A/N: This has been lingering in my mind for awhile, and once I was in a good mood in a nice and peaceful environment I decided to write it up. It's mostly dialogue based, which is different from what I'm used to, so it was a good experience for me. Cover image belongs to bird chivalry on pixiv. Please enjoy :)

Despite the chilly weather of the night, he still felt warm. A soft breeze whispered by, tickling at his bare skin and forming goosebumps. His fngers idly traced around the leather of his eyepatch as he stared out at the courtyard, mind lost in thought. It was a habit of his, he had noticed. Perhaps it was because he was noticing the presence of the stone more than he used to, or touching the area near it made him feel more closely connected to it. He wasn't sure. It didn't matter, really.

"Yurick?"

Yurick shifted his gaze to the man that had spoken. Therius stood at the entryway, his undone braid causing his white locks falling down in waves over his shoulders and down his back. He was still dressed in his armour, not yet having changed into his clothes for the nighttime. He stepped forward, lowering himself down on the steps next to where Yurick was sitting. Yurick turned his gaze back towards the courtyard.

"It's fairly late. What are you doing out at this hour?"

"I could ask you the same thing." He didn't try and avoid his question, though. "I've been thinking a lot lately, I suppose."

"Thinking that requires you to sit in the cold of night?"

"It's one of the best times to think, you know."

"I did not."

"Consider yourself enlightened, then." He moved his hand down from his eyepatch and crossed his arms in front of himself. Being a fire mage, he didn't feel cold all that often, so the cold was not much of a bother. Personally, he thought it best when it was raining to sit outside and think, but in the dark of the night he found it pleasant enough to let his thoughts roam. Some others preferred the background buzz of a tavern or the warmth of the sun to think, but Yurick could handle the cold.

"Might I ask about your thoughts?"

He gave a soft laugh. "It's nothing important, really."

"Even still, what might they be?"

"Don't you ever have those nights where you sit down and think for a while, for no particular reason? Then again, you're so busy that you probably don't have time for it."

"Ah, but you said you have been thinking a lot lately. Lately is different from just one night, yes?"

"You're always sharp," he said with a hint of amusement, more to himself than to Therius. "Adjusting to being back is a bit weird after leaving the group for so long. Not to say that I didn't miss them while I was gone, I missed them loads, but after all that time to myself it's a bit strange being back here."

"You'll be used to it again, in due time."

"Right you are." He moved his gaze back to the white knight, studying the other's blank expression. He was always difficult to read like that. Difficult to read in general, actually. "Was it weird without me?" He took on a teasing tone.

"Things have been running along as they always do."

If it were anyone else he would have thought they were avoiding the question, but Therius was always so straightforward and blunt that he knew he was not the type to tiptoe around it. Perhaps Therius knew this as well and knew exactly how to avoid Yurick's not-so-direct questions about where they stood because he knew he would not question his tiptoeing. He didn't mind, though. Their banter made him smile as it was. Sometimes he was afraid it would change if he said to much.

"I'm not invading your space, am I?"

"No, no. It's nice to have some company after being alone for so long. The others have been too busy to hang out. Zael's got a lot on his shoulders." He supposed that Zael always had had a lot on his shoulders anyway. "I haven't even bothered to ask what you've been up to. What have you been up to, Therius?"

"Training to-be knights, taking order."

"So the usual, then."

A comforting silence fell between them. Yurick shifted himself a bit closer to the other, their shoulders brushing together.

"Have things been alright with you?" Yurick asked.

"As fine as they can be," Therius replied.

"Yeah," he gave a short reply as his voice trailed off. He hesitated before speaking up again. "I missed you, you know."

"I do."

Now he was tiptoeing around it, like they always seemed to do about the subject of each other before Yurick left. Why couldn't he just be blunt when it came to this? Yurick wished he could be, if only to get it over with.

"I mean it, Therius."

The knight's gaze shifted down to him. "I know you do."

"Damn you," he whispered, but Therius could hear him and he knew it and didn't care. "Damn you and the way you always come back to my thoughts."

"You were never one to swear at me. To others, maybe, but not at me." Yurick almost thought Therius' voice held a hint of amusement, but Therius was always so unreadable that he couldn't confirm it, and it just made him want to say 'damn you' again.

To Therius Yurick thought he must have been an open book and hated that even more. It wasn't fair that he couldn't read him but Therius could. Therius just kept running through his thoughts, and when he felt their lips brush together his thoughts ran even faster, and when he leaned forward to reciprocate it he thought his mind might just explode because of this man.

"Is this a one time thing?"

He wasn't expecting an answer anyway. When their lips connected once again, bodies flush against one another, it occurred to him that it didn't matter right now. One time was just enough, for now.

Besides, this was far better than being left alone with his thoughts.