"Vik...!"

The voice, coming from somewhere further along the path, sounded desperate and out of breath. This did not ease Viktor's mind, but in fact only made him more anxious, and he picked up his pace, rushing up the hill as quickly as possible.

Moments later, a blue-clad figure came into view, silohuetted against the pale morning sky as he crested the top of the hill in an obvious hurry as well. Viktor breathed a sigh of relief at the sight, and opened his arms as Flik staggered into him, throwing his own arms around Viktor's waist. "Whew, Flik..."

"Vik..." Flik was breathing heavily, but seemed to be otherwise all right when Viktor looked him over carefully. "Vik... what on earth happened?"

Viktor just shrugged and pulled Flik closer to him, hugging him tightly. "I don't have a clue."

"...Are you serious? You don't look particularly worried..."

"Yeah - 'cause now I know that whatever happened, you're okay," Viktor grinned, ruffling his friend's hair. "How's everyone else?"

"Fine, as far as I know," Flik panted, leaning against Viktor. "And everyone at the shack...?"

"Kain was the only one up and around when I left, but he seemed perfectly normal," Viktor told him, holding Flik steady while he caught his breath. "Geez, if everyone at the castle was okay, why were you in such a hurry?"

Flik fixed him with an incredulous stare. "Because I was worried about you, dolt!"

"Heh." Viktor chuckled. "Should've known by now that nothing can get to me. Besides, Kit and Andrea know how to deal with things - I figured when this whole thing started that it all would be okay in the end."

"Oh?" Flik took a step back, regarding his friend with a hint of amusement. "Then why were you on your way to the castle in nearly as much of a hurry as I was?"

"...Marie's a better cook than anyone back at the shack, and I wanted some breakfast." Flik eyed him suspiciously, and Viktor caved; of course that wasn't the truth, and they both knew it. "Okay, okay, so I wanted to make sure you were okay too. So sue me for having a little bit of doubt in our resident demi-goddesses after that uh... stuff... that started happening."

"Yeah, the... stuff." Flik couldn't think of a better way to put it either. "All right, good - so everyone's fine, and that's all behind us."

"Looks like it." Viktor cupped Flik's chin in one palm, tilting his face up to claim a kiss. "So... it's you, me, and a whole world intact and ready for us to enjoy. What do you want to do today?"

"I don't know yet... but for right now?" Flik admitted, slipping his arms around Viktor again. "I want to rest for awhile. I haven't run like that in ages..."

Viktor laughed, hugging him fondly. "Out of shape, Lightning?"

"Aw, shut up. I noticed you weren't moving so quickly as you used to."

"I wasn't too worried," Viktor said with a shrug. "So let's head back to my place... it's closer, and mostly downhill anyhow. It'll be easier on your old bones."

Flik punched him lightly in the ribs as they set out for the shack, arms around each other's backs. "You're older than I am, bear."

"Aw, dammit... you're right."

A half hour or so later found Flik lounging on Viktor's bed, much to the larger man's enjoyment. "You know... we've done it on your bed plenty of times now," he commented between mouthfuls of cereal, "but never on mine."

"Yeah, well, yours is kind of small," Flik pointed out, his arms folded behind his head. "Mine's quite a bit bigger."

"What a rude thing to say!" Viktor grinned.

Flik gave Viktor a long-suffering look. "The bed, you idiot." Lying back again and staring up at the ceiling, he sighed lightly. "Yeah - if the two of us were together on this thing, it would probably break. I'm surprised this thing even holds up under your weight."

"Are you insulting my girlish figure?" Picking the last piece of cereal out of the bowl, he tossed it in Flik's direction. "Here - you could stand to have a little bit less of a girlish figure."

Shifting his head slightly to the side, Flik easily caught the morsel in his mouth. "It's going to take more than that, I think."

"Yeah - I think we've got some ice cream in the freezer, still. Want some?"

Flik was never quite sure if Viktor was serious or not. "...Not for breakfast."

"Spoilsport." Viktor tilted the bowl back, draining the last of the milk from it, then set it down on the dresser. "So... let's find out how much weight this thing can hold."

Flik rolled to the side quickly as Viktor tossed himself onto the bed, making the mattress bounce. "Hey, watch where you're going!"

"I was trying, but you moved!"

Turning to his side, Viktor slipped an arm under Flik's shoulders, and Flik couldn't suppress a smile at his friend's infectious cheer. After all, everything had been put right, and the two of them were together... and alone. "So you were trying to crush me?"

"I thought you liked being under me."

Flik blushed faintly, but returned Viktor's kiss eagerly as his friend rolled on top of him. "Mmm... you know, even if I had known for certain that you were all right... I missed waking up next to you."

"You'll have to sleep over sometime," Viktor mumbled, his lips roaming Flik's neck and shoulders. "If your mommy says it's okay."

Flik laughed quietly. "I think she'll agree to it."

"Even if we do bad things?"

Flik groaned as Viktor's hands demonstrated a "bad thing". "...Yeah, even then. We'll just have to make sure no one tattles."

Viktor chuckled, settling back a little. "Or..." he suggested, suddenly more thoughtful, "maybe we should just move in together. I mean, we've shared rooms at inns and camped out together a few thousand times... it's not like living together would be a new and scarring experience."

"Not new, anyway," Flik muttered with a grin.

"And anytime you wanted to see me," Viktor continued, "you wouldn't have to give your old fart self a heart attack running a couple miles to get here." He paused, thinking it over. "...Yeah, I like this idea, actually."

"Probably just because you'd rather have Marie's breakfasts every morning instead of cold cereal," Flik teased him.

To his surprise, Viktor had no comeback, but looked down at him curiously. "Huh... I was meaning that you should move in here."

Flik shook his head. "Like all my maps and books and so on could fit in this room?"

"You've got a point there... maybe one of the other bedrooms is bigger."

"Mine is," Flik pointed out. "With a balcony, too."

"Well, yeah," Viktor admitted. "But your place is so... well... so you."

Flik narrowed his eyes. "What's wrong with 'me'?"

"Uh... nothing, I guess," Viktor said quickly, grinning a sheepish grin. "But well... I like this place. S'fun. Manly."

Slightly taken aback, Flik stared up at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Er..." Realizing he'd inadvertantly offended his friend, Viktor's grin vanished. "Nothing against you, of course. It's just that, well, there's Laguna and James and Hardin here... and at the castle, who do I have to goof off with? A bunch of teenage girls. Who's likely to be a drinking buddy? Maybe Syl - and she's not any kind of buddy."

Flik sighed. "Really, Vik - she's not so bad once you get to know her." He hesitated for a moment, thinking about the more thoughtful side she'd shown him, then smiled slightly. "Probably not your type, though."

This time it was Viktor who looked suspicious. "...Not so bad, but not my type? Flik..."

Flik's jaw dropped. "What the... Vik, are you kidding?"

"Well, after what happened with Sydney the other night, who knows who else she might decide she wants?"

Flik knew he shouldn't have told Viktor about that. "So what if she did? Don't you trust me?"

"Yeah, of course I do!" Viktor exclaimed. "But I don't trust her. Not at all."

"It takes two to do that sort of thing, Vik. If you trust me, then you can trust that nothing's likely to happen between she and I."

"...Okay, I guess you're right," Viktor admitted. "Sorry... I just..."

Smiling faintly, Flik raised a hand to touch Viktor's face. "It's all right... I think we're both a little on edge, after the Sage thing... and after what happened to Sydney and Hardin... and after... well, I don't want to dredge that up again."

Viktor nodded emphatically. "Me either, believe me." Settling down beside Flik on the bed, he slipped his arm back under Flik's shoulders as they lay there together, looking up at the ceiling. "I dunno, Flik... I think everything would be a lot better if we didn't have to go so far to see each other. I trust you, but I like having you close at hand... you know?"

"Yeah," Flik agreed, inching a little closer to lay his head upon Viktor's shoulder. "But I don't think either of us is willing to give up the lives we've built independantly... are we?"

Viktor hesitated for a moment. "I don't know, Flik. I think I would, but... I really don't want to."

"Likewise." Flik sighed. "...And what's going to happen if neither of us can compromise? For now we can come and go as we please, but..."

"Ah, we'll figure it out," Viktor assured him. "Look at all the junk we've been through together, and here we are. We'll solve this too. Just gotta be patient and let the answer come to us - it always does." Flik laughed lightly, and Viktor peered at him curiously. "What?"

"Just listen to yourself," Flik chuckled. "It's as if romance has actually put some sense into that thick head of yours."

"And it's made you ruder than usual," Viktor said with a grin. "We must be taking after each other. And imagine if we could have kids, what little brats they'd be!"

Laughing again, Flik leaned over to kiss Viktor softly on the lips. "You're such a pain in the ass."

"Yeah, love you too, Flik."