we? I don’t want to miss a single moment of our future together.”
“Together, then.” Daichi agrees. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be, Koushi.”