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“I love you, my son. I am so, so proud of you.”
His father’s words rang with a kind of sweetness he could never get tired of, no matter how much time passed by. With that small chat they had together, slightly out of breath from sparring atop a hill before the light of day, they watched the sun rise over the horizon, and King Xander laid his hand on Siegbert’s right shoulder.
“I had a dream,” he said, as the sun rose, and he pulled Siegbert close to himself to hug him with one arm. “That I was facing you in a ravine, the world falling apart around us.”
“Father…” Siegbert began, but Xander shook his head.
“No. It was a good dream.” He murmured softly, softer than the whispers of hello of the sunrise. “I had fallen, and you saved me.”
Siegbert looked up at him, and Xander gave him a gentle smile.
“And best of all, Siegbert, I saw you wielding Siegfried. Holding it up against me, its power perfectly under your control.” He pulled Siegbert into a warm hug, tight and comforting, and the teen’s eyes welled with tears. “It made me so happy.”
“I hope one day I can wield it and make you proud, Father.”
Xander pulled away from him, smiling warmly as he cupped his son’s face in his hands.
“You already have.”
His words rang like church bells in his head long after their conversation ended, but it also triggered something in him. In the days that followed, he, too, had dreams.
Dreams of a world where his father, his uncle—his family were all dead. A world where Forrest was not his Forrest, or Soleil was not his Soleil. A lonely world of a lonely blue-haired son of a songstress. A world where he looked into strong, sure eyes and told himself how nice it would've been to have fallen in love with him.
Him, who?
“Oh, Siegbert, you haven't visited your Deeprealm in a while!” His mother smiled at him one day, and he jumped a little.
“Oh, that's true.” He nodded. “I do wonder how everyone has been doing there.”
“Well, Forrest went to pay his Deeprealm a visit earlier this morning.” She smiled at him, stroking his hair. “You should take a day off and go, too.”
He laughed softly. “Mother, I have work to do.”
“Oh, you're exactly like your father!” She pouted, and pulled him to his feet, the teen laughing helplessly as he let her. “Come on, take a break! If it makes you feel better, I'm dragging your father out for a date as well!” She giggled, and Siegbert laughed.
“And your true motive shines through, mother.” He shook his head fondly. “But alright. I will go take a break. It's been too long.”
She grinned at him brightly and ushered him out.
As he stepped into his Deeprealm, something felt… different. He had opted not to bring a retinue with him; the war was over. Should there be trouble, he was confident he could take care of himself.
Yet as he rode into the other world, he slowed his horse down to inspect his surroundings.
“What's…”
For a moment, his vision flickered and he was standing in a scorching desert, and then rich, lush Hoshidan forests, and he was back in the forest of his Deeprealm.
Siegbert took a shaking breath, gasping in shock as he doubled over on his horse, and the world warped around him to form one that had soft, light green grass, sparse trees, and ruins overrun with moss and vines. His head spun and his body grew weak, and the next thing Siegbert knew he was falling down from his horse.
“Whoa there!” A familiarly unfamiliar voice called to him, and he fell to the side right into familiar warmth and the same eyes he had been dreaming of for nights on end.
“It's you…” was all he managed, before blacking out completely.
He woke to the sound of a crackling fire, and the rustling of leaves, and the soft whinnying of his horse. Siegbert sat up, groaning, to realise that he was propped up against a particularly clean piece of rubble, and there was a blanket draped over him. Night had fallen over the strange world he landed himself in, stars twinkling in the sky overhead like the tiny gems on his mother’s dress.
His mother. His father. Gods, he hoped he hadn't been out for too long. He jumped at the sound of a voice, and he turned to see a young Hoshidan man with wild brown hair trying to coax his horse to come closer to their small makeshift camp.
“That's it… nice horsey… Gods, I wish Caeldori was here for this…”
Siegbert couldn't help but laugh at him, and got up on unsteady feet. His movement caught the young man’s attention, and he quickly ran to him.
“H-hey, you shouldn't be standing up yet.” He stammered, holding him up with some difficulty.
“I'm fine.” Siegbert told him. “Grimhilt won't answer if she doesn't know who you are.” He whistled at her, and the horse obediently approached them. The Hoshidan man frowned at that, lowering Siegbert to the ground again and crossed his arms.
“Seriously. I'm garbage at handling animals.” He huffed, but he eventually smiled. “So, you're trapped here too?”
“Trapped?” Siegbert echoed. “Oh, no. I have to be home soon.”
“Me too.” The Hoshidan scowled. “But I don't even know where we are. I was just visiting my Deeprealm and suddenly I was here.”
“So was I.” Siegbert sighed. “So you must have had the same experience as I had.”
“Yep.” He grinned. “The whole collapsing thing too. ‘S how I got this.” He raised his arm, the bells on his guards jingling, to show Siegbert a huge bruise on his bicep.
Siegbert winced. “I'm so sorry.”
“Not your fault.” He shrugged. “So, why'd you come to your Deeprealm? I didn't know Nohrians sent their kids into the Deeprealms.”
“It was necessary, according to my parents. The war was dangerous for a child to grow up in.” He sighed. “I suppose for you it was the same?”
“Yeah.” He nodded.
“Oh, wait. That's right, we've not even introduced ourselves to each other.” Siegbert held his hand out for him to shake, and suddenly his head spun again, as he said, “It's nice to meet you, Shiro.”
The young man’s eyes widened.
“... It's nice to meet you too, Siegbert.”
The two of them froze, shock written all over their faces, and suddenly, memories poured in all at once.
“Your precious Raijinto may have run my father through.”
“There's no way I'm fighting alongside a guy like him!”
“You were amazing, Siegbert.”
“Your technique was strong, and so were your feelings.”
“... Shiro.” Tears welled in Siegbert’s eyes, and a drop rolled down Shiro’s cheek.
“Sieg. Oh, gods. I thought I'd never see you again.” Relief was clear in Shiro’s voice, swelling and threatening to crack the dam holding his tears back, and he pulled the blond into his arms into a bone-crushing hug. “It's nice to meet you.” He repeated, and his arms shook and faltered. “It's nice to meet you. ”
Siegbert smiled through the tears that just rolled down his face, and he felt wetness at his neck. He hugged Shiro back, just as desperately, and the two of them held each other there, just relishing the moment they finally found again with each other.
When they let go, Shiro was grinning widely, wiping his eyes roughly with his sleeve.
“Man,” he laughed helplessly. “I haven't cried like that in a long time.”
“Me neither.” Siegbert agreed, sniffling, and Shiro gave him a toothy grin. He reached forward to thumb away the tear that rolled down his face. He smiled, leaning into the other’s touch, and Shiro cupped his cheek gently. “I've missed you.”
“Me too.” Shiro admitted, “You more than anyone else.”
At that, Siegbert blushed. “O-oh. Really?”
Shiro laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. “Uh, yeah. Was that… weird?”
“No, not at all!” Siegbert assured him. “I-I actually, um… I'm actually really happy you missed me. I missed you, as well.”
Shiro grinned at that, and sat down next to him, their bodies flush against each other and he looked up at the sky. “I'm glad we got to meet like this again. Relieved you're okay, really.” He said. “For a while I was pretty worried about all of you—we all came from different worlds, we'd never have a chance to meet again.”
“Yet here we are.” Siegbert sighed, leaning against Shiro and resting his head on his shoulder. The other blushed deeply, jolting slightly, a grin of sorts crossing his face that went unseen as Siegbert closed his eyes, content. “By some miracle, here we are.”
“Yeah.” Shiro nodded, and they fell silent for a while, relishing the warmth of each other and missed company.
After a long moment of comfortable silence, Shiro spoke again.
“Oh. That's right.”
Siegbert opened his eyes. He was about to doze off when Shiro spoke, and curiosity got the better of him as he sat up to let Shiro squirm around in his seat, pulling out a small sheet of paper tied to a bamboo stick from the folds of his uniform. The blond cocked his head and Shiro grinned at him.
“Right now in Hoshido it's a festival called Tanabata.” He explained, “We write wishes on paper and hang them up on bamboo shoots.”
“Oh, I think I've heard of that before.” Siegbert nodded. “Queen Hinoka told us about it.”
Shiro nodded. “And, um. Well. Here's what I wished for.”
He held the paper up for Siegbert to read, only to have him laugh.
“I'm sorry, Shiro, I can't read Hoshidan characters.” He said, and Shiro flushed deeply.
“O-oh, that's right.” He stammered, uncharacteristically embarrassed, for once. “Well, um. I wished that I could see you again.”
Siegbert's cheeks also grew warm. “Really?”
“Y-yeah. I… wanted to make sure you were okay, stuff like that. Um.” He smiled sheepishly. “I didn't remember your name, but I remembered your eyes. Cheesy as it sounded.” He snorted, and Siegbert chuckled. “Ever since my dad gave me the noogie I always wanted, I’d been having the strangest dreams lately. About what we went through to help Shigure and our parents. About you.” He scratched the back of his head. “And damn it, I said I wasn't good at the whole feelings shit but for some reason here I am ranting about it.”
“I'm glad you are.” Siegbert replied. “I'm the same. I dreamt about Shigure and our parents and everyone… but I remember you most of all.” He shrugged half heartedly. “I really wanted to see you again.”
Shiro gave him a lopsided smile. “Really?”
Siegbert nodded.
“Wow. Damn.” He breathed.
“Hey, um. I don't fully remember the story Queen Hinoka told us about Tanabata.” Siegbert said. “Could you, perhaps… remind me?”
“Oh, um.” Shiro looked embarrassed, but he nodded. “According to stories my mom told me, Tanabata is celebrated when Orihime and Hikoboshi meet in the sky once a year.” He looked back up at the sky. “I'd been trying to find them in this sky, but I guess Deeprealm skies just aren't the same as our original world’s.”
Siegbert looked up at the sky. “You're talking about the stars, right? The two stars that move and meet in the sky?”
“Yeah.” Shiro nodded, and this time he didn't jolt when Siegbert rested his head on his shoulder again, instead shuffling closer so they were snuggled together. “My old man says you guys in Nohr had names for stars too?”
“Yes.” Siegbert replied, smiling slowly. “And there they are. Altair and Vega.” He raised his hand to point at the sky, where two twinkling stars were right next to each other. “Looks like they've met too, even in this world.”
Shiro’s eyes widened for a moment, and upon spotting them his surprise melted into a soft smile.
“That's nice.” He sighed. “They were lovers separated by Orihime’s father, allowed only to meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month.”
“Why the seventh?”
Shiro snorted, and shrugged. “Dunno. Just says so.” He replied. “Aunt Sakura absolutely loves their story. It's pretty romantic.”
“It is.” Siegbert sighed. “Despite all odds, Orihime and Hikoboshi manage to meet once a year. That's quite the promise they kept.”
Shiro fell silent at that, quietly relishing the feel of Siegbert’s body next to his, and remembered his relief when he saw him again. He didn't want to never see him again. He wanted to part ways, only for them to meet again. His wish tumbled out of his mouth faster than his head could keep up.
“Let's do the same.” He said, and Siegbert’s eyes widened. He sat up to look at Shiro, and he nervously looked back. “I… I don't want to leave here knowing I'll never see you again.”
Siegbert's hand curled around Shiro’s. “Me too.”
The thought of parting with Shiro left a gaping hole in his chest. Emptiness was never a pleasant thing to feel.
“Then let's make a promise?” Shiro asked quietly. “On the seventh day of the seventh month.”
Siegbert couldn't help but laugh. “Seven-seven, for no reason?”
“Yeah, sure.” Shiro grinned. “For no reason.”
“Very well.” He nodded. “Every year, we’ll meet in a Deeprealm. Promise.”
“We gotta make sure we can meet.” Shiro sighed. “I don't even know how we got here.”
Siegbert gave him a smile, and dared to cup his face in his hand. “Maybe the Deeprealm found a way for us. Maybe it intended for us to meet here today.”
Shiro smiled a little at that, and with the slight tilt of his face it felt like he was kissing Siegbert’s palm.
“I sure hope so. Or I'm gonna find Shigure and I'm gonna beat him up.”
Siegbert laughed, loud and unguarded, and despite the dim light their campfire provided, Shiro thought he positively glowed.
So he did what felt right.
He leaned in, and pressed their lips together. Softly, just once.
Siegbert fell still, eyes wide as Shiro pulled away.
“Sorry.” He grinned, but he looked unapologetic. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”
Siegbert flushed.
“Oh.” He simply said, and Shiro leaned in again to peck his lips again. “Shiro!” Siegbert laughed, pushing him away slightly, and the brunet laughed, cuddling him close to pepper his face with kisses.
They dissolved into laughter, eventually rolling around together in the grass of Valla, and they fell silent, sighing deeply as Shiro ended up on top of Siegbert. He pressed their foreheads together and he kissed the tip of the blond’s nose.
“I'm gonna miss you.” He murmured, and Siegbert shut his eyes.
“Me too.” He whispered. “A year feels too long.”
“And a day is too short.” Shiro agreed. “But we’ll make it. Right?”
Siegbert smiled gently.
“Yes.”
“Lord Siegbert!”
He opened his eyes to the sight of his old caretaker leaning over him, concern clear on her face. She lit up when she saw him awake, and called over her shoulder, “He’s awake!”
Soon he was surrounded by his old caretakers, and he sat up to realise he was inside the old castle he grew up in, back in his old bed. He blinked in confusion. Just a minute ago, he had been rolling in the grass with Shiro, but now… he was back in his Deeprealm?
“What day is it today?” he asked urgently, and the maid turned to look at him, cocking her head.
“The eighth of July, sire. Whatever is the matter?”
So that was it, he thought to himself. The seventh day of the seventh month was over. It was time for Altair and Vega to part ways again.
He smiled softly, the memory of his promise still ringing in his heart, and shook his head.
“Nothing terribly pressing,” he assured her, getting up. “Now, how is everyone? Where’s Grimhilt?”
Another year had passed and his mother had been delighted he had decided on taking a break at his own prerogative. With a smile and a wave to his parents, Siegbert rode off towards his Deeprealm early in the morning, and as he passed through the portal, he felt something… different, and this time it put a smile to his face.
His world suddenly shifted, changing like the tide, and when he opened his eyes he was back in Valla again, right in front of a smiling spearmaster who looked all too pleased to see him again.
“It’s nice to meet you, Shiro.” Siegbert smiled.
“It’s nice to meet you, Siegbert.” Shiro grinned back, and pulled him into a kiss.