Fic: a dream or two (away from you)
Dear @breeze-tells-tales - happy Fence Secret Santa! I was inspired by your prompt to write a Harvard/Aiden fantasy AU :3 It's a (loosely) mediaeval fantasy with some dream magic. I hope you enjoy it! 💜
a dream or two (away from you)
Ship: Harvard/Aiden (and a tiny mention of Nicholas/Seiji)
Summary: Everyone knows that magic isn't real. Never mind that Aiden, crown prince of Feldhaven, has been having strange dreams from a young age in which he meets and plays with a young boy from a far-away kingdom.
He can't explain it, but he isn't concerned - until years later, when an eighteen-year-old Aiden is suddenly introduced to the new Captain of the Guard: Harvard Lee. The boy from his dreams.
Aiden was standing in the middle of a wood.
This was a bit strange, because he’d gone to sleep in his bed in the castle, and he didn’t remember coming out here. Also, he was still wearing his nightclothes. But everything around him felt clear and vivid – the grass under his (bare) feet, the wind through his hair… The only other odd thing was that he didn’t feel cold at all, even though it had been a chill night.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught movement among the trees and turned quickly. “Who’s there?” he called.
A boy emerged from the trees, about his age, slightly taller and with dark skin. He was also dressed in nightclothes, and holding a stuffed teddy bear. “Hello,” he said, with a reassuring smile. “Who are you? I’m Harvard.”
Aiden wondered if Harvard’s family must be from far away, if they didn’t know how to recognise him, Crown Prince Aiden. Then again, where was this? Were they near the castle grounds? (He wasn’t allowed to go beyond the castle grounds on his own. Definitely not without at least two bodyguards). The wood didn’t seem familiar.
“I’m Joshua,” he said, which was his middle name, but he didn’t know what this strange boy might know about him and he decided he’d like to keep it that way. “Where are we, do you know?”
Harvard shook his head. “I thought I was asleep in bed, then I was here,” he said thoughtfully. “I don’t think this is near my house.”
So this other boy didn’t know where they were either. Aiden thought. This could be an elaborate plot to kidnap him, but he didn’t see any kidnappers, or anyone else here besides Harvard. And he’d never been able to make a friend just on his own, before. His mind suddenly flooded with excited possibilities.
“Do you want to play tag?” he asked.
Harvard frowned at him. “Shouldn’t we try to find out what’s happening? Or find our parents?”
What Harvard was saying made sense for a boy like him, but for once Aiden’s parents (or the castle guards, or his nurse, or anyone) weren’t around, and he was desperate to make the most of it. “Maybe we’ll find out as we go.” He mimicked the way he’d seen commoner children playing out of the windows of his carriage, and reached out to brush Harvard’s arm. He felt solid. “Tag. You’re it!”
A grin grew on Harvard’s face as the thrill of a new friend and the game took over, and he chased after Aiden. Aiden shrieked and ran, and at one point tumbled to the ground and got leaves in his hair, and generally did a lot of things not befitting of an heir to the throne. It was glorious. He never wanted it to end.
He couldn’t say what it was that gave him the sense their time was up. But the sun cresting over the horizon might have played a part. “Harvard, I think I’m… going. I think I’m about to be home again,” he told his friend urgently.
Harvard nodded. He’d sensed it too. “It’s okay. We’ll see each other again,” he said.
Aiden was suddenly pierced by a stab of panic. “But how will I find you? I don’t even know where you live. What if we never come back here?”
Harvard gave the questions some careful thought, and then solemnly handed Aiden his teddy bear. “Here. Now you’ll have something of mine to keep.”
It didn’t answer his questions, but Aiden clutched the bear close to his chest. “I’ll take good care of him.”
Harvard smiled at him. “Bye! I had fun!”
“I did too,” Aiden said, but he found himself saying the words aloud to the dark of his bedroom. He was back in his own bed in the castle, like he’d never left. The only thing that had changed was the worn, stuffed teddy bear clutched in his arms.
