A/N: Written for Officialkhamer on tumblr as part of the Secret Santa
Khamer brushed his fingers across the heavy, leather-bound tome for perhaps the third time since he sat at his desk. A tinge of impatience got the better of him and he leafed through the first few familiar pages. The odd word, sentence or passage replayed in his head in Erutus's voice and he paused to read the paragraph. Several of the sections that caught his eye made him smile at the memory but all too soon he reached the point where they last stopped reading. It would be easy to keep on going and later feign ignorance, but doing so would mean missing out on the pleasure of reading in company. His fingers rested on last page of chapter six. No. Khamer sighed and shut the book.
Something else then. His office was not bursting with distractions and entertainment. Little enough here beside the desk, the deep red curtains, a sofa for guests and the thinly populated book shelves containing nothing beyond dry political reports. Even the framed map was familiar to the point of tedium. He toyed with the idea of indulging in a glass of hot chocolate, the steaming jug nearby extremely tempting. His fingers closed on the handle and-. No; again it was a treat to enjoy with Erutus. That left him with the window and the overly familiar view of Ancheim beyond. At least this was somewhat different today given the weather. The individual panes of glass were marred with condensation at the edges; grey clouds covered the sky to the limits of his vision. Unusual enough for the desert, as was the shockingly low temperature at the moment.
Chill winds swiftly developed in the wake of the Vestal's interference, the reborn breeze growing with intensity as the temperature dropped. People scurried through the city streets, increasingly wary of any need to venture outdoors. Initially the novelty of the cold was entertaining - a complete change to the persistent heat of the region. But the cooler temperature had persisted and continued to fall for far too long; cold seeped into bones and houses as the city struggled to heat itself. There were at least counter-measures for now. Entertainingly more than one local wit suggested loudly that the best way to stay warm was close proximity with another warm body while wearing as little as possible. Khamer grinned.
Enough of a temptation to give him pause before trying to make use of any of the asterisk magic at his disposal. Even simply doing something purely practical; flit back in time and make a request for heating or get a fire built or some kind of chimney in his chambers. Of course it was also possible to speed through this waiting period and not be stuck with letting time pass normally. No. Patience; all the time in the world. Plus wasn't anticipation supposedly just as good as the the event? Maybe so, but it was hard to not want the wait to be over; the longer the delay the more agitated he found himself getting. No. Everything was fine; even at his most industrious, Erutus had always, would always make time to visit him.
The knock on the door when it came was a wondrous relief. Khamer composed his expression even as his lips threatened to quirk into a grin. He fought his face into a neutral expression and raised his voice to acknowledge the interruption. The stiff-backed member of the palace staff announced Erutus Profiteur's arrival and stepped aside to allow the visitor to enter the room. "Zo your majesty; I have come az bidden." His lover bowed low, his face betraying an eagerness not often seen outside of getting the upper hand in a financial transaction. A blatant tease as well; the servant could not see the man's face. Erutus could stare and grin at him as much as he liked, but Khamer had to keep up at least a pretence of decorum. They were both fully aware that any hint of an intimate relationship between them would inspire fresh unrest in the populace. It might once have been possible to weather the aftermath of such an outcome, but not now after the Vestal's stunt.
Khamer thanked the servant and waited a moment after the door closed to let out a sigh of relief; the Vestal and her companions evaporated from his concerns. "It's good to see you Eru."
Erutus smirked. "Ze zame zing every-day, Quent. Az if it iz more zan a day between each... meeting."
The stress on the last word sent a shiver of appreciation down Khamer's back. He feigned casualness. "You seem on awfully familiar terms with your king." Khamer took a step forward.
Erutus mirrored the movement. "You object?"
"Never. And I could not believe you would think it is not good we can see each other in private? Now we are alone?" Khamer forced himself to hold back from the embrace and kisses - for now.
"It iz a good zing," Erutus said as he leant forward. Khamer leaned closer, his lips brushing against the other man's. Not too much - there was time for more later. The office was not equipped like his bed chambers and ideally they would wait until the palace was quieter - when less might see the pair wander to bed together. "Care for a drink?" Khamer gestured to his desk and the still steaming jug upon it. At least Erutus arrived before the drink was stone cold.
"A hot drink zoundz appealing." Erutus's nose twitched. "An unfamiliar scent."
"Cocoa." Khamer smiled as he crossed to the table and poured two tall glasses of the slightly foamy drink. "A new import to the city. Few even know of it. The stuff has so many uses; the drink is just one of them."
Erutus took the proffered glass and sipped, his expression briefly startled. "Delicious," he said appreciatively and took another, longer sip. "Almost too sweet but-" Another sip. "A remarkable discovery."
Khamer slipped his arm around his companion's waist. "A perfect drink for a day such as this." They drank in silence, staring out of the window. A movement; faint but there. "Is that-?"
"Snow." Erutus peered through the glass. "I haven't seen it zince I was last in Eternia. I did not think it could happen in ziz climate."
"Nor did I. This is indeed a rarity," Khamer murmured. An ever increasing number of white flecks soon filled the sky. "Oddly hypnotic." The book lay forgotten behind them and it seemed pointless to concentrate on it now there was snow over the desert.
"Yes, but perhapz only if one is warm?" Erutus shuffled closer to him. "To be out in the weather iz wonderful at first - soon ze cold bites hard."
"At least we're inside," Khamer shot back.
Erutus nodded. "Best way to appreciate it."
Impossible now to pull away from the snowfall. Khamer left Erutus only for a moment to summon a servant with orders to fetch a blanket or two. He and Erutus settled themselves onto the floor and wrapped themselves up together as the sky darkened further. But however dark it became, the snow remained visible as it caught the light from the window. Khamer shivered at a draught and Erutus pressed closer against him. Truly this seemed the best way to watch the snow.