Chapter Text
“They say a god lives in this forest.”
The traveler stood in the doorway as rain obscured the world beyond him, the occasional crash of lightning sparking across the sky above. It was only midday, yet the sky was as dark and hazy as if the sun has set long ago. His cloak was black and sodden, hood pulled so far down that his features could barely be seen.
“They say that he’s a benevolent god. He watches for wanderers lost in the wood, leaves them gifts of food and comfort and sets them in the right direction. The monsters hiding in the shadows all bow to him, you know. Where they’d snatch you or I up in their teeth without a second though, well...they’re his children, aren’t they? Born of the pit, motherless and cruel. And as kind as he is, if you cross him he’ll toss you right off a balcony.”
Jaehyun rolled his eyes, arms folded as he resisted the urge to tap his foot. “Jeno, will you shut up and come inside? You’re letting the storm in.”
Clearly quite pleased with his little joke, Jeno stepped into the house and kicked the door shut behind him. He dropped his pack on the floor, immediately heading for the fire so the heat could dry him off. Puddles of water were left in his wake, collecting on the floor in a trail behind him. “Doyoung sends his regards, says he looks forward to seeing you in the summer.”
Jaehyun smiled, fetching Jeno a cup of ale to better warm him. “It will be nice to see him, though I’m not sure I’m ready to leave home for two weeks. The field out back is perfect for tilling right now, Johnny will hate to leave it behind.”
“That’s what you have a farmboy for,” Jeno pointed out, thanking him for the drink and taking a gulping mouthful. He rested it aside to work himself out of his boots, setting them closer to the fire to dry.
“His name is Jisung, which you well know,” Jaehyun said sternly. “Stop calling him our ‘farmboy.’”
In that strange and funny way that time seemed to move, it had already been a year and some months since their return to Ardent. At first they’d struggled to find peace, a new way of life that would work for not only Jaehyun, but for the people as well. His first, strongest desire had been to cut all ties. To have it his way he would have set the church aflame, leave it burning and never look back.
Surprisingly, it had been Doyoung who had preached the need of the church, of a familiar way of life to give the citizens of Ardent hope during such a time of change. As the Profane - a name Jaehyun dearly hoped they’d soon change - worked to provide some sort of stability and governance, Doyoung had tried to coax Jaehyun into sticking around, being the voice they heard every Sunday as they continued to gather in the Cathedral, looking for comfort. Jaehyun declined. The idea of staying in that Cathedral for one moment more brought tears to his eyes, and Johnny and Jeno had stepped in to mediate.
It took hours of debate, but they found a middle ground. A few weeks here and there throughout the month where Jaehyun would come back, speak to the people, let them know they were still loved by their Almighty. While there was no more hidden god locked away in a tower, there was a simple farmer out beyond the walls who would come back every now and then to talk about love and kindness, his devoted (and somewhat terrifying) husband always at his side. And if that god didn’t think he was a god at all? Well, that would be his burden to bear.
Everything was changing faster than Jaehyun could keep up with. Doyoung had worked closely with Kun to create a militia to serve the people rather than suppress them, sending squadrons beyond the wall to protect the cities and towns that Ardent had all but forgotten. Offerings were taken for the people, rather than for a small group of men who thought they were too good to have to share the wealth. The Cathedral itself had been split into sections, some of it an orphanage, some of it a new convent for the Sisters of the Miraculous Vision. Jaehyun had made that request himself; he had no real way to thank Sister Clarity for all she had ever done for him, the least he could do was get her chapter of the Sisterhood out of their crumbling building in low town.
Gone were the days of punishments and penance. No longer did families have to pledge their every last penny to win favour from the church. For Jaehyun, even if he they managed to accomplish nothing else, that would be enough.
“Where’s Johnny? I’m surprised he left you here alone, he tends to hover,” Jeno pointed out, resting his elbows on his knees. He was dressed in finer clothes than Jaehyun was used to seeing him in, wearing a neat black tunic buttoned to his throat. That had apparently been Doyoung’s doing as well; if the Profane were going to be a proper governing body they would need to dress the part.
Jaehyun couldn’t help but laugh. “Look who’s talking, ever since you and Doyoung figured your nonsense out you barely let him out of your sight.”
Their conversation was interrupted by the door swinging open once more, a sodden Johnny, Taeyong and Yuta shuffling in. Johnny and Taeyong looked fairly miserable, but Yuta wore his same “I don’t have a care in the world” grin. In their hands were cluster of herbs and ingredients that Taeyong had dragged them out to find, and they left the same puddles of water that Jeno had trailed in just a while before.
“You’re all a bunch of animals,” Jaehyun lamented. “I just washed the floor.”
“And you did a fantastic job of it,” Johnny teased, setting down his armful of various plants. He walked over, sweeping Jaehyun into his arms and kissing all over his face despite Jaehyun’s loud protests. He held Jaehyun until he was just as wet as the rest of them before putting him down, turning to grin at Jeno.
“Who let you in? I specifically told Jaehyun’s birds that you weren’t to get past the treeline,” he teased, stripping himself out of the layers until he was in nothing more than his trousers. “Also, aren’t you supposed to be hovering over Doyoung or something? What are you doing here?”
Taeyong stripped down just as Johnny had, waiting until Yuta did the same to take all their wet things and lay them by the fire. “Let me guess; someone’s hurt and you need me to leave home for three weeks to tend to them?”
“No, not this time,” Jeno laughed. “I come with gifts, we cleaned out Jaehyun’s old room. There wasn’t much to it, but I gathered some of the books I found and decided to pay you a visit.” As he spoke he opened his pack, pulling out parcels carefully wrapped in some sort of beeswax-soaked cloth. He carefully peeled the wrapping back, passing them to Jaehyun.
“Oh,” Jaehyun breathed, running his fingers over the cover of the topmost book. It was an old collection of fairytales, one he’d loved dearly. The leather was cracked and worn, the pages faded, yet Jaehyun held it like it was the most delicate treasure. “Oh Jeno, thank you. This is incredible.”
As they all dried off they caught up to the best of their abilities. Johnny caught Jeno up on life in their own little farmhouse, the one just across the field from Yuta and Taeyong. Jaehyun spoke of Taeil and Donghyuck, how he and Johnny hoped to visit them on their way to Ardent when next they traveled, convince Taeil to take up a permanent position at the Cathedral. Yuta and Taeyong boasted about how well Jisung had taken to farm life (and Jaehyun teased them over how they’d all but adopted the boy, snatching his personal street urchin away and raising them as their son).
For his part Jeno regaled them with stories about how now Renjun and Jaemin were the ones dancing around each other, though Renjun would never admit it. When teased enough he ducked his blushing face and talked about his time with Doyoung, how well they worked together putting Ardent’s pieces back together, and how well they worked together in every other aspect of life as well.
“Your Sister Clarity sends her regards, as well,” Jeno said, smiling at Jaehyun’s soft gasp. “Says she expects you to pay your poor old nanny a visit next time you’re in the city.”
“Oh, I will,” Jaehyun promised. “The very first thing. I promise.”
Jeno stayed long enough to share an early supper with them, continuing to chat and tell stories all through their meal. After, when they begged him to stay the night and leave in the morning, he politely declined.
“There’s too much to be done,” he said with a smile, collecting his mostly-dry cloak and boots. The rain had let up a bit, though it wouldn’t take much time for them to be soaked through all over again. “It was nice to see you, even if it was only for an evening…” He graciously took the offers of food and an extra cloak thrust upon him, giving a short bow before disappearing into the night.
Yuta and Taeyong left a while after, though not before Yuta and Johnny had put together a detailed plan on how they would approach their tilling the next day. When the fire was all but embers Jaehyun rushed them out, sending them with a bowl of supper for Jisung and latching the door carefully behind them.
As Johnny cleaned up Jaehyun let himself look at the books Jeno had returned to him, studying them by the light of a lone candle on his desk. He lovingly caressed their covers, carefully spreading them open and running his fingertips over the pages as if they held some ancient magic his might be able to draw right out of the ink. Jeno had been careful; not a bit of rainwater had made its way past their bindings. With a small smile he picked up the last book, turning to a page he must have marked ages ago.
Something small and white fell out of the book, fluttering to the ground. Jaehyun raised an eyebrow, ducking to recover it from the floor.
There, laying on the wood he’d scrubbed that very afternoon in a home so far from the torments of Ardent, was the snowdrop Johnny had given him. It was still pristine, paper thin and beautiful, just as he’d remembered it. Jaehyun all but whimpered, carefully pressing it to his lips.
They’d come so far. They’d changed so much.
Before he could get too swept up in his emotion Johnny crept up behind him, wrapping strong arms around his waist. He hooked his chin over Jaehyun’s shoulder, pressing a kiss to his jaw.
“Come to bed. I’m still cold from the rain, I need you to warm me,” Johnny whispered, breath ghosting over Jaehyun’s neck. “Wouldn’t want me to catch a cold, would you?”
Jaehyun laughed, quickly putting the snowdrop back in the book and setting it aside. “Of course not. Let me help, you poor thing.” He suddenly found himself upended, laughing as Johnny carried him, bridal style, to the bedroom.
There would be time for tears and memories later, when he could hold the flower in his hands, kiss its paper-thin petals and dwell on the past.
Right now he wanted to live in the present. He wanted to be here, in this moment, where he had safety, a husband, and a home. A family beyond the two of them, people they could trust without doubt or deception. The knowledge that in the morning this would all still be here, and he would be just as happy tomorrow as he was today.
As Johnny turned sideways to get them through the bedroom door Jaehyun smiled, kicking the door shut behind them.