Author's Note:
Dedicated to Mabudachi-Trio.
Inspiration was from one of her favourite songs "King and Lionheart" by Of Monsters and Men.

I hop you enjoy it. Please let me know what you think.

The dark night was cold as ice and Theta watched with fascination as his breath turned into a small white cloud, gently flowing into the dead silence surrounding him.

These nights in the mountains were the worst they would get, he told himself over and over again. He tried to believe in his own lies.

Theta's eyes swivelled sideways; over at the fire the guard's shift had ended.
'Lucky bastard', he mumbled quietly while he couldn't wait for his turn near the fireplace again.
He tried to put his mind at ease as he rubbed his freezing hands against his chest.

Life at the Academy had been great – till now.
He'd enjoyed reading, he'd endured classes and being educated had nearly taken his mind off the fact that he was trained to be a soldier – and that one day he was going to war.
But it had all seemed so far away. He'd known that he would be forced to join his ancestors in the Time War one day; that he would have to fight and wound and kill someone one day...
Yes, one day.

But not now.

Theta drew in a sharp breath; he made quiet whistling noises while breathing out. The cold night was calling him; he didn't know how he was going to stand it any longer.
He'd heard that just before dying you sort of warmed up as your pores reopen and the warmth of your intestines evaporates or something.

Theta didn't care what it was but he'd really needed it now.
He knew of the purpose of those nights.

They were there to eliminate the weak.
Those, whose spirits and bodies weren't strong enough wouldn't make it; either because they would run off during those nights (and either getting home sound and safe but in shame or losing their bearings and dying in the mountains) or because they would simply die due to the freezing cold.

Theta had thought that he'd had a strong mind and a determined spirit; he'd really believed that he would make it.
But he felt tears running down his icy cheeks as he cried silently, knowing that he'd overestimated his strength and energy.

The severe cold was gnawing on both his mind and his body; only a few more minutes, he lied to himself, there could only be seconds left until he'd get to sit by the fire again.
He closed his eyes and tried to imagine the warmth on his skin.
And somehow it seemed to help.

Theta had closes his eyes.
He tried to put his mind off things; off his worries and the latent fear that he'd die tonight, that he'd actually die before his ninetieth birthday, that he'd actually die.
The memories were rushing through his mind. Good memories. Good memories of good days in good times.

When you were only playing soldier with Koschei; while you knew that he would never ever harm you; at least not on purpose.
When you always knew that every fight, every quarrel, every dispute you had with a friend would end; without anyone's death.
When you were scared of the dark because you didn't know what might lurk in it.

Theta shivered as the warming light of the fire caught his attention again.
Alright. He was at his wit's end, he was hungry, he was tired and most of all he felt as if every bone in his body had already turned to ice; so he decided he could finally admit it:
He was afraid of the dark. Still afraid of the dark, after receiving a soldier's basic training.
And he was afraid that might never change.

The guard's shift near the fire place ended. The one who'd been lucky enough to warm his freezing lap until now faded into the nipping cold darkness.
Theta shivered and breathed in deeply.
He watched Koschei sitting down near the fire.
He closed his eyes in frustration.

Of course. Koschei. Koschei could sit near the fire. It wasn't as if he was always complaining about the heat... No, Koschei was warm, he was always warm.
Theta coughed into his hands to feel his icy fingers again. They hurt.
He could have sworn that he'd seen frost bite there for a moment.
But Theta shut his eyes again and sucked in the cold night air.

Thinking of Koschei helped; imagining his warm and soft body beside him, thinking of him the way he'd been, always beside him, always near him, always guiding and protecting him...
Theta sighed in relief as he felt his tensed lungs relaxing.

Koschei. His Koschei. Always by his side.
Koschei was always there for him. Koschei had always cared. He'd never forgotten about him, no, not even they'd both entered the Academy.
Koschei had been everything to him.
Both tender and strong.
He'd shielded him from the others; and at the same time he'd trained him.
Theta thought he'd taught him well.
And he felt tears freezing in his eyes as he came to think about it.
And now, after all this time, he let Koschei down.
He couldn't take it anymore.
He just couldn't take it...

Theta lifted his head as he felt someone tugging him at his shoulder.
He opened his eyes.
Of course.
He must have dozed off. And one of the drillmasters had noticed. And now he could only...

Koschei squatted down beside him and placed his hands on his cheeks. Theta was close to crying but he found himself smiling. Koschei's hands were warm, they were still warm.
He snuggled up closer against him.

Koschei grabbed him wordlessly and dragged Theta over to the fireplace.
Theta shivered and squinted against the broad light of the flames. He sagged against Koschei and closed his eyes again.

Koschei's hands started their work over Theta's body; his warm fingers rubbed his icy limbs until he'd get some feeling back into them.

Theta sighed in pure exaltation and looked up to meet Koschei's concerned stare.
"I thought you wouldn't make it" he stated coldly and brushed his hands against Theta's cheeks.
Theta felt his hearts sagging in disappointment.
So he had let him down. He was afraid that would happen...

"I really worried about you; I even knocked out one of the supervisors to make sure that I'd get to the fire sooner. And now give me your hands, you're still feeling like an icicle. And I don't like talking to a snowman, can't you say anything?"

Theta felt no longer ashamed and let the tears flow. A smile appeared on Koschei's face. He stroked his hair tenderly.

"It's alright" he mumbled quietly and sat down behind Theta; Theta shivered at the mere thought of touching him skin on skin;
"You're still my lionheart."

Theta chuckled and rested his chest against Koschei's shoulder.
"We haven't changed a bit, have we?" asked Theta and let out a deep and mournful sigh.
"We're still the same. Never changing. Never."

"We've changed a lot" contradicted Koschei as he started nibbling on Theta's neck "We won't run. We've stopped running away after all these years."
Theta enjoyed Koschei's hot breath in the nape of his neck.
"And I feel like an idiot liking your skin, which tastes like a salty block of ice, by the way. You could at least try to get warmer."

Theta smiled and turned his head around, his lips reaching for Koschei's.
But he stopped in mid-motion and froze; quite literally.

"Koschei! Theta Sigma! Attention!"

Koschei rolled his eyes without turning around.
"I really hoped he'd stay passed out for a bit longer" hissed Koschei through gritted teeth before a fist hammered into his skull and hurled him across the snow.
He was back on his feet in an instant, his white teeth shining in the faint moonlight as he grinned at the drillmaster.
"Morning Sir" chuckled Koschei. Theta was too shocked to say anything that would either soften Koschei's words or make the whole situation worse.
He'd come to the conclusion that sometimes keeping your trap shut was the best way.

A large grey cloud formed in front of the drillmaster's face as he snorted angrily.

"Both of you! In your tents! NOW!"

Theta jumped sideways as the drillmaster approached him and wrapped his arms around Koschei's shoulder.
The drillmaster shook his head as he stared in a frightened face nestling to a madly grinning one.

"Off you go!"

Theta had started to run and dragged Koschei behind him. He was still holding his breath.
"It's your fault" hissed Theta "We could have stayed by the fire. Well, I could have stayed by the fire as soon as my shift would have started."
"Yeah, then you would have been honest" added Koschei "and dead."
"I could have stood the cold longer."
"You can prove that now, anyway" Koschei stretched before he crawled inside of his tent and yawned.

Theta had stopped in front of it, his fists clenched.
"I hate you Koschei!"

"I know" came the muffled reply out of the tent as well as "Are you coming or not?"
"What?" wheezed Theta.
"I'm definitely warmer than you. And there's enough room for two of us. So, are you coming or not."
Theta hesitated.
"Koschei, we're not allowed to."

Koschei's head popped out of the tent. He stared Theta in the eye.
"Right" he agreed "I'll tell this any supervisor who'll discover you while trying to snuggle up against me in my tent."
Then he vanished again.

Theta let out a long drawn-out sigh.
Finally the small hope that Koschei's tent would be warmer knocked out his dutifulness and he too vanished in the dark.

Theta crawled over a cold blanket and rummaged around in the darkness until he'd found something that he hoped would keep him warm. He shivered and was sure that he could see the small clouds his breath formed even in here.
As his eyes got accustomed to the exiguous light he saw Koschei, eying him up cautiously. He handed him his sleeping bag.

"You'll need it more than I do" mumbled Koschei as his hands moved across Theta's thighs.
Theta shivered again and for the first time, probably for the first time ever, he was glad that he was cold. Otherwise Koschei would have discovered the real reason why he was constantly twitching and wincing...

Koschei growled and opened the sleeping bag.
"You put it over your legs and then pull it up" he pointed out as he tried to shove his friend into it, annoyed by his immobility and constant drifting off.
Theta pushed his hands aside.
"I know" he snapped and glared at Koschei. Koschei let out a feral snarl.
And there it was again. Theta breathed in deep and tried to concentrate at the cloud forming in front of his face. Koschei's voice...his beautiful and soothing voice... his beguiling smell.
Theta closed his eyes and pressed his hands against his lap. He felt the blood rushing down.
No... He couldn't! If Koschei would see his arising erecting...

Koschei snorted and snatched the sleeping bag from Theta's hands. With the words "You're driving me mad!" he put it over Theta's head and forced him down onto the ground, hearing nothing but the muffled screams and panting of the friend beneath him.

"Get off me! Koschei let me go!"
"Getting warmer in there?" asked Koschei mockingly.
"Koschei I can't breathe!"
"Then how come you're still screaming?"
"I said: Let go!"

Theta tossed and turned until Koschei sat down on his haunch, forcing him down again on the floor, touching him hip bone against hip bone.
Theta fell silent as something warm touched his nether regions; he gasped.
Koschei's hand moved smoothly into his clothes; its warmness caused Theta to shiver again.
Koschei grabbed one of Theta's hands and pulled it out of the sleeping bag; he placed it on his own pulsating and heated flesh and guided it there until Theta flinched.

"Get your leg over" ordered Koschei and helped Theta moving around blindly on the cold floor.
The silence was disturbed as Theta panted again; a flash of hotness had struck him as Koschei had sat down on his pelvic area.
"That's better."

Koschei pulled the sleeping bag off Theta's body and tossed it aside.
Theta's mouth was slightly ajar; he panted heavily and looked Koschei deeply in the eye.

Koschei leaned a bit forward to elicit a quiet whimper from Theta as he increased the pressure on Theta's swollen limb.
"And now be a brave dog and roll over."

Theta was stunned by Koschei's remark and stared at him wide-eyed and disappointed.
Koschei seized the opportunity and grabbed Theta's legs, parted them and moved up against him, pushing himself against his tight hole until his beloved friend was ready for the intrusion.

Theta wanted to howl but coughed to cover up that Koschei's cock was hurting him.
"Don't you ever dare to call me a dog ever again" hissed Theta through gritted teeth.
"Why?" asked Koschei and pushed himself deeper into his cramping friend.
"Because you bloody don't do that ever again, do you hear me?" roared Theta and got into something that was closest to a sitting position.
"If you say that one more time I quit being your friend."
"We're not friends" contradicted Koschei "We're soldiers."
Theta beneath him snorted and leaned back as Koschei picked up the pace again.
"You'll never make a good soldier" grumbled Theta and bit down on his lower lip as Koschei hit a sweet spot deep inside of him, an area that caused him to move against Koschei.
"Neither do you" snapped Koschei "Too easily dominated."
"Shut up" snarled Theta.
Koschei penetrated him deeply and passionately; beads of sweat were forming on his forehead and he felt Theta's heating body beneath him, Theta's adorable and pleading legs, those legs that longed for someone who'd get between them...

"Why did you call me a dog?"
Koschei stopped in mid-motion and rolled his eyes on Theta.
"Can't you let it be?"
Theta folded his arms in front of his chest. Koschei sighed as he realized that he either had to admit defeat or apologize to him.
"Nice diversionary tactic, won't you say?" Koschei began.
Theta cocked an eyebrow at him.
"Calling you a dog always made you mad" Koschei went on "Your jaw always drops. And not only your mouth opens up in surprise..."
"Shut up!" yelled Theta and grabbed Koschei by the shoulders, pulling him nearer while he felt Koschei's cock pressing deeper into him.

He gulped and groaned before and continued as his face was close enough to Koschei's as he touched him nose on nose "And now I want you to fuck me until I scream. And I want you to poke me so ruthlessly and so brutally that you'll have to worry about tearing me in two. And, Rassilon have mercy on our souls, after that I swear to you, Koschei..."

Theta got cut off by Koschei who sealed his mouth with his own lips, burying his tongue in Theta's warm and sweet oral cavity.
Theta's hips moved uneasily against Koschei's and Theta growled as Koschei released his lips, sucking on his neck and biting down on the sweat-covered flesh, marking him all the way from his chin to his chest.

Theta was now as hard as Koschei as he moved against Koschei's stomach. Koschei cast a glance down at the throbbing flesh and cocked an eyebrow at Theta; then he reached down and grabbed Theta's limb forcefully, causing him to wince and whimper beneath his touch.
He stroked the hot flesh rhythmically; in his own rhythm, of course.
If Theta wanted to come by his hands (and of course, on his hands) he had to get adjusted to his speed.

Theta groaned as Koschei massaged that tight and thrilling spot with his cock deep inside of him again. He gritted his teeth and snarled those sweet words, those sweet words, causing Koschei moaning shamelessly loud and bumping against Theta's body as if he was an indestructible barrier he needed to break in half.

Limps were flailing and met each other in mid-air, curses were spat and sweat appeared and froze on two exhausted bodies that wouldn't stop draining their energies vice versa. Every moan was either joined or followed by a louder and more lust-driven one, tongues made their ways over salty skin, blood rushed down and wailed up, hips were bruised and chests started to hurt as ribcage was forced against ribcage once more.

Koschei pressed Theta down onto the cold floor forcefully, painfully burying his fingers in his hair to elicit a warm kiss from a hurt face; Koschei's chest oppressed Theta's, making it impossible for him to breathe while Koschei went deeper and deeper, flattening him on the floor while he was still on top, still panting, still gasping and groaning.
Theta flinched as he gasped for air and let out a whine as Koschei came in him, deep, rough, shamelessly and unpleasantly hot.

Koschei breathed in deeply and froze in the position he'd encountered before spilling himself inside of his best friend. He cast a quick glance at Theta's horrified eyes and smiled.

Then he allowed Theta to catch his breath again as he leaned back, his slacking limb still buried in the blissful spot inside of Theta.
Theta drew a sharp breath before he started to scream in ecstasy; feeling his friends burning semen inside of him was both disgusting and beguiling, Theta felt so ashamed for enjoying Koschei's limb sticking in him, and yet he screamed and begged for more as Koschei had stopped pleasing his own neglected cock.

Koschei lunged at him and buried his teeth in Theta's beautiful neck; he bit down hard and sucked at his skin, drawing blood and enjoying its sweet taste.
A tremor spread through Theta's body; Koschei felt the limb in his hand twitching before he knew that Theta couldn't hold back any longer.
Theta came at Koschei's hands whimpering and whining, as he both savoured and dreaded this moment.

Theta breathed heavily and was still twitching as Koschei had already cleaned his hands by wiping Theta's warm manifestation of love off with his friend's clothes.
He collapsed beside Theta, nothing visible in the dark but his grin.

Theta's head rolled into the nape of his neck before his eyes swivelled sideways.
"I told you I'd make you warm. Quite literally, from the inside" chuckled Koschei.
"Koschei, you're disgusting" hissed Theta and got dressed in an instant. He started to shiver again, but this time because he'd caught sight of the clouds of breath forming again in front of his face.

Koschei placed a blanket over his exhausted and fragile body as he snuggled up against him.
Theta's head was resting on Koschei's shoulder as Koschei twirled his hair tenderly.

"I don't want to die" whispered Theta all of a sudden. Koschei stared at the blackness above him and rolled his eyes. He has that sometimes, he told himself; it's one of those "Life and death" or something-moments-things.
The letdown after the rapture.
Koschei met Theta's terrified gaze and stroked him lovingly.
"You won't" he stated calmly "We're here to stay."
Those otherwise probably kitschy words were exactly the right thing to sooth Theta's mind.
Theta's eyes widened in bewilderment.
He's getting sleep, Koschei told himself; not long and I can continue fondling him without having to keep up with him asking me stupid questions.
"We're here to stay..." repeated Theta slowly.

"Come here" demanded Koschei and pulled Theta closer, warming his cooling body with his own. Theta was now lying on top of him, his head pressed against Koschei's chest. The sound of his hearts beating really made him feel safe and secure.

"Tomorrow's another day" Koschei went on while he stroked his friend's rosy cheeks.
"And if the world comes to an end" Theta's eyes were gleaming with excitement as Koschei whispered those sweet words into his ears "I'll be here to hold your hand."
"Forever" added Koschei after a while.
"Promise" demanded Theta. Koschei chuckled.
"Forever. I promise."

And finally Theta would yawn quietly and find rest on his friend's safe and warm chest...

The Doctor opened his eyes and yawned. He stretched and stared at the grey sky.

His soft and warm pillow was still lying obediently underneath him, even as he rested an elbow on it to help himself getting into a sitting position.
It groaned, though.

The Doctor looked down to remember that the pillow had a name: Jack Harkness. And he was still lying stiff because he was...

"Alive again, aren't we?" asked the Doctor and smacked his dry lips. He could really use a hot cup of tea now...

Jack gasped for air and sat up, pushing the Doctor aside. He narrowed his eyes at him.
"That was the last time! I'm never going to step into your TARDIS ever again! How can you crash-land a TARDIS? An object that can fly all by itself if you just leave it alone, Doctor. And you crashed it. And you call yourself her pilot? Ha!"

Jack had his hands akimbo.
"It's alright now" the Doctor avoided Jack's gaze "She should have repaired the damage by now..."

The Doctor sighed and brushed off Jack's coat of his shoulders. He handed it back as politely as he could.
"Thanks" he mumbled sheepishly "It really kept me warm during the night."
"Yes, instead of me" snapped Jack and snatched it from his hands. "You've got a coat of your own, what did you need my coat for?"
"I thought I'd freeze to death" stated the Doctor. Jack rolled his eyes.
"You can regenerate."
"And you can just die and reboot" snapped the Doctor "Regenerating hurts."
"Oh, come on" countered Jack "It can't be worse than dying. Actually dying. Not just lots of whining and starting to glow. I died three times during this night; you'd probably have regenerated just once. You could have done that for me!"
"But then you wouldn't be staring at this pretty face right now" retorted the Doctor and smiled broadly.

The Doctor sighed as Jack stayed unimpressed and put on his coat.
"Alright, Jack. I think I really owe you something."
"Your life" corrected Jack.

The Doctor wouldn't hear Jack's accusations and the names he called him afterwards.
His thoughts had travelled back in time... meeting those beautiful amber eyes once more that had burned their ways into his heart.
Something in the air... something in the cold briskly wind...
Somewhere in the crackling noises of the ice and the crisping as the snow fell it was there...
The memory...
His memory...
Koschei...here, to hold his hand...

"Forever..." mumbled the Doctor absent-mindedly.

Eventually he'd head for the TARDIS, leaving his thoughts and true feelings where they belonged.
In the snow.

"Come on, I'll make it up to you. Fancy a drink?"

Author's Note:
Next fluff will be up on Dec. 24th as a Christmas present!
I hope you enjoyed it.