Dear Laurent,

I promised that I would write to you didn’t I? I hope that your travel back to your country went well. I’m a little worried that a group of bandits got to your horses before you made it back to Vere, so please write back as soon as you can.

I’m so glad that you and your brother came to my land and signed this treaty, and while I know that many of my people are not happy with the decision to join lands it will benefit both of us in the long run.

I hope that one day I’ll be able to make a journey to your land and see your country the way it should be seen, and hopefully by the time I arrive you’ll be able to beat me in a fight. You’re pretty close.

Sincerely,

Damen

--

Dear Damen,

I can assure you that our horses and men were not harmed on our trip back to our land. If we had been ambushed, I would have protected my brother and horses with my life. I’m sure my brother told you my love for horses, but it should have been obvious when you were spying on me and Pallas in the stable.

I know that you’ll be at our country soon enough, Auguste can’t stop talking about your fighting style. Believe it or not, you made an unforgettable impression on him, and he won’t forget you. When your letter arrived, our nation was still pretty chaotic with the death of our uncle and Auguste had been about to throw it away, but I stopped him just in time.

He won’t tell you this, but I will as payback for all the embarrassing stories he probably told you when you two were alone. He’s glad to have met the real King Damianos instead of the King people talked about in rumors. He’s glad you’re not your father and want to run your kingdom the way you want it to.

Excuse me, I’ve been rambling, but one last thing before I end this letter.

The rematch is another thing I’ll hold you to.

Sincerely,

Laurent

--

Dear Laurent.

No, go ahead and ramble. I barely heard you talk when I was around, but then again I had been talking to your brother the whole time, which I am terribly sorry for.

The only time I heard you open up is when you were talking about the garden and the horses. It’s okay to keep talking because I want to learn more about you.

By the way, I told the garden and my stable keep what you said and they all hounded me with more questions. They hope you’ll be back soon to give them the “tips” you have hidden in your mind since their hopeless King can’t give any.

Also, if the two of you ever come back, I’d like to have you two sit in on a meeting. Makedon and the others are starting to at least come around a little bit, though I’m sure if you can hold your alcohol Makedon will become one of your best friends. He just has to learn to give it up.

I’m sorry that I couldn’t introduce you and Auguste to them last time because all of them kept throwing tiny tantrums whenever I mentioned the two of you. The council seems a lot less…full after I told them they could leave.  

Did I do the wrong thing by sending some of the council away for arguing against me? I’m sure they were expecting to be executed, but I could never end someone’s life because they argued against my beliefs.

Hope all is well,

Damen

--

Dear Damen,

You flatter me too much. I really should just send my staff over there, that’s where I learned most of my tips. Though I guess we could spare another return to your land, and maybe you can show us some more of the spots where you and your brother used to go.

Don’t worry, about the not knowing me part and the council part. You’ll get to know me soon enough with these letters. Besides, I was on your tail the whole time trying to figure you out that I never really got a chance to introduce myself.

With the council, you didn’t do the wrong thing. You showed mercy in a place where your father would not, and that will show the castle and your people that you are not your father. I mean, they really should have figured it out the moment we arrived but some of them probably just need a little more help.

You sound just like my brother in the fact that he thinks he won’t make a great King when in fact he already is, and so are you. Your people love you, just like the people in my land love my brother. The two of you just have to figure out that little fact.

Don’t think so much about it, okay?

Laurent

--

Dear Laurent,

Thank you.

--

It’s just two little words but it makes Laurent’s heart soar all the same. He tries to play it cool because his brother is looking at him from across the table but he can’t help the smile that tugs at his lips.

Damen had kept his word. He had written to him over and over and Laurent would be lying if he said it didn’t make him giddy. It doesn’t matter that Damen didn’t talk to him much during their stay because the letters made up for it.

In truth, ever since they have arrived back in Vere Laurent has been dedicating every waking moment to training. He wants to win when he meets Damen again, wants to prove that he’s just as skilled with a sword as his brother and with this training he will be. His muscles may ache but it’ll be worth it to see the look of surprise on Damen’s face.

“I wonder why Damen has written to you but not me,” Auguste muses as he shoves a piece of fruit in his mouth. There’s a glint of mischief hiding in those eyes and Laurent places the letter face down instead of indulging his brother. “Maybe it’s because he wants to court you some day?”

Laurent almost chokes on a piece of fruit. He coughs and sputters, reaching for his glass of water to get the food down.

“Brother, you can’t just say stuff like that! Besides, you’re wrong.”

His brother has to be wrong. Damen didn’t look at him like that while they were both at Akielos. He had been looking at Auguste the whole time instead of him. He had been just someone that was there, not someone that Damen would notice.

Auguste hums his disagreement and Laurent leaves before the want to throw something at his brother’s head becomes a need.

--

Dear Damen,

My brother just had a ridiculous notion this morning. He said that you were thinking of courting me? Is he wrong? I mean if he’s not wrong then that’s okay but if he is wrong then I would like to hear it from you.

Laurent

--

Dear Laurent,

I’ve been thinking for a few months of how to reply to this, and I’m sorry for that. I’m sure I’ve worried you, but your brother is right. From the day I saw you on the battlefield I hoped that I would have a chance to be able to court you properly.

However, I don’t want to court you at this very moment. I will wait until you are of the age of eighteen before I do anything. If you can wait five years, then I will come to Vere with the intention to ask your brother if I can court you. I know your brother’s approval means everything to you.

If that’s alright with you,

Damen

--

Dear Damen,

Maybe you know me better than I thought, but if you need to ask my brother then you have some more learning to do. When you arrive, my brother will already know what you’re arriving for. He knows what your intentions are and he knows that they are good ones. It seems that you have earned my brother’s trust already, and wholeheartedly at that too.

You not only have his trust, but mine too.

I know that you’ll take good care of me, Damen. So, the answer to your question is yes I can wait for five years for you to come.

Will you tell me how it would be with you? What makes you different from the other men that have tried to come to my brother with the same intent as you?

Truly yours,

Laurent

--

Dear Laurent,

I will court you, with all the grace and courtesy that you deserve.

I will wait for you until you’re ready. I will tell you how beautiful you are each and every day because you deserve to know, and if I forget then you have the right to be mad at me.

You deserve the world, Laurent, and I’ll try my best to give it to you.

--

Dear Damen,

You don’t have to try, Damen. You already have.

--

Five years have passed since Laurent sent that letter to Damen, and five years later the words still ring true. They never stopped writing letters to each other with every letter that Damen had sent to him, the words kept getting sweeter and sweeter. It got to the point where Laurent had to start reading them in his bedroom so his brother wouldn’t tease him about the flush to his cheeks.

Five years later and Laurent is now eighteen and awaiting Damen’s arrival to ask his brother for permission to court him.  

Laurent shouldn’t be anxious about this and his stomach shouldn’t be all up in knots. He knows that Auguste will agree but there’s still that possibility of rejection and Laurent doesn’t think he’ll be able to take that if it does happen.

There’s a knock on his bedroom door and Laurent takes one last look at himself in the mirror. He has definitely grown since the last time Damen has seen him, and he looks a lot more like his brother. All of his baby fat has grown into lean muscle, and his hair has grown a bit more but other than that he’s still the same Laurent as before.

He looks down at his palms, still smooth even though they should be rough and calloused due to all the sword practice he has done over the years. Even if his hands don’t show it, he hopes that his swordsmanship will.

“Prince Laurent, if you don’t come now, you’ll miss meeting King Damen.” One of the castle workers says through the door, their voice lit with excitement as it should be. He has been spending years telling the people who work here about Damen that Laurent thinks they’ve fallen in love with him as well.

“Coming.”

He gives himself one more glance before turning to meet the worker, their feet moving quickly through the hall. He has spent too much time fretting in his room when he should have been in the throne room, waiting for the arrival of Damen.

It’s only fifteen minutes past nine in the morning, so if Damen had made his arrival already Damen and his brother will just be greeting each other.

When he and the castle worker arrive at the entrance of the throne room, he lets the workers hands fix his clothing. The lady before him looks just as anxious as he feels and Laurent supposes she has a good reason to be as well. The whole staff has been preparing for the feast tonight non-stop this week, and Laurent doesn’t know how to thank them enough. Damen deserves nothing but the best tonight.

When he arrives in the throne room, Damen is standing in front of Auguste and the two of them are smiling. His heart soars at the sight, and maybe it decides to jump up in his throat when those golden brown eyes turn to look at him. He doesn’t know what to say to Damen but he hopes that his eyes portray his feelings better than his face.

“Brother.” Auguste greets when he stands next to his brother. “Nice of you to join us. Now, Damen, I know you want to ask my permission to court my younger brother. That’s not necessary because I’ve seen how happy you’ve made him and that’s all I can really ask for. I just have one question, though, would you do anything for my younger brother? Would you give your life to protect my brother?”

Damen’s eyes shift to Laurent and it’s filled with such intensity that Laurent has to look away.

“Yes, if Laurent’s life was in danger I would stop at nothing to make sure he’s safe.”

“Then that’s all that matters. Congratulations, Damen. You can now officially court my brother, but just know that I’ll be keeping a close eye on you.”

Laurent’s body is practically humming with excitement as Damen takes the remaining steps toward him, reaching for his hand. Words seem to escape him at this moment and he can feel the slow burn of his blush creep up his neck.

Laurent doesn’t know how he can grow into this quick-witted thing over the years, but once Damen enters the room he’s a mess.

“Thank you for waiting,” Laurent says as he watches Damen’s head dip down to press a kiss to his knuckles. The kiss makes his skin tingle and it makes Laurent think about what it would feel like to have those lips trail over his lips, neck, or anywhere on his body. Laurent’s sure he’ll have more than enough time to figure it out.

“I would wait for you forever if you asked me to.” The words are cheesy but Laurent knows that the man means it.

“Well, I’m going to go but just remember that there is a feast tonight. Don’t be late.”

The words don’t register until his brother is out of the room and then he realizes that he’s alone with Damen, and the nerves come slamming back in. He doesn’t really know what he’s supposed to be doing, but he wraps his hand around Damen’s anyway and tugs him towards the door.

“I’ll show you around the castle. There are many of my people and guards who want to meet you, and I think there was something about a rematch in our letters? I’ve been practicing.”

The corners of Damen’s lips tug up and Laurent thinks that he can almost replace the sun with that gorgeous smile.