Virgil's time in the kingdom of Villion with prince Aaron.
And coming home.
FINAL PART FOR CHAPTER 25!!!
Hope yalls are ready!
(I totally don't already have chapter 26 started and more then halfway done)

Virgil yawned softly as he turned the page of his book, partially regretting the nap he had decided to take since now he was still really sleepy, but he shouldn't go back to sleep because they were going to be there soon.

The sun had recently begun to set, and he had lit the small lamp on the carriage wall so that he could still read.

They were supposed to show up in the next few minutes, which meant Virgil needed to wake himself up enough to look presentable and not fall asleep in the middle of dinner and dessert.

He put his book down and went about making himself look presentable, straightening out his clothes, fixing his hair, and such forth.

The carriage soon stopped, and his door was opened, letting him come outside.

Everything was so bright and green despite the setting sun.

Trees and other plants were everywhere, lining the streets, surrounding the houses, circling the whole kingdom, absolutely everywhere.

The roads were laid down in dark sturdy looking bricks, a thin layer of dirt coating them, but it didn't look dirty, just well worn. All the houses and buildings were in various shades of yellow, white and brown, and had many windows, some buildings even having glass ceilings and skylights. The buildings were also half timbered, the dark symmetrical wooden patterns standing out on the light colored houses, and some had some type of ivy or other vine creeping up the sides. Green and yellow flags hung aground the place, and fire lit lanterns were strung between buildings down the street, adding to its beauty. The kingdom had a quaintness to it, looking like it was pulled out of a fairy tale from a book, delicate yet sturdy and old.

Virgil was lead up to the castle, which had green and yellow flags hanging from it as well, where he met the queen and prince Aaron who standing in front of the doors.

"It is wonderful to see you've arrived safe and sound," the queen said with a smile, "we had begun wondering if you had run into trouble along the road when the sun had began to go down and you hadn't arrived yet." She said.

The Queen, named Diana if Virgil recalled correctly, stood a few inches shorter than the prince, just an inch or so above Virgil's own height. She had thin brown and grey hair that touched her shoulders, and had soft wrinkles across her face, but that didn't make her any less beautiful. Her eyes were a bright shade of brown, and her smile was warm and friendly.
She wore a deep emerald green dress with gold detailing and white lace, the dark color of the dress standing out in a lovely way against her pale skin. If Virgil could recall correctly she was actually Aaron's grandmother on his mothers side, his parents having died due to illness when he was young. He wasn't sure how true that was, since he'd read it in a book, but didn't mention it nonetheless.

"Sorry for our late arrival, the horses needed a break along the way and we departed slightly later than planned." Virgil said with an apologetic smile as he bowed.

"Do not worry dear, we don't take offense, and are just happy to see you here and well." She said, "now let me introduce you to my nephew." She said as she gestured to him.

"This is my nephew, Aaron, I hope the two of you are able to bond in at least friendship if not something more." She said.

Aaron stood taller than virgil, around the same height as Roman or Logan if not a tad bit shorter. He had smooth dark skin the color of hazelnut shells, and dark brown almost black curly and wavy hair that was cut short, to just bellow the tips of his ears. He had dark brown eyes, and a tiny mole beneath the corner of his his right eye.

He was wearing an off-white button up with lacy frills at the edges of his sleeves and a frilled tie that was also kind of lacy, a light olive colored vest with pale gold embroidery and buttons, and a pair of pants that matched his vest sans the embroidery, along with a pair of brown leather shoes with pale gold buckles.

"Its a pleasure to meet you," Aaron said with a kind smile and a small bow.

"The pleasure is all mine." Virgil said, returning the smile and the bow.

"Come, dinner is just about ready and I'm sure you're hungry after your trip here." The Queen said, waving for them to follow her inside.

They were lead to the dining room, which had a large beautiful wooden table, with a few bouquets of white and yellow flowers in a row down the center. There were potted plants in the corners of the room, and several tapestries hung on the walls, depicting images of the earth and forests, along with creatures like deer and rabbits. The ceiling had several large skylights in it, and during the day the room was most likely very bright with sunlight. Windows lines the walls that didn't have tapestries, tall windows that were half covered by dark moss green curtains, the light of the setting sun glowing through them.

"You're so skinny," the queen said, "I'll have to make sure you get enough food." She said as she sat down at the table.

Virgil blushed slightly. "That's not necessary," he said shyly, "Thank you though." He added.

"Nonsense, you're a growing boy and need enough food." She said. "Maybe I'll send you a snack to have when you head home." She mumbled to herself, although everyone could hear her.

Virgil's blush darkened. "Thank you." He said with a shy smile as he sat down.

"Don't worry, she gets like this with all our guests, I hope she didn't offend you or anything." Aaron said quietly as he sat down next to Virgil.

"No not at all," Virgil said, "it's sweet." He added, gaining a smile from Aaron.

The food was then brought in, large bowls of ribbon-like noodles in a creamy sauce with onions, mushrooms, garlic and strips of tender shredded beef. The noodles were thick and absorbed the delicious sauce, the onions were soft and barely noticeable texture wise, their flavor going well with the garlic and the sauce. The meat was thin yet juicy, very tender to the point where it practically melted in your mouth. On the side there were thick chucks of toasted garlic bread, the outside crunchy and the inside fluffy and buttery.

"It's delicious," Virgil said after a few bites.

"Thank you, I'm glad you enjoy it," the queen said, "now, tell me about your other trips, you've been to Daaron and Palemoore, correct?"

Virgil smiled and began to tell the two of them who he'd met and what he'd done so far.

Eventually the topic branched from Virgil's trips to what it was like back home, if he was excited to go back, and such forth.

They finished their meal as they talked, and had let their food digest a bit before bringing in dessert.

Dessert was a dish similar to meringue, but not quite. It had a pale crisp outer shell and sweet and soft almost gooey inside, and was topped with thick vanilla whipped cream and a sugary strawberry compote. They each got their own little version of the dessert, and Virgil found it quite delicious after taking a bite of it, gently breaking the thin outer shell of the dessert, revealing the sweet gooey inside.

They chattered throughout dessert, and even for a little while after they'd finished eating, talking about everything from the weather to favorite animals and colors -Aaron liked the color blue and his favorite animal was a rabbit, and Diana liked the color red and her favorite animal was a starfish.

"It's getting late, and you're probably tired from your trip here." Diana said after she's noticed Virgil stifle a yawn. "How about we all go to bed for now and we can continue talking in the morning," she said as she stood up. "You'll also want to be well rest cause I'm sure Aaron has a full day of activities planned." She added with a grin.

Aaron blushed and smiled shyly. "I don't know about a whole day," he said, "and we don't have to do anything you don't want to." He quickly added as he glanced at Virgil.

"I'm sure I'll be fine with whatever you have planned," Virgil said with a smile, a faint blush on his cheeks as well, "I look forward to it." He added shyly.

"Oh come on now, better go off to bed before one of you faints from to much blush rushing to your head." The queen said as she began to gently shoo them out of the room, her words only making the two of them blush even more.

After bidding them goodnight Virgil was lead to the guest room he'd be staying in.

It had pale green walls with white trimming around the edges, and large windows on one side of the room, covered by thick cream colored curtains that didn't let any light through, and paintings and small tapestries along the walls that didn't have windows. The floors were a pale sand-colored wood, and a thick and fluffy light brown rug laid on top of it. There was a desk off to the side, and a wooden bookshelf stuffed with well worn books sat in the corner close to the bed. The bed itself was large and looked very fluffy. It was a four poster canopy style bed, with thin almost see through pale green curtains draped over it in multiple layers, getting darker shades of green the farther back the layer was. The wood of the bed was a pale and cool brown, and it was covered by a thick green and white quilt with embroidered flowers and ferns on it, and it had several pillows of various sizes piled at the top of it as well, all of them either light green, pale yellow, or while.

There was a folded set of pajamas on the bed, a light green color with a couple of flowers embroidered around the cuffs of both the sleeves and the pants.

He changed out of his clothes, leaving them in a neat stack on the desk, before changing into the pajamas and crawling into bed, humming softly as he was enveloped by the soft fluffy blankets. He fell asleep rather quickly, curled up on his side beneath the blankets with his arms wrapped around a pillow.

He woke up slowly the next morning, lazing in bed since he woke up early enough to, dozing on and off as he snuggled with pillows under the blankets. It wasn't until an hour or two later that there was a knock on the door, telling him breakfast would be ready in half an hour.

He reluctantly slipped out of the warm bed, immediately wanting to crawl back in after he'd left it, but forced himself not to since he needed to get ready for his day with prince Aaron.

He changed out of the pajamas, leaving them in a neat pile on top of the desk, before changing back into his outfit from the day before.

After he finished getting ready he made his way back to the dining room, where he saw the queen and Aaron sitting, chatting quietly. Both looked up and smiled when they saw him.

"Ah, Virgil, breakfast will be served in just a few minutes, come have a seat." Diana said with a smile.

Virgil smiled and took a seat across from Aaron, with Diana in between them at the head of the table.

They began to chatter as they waited for breakfast to be ready, them asking if he'd slept well and him asking the same in return, and such forth.

Food was brought in after ten or so minutes, they were similar to crepes and pancakes, but thicker than crepes and thinner than pancakes. They were more dense than both pancakes and crepes, had lots of cinnamon and vanilla in them, and were a warm brown color. Several jams and whipped creams and berries were laid out as well to use as toppings for them.

The three of them quickly dug into the meal, with Virgil complementing the food again as they ate, since it really was quite good.

After they'd finished eating the queen left the two of them alone, saying she had Queenly-Queen-business that only a Queenly-Queen could do, her words not Virgil's.

"So," Aaron began as he and Virgil began to walk out of the castle, "is there anything you'd like to do?" He asked.

"I have nothing in particular that I'd really like to do," Virgil said, "what did you have planned?" He asked.

"Well," he began, "I was think maybe I could show you around through the kingdom a bit, and then maybe to a couple of nice places in the forest? If you're okay with that, if you don't want to then you don't need to." He said, quickly adding the last part.

"No, I'm okay with that, it sounds nice." Virgil said with a smile, which grew a bit bigger when Aaron gave him one in return.

With their guards trailing behind them, the two princes made their way out of the castle and into the kingdom.

Aaron lead him from shop to shop, showing him impressive wood carvings in some shops and delicate instruments in others, which is were he learned that Aaron played the violin.

He lead him through the bustling market, where they passed by stalls that smelled amazing and stalls that had gorgeous plants in them.

They spent several hours just wandering around and looking at everything.

Virgil felt comfortable around Aaron, there wasn't this regal tenseness between them or even a romantic tenseness between them, Aaron seemed calm and collected, yet kind and understanding, always asking Virgil if something was okay before doing it, if showing him a certain shop was okay with him or if he'd rather not go inside, or if he was tired and needed a break to sit for a minute. He was very considerate, seeming to put Virgil's wants and needs ahead of his own.

Virgil ended up feeling a little guilty as he looked into a bit more. What if he was just being this nice because he was hoping he'd win Virgil affections? Virgil would hate for it to seem like he was leading him on, but he didn't want to talk to him about it in public where anyone could hear, in case he ended up upsetting him, so he decided to wait, hoping that was the right decision.

They continued to wander throughout the kingdom for another few hours before heading back to the castle for lunch.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" Virgil said after they'd entered the castle and their guards had left to take a quick break, at both Virgil and Aaron's insistence of course, they wouldn't have left other wise.

"Sure?" Aaron said with a curious expression, "lunch won't be ready for at least another ten to fifteen minutes." He said, before leading Virgil into a small most likely rarely used study, of its dustiness and lack of decoration had anything to say about it, not to far away from the dining room.

"So, what's up?" Aaron asked, "I didn't do something to make you uncomfortable did I?" He asked, his curious expression turning into a concerned one.

"No no, you didn't do anything like that." Virgil said reassuringly. "I just....I wanted to double check with you on this whole thing." He said, glancing away.

"Okay..." Aaron said slowly, shifting from foot to foot.

"Well, I just want to make sure you know that I'm not looking for a partner right now, and that this is only platonic." He said.

"I know," Aaron said, "I remember what you said in the letter." He added.

"Oh, okay good." Virgil said with a small smile.

"Can I ask you something?" Aaron asked.

"Um, sure?" Virgil said.

"Are you not looking for a partner because you just don't want one, or because... because I asked you?" He asked quietly, looking everywhere but at Virgil.

"What do you mean?" Virgil asked with a frown.

"Well... I'm a guy, and usually guys don't ask to court other guys, especially not when it comes to royalty, even though it's technically allowed." He said, "I just, if the reason you're not interested in a relationship is because I'm a guy then that's okay, I understand and I'm not upset or anything, I just...I want to know..." he said.

"Oh, oh no no, that's not why," Virgil said, "I don't care that you're a guy," he said, "and if I'm being completely honest, if I was looking for a partner you'd have much much better chances than Veronica or Eve, or any other possible princesses." Virgil said with a small blush.

"Wait, so you're..." Aaron trailed off, a look of utter hope in his eyes as he looked at Virgil.

"Gay? Yeah, I am." Virgil said with a smile. "Nobody really knows except for a few very close friends, not even my parents know." He said.

"But you told me." Aaron said.

"Well, I trust you." Virgil said, "you've been nothing but kind to me, always making sure I'm comfortable and that you're not forcing me to do anything, I really appreciate it." He said. "And....and I'm also starting to see you as a friend." He added softly.

"Really?" Aaron asked with a smile.

"Really." Virgil said as he returned the smile.

"Can...can I have a hug?" Aaron asked shyly, with a pinch of hope in his tone.

"Of course," Virgil said, before gently wrapping his arms around Aaron, who hesitantly did the same.

"I'll need to introduce you to my friend Patton," Virgil said softly, "He gives the best hugs, far better than mine." He added.

"No, this is a good hug." Aaron said. "But I'd love to meet him anyway." He added.

The two pulled away a few minutes later, all of their anxieties over the situation evaporating into the air.

"Ready for lunch?" Aaron asked with a smile. "It'll probably be ready soon, and we don't want to keep nana waiting to long."

"Nana?" Virgil said with a smile as the two of them walked out of the room.

Aaron blushed slightly, but the smile stayed on his face, "it's a nickname I gave her when I was younger, and it just stuck, although it's a private nickname, so I don't use it at public events and such." He said.

"I think it's cute." Virgil said as they entered the dining room.

"Ah, there you two are," queen Diana said from her seat at the head of the table, "just in time." She added as people began to bring food into the room.

The two of them quickly took the same seats they'd had that morning, across from each other with Diana in between them.

Lunch was quickly brought in and revealed to be thick 1/4 inch cuts of juicy tender beef covered in a thick savory sauce, similar to gravy but not quite the same, with mini roasted and peeled potatoes, but not mashed, with shredded basil, salt and butter on them as a side dish.

"It's a bit filling for a lunch, but if you two are going out to the woods later on like Aaron had mentioned to me as a possibility, I want to stuff some good food in you before you leave so you don't get hungry while you're out and about." She said.

"Thank you, that's very considerate." Virgil said with a smile.

The three of them continued to eat their food and chatter, with Diana asking if Virgil had been enjoying his time and if there was anything they could do to make it more enjoyable if he wasn't comfortable, and such forth, with Virgil telling her that he'd been enjoying his time there quite a bit, that their kingdom was lovely, and that he was fine for now, and that they were already being very  generous towards him as it was.

They finished their meal an hour or so after noon, and had let their food settle before heading back outside.

It took a while to convince the guards to let them go into the woods on their own, but after multiple reassurances that they both had some amount of fighting skills and that Aaron was bringing a dagger, they were reluctantly allowed to go on their own.

"Do you actually k ow how to use that dagger?" Virgil asked as the two of them began to trek into the woods.

"I do," Aaron said with a smile as they walked. "Do you actually know how to fight?"

"I do, although I'm better in a fight with a frying pan or at least a sword." Virgil said with a shrug.

"A frying pan huh, is that something you do in Corona?" Aaron asked as he ducked under a tree branch.

"No, just me." Virgil said. "I find it easier and more efficient than some giant sword and such." He added.

"Well, if it works it works." Aaron said with a shrug as he chuckled.

They continued to walk, ducking under branches, sliding over logs, and hopping across the occasional stream.

"Where exactly are we going?" Virgil asked after roughly forty to fifty minutes of walking.

"Somewhere special," Aaron said with a grin.

"Well that's specific." Virgil said sarcastically with a small huff.

"Well if you're getting tired then I can carry you the rest of the way if you want." Aaron said teasingly with a small smirk.

"Don't you even dare." Virgil said, his cheeks turning pink. "I can walk just fine on my own."

"Whatever you say," Aaron said with a shrug, the smirk still on his lips.

The two of them continued to walk for another twenty to thirty minutes before arriving at a circle of trees.

In the middle of the gap of trees and foliage was a large pond. The water was pristine and stood clear and still, showing all the way down to the bottom of it, where you could see a few small fish and other amphibians occasionally squirming around. It had large blades of thick grass shooting up around the edges, with clumps of cattails scattered throughout them, and it had a twisted log towards one side of the pond, half submerged in the water.
Surrounding the pond itself was a pebbled beach of sorts, which melted into soft grass and patches of flowers, before eventually melding back into the tree line.

"Well," Aaron said as he took a step forwards, "What do you think?" He asked.

"It's beautiful." Virgil said softly as he followed him.

Aaron smiled. "I'm glad you like it," he said as he sat down in the grass not to far away from the pond. "Nana and I used to come out here and watched the turtles and fish when I was younger, though she hasn't had much time or energy to lately." He said.

Virgil sat down a foot or two away from Aaron, leaning against a small tree.

"I'm sure she'll be up for it eventually, being queen is probably stressful." Virgil said as he gently ran his fingers through the grass.

"True." Aaron said softly, before shifting so that he was laying on his back.

The two began to chatter as they relaxed, and Virgil eventually found himself linking flowers together into a chain.

"Can I ask you a question?" Virgil asked as he slipped another flower into the chain.

"You just did, but I suppose." Aaron said with a smile and a small laugh.

"Oh hush," Virgil said with a smile.

"Anyway, what I wanted to ask was why you immediately assumed I didn't want to court you was because you were a guy? I mean, yeah I might not have swung the same way, but I mentioned in my letter that I was fine with it." Virgil said as he looked over at him.

"Well..." Aaron seemed to hesitate. "You're not...you're not the first guy I've ever tried to court." He said slowly. "there was another guy, and he...he didn't take it very well," Aaron said. "He ended up completely denying my proposal in a public manner and refused to meet with me despite the obligation the person had to give every suitor a chance." He said.

"It was an embarrassment to my kingdom and to myself, I felt so much shame, but I couldn't be mad at him because I wasn't going to just force myself upon him or anything if the thought of being with me made him so uncomfortable." He continued. "So I kind of just stopped looking for a partner for a while, until I saw you at the ball and my nana encouraged me to try." He said. "But it didn't work yet again." He said with a sad smile.

"Aaron..."

"And I'm not trying to guilt trip you," Aaron said as he sat up, "it's okay that you don't like me that way, I'm happy that you don't like me because you're just not looking for a relationship and not because I'm a guy." He quickly said.

"I just....I don't think I'll ever find someone." He said, looking down at his hands in his lap.

"Hey, don't say that." Virgil said as he shifted forwards so that he was kneeling in front of Aaron. "There or thousands of guys out there who would probably love to be with you," he said as he reached forwards and hesitantly cupped one of Aaron's cheeks, trying to think of what Patton would do, "who cares what some pompous homophobic prick of a prince thinks? If he's like this then you deserve better than him and he doesn't deserve someone as amazing as you." Virgil continued as he made Aaron look at him.

"And maybe you won't even need to be with a prince," He said, "maybe there's some baker or a scribe or scholar or someone who actually does like you but doesn't think they'll ever be with you cause they think you deserve better then them," Virgil said, "you're options aren't only limited to princes." He added with a smile.

Aaron seemed to let that sink in for a few seconds, before a look of sudden realization flashed on his face, his cheeks turning a little pink.

He looked at Virgil, and smiled broadly at him, his eyes tearing up a little bit. "Can I have another hug?" He asked.

Virgil don't say anything and just pulled him into a tight hug, letting Aaron relax against him as the two of them sat there.

"Thank you," Aaron mumbled from where his face was pressed against Virgil's shoulder.

They sat like that for a while before slowly pulling apart and going back to what they'd been doing, Virgil chaining flowers together and Aaron laying on his back.

They chattered as the sun began to slowly sink down into the trees, eventually deciding they needed to head back now.

"We should probably leave before it gets to dark, we don't want nana to worry, and we don't want you to be late on your trip back." Aaron said as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"You're probably right," Virgil said as he finished his second chain and linked the two ends together, making a flower crown out of the large daisies, before twisting his other chain of buttercups around it, making a single crown.

He stood up and put it on Aaron's head. "Lead the way." He said with a smile.

Aaron blushed slightly and shifted the crown with a smile before leading Virgil back into the woods in the direction they'd come.

The trip back felt faster than the trip there, but that didn't stop it from being dark by the time they were walking through the streets back towards the castle.

"I had fun with you today," Virgil said as they walked, looking up at the small strings of lanterns hung above them.

"Me too," Aaron said, "and thank you." He added.

"It was nothing." Virgil said with a shy smile, his cheeks turning pink.

"Would you ever like to hang out again some time? As friends?" Aaron asked after a few beats of silence. "I only really ever hang out with Evelyn and that's only when we're at the same party." He said.

"I'd love to," Virgil said, "maybe if you come to corona some time I can introduce you to my friends," he said, "maybe we could invite Eve one of the times as well." He added.

"I'd like that." Aaron said as they finally walked up to the castle doors, nodding to the guards before slipping inside.

They quickly made their way to the dining room, where Diana was waiting for them.

"Ah, there you are." She said with a smile, "dinner is ready but I was having them wait to bring it out until you two got back." She said, before nodding and smiling at a servant in the corner, who quickly left out the door.

"Did you boy's have fun?" She asked as the two sat down on either side of her, across from each other.

"Yes," Virgil said with a smile as Aaron nodded in agreement. "The forest was beautiful."

"I'm glad the two of you had fun," she said as the food was quickly brought in and laid out on the table.

Tonight it was plates of tender wild boar ribs, a long thin bones attached to large oval shaped cuts of juicy meat a little bit smaller than Virgil's hand, roughly half an inch thick, and seasoned with several spices and had a crisp outer layer from the roasting. As a side there were mashed garlic potatoes with a thin but savory gravy, a fresh salad with sweet cherry tomatoes that popped in your mouth, and thin slices of toasted bread with butter.

"Eat as much as you want, I'm sure you're both hungry after your day in the woods, especially you Virgil, I don't want you getting hungry on the trip home." Diana said.

"Thank you, I appreciate your concern." Virgil said with a smile, gaining a smile in return from Diana.

They all dig into the meal, which Virgil complimented again. The meat was tender and juicy, and the blend of spices was perfect. The potatoes were creamy, but still went well with the subtle taste of garlic, and the bread was crunchy and tasted delicious. The salad was good as well, even though Virgil wasn't the biggest fan of cherry tomatoes, he still ate them though.

They talked as they ate, asking Virgil if he knew how long the trip from here to corona would be, him asking what they were going to do next after he'd left and such, going back and forth between asking questions.

They soon finished the meal, their plates cleared away quickly and efficiently. They let their food settle instead of having dessert right away, despite that putting Virgil a little bit behind schedule, he didn't really mind though.

Eventually dessert was served, which ended up being thick slices of a double layered chocolate cake with thick chocolate frosting on top of it in swirls and in between the two layers of cake, and sugar sweet cherries on top, placed delicately on the swirls of frosting.

The cake itself was moist, sweet, and a little bit on the rich side, but it wasn't over powering, and the cherries helped with the richness of it. The frosting was sweet and light, just thick enough to keep the two layers of cake separated without squishing out the sides, and to hold up the cherries on top.

It was over all very delicious, and was a nice treat to finish off the night.

"Well," Diana began after they'd finished their cake. "It's getting rather late, so I suppose it's about time for us to see Virgil off." She said as she stood up.

Aaron and Virgil also stood up, and the three of them, along with their guards, made their way to the front of the castle.

"Thank you for you generosity and hospitality," Virgil said with a smile as he turned to them, "I really enjoyed my time here."

"It's nothing at all," Diana said with a smile, "come visit again whenever you want, I'm sure Aaron would enjoy the company." She added, smiling when she saw Aaron's cheeks flush a tiny bit.

"Thank you for everything," Aaron said as he stepped forwards and pulled him into a hug, "and she's right, visit whenever you want." He added.

Virgil hugged him back, "and you can visit corona whenever you'd like to as well, we'll readily welcome you whenever you want." He said as they let go of one another.

"Have a safe trip." Aaron said as Virgil walked towards his carriage.

"Thank you, I hope you to have a nice rest of your night." Virgil said, waving slightly before getting inside his carriage.

He pulled the small curtain back on the window and smiled when he saw the two of them waving goodbye, he watched them until he could no longer see them out of the window.

He let the curtain fall back into place and moved to make himself comfortable, pulling out his book and wrapping himself in his blanket as they began the long trip home.

The carriage ride was long, longer than originally expected, and Virgil eventually ended up dozing off, curled up in his seat with his pillow and blanket, his book laying open on the floor where it had fallen.

It wasn't until several hours later that they arrived back in the Kingdom of Corona. It was the dead of night, much closer to morning then they had wanted, with only a few lights on throughout the kingdom.

The carriage eventually pulled to a stop, and Virgil slowly blinked awake with a small groan.

"We've arrived your highness." The voice of his coachman said through the door.

Virgil sat up and stretched before rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Alright, thank you again Charles." He said, before picking his book up and rolling up his blanket, setting his pillow on top of it.

He then exited the carriage, shivering slightly at the cold night air suddenly nipping his skin.

His guards lead him into the castle, where he saw his parents waiting for him.

"Oh Virgil, you're home." His mother said with a bright smile as she moved forwards and pulled him into a hug, his father quickly joining in.

Virgil smiled and hugged them back, "Yeah, sorry we're late." He said.

"Oh it's nothing, don't apologize dear," His mother said, "we're just happy your home." She added as she and his father let Virgil go.

"Your friends had wanted to stay up with us to wait for you, but it was getting rather late so we sent them back to their rooms maybe an hour or two ago, I'm sure they'll be ecstatic in the morning when they see you." His father said with a smile. "They were pretty insistent and stubborn on staying down here." He added with a laugh.

"You'll need to tell them and us how it all went tomorrow morning at breakfast," His mother said, "or maybe brunch, it's rather late and you do need your sleep," she continued, "it's probably be best for you to sleep in a bit."

"Speaking of which, it's probably time for all of us to go to bed." His father said with a smile. "Although there is a bath prepared for you if you wish to bathe first." He added.

"I just might do that." Virgil said with a smile, before stifling a yawn. "I promise I'll tell you everything tomorrow." He said.

His mother smiled brightly at him, and she and his father bid him goodnight before sending him up to his room and heading to their own room for the night.

Virgil waved his guards away, telling them that he can make it to his room just fine and they they should go rest and be with their families now that they were back too.

They reluctantly agreed, and allowed Virgil to walk to his room on his own.

On his way up to his room, he heard a sharp, familiar tapping on one of the windows, followed by a caw-like sound.

He smiled and walked over, quickly opening the window, allowing Remy to hop inside and fly up to perch on his shoulder, cawing softly.

"Hey Rems," virgil said with a small laugh as he reached up to scratch the top of Remys head, "did ya miss me?" He asked.

Remy cawed at him in response, playfully pecking at his fingers before butting his head against his cheek.

"Come on, I'll smuggle you into my room for the night." Virgil said with a grin, before laughing softly as Remy bounced up and down from excitement.

The two of them quickly finished the trek up to Virgil room, and quietly opened the door, peeking inside.

Virgil smiled softly as he quietly stepped inside the room, closing the door behind him as he looked at the bed.

Roman, Logan and Patton were all laying on his bed, Logan laying on top of Roman, and Patton snuggled up to Romans side while also holding one of Logan's hands, all of them looking half asleep.

"Hi." he said softly as he stepped farther into the room, causing all of their heads to snap up in surprise, before smiles broke out.

"Virgil!" Patton whisper yelled, scrabbling out of bed and rushing over to him, wrapping his arms around him in a bone crushing hug. "We missed you so much!" He said at a slightly louder level, not yelling but not whispering either.

"I missed you guys too," Virgil said with a grin as he felt another pair of arms wrap around him from behind, and a face press against the crook of his neck.

"You're not allowed to leave for that long ever again." Roman muttered as he nuzzled against Virgil's neck.

"Well, I'm sorry to say princy, but I'm gunna have to leave for some even longer trips eventually." He said. "Not anytime soon, but I could be gone for up to two weeks on some trips." He said.

Roman whined and tightened his grip around Virgil's waist. "Noooooo." He said softly, making Virgil laugh.

"Now come on, I'm sure I don't smell very good after sitting in a stuffy carriage for several hours and not showering in a few days." He said, "I need to go take a bath."

"I don't care," Patton mumbled as he snuggled closer to him. "Just wanna hold you."

"Oh I'm sure me being gone for a few days wasn't that bad." Virgil said with a blush. "You still had each other."

" I know, but it it's not the same without you," Patton said.

"We did cuddle and spend basically all of our time together though." Logan added.

"And we may or may not have slept in your room while you were gone cause we missed you, sorry." Roman said with a sheepish smile.

"No no its fine," Virgil said, his blush darkening, "I don't mind, so don't apologize." He added.

"Now, I really do need to go take a bath, but if you want you guys can sit in the washroom with me if you really can't bear the thought of being apart now that I'm back." He said softly, a teasing smile on his face as he said the last part.

"If you're okay with us being in there with you, then yes please." Patton said.

"Of course, I wouldn't have offered if I wasn't." Virgil said.

Patton and Roman reluctantly let go, and Virgil only managed a single step before Logan pulled him into a quick hug of his own, before actually letting him go.

He laughed softly as he grabbed a set of pajamas and went into the washroom, where a piping hot bath waited for him, with lots of honey and vanilla scented bubbles floating on the surface.

He quickly undressed, putting his clothes in a hamper to be washed, and slipped into the tub, humming softly as the warm water.

Roman, Logan and Patton each made themselves comfortable in the space around him, all of them sitting within arms reach of him outside the tub.

After scrubbing his body clean he decided to just relax in the water, leaning on the edge of the tub as he chattered with the other three, gently holding Logan's hand as they all talked.

Remy had even found a perch on the towel rack, content to sit there and doze off as the four of them talked.

Virgil eventually got out of the bath, and quickly dried off before putting on his pajamas and making his way back into the bedroom with them.

Roman went around turning off all the lights as Logan, Patton and Virgil got comfortable on the bed, Patton pressing sweet kisses against every inch of Virgil's skin that he could reach as he held Virgil close. Logan was on the other side of Virgil, pressing occasional gentle kisses to Virgil's neck, not enough to leave marks, but enough for the two of them to make Virgil blush brightly and smile, having missed them all while he was away.

Roman crawled into bed when all the lights were out, curling up on the other side of Patton. He draped an arm across him and held Logan's hand while also tucking his other arm under both Patton and Virgil's heads, there he tangled his fingers in Virgil's hair, gently massaging his scalp.

Remy had joined them in the room as well, perching on the headboard of the bed, where he eventually dozed off.

In didn't take long for the four of them to fall asleep as well, content to be curled up around each other as close as they could get, relaxing and drifting off to sleep within minutes of laying down, happy to have each other all there and close.

Fun note: all the food I used in chapters 25 parts 1-4 are actual dishes that have names and everything, and I really want to eat them.