Cassian practically dragged himself into his private bedchambers. The room had the evening sun casting long, golden shadows across the floorboards. He let out a long, exhausted sigh, unlacing his royal cloak and letting it fall to the floor.
All he wanted was to bury himself in the sheets and sleep until the tournament began.
But as he turned toward the bed, he froze.
Sora was already there, sitting gracefully on the edge of the mattress. In the soft light, the Elf looked breathtakingly radiant, his black hair falling perfectly over his shoulders, completely untouched by the exhaustion that plagued Cassian.
Hearing the door, Sora looked up, his face instantly lighting up with a warm, beautiful smile. He stood up and closed the distance between them in three long, elegant strides.
"You stayed away for so long, my lord," Sora murmured softly, his voice a smooth, comforting purr. Before Cassian could speak, Sora wrapped his long arms around the prince's waist, pulling him flush against his chest.
Cassian's body instinctively relaxed into the embrace. He was simply too tired to fight it, and Sora's natural elven warmth and their bond felt like a soothing balm to his aching muscles. He leaned his head against Sora's shoulder, letting out a soft hum and Sora smiled down at him, his fingers gently running through Cassian's messy hair. He leaned down, placing a soft, lingering kiss on the prince's temple.
"By the way, Dasery told me about your conversation with the Emperor. She told me about the announcement this Saturday... and the marriage terms."
"Mmh... are you pleased?" Cassian muttered, his eyes closed.
"More than pleased," Sora whispered, his voice thick with deep affection. He spun Cassian around to face him and then he slid Cassian's hands down to rest gently over his stomach, his touch turning incredibly reverent.
"To think that I will return to the elven lands with you and I officially recognized as my mate... and with our child growing so eagerly inside of me. You are giving my people a future, Cassian. You are giving *me* a future. I will build a beautiful home for us amidst the sacred trees while I wait for our marry. We will raise our family far away from the wars of men."
Sora kept talking, his voice filled with bright, hopeful dreams of a peaceful life together, but the words began to twist painfully in Cassian's mind.
A suffocating blanket of guilt settled over his chest. He let Sora hold him, but inside, he felt like an absolute monster. He was a ghost trapped in a beautiful lie. Sora was speaking of a forever, of a shared legacy and a life built on love and duty, but Cassian knew the bitter truth.
'I am going to leave in three months,'
Cassian thought, his throat tightening as a sharp ache pierced his heart.
'I am going to abandon this world completely. I am going back to Earth, back to my real family. This beautiful future he is building in his head... I will unfortunately have to destroy it.'
He looked up at Sora's radiant, smiling face, and the unsaid words choked him. He wanted to tell him the truth, to warn him not to love him so deeply, but he couldn't.
"Cassian? What is it?" Sora asked gently, noticing the sudden sadness in the prince's eyes.
"You look so sorrowful."
"It's nothing," Cassian lied softly, forcing a small, tired smile as he pulled Sora down for a gentle kiss to distract him.
"Just think of tomorrow's trial. Let's just rest for tonight, Sora. Please... just hold me."
"Of course, my lord," Sora murmured, pulling him under the heavy blankets.
As Sora wrapped his body protectively around him in the dark room, Cassian stared blankly into the shadows. He was surrounded by men who yearned for him—one who openly dreamed of a future together, and another standing guard outside, whose heart he was actively breaking. And yet, he had never felt more entirely alone.
*****