Written for Day 13 of Sheith Month: Happy Ending & Tragedy.
This was the first story I wrote for Sheith Month this year, and a pretty instant inspiration. The movie the boys are watching here? I used names from an original short story of mine, but it's the story of the royal AU I posted back on Day 7, War's End. ;)
Keith smiled slightly at the screen as the final scene began to fade out, idly running his knuckles up and down Shiro's forearm. A tremor made him tense, turning towards his lover.
"Shiro?" Keith demanded worriedly. Shiro was crying. Not much, only a slight hitch of breath and a few tears dampening his lashes, but- "What's wrong?"
"It was just- It was so sad." Shiro said, smiling weakly and meeting Keith's eyes.
He blinked, glancing back at the credits of the movie. "But. . . It was a happy ending?" he said blankly, confused.
Shiro stared back at him. ". . .Keith. They died."
"But they'll be together!" Keith said defensively. Yes, they had died and he'd hoped they'd win out in the final battle and then go off together to live out the rest of their lives, but. . . He'd been happy when the prince had lingered in the in-between realm and then chosen to follow his beloved knight into death.
The warm reunion before they had faded into the mist had only put the perfect touch on it.
"They'll be dead!" Shiro said, looking downcast, eyes a light silvery shade. "They should have lived happily together, in peace, and not. . ."
"Well . . . yes, I mean, that's what should have happened." Keith agreed, smoothing his hand over Shiro's. He wove their fingers together, clasping Keith's hand, and he smiled. "If they couldn't, though, and Jerryn was already gone, we saw that. . ."
"You think Jerryn would have wanted Evain to choose to die to follow him?" Shiro asked, voice rising.
"I think Jerryn wanted to protect Evain more than anything." Keith said, frowning. "I also think they belonged together, and Evain didn't want to go on without Jerryn any more than he would have wanted to go on without his prince. It would have been horrible, thinking of Evain living on and taking his throne, his crown, and always expecting Jerryn to be there but he was just . . . gone, with Evain's heart and-" Keith broke off, ducking his head.
Shiro brushed his cheek with a light touch. "It would have been sad, but. . ." he paused, shaking his head. "Is death really better? Death for both of them?"
"Death came anyway," Keith pointed out, "they didn't have a choice about that - it's not like they sat down to kill themselves together. And Evain was wounded too, badly, or he wouldn't have had the choice - wouldn't have been there to choose. I just think they belong together, and I'm happy they stayed together," he gestured towards the screen, which had so recently shown the men in each others' arms, "rather than being parted."
"But- They died." Shiro sniffed quietly.
Keith twined their fingers a little more snugly together and rubbed his thumb over Shiro's knuckles. "They'll never be torn away from each other." he corrected. "They died, but they're together."
"And- You're happy with that ending?" Shiro eyed him with an unreadable expression.
"I mean." Keith shrugged awkwardly. "I wanted them to live, er, happily ever after," he admitted, "but . . . yes. I would have been more upset with the ending if Jerryn died and Evain moved on afterwards." He swallowed, looking down.
He startled as Shiro kissed his cheek, and met soft grey eyes. "You're a romantic in the weirdest ways, baby." Shiro said softly, and Keith scowled. "I love you." he added, with a crooked smile.
"Love you." Keith returned, kissing him lightly.
Shiro drew him closer, drawing out the kiss with lingering warmth. "Keith. . ." he murmured as he finally pulled away.
"Mm?" Keith met his eyes, stroking the line of his jaw with one hand.
"I would never want- If something happened to me-" he began, sounding pained. "It would- To think of you just stopping. . ."
Keith's eyes widened slightly and he looked away.
"I would need to know that you would . . . would go on." Shiro said thickly. "I know you can do it. I know you wouldn't want- That it would hurt, but Keith, baby. . ."
It would break me, to go on without you, Keith thought, I did it once before and it nearly killed me, even when I was sure you were still out there somewhere.
He smiled slightly and didn't say any of it, not wanting to see the shadow it would put in Shiro's eyes. "I love you." he said simply, nuzzling Shiro affectionately and kissing him again. "I would never want to hurt you. Not for the world, Shiro."
Shiro's arms tightened around him and Keith let himself be pulled practically into his lover's lap, nestling his cheek on Shiro's broad shoulder.
The inspiration for this was . . . well. Keith's view in this story is mine, and something when I was younger I had to be reminded of (pre-posting) by my beta a few times to mark stories as 'angst' when I would go 'but it's a happy ending! they're together!' *coughs* Meanwhile, these days, my friend M plays the part of Shiro making big sad eyes at me and going but that's awful!