#toteemile

Passing nights were unusually hard for the young Emperor. What usually felt like a simple weakness and a headache, which he got used to, now rendered him unable to fall asleep, or get out of bed at all. And it wasn't helped by the fact that court healers had no idea how to help him.

Lanfor laid in his bed, not even trying to fall asleep anymore. Simply waiting for the morning to come, when he heard a slight squeak of the opening window, followed by the sound of climbing into the room and softly landing on the carpet inside of it.

Someone had broken into Emperor's bedroom. Lanfor did not dare to move, let alone look at the intruder, as thoughts of who this could possibly be swarmed his mind. Could it be a spy? A traitor? An assassin? The whole world was in unrest now, given how poor of a job he did, it was no wonder the people would try and get rid of him. He thought of calling the guards, but regardless of what he did, the outcome was already determined.

He had accepted his fate by the time when the sounds, which were gone ever since the intruder stepped foot on the carpet, resumed. But not in a way that Lanfor had anticipated.

"Come now, Lanfor. You know i can tell if you're sleeping or not." - A familiar voice was heard, making the Emperor wonder if his ears deceived him.

Overpowering his weakness, he turned in his bed to look at the intruder, but all he could see was a silhouette of a man, who laughed, before creating a small orb of dense magic in his hand. Just enough to light up his face.

"Hey, don't panic. It's still me, see?" - He walked closer to the Emperor's bed.

"Emile…" - Lanfor exhaled, under his breath, not believing his eyes.

He actually returned. His friend, who'd been gone for almost three years wasn't just alive, but stood right there in front of him. Lanfor tried to get up to properly greet Emile, but was stopped by his friend's heavy hand, forcing him back on the bed. Instead, the mage chose to sit down next to the Emperor.

One would think that friends who'd been away from one another for several years would have plenty of things to talk about, however, none of the two men spoke. Whether was it from awkwardness, lack of topics, or the abundance of those is anyone's guess, however, one thing was for certain. For Lanfor just seeing his friend alive and well already lifted a heavy weight from his heart.

"I- We thought that you were…" - Finally, young Emperor broke the silence, his voice sounded somewhat weakened.

"Dead?" - Emile scoffed, falling back, watching as the small ball of light flew above them. - "Now that's upsetting. Do you really have that bad of an opinion of me?" - He joked, failing to read the room.

"You… Didn't attend the coronation." - Lanfor grasped onto the sheets, looking away from the mage. - "And none of my letters gotten a reply since."

Emile's expression dropped. For a moment he was grateful that the lack of light in the room didn't let Lanfor see his face, as the silence between the two fell once again before being quickly broken.

"I couldn't. Your coronation was right next to my finals, and…" - Emile explained, trying his best to hide the doubt in his own words. - "I didn't appear in Uvlance since graduation."

"Why didn't you at least tell me?"

"... I don't know" - Mage confessed, after a pause, looking into the distance.

"Where were you even?" - Lanfor adjusted his position, to get his legs from below Emile's back, now sounding more annoyed than saddened.

"I was… Traveling. Mostly. Was all over the place! Elssia, Trading Union… I even got my way into Grauen! …Although that one ended up being somewhat disappointing." - Emile smiled excitedly, turning to his side and gesturing over an imaginary map. - "But you probably been to a lot more than that, being an Emperor an-" - He began, before cutting himself short, noticing Lanfor's tightened grip on the sheets. - "I-i didn't mean it like that. Oh, Great Dragon, i'm so sorry."

"It's okay. It really is. It used to be hard, but i got a hang of it, i think." - Lanfor smiled dimly at his friend. - "Although, i think you overestimate how much i get to leave the castle."

Hearing this, Emile sat back up, taking yet another look at Lanfor and, most importantly, his magic. As the ball of light passed above Emperor's head, the mage could barely hold back his emotions, not even sure what he felt at the sight of his friend's pale face, which expressed nothing but tiredness, no matter how much he attempted to hide it, accompanied by a shimmer of white that started to appear in his hair despite the young age.

And his magic… Emile couldn't even imagine how Lanfor's magic got to such a devastating state, wondering only how his friend managed to survive so long with it being this unstable. Emile silently reproached himself for leaving Lanfor.

Without even thinking, he reached out to Lanfor, bringing him into a hug, unable to say a word.

Lanfor was taken by surprise by his friend's actions, but didn't mind the embrace. Somehow, this made it feel almost as if all of his weakness and pain washed away in an instant, giving way to nothing but relief and calmness. The Emperor wrapped his hands around his friend, letting out a bitter laugh, as tears started running down his face.

Eventually, Emile let go, now looking straight at Lanfor, who was wiping out his tears. Mage sighed with a serious expression.

"You can't keep lying to yourself, you know."

"Wh- What do you mean?" - Lanfor's heart dropped, upon hearing that.

"Just…" - Words refused to come out Emile's mouth, making him fall back onto the bad again, with a frustrated groan. - "It's just that you're a moron."

Mage's sudden expression made Lanfor smile, letting out an agreeing sigh. For a while the silence fell between the two, but it felt different now, having no traces of initial awkwardness or discomfort. The Emperor looked towards the window, seeing only a starry sky, as careful wind moved the curtain out of the way. Such a peaceful night.

"You know, it's about time i settle down." - Emile broke the silence, dragging Lanfor out of his thoughts.

"And where are you going to stay? I want to at least be able to send letters."

"You tell me, Your Highness." - The mage shrugged. - "I barely had time to read your letters, and that one was not even a letter. It was just a bunch of paperwork."

"Wait you're…" -Lanfor couldn't believe his ears, yet unable to contain his excitement. - "You're agreeing to be my Court Mage!?"

"Well, yeah." - Emile got up on his elbows. - "I'm already here, might as well make myself useful."

"I guess." - Lanfor smiled, finally without a trace of sadness behind it, before answering to Emile's question. - "Usually all court servants live within the castle, but i don't think you'll like that all too much."

"If i'm getting into the position, might as well do it on my own terms!" - Emile plopped back onto the sheets with a victorious smile, just now noting for himself how much softer palace's beds were, compared to all of the taverns and farmhouses he spent nights in before.

Lanfor laughed at his friend's behaviour, almost as if he hadn't already begun coming up with ideas on how he could bend the rules to accommodate Emile's free-spirited nature. It wasn't unheard of for rulers to bend some rules for their loved ones, but it was a completely different thing to attempt and do the same for someone who was considered as little more than a personal servant or a guard. But maybe there was still a way.

"Do you still have the… watch, that i gave you?" - Lanfor asked, somewhat carefully.

Without a word, Emile reached into his inner pocket, taking out an intricately decorated pocket watch, all the little details of which came together to form royal family's crest. Small scratches shined in the dim light. Many would consider the fact that Emile allowed this piece of art to get scratched in the first place an act of disrespect, but to Lanfor it was simply proof that his friend never forgot.

This answer was more than enough for the young Emperor.

"In that case, we can discuss your "employment" tomorrow. I'll make sure to prepare everything in the morning and wait for you. Just… Promise that you will come."

"Well it's too late to back down now, is it?" - Emile replied, not really paying much attention, instead, playing around with the ball of light, like a cat would with a feather.

Who knows how long the two spent talking, laughing and remembering their past together. Who knows how many stories of Emile's adventures were shared, how many annoyances about being an Emperor Lanfor expressed, and how many memories of their childhood days the two men remembered.

Stories of their training together, of their school days, their teachers, their peers, of how they spent time in the castle's gardens and how they escaped from the palace at nights. Emile couldn't help but note that Lanfor should fix the gaps in the surveillance, otherwise he might not end up as the only night visitor for the Emperor.

Only when the night sky began to lighten up did they choose to part.

"Wish we could spend some more time like this, but it's really time for me to go." - Catching the ball of light said Emile. - "I did kinda break into the Emperor's room in the middle of a night, afterall."

Emile crushed the ball of light in his fist, after standing up, making the air around him fill with shimmering particles of magic, which soon faded. Lanfor prepared to get up as well, this time without being stopped by his friend, who, instead, handed the Emperor his cane.

"You can tell the rest tomorrow, when you visit in a more… legal manner." - Lanfor joked, taking the cane from Emile's hand and standing up.

Lanfor's body still felt somewhat weakened, but this time he stood straight, being helped by his friend, who also made sure he didn't accidentally bump into anything. Slowly, almost hesitantly, they made their way towards the balcony door. It was time to say goodbye.

They opened the balcony doors, letting the morning chill inside. On the railing lied a pointy hat, patiently awaiting its owner, moving ever so slightly with the breeze.

Emile patted his friend on the shoulder for the last time, before letting go of him and moving forward to take the hat. He jumped onto the railings and put his hat on in a single swift movement, like it was a carefully rehearsed action in a play.

"Until we meet again, Your Highness!" - Emile sang, turning to face Lanfor with a dramatic bow, making him laugh once more.

"Just make sure not to break any laws in your next visit."

"Then don't make me!"

Emile smiled for the last time, before jumping of the balcony back first, which caught the Emperor off guard, making him drop everything and rush towards the railing, only to notice a barely visible shadow running through the gardens and towards the palace's wall, allowing for a wave of relief to wash over Lanfor.

For a while he stood there, watching as the shadow of his friend closed in first on the Palace's wall, then ran between the buildings of the Castle and finally disappeared beyond the Castle's wall. He then lifted his gaze to look at the starry sky, quietly thanking everyone up there for letting him meet his old friend once again.

Only then did Lanfor realize that he managed to stand there all on his own for so long, having dropped the cane when he rushed towards the railings. He looked back at it, before coming to pick it up. For the first time since his coronation his body felt light enough to be able to stand on his own. He looked at the intricately designed piece of wood in his hand, before turning back towards the city and the night sky.

How long have it been since he managed to enjoy the beaty of the night like this? And when did he last leave the castle? His memories of the past years were a blur, feeling almost as if they didn't happen in the first place. However, now it suddenly felt as if the clouds in his mind were cleared with a single gush of wind.

Who knows, maybe it was some kind of a spell his friend used while he wasn't looking. Come to think of it, Emile never told him what he was capable of.

The Emperor looked to the sky one last time, before closing the balcony doors and going back to his bed.