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Amalienborg, Copenhagen
Henry gave the ending kiss, eagerly meanwhile soberly, curling his body up on the carpet, resting his head on Alex's left chest and rubbing his signet ring softly on Alex's collarbone.
the thrown-into-the-corner phone suddenly starts to shining. Henry raises him to his feet rapidly and says,"Ostensibly we should return to downstairs."
Alex still breathes out quite swiftly, staring at the beige ceiling, while the chandelier makes him feel dizzy.
"I think I am fed up with the Baroque.“ with upper body yet naked, Alex sits up, stretches his arm to catch the black shirt lying on a white fur carpet, also slaps lightly on a *pseudo* head of polar bear which attaches to the carpet.
"Holy shit! this crap is real?“
"Most assuredly.“ Henry picks his phone up and slides it into pocket, “incidentally and actually, this supposes to be Rococo." for then he gathers his shirt on ground also continues,“ Alas the wedding of Princess of Norway should be arranged as the coming one, six months later. We’d better not expect that it could be more exceeding than here.“
"Ha? CIA should hire you. I will send a report to Amy right now."
"Remorsefully, my loyalty solely belongs to M." Henry buttons his shirt up and goes on, "I was informed by Beatrice fortnight ago, she obtains royal dossiers expertly."
"YOUR European royal families are really busy." a „what-the-hell“ expression shows on Alex’s face.
"For the record, THEIR Continental royal families are rather restless."
"Wait, but you are always on the guest list."
"Look, we nevertheless maintain a quite compact liaison." Henry just almost suits himself up and appears to tidy the cuffs.
Alex stares back at Henry with a challenging look then poses his question immediately, "Who is this guy on the horse back?" with his arm still fighting in sleeve, Alex points to the knight statue in middle of the square outside the window.
"Frederick V." Henry casts a glance and replies.
"He is your?" Alex waves his still-in-sleeve hands, encouraging Henry to continue.
"A distant cousin of the great-grandfather of the great-grandfather of my mum." Henry responds without hesitation.
"Bravo!" Alex pretends to applaud, gazes at Henry and smirks, "So, in a sense, is it inbreeding?"
"Perchance you and me have more adjacent interrelation."
"That's for sure, but let me check the JAW first." Alex takes a large step forward and holds Henry's chin firmly.
"In point of fact, Windsor and Habsburg…“
Promptly Alex leans closer and halts Henry's words with a kiss, meantime his fingers brush Henry's face gently as well as continually. It is a so long kiss that even Henry’s tight-grabbing hands start to be loosed.
"Q.E.D. Everything is orderly and awfully perfect.“
La Pedrera, Barcelona
They both wearing a piece of white bath robe, stand in an attic which is like the skeleton of a whale. Outside the french window is the strict grid pattern of the Eixample in Barcelona. Alex holds a Champagne flute in both hands, while Henry leans his head against Alex’s shoulder, viewing the light trails of traffic on Passeig de Gràcia beneath.
"So what is your excuse for Zahra at this time"
"Simple Spring Break, and you?" Alex skims his chin across Henry’s delicate hair.
"British do not need any impetus to visit Spain."
“Well, royal family should not be included, I will say."
"My mum is a long-term patroness of Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera. A gala dinner was held yesterday evening for charity."
"Our mom." Alex grins, immediately feeling that a sharp glance was thrown to him, then adds, "Just kidding."
"Certainly not an appropriate joke." Henry sighs a bit then continues to say, "Merely due to my father, he was fascinated by Gaudí. Therefore he consistently brought us here on vacation during my preadolescence. Philip just stayed in room, Beatrice either ran in the courtyards or graffitied on the wall, and I…“Henry saunters to the other side of the attic, where a narrow balcony appears, "always sat here and was captivated by the lure of La Sagrada Familia."
"So honored that you are willing to share your childhood with me" Alex follows him, carries the Champagne flute and hands it over to Henry.
Henry seizes the flute and sips at it, "On account of *someone’s* complaint that he has enough of the Baroque last time, I determined to select here."
"So the room we stay…?" with a slight shock asks Alex.
"Titularly it belongs to my mum."
"Oh…" Alex remembers that he *accidentally* pushed a full set of plates on the ground, "We need spare some time for cleaning."
"YOU need spare some time for cleansing."
"Wait, if it is not YOUR suggestion that we could try on Gaudí’s dinner table…"
Henry instantly feels a hot flow running from his chin to the ears, "if you could be quiet now, i would not object to cleansing jointly."
"Approved." Alex gazes back at Henry. The roof of la Pedrera illuminated by ochreous spotlights, is like rolling mountains; afar stand the four towers of La Sagrada Familia, acting as the escort to guard a treasure which is even not owned by this world.
"It seems that I never could get closer." Alex is entranced by the scene and mutters under his breath.
"I beg your pardon?" Henry apparently fails to catch his words. With doubt he slants his body forwards to Alex.
Henry’s breath is tipsy and snug, which brings Alex back to reality at once, "I mean…" Alex points the stone towers distantly, "It seems that it never could get closer to finish."
"Look." Henry gazes at Alex with misty eyes meanwhile his hand, which once pressed against Alex’s chest, slips now gradually into his bath robe, "Stone towers consistently require the *maintenance*."
"Oh, it sounds logical." Alex is rather surprised and sniffs quite a bit.
Henry gives his Champagne flute back to Alex then crouches down, "Permit me to inspect the situation of *this tower*."
It distracts Alex completely, so the only words he could talk is just nonsense,“ When...is planned to...be completed..."
"2026 or forever, I would say that it is definitely a good protocol to undertake the maintenance of *this tower*."
Before more nonsense would be said, Henry has already gently covered Alex’s mouth with hand.
Palazzo Colonna, Rome
Alex sits on a red velvet chair while a "NON SEDERTI(Don’t Sit)“ sign has been thrown on ground.
Henry straddles Alex’s left leg and wraps him tight with arms around neck. His body moves up and down unconsciously just to echo Alex’s sensitive touch.
Alex sneaks his hands into Henry's silk shirt, wandering the fingertips on Henry’s abs, leisurely but aimlessly and brings him to a place totally unknown.
Henry closes his eyes, even wishes that time could halt forever.
When he opens eyes again, Alex has just shared a last kiss, finished to clean Henry’s body up and threw his dirty used necktie into a garbage bin on the right-hand side.
Henry stands up slowly and begins to appreciate the tapestry on the opposite wall. After so many times he visited here, Henry is still amazed at the full details.
"Alexander’s triumphal entry into Babylon." Henry turns sideways and whispers in Alex’s ear, "Eight years posterior, the death occurred to him there, just eight month after the death occurred to another *him*."
"Hephaestion, *he too is Alexander*." Alex takes the topic over and replies in advance.
While Henry casts a quite surprised glance at him.
"I have prepared myself half a month just for today, so no mess-up would be expected." Alex wears a bright grin now, holds Henry’s hand tightly and they depart from the Pio Pavilion post-haste. Soon after devoured by the entire darkness, Alex leads Henry to the left. Following their pace, the chandeliers with motion sensors start to gleam one by one, shortly is the entire Colonna Gallery brilliantly lit.
Then, after Alex requests Henry to remain in place, he walks two steps down.
"Joe Bradley, American News Service." Alex appears to imitate Gregory Peck vividly, "Which of the cities visited did Your Highness enjoy the most?”
Henry can’t stop to laugh, tilts his head but still finishes his lines, “Rome, by all means, Rome.”
"I will cherish my visit here in memory, as long as I live!" the voice of Alex is added in too, and soon it becomes a duet.
"Your rendition today is genuinely out of my expectation“ standing face to face, Henry feels colour rather higher in his cheeks.
Alex takes his phone out with another wide grin, searches a bit then reads loudly, "Based on a Vogue interview last month, the favourite rom-coms of Prince Henry are Notting Hill, Bringing Up Baby and...“ Alex swipes the screen theatrically and continues, "Roman Holiday."
"Whom you would wish to be, Hephaestion or Bradley?" Henry’s smile abruptly vanished and he questions as a whisper, playing his signet ring unconsciously.
"I would be both. Above all i would steal the heart of Your Royal Highness," Alex reached out a hand, touched Henry’s left chest and grabs him gently a bit closer, “and then let him cry at my funeral.“ meanwhile Alex uses a index finger to rub Henry's corner of eye softly, as wiping the imaginary tears.
When the word *funeral* is mentioned, Alex is astounded by a sudden twitch from Henry beneath his hand, "Sorry, it’s just a joke."
"What i mean to say, to be Bradley, anonymous, bequeathing no single mark in history, or to be Hephaestion, even the name was engraved, insisting enormous scholars steadily on that he was just a friend."
Alex is tongue-tied, concurrently the colossal silence begins to cool down all the passion. Henry holds Alex’s hand against his chest also intertwines his slim fingers with Alex’s increasingly firm. "Wanted to get some air." Henry looks up to Alex with red-watery eyes.
Alex falls into a light trance and follows Henry to the window half-consciously.
"Take it easy, comparing with the wedding cake, at least you hardly messed things up this times."
Henry attentively opens the window though the weather of Rome is yet chilly at end of March, water vapour covering all over the glass. Alex notices that Henry wraps his coat tighter, therefore he strolls to the backside of Henry, leaning his head on Henry’s shoulder, hugging Henry firmly with his both warm arms.
The midnight of the Eternal City is astonishing brilliant even the St Gabriel's statue overlooking Castel Sant'Angelo looms out of the lights. The pair stand still and quiet for a while, leaning on each other and sighting the view outside. Suddenly Alex is reminded by some thought, then he turns around, walks to the other side of the wide opening window and knocks on the foggy glass; Henry turns his head and gazes at Alex.
Soon after, Alex starts to write some words delicately on the glass:
Я(R)OMA, Rome
On the opposite side Henry reads the mirrored words in a low voice:
AMOR, Love.
"Boom!“ Several sparkling fireworks rise in the northwest corner of the sky.
It is the wee hour of Easter Sunday, congregation, as a part of vigil, gathering on the Piazza del Popolo traditionally, setting off the fireworks and celebrating the Resurrection.
"Omnia uincit Amor et nos cedamus Amori. (Love conquers all, and we surrender to love)" Alex recites the latin poetry with a tiny spanish accent.
"Eclogae X, Vergilius."
"For etiquette, I have also learnt some elite and privileged and living in a place knowledge."
As more fireworks rise and glitter over their faces, Alex returns to wrap Henry from the backside again, leaning his head farther deeply and hugging Henry further firmly.
"In order to response your former question, i believe i would find a third answer."