He didn't mean for it to become a permanent thing.
His candle flickered, and his eyelids were heavy, and Hakuei had long since gone to bed; Hakuryuu was trying to do the same.
Unfortunately for him, that didn't really seem to be an option.
"I'm bored." Judal's voice cut through the air, slicing that preciously calm atmosphere into shreds with what was probably his millionth complaint.
"Then go away."
"But I don't wanna,"
"I'm trying to sleep."
"But that's so boring!"
The prince huffed in thinly concealed annoyance; this cycle had gone on for what could have been an hour, maybe more, and he was at the end of his rope- which hadn't been very long to begin with (if he was being honest, he knew he should be treating the magi more like a magi, but the other's childish behavior made it easy to forget he was supposed to be respected).
"If you're not going to leave, then just lay down and be quiet, already,"
Surprisingly enough, the magi complied, climbing into bed next to the prince and smiling in triumph, as though he'd just won the argument (Had that been his intention?). Before either of them could say anything else, the pathetic flicker of a flame went out, leaving them in the dark. Neither of them reacted though; they were both rather used to it- for very different reasons.
The magi held a heavy presence, and although Hakuryuu tried to brush it off, he could practically feel the other's breathing; the silence was ridiculously loud, and it took him a while to let himself get lost in it.
Fire; everything was on fire. Everything was on fire and he couldn't breathe. There was blood and there was smoke and there were bodies littering the ground like dust and he couldn't breathe; there was screaming and coughing and his brothers were dying; they were dying and he ran and his mother was smiling and he couldn't breathe. He couldn't breath he couldn't breathe he couldn't breathe he couldn't-
He could breathe, but just barely.
He woke up in a haze of blurred vision and rushing adrenaline, drenched in a cold sweat that left him both freezing and burning; he could still feel the fire and taste the smoke and his scar stung. It wasn't an unfamiliar feeling. He'd had this nightmare countless times; that didn't make it any less horrible.
He was working on controlling his breathing, feeling his pulse slowing to a normal pace, when there was a sudden violent jerk of the bed, and he swore he almost had a heart attack. He was close to yelling, before he remembered he had an intruder in his bed; he'd almost forgotten Judal was even there.
Another thrash of his legs sent a pillow sinking to the floor- the magi seemed to be trying tokickhim- and he sat up to tell the jerk to get out, before he realized that the magi was- surprisingly- still asleep. Judal had managed to twist the entirety of the blanket around himself; his braid was coming undone, fanning out around him in a halo of sorts- a very tangled halo- and covering most of his face. He seemed to be curling in on himself; there was a shudder and an unintelligible murmur and something that may have been a whimper and Hakuryuu was very confused.
Was he…having a nightmare? Could magi even have nightmares? Could Judal even have nightmares? Honestly, he didn't think the magi had enough imagination to dream anything up, and yet… it was so unlike him Hakuryuu had to wonder ifhe was the one dreaming.
"Judal?" he muttered, hesitant to wake the other boy up. "Hey, Judal."
At the lightest touch of his shoulder, Judal froze. His eyes shot open in a panic, and he had the tip of his wand at Hakuryuu's neck in a heartbeat. His eyes were wide and wild, clouded with sleep and whatever other remnants his dream had left behind. A few moments passed with heavy tension, before his expression softened, along with the pressure on Hakuryuu's neck, and the prince let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"…Kuryuu?" Judal drawled sleepily. "What're you doing here?"
"You're the one in my room."
The magi merely blinked, glancing around the room with a vacant "…Oh."
"Are…you okay?" Hakuryuu asked, tentative and unsure about how to fill the silence.
The magi turned towards him, lips curling into a lazy grin, eyebrows raised in that familiar, teasing look, and the Judal he knew was back. "Why? Do you actuallycare about me?"
Hakuryuu scoffed, yanking the blanket back and falling into the sheets. "Whatever. Just go back to sleep. Or leave; I don't care."
He heard the rustling and felt the shifting of Judal burrowing back into the mattress, and tried to ignore the magi altogether.
"Hakuryuu. I'm cold." The silence was broken.
"Deal with it yourself." He whispered back.
"But Hakuryuuuu,"
Judal wiggled his way over, taking great care in wrapping himself around Hakuryuu's torso. The prince sighed in annoyance, and put an arm around him grudgingly in response.
He had no idea what the other would possibly have nightmares about; if it was enough to freak Judal out, he wasn't sure he even wanted to. But if they were anything like his- with the fire and the blood and the whispers of his dying brother, the smile of that damn woman- no one, not even a jerk like Judal, really deserved that.
"I get them too," the prince muttered, "Nightmares." He had no idea what was prompting him to talk. There was no response from the magi, but he continued anyways. "So…it's ok."
"It's not."
"I know."
And that was it, end of conversation.
Judal persisted in inching his way further and further into what was left of the prince's personal space, seeming determined to get as close to him as possible. Hakuryuu, on the other hand, was finding it increasingly difficult to get comfortable; he was so unused to having anyone- other than Hakuei, of course- this close to him, and, with it being Judal of all people, he should've been repulsed, or completely in awe; he wasn't sure which one. But he wasn't; he was surprised to find that the magi- with his stupid hair getting everywhere, and his sighs of contentment- seemed remarkably human.
And somehow, through everything: the constricting grasp, his half-hearted attempts to break free, and the feeling of the magi's breath against his chest, he managed to drift off into a surprisingly dreamless sleep; the best sleep he'd had in a while.
"Hakuryuu. I'm cold."
Really, he didn't mean for it to become a permanent thing.
Somehow, years later, the magi still managed to sound like a petulant child, more annoying than ever. But by now, all Hakuryuu did was open his arms, sighing endearingly while the magi buried his head in his chest.
It was, in fact, swelteringly warm, but it was the middle of the night and he knew Judal was too proud to suck it up and ask for actual comfort. Because the dreams- the nightmares- still came, now- with the power they were honing and the war they were preparing and those memories that seemed to want to plague them- more than ever.
And one of them would wake, one night or another, and Hakuryuu would run his hands through that long hair and Judal would rub the prince's back or maybe run his fingers lightly over one of his many scars, and they would tell each other stories without really talking, or throw light conversation back and forth, or maybe just lie in silence, because that's where they communicated best.
Genuine affection was strange to give, even stranger to receive; it wasn't sickly-sweet like Gyokuen's, wasn't built on pity or personal gain (alright, maybe their intentions had been self-serving at first, but those were long gone), and there was something extremely satisfying in saying someone else's name, and knowing they were right there to answer.
"Practically mastered that clairvoyance magic."
"Have you?"
"Yep. That witch won't know what hit her."
Hakuryuu had to smile, if wearily, at the tired enthusiasm the magi still held onto.
"We still have a lot to do; she's very strong. So don't get lazy on me."
Judal's short laugh was muffled in the prince's shirt. "We'll get her though."
"Of course,"
"We will," It was more of a question than a statement, but Hakuryuu was absolutely sure.
"We will."
And they did.