DIMITRI’S BIRTHDAY 2019 . ACCEPTING / it’s an easy decision and a strangely hard action — but today is a day that he could never truly forget, in the end. particularly not now. not ever. still, there are more graceful ways to go about it than placing the sheathed, beautifully made, perfectly tempered and balanced sword by a legendary blacksmith on dimitri’s desk without so much as a by your leave. particularly there are better things to say than, “here,” but none of them seem quite fitting. something like ‘i love you’ lingers.
HE REMEMBERS WHEN THEY WERE CHILDREN , YEAR AFTER YEAR WITHOUT FAIL HE WOULD OPEN HIS DOOR to hear felix , out of breath , darting up the final flight of stairs to the hallway holding the royal chambers , excitement mixed in with his self - made fatigue . in a flash he’d find himself all but tackled , body barreled into to be held in a tight hug and a trill of happy birthday , mitya ! ringing in his ear as laughter bubbled forth from his own lips , his arms wrapping tight ‘round felix’s slightly smaller stature . and he remembers the years that followed , the break between them , the dissonance of the man and the monster and / the boy they both left behind in pursuit of bloodying claws and gnashing fangs and where love once resided only fear remained , their sanguine thread cut by his own doing . that should have been the end of it , really , the road where they stopped , felix on his own path and dimitri gathering his footing upon his and the concept of holidays and birthdays and celebration between the two of them coming to a screeching halt with only the distant echo of what once to nip at their ears in the quiet solitude of long and lonely nights . and it is strange , then , that it didn’t ; dimitri is not ungrateful of course , finding relief and thanks in his heart every morning he wakes with the knowledge that felix has not left , that there is a body in his body aside from his own and it is warm and scarred and perfect . strange , nonetheless , that their story would continue into act iii , a softer epilogue / softer than he deserves , surely .
he’d forgotten what day it was , truthfully , waking in the morning to press lips to felix’s temple ‘fore dressing himself , heading to his office to settle at his desk before the mountain of paperwork he finds himself filtering through each day , somehow making no apparent progress at all no matter how empty his space is when he retires to bed . so focused upon that task the date , or at least the event accompanying failed to rustle up much of anything in his head beyond the usual plans he held for the day and as such it is slightly jarring when felix arrives some hours later , doors thrown open and item in hand . dimitri jumps slightly at the action , head snapping upward to focus attention upon lover and he hardly has the time to get out a puzzled ‘ felix ---- ? ’ before aforementioned item is being dropped before him , barely missing the nearby inkwell .
still he moves his ink away , just in case .
❛ ━━ oh . ❜ eloquent as always , he blinks several times as he registers what’s been given and he is , as always , immensely grateful for felix’s learned patience as he catches up to the fact that it is , in fact , his own birthday and this is undoubtedly a gift for said occasion . ‘ here ’ he’d said , and somehow it sounds like a promise in hindsight . ❛ ━━ ah , i --- i mean thank you , felix , you simply caught me off guard . ❜ & a sheepish smile , the faintest blush , works its way unto his visage to accompany his bashful follow - up .
quick is he then to reach for it , the sword taken into his hands and he admires the sheath first and foremost , noting the intricacies were not spared here despite being but the home for the more important part of his present and there is a small smile to appear as he runs his fingers over it , feeling the carefully woven textures with a quiet delight . but he knows that is not the part felix is waiting on him to see and he’s tested his patience enough for one day ; blade is thus removed from its sheath , metal glinting in the light of the sun that pours in from nearby window and even had he had the time to catch the gasp that escapes him upon seeing the handiwork he is doubtful he would have attempted to stop it .
it is beautiful , not that dimitri expected otherwise but expectations have been succeeded in every possible way and he is near breathless as he looks it over , places it upon his desk with the utmost care so he may slide his fingers o’er its surface . there are carvings made into the blade itself , shallow and intricate and filled with a silvery - white material he cannot identify yet can sense is home to some manner of magic and the hilt , the hilt because it cannot stop there , no , is a stunning shade of navy blue and silver that fits the grip of his hand as though it was born to be wielded by him and him alone . dimitri is silent a while , simply looking it over in absolute awe , examining every inch , every centimeter , of his new blade ‘fore a proper grin stretches over his lips .
❛ it is a beautiful gift . i ... find myself at a loss for words , truly . ❜ love laces every syllable of his soft tone , lifting from his seat to reach for felix’s hands as he walks ‘round the outside of his desk . dimitri holds it close once he has found what he was reaching for , presses lips to each individual knuckle and lifts his head with an expression carrying only a quiet fondness and open adoration ; they are but the slightest distance from one another , close as can be without being confining . ❛ thank you , felix . you are more than gift enough but this blade a wonderful accompaniment . ❜
thumbs rubbing over the back of felix’s hand , gentle , careful little motions . loving little motions .
❛ it seems a shame not to put it to use right away ; a blade such as this hardly deserves to exist only within its sheath , wouldn’t you agree ? ❜ a tug , gentle , as he begins to step back . ❛ come , felix . won’t you spar with me ? ❜
@knightsdeath / in the end , he thinks he finds the epilogue his favorite of their chapters
