Ryn was asleep by now, but since when had it ever been anything other than light? In reality, it was more of a slightly unconscious state, where he still could hear the murmurs of the city. He still kept his eyes closed, body scrunched up against the side of the city wall. The merchant beside him was too occupied with his trinkets to notice the man, so Ryn had thankfully found a nice spot in the shade of his stand.
Though, in the areas in which the sun shone through warmed his tan skin and almost made his hair appear to glow. Of course it was only the lighting— there was nothing magic about Ryn whatsoever. He just had a certain exotic look not many people were accustomed to.
The man’s chest rose and fell with his small, pressed breathing. It was rhythmic, however, and even. Almost as if he wasn’t worried— always nervous, always kept up with needing to survive. For the first time in about eighteen years, Ryn leaned into the warmth of the sun, and relaxed— only for a moment.
Arien continued through the area, not seeing anyone at all he'd he p want to make a concubine. Honestly, he wasn't even sure why he was doing this. He'd never had any before, and it wasn't his top priority. Still, he kept going, hands in pockets.
~
It seemed like he wasn't going to get anywhere. He'd been throughout most of the city, but he had seen no one of interest. He was about to give up, when… He saw a man, curled up in a spot of sun. He let out a long breath. Damn, he was hot. But something must be wrong with him. There must have been, if he wasn't in the battlefield. But still… Arien couldn't help but stare.
Ryn’s ears perked and his eyes fluttered open as he heard shuffling footsteps come to a stop before him.
He innocently looked up, the sun haloing a much taller, filled figure. He was dressed much more elegantly than Ryn, of course, but that was never hard to do. His own tattered clothing was nothing short of.. well.. unprofessional.
His gaze wandered over the man’s alluring green eyes, the breath caught in his throat.
He squeaked out a small, “Hello,” not necessarily sure why. Hell, the man may not have even been looking at him. Although he was moderately sure, meeting the man’s gaze with a youthful one of his own.
"Hello," Arien said in return. He still couldn't take his eyes off of the man in front of him now. The man's hair and skin had seemed to glow before the sun was blocked by Arien's body, but the man still looked amazing without that affect.
"Who… What is your name?"
“R-Ryn,” he stuttered nervously, heart beginning to beat slightly faster.
Since this wasn’t his kingdom, nor were these his people— nor did he have people— he didn’t know he was in the presence of royalty. Perhaps he knew he was in the presence of some kind of important authority, but otherwise, he was ignorant. If he had known, well, it seems his heart wouldn’t have even worked by now.
He pushed himself to his feet, still slinking but at least trying to address to the man with moderate confidence. The… well-looking stranger deserved Ryn’s effort.
“And wh—what’s yours?” he asked, voice smaller than he intended.
Arien hesitated a moment. It seemed like this man didn't know who he was. Perhaps he wouldn't recognize him at all. Still…
"My name is Arien. Arien Bolivia." King of the kingdom, ruler of all the sees, blah blah blah. He didn't bother with that part. The man seemed nervous enough as it was, let alone what he would be like if he realized Arien was the king.
Bolivia.
It sounded so familiar. Still, Ryn drew a blank.
He had never been engaged much in politics. He was always much too focused on his own personal survival than the needs of the many, rulers, and the feuds between kingdoms.
“Nice to meet you,” Ryn said softly, although with the fluctuation in his voice, it sounded awfully more like a question than a statement. Still, he was decently proud of himself for being able to get anything out. He was extremely distracted by simply Arien’s stature.
Arien was very glad Ryn didn't recognize his name. He had to deal with politics all the time, always surrounded by fake smiles and empty words. It would be nice to be able to talk to someone without them having to feel like they needed to keep him happy.
"It's nice to meet you too." Arien felt like he wouldn't be good at keeping this conversation alive. He was too wrapped up in how gorgeous Ryn was.
(Apologies, I was dealing with…stuff)
Rio payed the blacksmith his dues and started walking back to his house. It was then that his hood fell and he heard the whispers of people. He was wearing a low collared shirt and so his tattoo could be seen in all its glory as it crawled up the side of his neck. "Mama, that man has a curse!" he heard a young voice pipe up and the harsh whisper of its mother as she hushed him. Rio groaned and put his hood up, ducking into a nearby narrow street, not noticing the two other males at the end of it.
Ryn saw a new man creep into view, and his heart fully stopped.
This man. The man. The one that he had been running from… well, used to be running from.
Ryn carefully slinked back, pushing himself up against the side of the city wall. He desperately prayed for the shadows to envelop him. He wished to disappear. Fully.
He couldn’t even get a word out, his innocent eyes locked on the hooded figure. His attention was completely drawn from Arien, fight or flight mode making itself known. And… Ryn was never a fighter. Even still, he couldn’t find the ability to move at all.
Rio wrapped the sheath around his waist and put the sword in it as well before glancing up and coming to a dead stop. In a span of 2 seconds, Rio had his Sword out of its sheath and raised to the point where it was a good half inch away from Ryn's face. "You!" He growled. "Do you have any idea what your tricks did to me?!" He took a step closer, angrily throwing his hood down
Ryn let out a scared whimper, pressing his back up to the wall even harder, the cold stone digging into his spine. He gritted his teeth as his eyes flicked from the blade to the other man’s furious expression.
“I—I’m sorry, I—,” he began, words pressed through his teeth.
Suddenly, form behind him, Ryn pulled out a small dagger, notches through the blade. He swiftly clashed the other man’s sword with the dagger, the blade of the sword going straight in to one of the notches. Ryn pressed as hard as he could, locking both the sword and the small dagger in a stalemate.
He didn’t want to fight. He was exhausted. He wanted to sit down. Lie down. Crumple up and sleep for days. But… that didn’t happen when it was a matter between life and death.
Arien had stepped back when the sword was drawn. Oh shit. Oh shit. He hurried out of the alley, seemingly to run away. But instead, he came back with a guard, one of the total ones who only answered to the king.
"Put your weapons away," the guard demanded. Arien moved to Ryn's side again, behind the guard.
"Are you alright?" Arien asked quietly.
Ryn dropped the dagger completely, nearly hyperventilating. His heart beat incredibly fast, and his hands shook like crazy.
He glanced frantically from Arien to the other man, then to the guard, and finally back to Arien. His golden eyes stared up to him, and in his mind, he reviewed the question as odd.
Was he alright?
He hadn’t been asked that before. Still, he was living and breathing, so he assumed his answer was yes. He hadn’t gotten his head lopped off. Yet.
“Yeah,” he breathed, hesitantly putting his hands down. “I’m fine.”
Arien had his back to the man who had drawn the sword, trusting his guard to protect him.
"Are you sure?" He asked gently. He saw how Fun was reacting to the situation, and it didn't seem alright to him.
"I can offer you protection."
Protection? What was this? Some kind of joke? Since when in their right minds would anyone offer that to him, let alone this near angel of a man who had miraculously appeared before him.
“H-how?” Ryn asked, keeping his eyes wandering between both the guard and Rio. Just a minute ago he had been completely alone in the world, and now, there was simultaneously a man who wanted to kill him, and one who wanted to save him.
Rio put his sword away and sighed angrily. The sun reflected off his eyes making them seem a lot more interesting than they were. "It doesn't matter, I don't need your apology, you did all you could have done when you escaped and caused me to receive the punishment that gifted me many of the scars littering my body. So thank you for that." Rio smiled a sarcastic smile before looking at the other male in annoyance. "And who might you be? In all your fancy clothes you seem to be a noble and that guard you just brought makes you seem to be an important noble. If you had planned to visit the town, you should have worn something less attractive because if you haven't noticed by now, your coin purse is bound to be significantly lighter than when you first arrived." He gestured with his hand and leaned against the wall.
Arien decided it would be a good idea to answers both of the questions posed at him at the same time.
"I'm Arien Bolivia. King of this place." He stood between Ryn and the man who had threatened. Damnit, why were the two hottest men left in this place enemies?! He turned back to Run, tone soft again.
"You could come with me," he said gently.
Hell yes, was the only thing running through Ryn’s mind. He was usually much more professional than that, but a literal king was offering him a place to stay. And that king was… attractive, in every aspect. He spoke with elegance, something Ryn had long forgotten.
“What would this entail?” he asked quietly, although he seemed to slowly be regaining confidence. He dismissed Rio’s remark, just keeping his attention on Arien.
"The cover story would be you're a new concubine. You would never be forced to do something you do not, I swear it on my throne." Arien added the oath, knowing he could never force himself on Ryn. He spoke so the guard could not hear him. He gave a small smile.
"You'd be able to go wherever you wanted, and no one would question it."
Much to the common opinion, Ryn’s mind wasn’t necessarily filled with the thought of riches. It was mostly filled with social anxiety, but for the promise of protection and a place to actually feel safe, it was much overpowered.
Although, the word “concubine” stuck in his head, even after the man’s promise. Ryn had never been one to be subservient… so he really hoped Arien was telling the truth.
“Thank you so much for the offer,” he said, voice still slightly shaky. “I’ll— I’ll accept.”
Rio scoffed. "Perfect, being a concubine is something Ryn would be perfect at." He rolled his eyes and rubbed the side of his neck the tattoo was on. Back when the two males had met for the first time, Rio only had the tattoo on his arm and left side of the torso, the neck tattoo was new. Rio put his hood halfway up and pushed off the wall. "Excuse me but I would rather not listen to this silly talk of concubines. Farewell." He did an exaggerated bow and rolled his eyes once again before turning to leave.
Arien nodded, smiling gently when Ryn accepted his offer.
"Stop-" the guard said. He reached out for Rio's ar!m, trying to stop him.
"You're under arrest for threatening the king." Arien ignored the guard and the man, focusing on Ryn.
"Is there anything you need to collect before we go to the palace?"
"First off," he said, glaring at the guard and pushing his hand off his arm. "I didn't threaten the king, I didn't threaten anyone. Secondly, I have things to do at home so let me be." Rio growled. He fixed his hood, which had fallen off again before pausing and turning back to the supposed king. "You'll need this cloak more than I." He said, taking off the cloak to reveal a low collared black shirt with ripped sleeves, dark brown pants, and a pair of leather boots with a few leather bracelets adorning his wrists. He tossed the cloak at his feet and crossed his arms. "To that, I bid you, adieu."
"I don't need anything from you." Arien turned for a moment from Ryn, in favor to look at the man.
"You drew your blade on both me and this man, and yet you say you threatened no one?" Arien finally spotted the mark on the man's neck, face darkening a moment.
"Then again, I would expect nothing less from someone like you."
