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Hob was dreaming. He was pretty good at figuring it out after a few hundred years of being alive, not to mention that he was dating the Lord of Dreams. Dating seemed like such an understatement of what they were to each other, what their relationship was, but it was difficult to boil down something so intricate and special into terms a regular human could understand.
Sometimes when he went to sleep Hob still simply had normal dreams like any other person, those were nights when the Dream Lord was busy and could not join him, he had a kingdom to run after all. More often than not now though, Hob’s dreams consisted of being brought to the palace of The Dreaming where Morpheus lived and awaited him. They would usually spend the evening together, roaming The Dreaming, or enjoying the comforts of the palace, or making love.
Usually Dream was able to visit him a few times a week, whether it be in The Dreaming or in the human world, but Dream had been away just over a week now, sorting out family matters in other realms. It had been a long and strangely lonely week without his love, especially with the Christmas season quickly approaching. Hob had thought himself immune to the loneliness of human holiday’s after so long alone, but of course after finally managing to cultivate a romantic relationship with the being he’d been taken with since the moment they’d met, Hob found the loneliness crept in whenever Dream had to leave him for extended periods.
It was easy to tell that he was having a normal dream, though it was a little morose, since he was alone, and watching people enjoy each other’s company from his usual seat at their pub. At least the whiskey tasted right, he supposed as he sipped it from his glass, plus it looked almost exactly like the real one, with the Christmas decorations that he’d put up that week and all. The pub was often their meeting point in real life as well as in his dreams, but in the dream version Morpheus was usually waiting for him there when he fell asleep. Hob would have rather not dreamt that night at all than sit there alone.
A moment later something shifted, like the dream was mutating at the level of it’s very essence, Hob knew it to be Dream’s power, was he coming? It wasn’t exactly something that he could describe, almost like a shimmer in the air, it couldn’t quite be seen, but it could be felt.
The front door of the pub opened, and with a swish of black sidled in the Dream Lord himself. Hob couldn’t help the grin that spread across his face at the sight of his love. A smaller, softer smile was given in return, it read almost as relief, and Hob wondered how bad of a week it had been for Dream.
“I apologise for my tardiness, my love, I had intended to meet you earlier, however I got held up,” Dream explained as he reached Hob’s table.
“It’s alright, I know you to be busy, and I do have the time,” he joked light heartedly, hoping to brighten Dream’s spirits, “I wasn’t sure when you’d be back to expect you anyway.”
“Mm, speaking of…come,” Dream held out his hand, “I must return to the palace, unfortunately I still have work to do. It would be…nice to have your company, if you don’t mind joining me while I work.”
“Of course,” Hob nodded, taking Dream’s hand, and following him back toward the front door, “I missed you too.”
There was a warmth to Dream’s gaze as they stepped into the throne room of The Dreaming palace. Lucienne was waiting for them, Hob nodded to her and she returned the gesture at the same time that Dream begun speaking to her, requesting various things, all of which she wrote down. Meanwhile Hob glanced around, seeing if the stained glass windows had changed since he’d last been there, he did notice the absence of something though.
"You don't decorate the palace for holidays?" Hob inquired once Lucienne had set off with her list of tasks, and it was just them again.
"They are human festivities, why would I?" Dream asked in answer.
Hob shrugged, realising his mistake, "I would say visitors, but I suppose you don't allow many of those outside of their own dream spaces."
Dream stepped closer, right into Hob’s space, gazing into his eyes, "You are indeed special, Hob Gadling. Few humans have seen the insides of these walls."
Hob's lips quirked up in a smile, "I quite enjoy being special," he replied charismatically, hands finding Dream’s narrow waist beneath his long coat.
"Is that so?" Dream smirked in return.
"Mhmm," he rubbed his nose against Dream's teasing a kiss before pulling back, "but I still think that this place could use a little décor, at least some indoor plants, brighten it up a little."
"Did you become an interior decorator this century also?" Dream bantered good naturedly, eyes flicking to human lips.
Hob laughed, "No, but it pays to keep up with trends when you're immortal, gotta stay current you know."
Hob could see the eye roll and sigh happening behind the calm features of Dream's face, and then the next moment Dream did a complicated thing with his hand, and above their heads sprouted a lovely long plant with white berries hanging down low enough to be mere inches from their hair.
A sultry grin bloomed on Hob’s face as he turned back to Dream, “Well, look at you checking multiple boxes; a plant that’s festive, pretty, and romantic.”
“I’m pleased you approve, my love.”
After staring into each other’s eyes for a long moment, Hob didn’t want to hold back any longer, he cupped Dream’s jaw in both hands, “Fuck, I really missed you,” he murmured before crashing their mouths together in a searing kiss.
“It was…mmm…only, ah-a week,” Dream told him between kisses filled with nips of lips and caresses of tongue.
Hob rested his forehead against Dream’s, hands dropping to his coat, “Longest week of my life,” he confessed.
“My love, we used to meet once a century, surely a mere week was not so unbearable…” Dream insisted, bringing his own bony hands to lay over Hob’s, curling around them.
“Dear, that was before…we…before this, us,” Hob informed him quietly, “I have not felt such loneliness in a long time,” he admitted, head hung “…I know you have work to do, and I know it is selfish of me, but I would wish for you to take me to bed, make me forget you were even gone.”
“I understand,” Dream acknowledged with a squeeze of his hands, “and believe me, I want nothing more than to give in to my desire to engage in bodily pleasures with you, but I have a duty to my kingdom. Perhaps tomorrow evening when you sleep again, if I can get enough work done by then,” he promised.
“Of course, I know what you do is important,” Hob nodded, making to step back, “I shouldn’t have asked, like I said; selfish.”
Dream did not let him move however, keeping them pressed close, “Stay…until you must wake,” he implored before seeking out Hob’s lips with his own, kissing him soundly, and lingering far longer than Hob expected him too.
“Always,” Hob breathed.
“It has been a long week for me also,” Dream quietly admitted, then he seemingly reluctantly pulled away and offered his hand instead, “come, my love, we have much to do.”
And for a second time that night Hob took the Dream Lord’s hand and was whisked away to another part of The Dreaming.