Chapter 5 – Summertime

-:-:-

"You guys should come visit for the summer," Ben declared on one of the last few days before finals, all of them enjoying the pleasant sunshine of the early summer air before they would be forced to whittle away hours studying indoors.

Doug, who had been feeding a distracted Chad bites of food so that the blond would get something down – the blond's entire focus on the fox kits curled in his lap, paused his work to give Ben a strange look, the dwarf kin processing his words on a three second delay. "What?"

"Come stay with me for the summer," Ben rephrased, as though he had somehow veiled his words in mystery before. "I'm going to be coronated next year-" Which was fucking stupid, in Doug's opinion, but what did he know about human politics? "-so my mom says I need to make the most of my teenage freedom. She said I could invite you guys to stay for the summer."

"The full summer?" Lonnie asked, sharing a look with Aziz. "All of us? Not just the guys? Because she might have just meant you and your bros."

"She knows better than to exclude you," Ben said, laying it on a bit thick, but the twinkle in his eye was entirely genuine because Ben was genuine and also the worst.

This justly appeased Lonnie's pride, who puffed up in appreciation. "In that case, I'm in, though maybe…" She trailed off with a thoughtful look, one that said they might be sneaking into a rival school to temporarily steal their mascot or create new petitions to battle the existing sexist or classist bigotries inherent in some of the school's fundamental structure, and so help anyone who tried to get in her way. "You guys should visit my place too."

Ben blinked, surprised by this offer, but Aziz – the other half of Lonnie's mind, as far as Doug could tell – immediately perked up, seeming to understand. "Oh, and my place too! We could take turns hosting each other. Then I could finally introduce you guys to real Agraben food."

Doug had been sure that Chad had only been paying half attention, but the blond froze at Aziz's statement, seeming to curl in on himself. Not because he was unexcited by the prospect of seeing his friends' homes, but because he knew he would never be able to invite anyone back to Sardinia. That he himself wasn't allowed back to Sardinia, because his grandpa was an asshat.

It was enough to have Doug scrambling for damage control, to have him committing to this idea even if he was looking forward to a summer of individual Chad-time.

He could not be greedy. He could not hoard.

Besides, Ben would be king next summer and he wouldn't have time for such indulgences, meaning it was definitely a one-time thing.

"And then we can stay with me and Chad in Erebor," Doug declared. "Everything's made for dwarves, though, so you'll tower over everyone, but as long as you're respectful and up for a good time, they won't mind you much."

"Oh." Chad perked up. "And we can take them to Dale! And to the Festival of Champions!"

"Yeah, we'll see that too," Doug assured him, offering Chad a grape that he accepted with a happy smile. "And we can show you Chad's garden."

"And have a proper tea-time with Doug's amad," Chad offered. "Oh, you can have all the proper hobbit meals! Breakfast, second breakfast-"

"Elevenses," Doug added.

"-Lunch, afternoon tea," Chad trailed off with a dreamy sigh. "I love afternoon tea."

"Get the best scones at afternoon tea," Doug confirmed with a fond grin.

"And then there's dinner and supper!" Chad chirped.

Aziz gave him a confused look. "There's a difference between dinner and supper?"

Chad released a scandalous sigh that Doug's amad would have been proud of. "Of course there's a difference, Aziz. Supper has much lighter fare than dinner."

"Yeah, Aziz." Lonnie smirked, giving the Agraben prince's nose a tweak. "Get your head out of your ass."

"So it's settled then?" Ben asked over Aziz's sputter. "We'll stay together for the summer?"

"Sure, Ben," Doug said, earning good guy points and further proving he didn't hate Ben. "We just need to clear it with our parents first."

And since they'd likely say no, it wasn't an issue.

-:-:-

All of their parents said yes.

Fairy Godmother said yes for Chad, and Doug's parents thought the prospect of him bonding with people who weren't Chad was just wonderful and they'd be delighted to meet his other friends and-

"Don't wear such a sour look, Dori," Doug's amad tutted, giving his cheek a few pats. "This will be good for you."

"I know you feel like you can get by with just your One, Mizimith," his adad said, absolutely no help. "But you can never have too many friends."

"I remember when you would hoard hours with me like I was gold," Doug sniffed. "Where did the love go?"

"It burns just the same, you little whelp," his amad huffed, giving Doug's ankle a slight nudge for good measure. "You dwarves and your dramatics. You're just as bad as your father."

"As bad as me?" Doug's adad gasped, overdramatic in every sense of the word, placing a wounded hand against his chest before he faked a proper faint onto the couch, the trial of standing seeming to be too terribly much for him.

"Eru save me for the snarkiness of dwarves!" Doug's amad declared, throwing his hands up in frustration before he bustled off towards the kitchen, as though he wasn't about to bake Nori's favorite scones because they were platonic life mates, and when Doug's adad saw he was gone, he returned his efforts carving out a new handle for amad's favorite cooking pot.

They were disgustingly functional. Doug loved them a lot.

"You will miss me," Doug warned them, fighting mostly on principal now.

"Oh, without question," his adad agreed. "Which is why you and Chad will call every other night."

That, at least, had Doug's shoulders relaxing. "Not every night?"

"Gotta give you some time to acquire new stories," his father grunted. "Of course, more phone calls would not be unwelcome. And Chad is always encouraged to text those pictures he loves to take so much."

Doug suspected Chad's penchant for photography mostly stemmed from his desire to prove that the good things in his life actually existed and weren't just a figment of his imagination. It was proof, which was why Doug willingly catered to every picture and video, why all of Doug's family did the same, because Chad deserved to have a record of the fact that there were people out there that loved him very much.

"I love you, adad," Doug said, settling back into his armchair with a sigh, savoring its comfort before he and Chad would be forced to pack up for Central Auradon, where they would be heading first.

"Tell me something I don't know," his father scoffed, but then he was tossing Doug a lump of mithril for Doug to 'do with as he will', knowing full well that anything that precious was going straight into Doug's cache of materials to create courting gifts for Chad.

"You're the best, adad!" Doug chirped as he went to hide the rare metal in his room to the accompanying sound of his father's chuckles.

"I knew that too!" the dwarf called after him, and Doug was glad, glad he knew his worth, and hoped that someday, Chad would know his too.

-:-:-

"Oh boy," Chad said when their limo dropped them off at the entrance of Auradon Castle, deciding to go for grandeur rather than practicality, where they would be if dropped off at the private guest garage. "Oh wow, Doug. A castle."

It was times like this where Doug wanted to remind Chad that he also lived in a castle, but he was partially terrified that if he did, he might realize that wasn't the case. That Chad was kept even more apart from his family members because of the hatred of his grandfather.

So he pushed past that unease and settled into a comfortable smile instead. "Yeah, it's very nice."

"This is where King Adam wooed Queen Belle," Chad continued, practically vibrating with excitement as they were let out of their car. "And he danced with her in the ballroom and defeated Gaston and she cried on his chest and then the spell broke and everything was good again." He shifted his weight back and forth, seeming to almost dance with happiness. "I hope something like that happens to me one day."

Doug gave him a strange look. "You want to be cursed into a beast?"

"No." Chad flushed. "I mean- I want a fairytale like that. I want to lose my shoe and have my true love search every house in the kingdom for me."

If it was Chad's true love, Doug would think that they would refine their search parameters so they wouldn't have to search every house in the kingdom, but such logic was not meant for the haze of romanticism in Chad's gaze, so Doug didn't push the matter.

Instead, he smiled. "You'll get that," he promised with a confidence he didn't entirely feel. "You're wonderful, Chad. You're worthy of the best."

"Doug," Chad gasped, his cheeks flushing dark. "I- I mean, if I um- if I lost my shoe-"

"Who's losing shoes?" Aziz chirped, bouncing over to them with a happy grin after he was let out of his own limousine. "Did you mess up with your packing?"

"No," Chad said, seeming flustered. "I- oh look, birds!" And with that he was striding away, abandoning bewildered footmen unloading their bags and the fabled Henri Cogsworth waiting to give them a proper tour, the blond taking off towards the gardens and of course Doug couldn't help but follow, Aziz trailing after them with laughter dancing on the wind.

Ben and Lonnie found them in Queen Belle's private gardens thirty minutes later, Chad busy introducing himself to every bird that fluttered his way.

"Probably should have had them take you to the garage," Ben said, though his smile was nothing but fond as he settled in, Lonnie joining Chad as he completed his ritual of communing with the local wildlife.

It was the touch of his mother that likely made his blood Fae-blessed, was likely why Fairy Godmother had ever tracked down his mom after all. On Chad, it was as beautiful as any other part of him, and Doug wasn't the only one who took pictures of the exchange, Aziz filming next to him, making Doug's chest twinge in an uncomfortable way. Part of him wanted that camera aimed at him, but he knew that was unreasonable. He was no great beauty like Chad. He wasn't even particularly handsome. He was just Doug, the half-breed.

There was no point in wanting more than that.

-:-:-

"Welcome to my humble abode!" Ben declared with an enthusiastic sweep of his arm. "Okay, so I've got two guest rooms, and they converted my private gym and dining room into two more guest rooms, though you'll have to use the hallway bathroom-"

"Ben, it's fine," Doug soothed, slipping Chad's hand into his. "Chad and I can share a room."

At that, the blond immediately brightened. "Just like home!" he chirped before dragging Doug off down the hall, towards the room with the best view of Queen Belle's garden. They unpacked the basics – mostly weighted blankets and the nightlight, a few extra pillows, before going off in search of the others. They found Lonnie in the other guestroom, and continued exploring the rest of the suite (there was a kitchen and media room in addition to the large living room that now held what must have been the dining room table) until they came upon Aziz and Ben in what Doug guessed was Ben's room.

"-not that we don't appreciate the consideration," Aziz was saying as he claimed one of the dressers in Ben's room. "But we can also just share."

"No fair," Lonnie pouted. "Now I'm the only one by myself."

"Aw, Lonnie, you can always bunk with us," Chad chirped. "The bed's definitely big enough."

Doug both reveled and despaired at the prospect, knowing it would cut into his time to be intimate with Chad while also giving him more Lonnie in his life, which he wanted but didn't truly need. They were conflicting emotions.

"Hmm." Lonnie made a show of considering this. "We can make a schedule, that way we spend an equal amount of time with each other."

Ben froze. "Is that appropriate?"

"If you can share a bed with Aziz, you can share one with me," Lonnie declared and- yeah, Ben really should have known better.

"Ben's in trouble," Chad giggled under his breath, making Ben's blush darken because- right, enhanced beast hearing.

"So um- want a tour of the rest of the castle?" Ben asked, likely in the hopes of distracting them.

It worked. They were treated to a tour of the library, the kitchen, the formal and private sitting rooms. There were multiple dining rooms, a sunroom, the ballroom, along with a host of meeting rooms and planning areas. Ben even gave them a tour of the secret passages they could use that would get them back to his suite unbothered, which was information they probably shouldn't know, but Doug wasn't going to complain about the efficiency of it.

"And now, schedule time," Lonnie sang, proving that she had not been deterred, and the rest of them were wrangled into creating a coded system that explained who would sleep where and when, because of course they couldn't just use the same beds every day, it was the only way things could be fair.

The first night ended in pizza and movies before Doug, Lonnie, and Chad retired to their guest room. Doug coaxed a bashful Chad towards the middle, and Lonnie had no issue carding a hand through his curls, making Doug want to bite her as much as he wanted to kiss her, until an uncomfortable weight settled low in his stomach.

"Sorry if I wake up all- you know, worked up," Chad squeaked a he half hid his face with his stuffed mouse.

Lonnie's laugh was melodious and gentle. "What's a little morning wood between friends?"

It was clear he wasn't entirely comforted by this, but the three of them drifted off to sleep nonetheless, a deceptively comfortable one. At least, for Doug.

-:-:-

"Oh man," Chad whined the next morning, shifting his hips back to get space from Lonnie and inadvertently grinding his rear against Doug's groin. "Sorry, Lonnie."

"Chad, I already told you it's fine," Lonnie soothed, petting his head. "Such are the whims of puberty."

"Still," Chad sighed, giving an enticing wiggle.

"Just go beat one off in the bathroom, it's cool," Lonnie assured him, sitting up.

"Oh, okay." Chad blinked before turning his gaze back towards Doug. "Will you join me?"

Lonnie perked up at this. "Oh, are you guys finally dating?"

"No," Chad said, face flooding with an immediate heat. "Just- this is a normal friend thing."

Doug wasn't offended, he wasn't even hurt. Chad needed to take things at his own pace. They would progress when he was ready, and not a moment before. That was, assuming, he wanted to progress, but that was the risk in all relationships, so Doug tried not to dwell on it much.

Lonnie paused, and for a moment Doug was afraid he might have been wrong, that Aziz might have been wrong, but then she smiled. "In that case, I could give you a hand, you know."

"Lonnie," Chad gasped, scandalized. "You can't- you're a girl."

At that, Lonnie's expression crumbled into something stormy, Chad saying the worst possible thing to her. "Which means I'm just as capable-"

"He didn't mean it like that," Doug assured her, but Lonnie was on a mission now.

"You, me, bathroom," Lonnie said, gaze hard. "I mean, if you want."

"I'm more confused as to why you would want to?" Chad said, tone ending on a high note. "Can Doug come too?"

Lonnie blinked, and just like that, she was smiling again. "Of course."

And that was how the three of them ended up in the shower, because they couldn't leave behind any evidence for some of the castle servants to find, that would be horrifying.

While Doug had somewhat pondered what Lonnie would look like naked, he had never actually expected to get an answer to that question, and receiving it, having her near- it was almost as bad as Aziz.

Sometimes, Doug really hated his human side.

He didn't in that moment, though, not when he was pressed against Chad's back, holding the blond up while Lonnie worked a hand between his legs.

"Lonnie," Chad croaked, tone getting desperate. "You're um- you're very- you're so pretty."

"You are too, sweetheart," Lonnie hummed, making Chad shudder all over again.

She was caught off guard when Chad finally found his release, but Doug wasn't – Doug was too accustomed to the language of Chad's body to mistake the signals he was giving, and happily kissed Chad through the worst of it.

"Oh, we can do that too?" Lonnie asked, and then she was kissing Chad too.

Doug found that the action didn't make him want to carve her eyes out, so that was friendship, he guessed.

And then those wicked eyes were on him. "Do you need help, Douglass?"

"Oh yeah," Chad huffed. "I can feel him pressing against my back."

Doug flushed. "Sorry."

"Guys," Lonnie sighed. "Stop being ashamed of your natural body responses. It's fine, there is no judgement here."

"Can I beat him off, Lonnie?" Chad asked, and that was how Doug got to know what it felt like for Lonnie's naked body to press against the length of his back, one hand firm on his hip while the other roved his chest, whispering words of encouragement to Chad, who worked Doug over just as spectacularly as he always did.

Doug didn't kiss Lonnie. He couldn't, even though he knew she was pressing for it. There had to be lines. He had to save something for his One.

Lonnie didn't seem to mind, though. She was happy with them finding their own releases, and when they were done, she playfully carded her hand through their hair.

"So," she hummed. "Which one of you wants to learn how to pleasure a lady?"

"Lonnie," Chad hissed, scandalized all over again.

That was how Doug came to pull Lonnie into his lap, the two of them sitting on the built-in stone bench. Chad watched with rapt attention as Doug clumsily pleasured Lonnie, but she seemed to think he was doing okay, head thrown back when he finally eased a finger into her warm heat.

"Fuck," she gasped, legs pulling wide as her hips rutted into his attention. "Your finger's so much longer than mine."

"Yeah, his hands are pretty great," Chad agreed with a flush, and then Lonnie was beckoning him forward, the two of them trading lazy kisses while Doug finished working Lonnie over.

It was harder to tell with her, since she didn't have as big of indicators as Chad did, but there seemed to be a point where she let out a heated cry before she gushed around his fingers, and Doug figured that was the end of things, so he did his best to guide her through that until she was letting out small whimpers.

"Yeah, we're doing that again later," Lonnie declared, gaze half-lidded and dazed.

So that was the first morning of their summer trip.

Doug hoped it wasn't a poor sign of things to come.

-:-:-

"You seem pleased," Aziz noted when the three of them prowled into the main room, Lonnie walking with a distinct swagger that made even Doug embarrassed. "Have a good shower? Wink."

"You are not clever or funny," Lonnie informed him before flopping down in Aziz's lap, making the prince laugh before he cuddled her close with a flush. "Where's Benjamin?"

"I'm coming!" Ben strolled out of his room looking just as composed as ever, making Doug glad they'd vetoed Lonnie's plan to sport lounging clothes look in favor of something a bit more respectable. "What are we winking about?"

"Oh, just the fact that Lonnie had a good shower, if you know what I mean," Aziz said with an unrepentant smile, wagging his brows at Lonnie with enough enthusiasm to leave her and Chad giggling.

Ben drew to a halt, brows furrowed as he pondered this statement. "Can you have a bad shower?"

"I mean," Aziz hummed. "There's a good shower, and then there's a good shower."

"I had shower sexy times, Ben," Lonnie explained when it became obvious the other prince didn't know what they were talking about yet.

Upon processing Lonnie's words, Ben immediately went bright red, his gaze shifting over to Doug and Chad as if to see if they were similarly embarrassed. Of course, having been present for said sexy times, they weren't really. Chad wore a small, bashful smile, but otherwise didn't seem nearly as stricken as Ben was.

"I had shower sexy times with Chad and Doug," Lonnie elaborated to explain this, and that made Doug tense ever so slightly, though he supposed that they never said their friend stuff was a secret. That just seemed implied, but maybe the implication was that they kept it from the rest of the world, not their fellow friends.

"Guys," Ben said when the words registered. "You- I mean, are you dating?"

"Relax, Ben," Aziz, of all people, said, giving the other prince a gentle smile. "It's just a friend thing. Doug and I have done it before too."

"You have?" Chad and Lonnie asked more or less at the same time, pinning Doug in place.

Doug bit his bottom lip. "I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be a secret or not," he said, turning an apologetic gaze onto Chad. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's okay," Chad said, though it didn't seem to be entirely the case. "But no more secrets going forward, please."

"Done," Doug promised, squeezing his hand.

"Aziz, you dog," Lonnie said, punching the prince's shoulder. "That was the day we found you cuddling up next to Dougo, wasn't it?"

"Wait," Ben said, words coming out kind of strained. "So you guys- all of you, to some extent, have been with each other?"

"Sure," Lonnie said with a shrug. "Aziz and I make out all the time for fun."

"I haven't been with Aziz," Chad said, a pout tugging at his lips. "I mean, he probably doesn't want to-"

"I want to," Aziz assured him. "But I also didn't want to freak you out."

"So you have been with each other," Ben pressed, drawing the focus back to him. "But why- why didn't any of you um- do stuff with me? Do you not want to?"

It was strange, seeing such insecurity from Ben, but there it was, the prince standing apart from them, wavering in unease.

It was Lonnie that spoke up first. "Aw, Ben – we never meant to exclude you, we just figured it wasn't something you'd be interested in."

"You should have asked," Ben pressed, his cheeks flushing dark. "Because I would have been."

There was a pause, and then Aziz and Lonnie shared a look, some kind of silent communication passing between them.

And then Aziz cleared his throat. "Well, I guess breakfast can wait for a little while longer."

"Damn straight, it can," Lonnie chirped, hopping up from her seat. "Come on, Benjamin."

Ben jolted with a startled look. "What?"

"Aziz and I are going to pleasure you in the shower," Lonnie declared, snagging his wrist before dragging him back towards his bedroom. "And then Doug and Chad can pleasure you in the bath."

"Guys," Ben groaned, but he didn't pull away from her, following Lonnie's administrations while the rest of them trickled after like a line of eager ducklings. "You don't have to feel obligated-"

"Ben," Lonnie interrupted. "Do I strike you as the kind of person who doesn't do exactly what she wants?"

Ben's throat bobbed in a shower as they trooped into his room, Aziz locking the door behind them. "No."

"Then trust that we're not doing that now," Lonnie declared with a smirk, dragging him forward by the collar of his shirt. "Now, who here wants to help me undress his royal highness?"

"Me!" Chad chirped, and then Aziz dove in, Doug following afterwards to guide Chad's movements, helping his confidence as they worked together to strip Ben down.

-:-:-

Endnotes:

Poor Benny Boo never stood a chance ;)

Look at that, things are getting more dumb and complicated! Always a good time ;D

Story notes:

Dale is also a part of Tolkien's Middle Earth. It's a human kingdom located outside of Erebor. The Festival of Champions is entirely made up.

To clarify, Doug's dwarven name is Dori, but the human name his mother gave him was Doug.

Mizimith – Jewel that is young.

Eru – creator deity for hobbits, part of the Valar, the creators of Middle Earth.

Mithril is also one of the rarest metals in all of Middle Earth, so it's a pretty big deal to get a present that features it.

I used the Royal Suite floorplan from the Plaza Hotel New York for the layout to Ben's room.

Until next time :)