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1.Delgal grew up so quickly. One moment he was toddling unsteadily around underfoot, crying when he couldn't go as fast as the older children, and the next he was leading the hunts and competitions, dashing ahead of the other young nobles, his pale hair flying in the wind. Thistle knew that humans matured rapidly, but it was still remarkable to see up close.Likewise, the reasons Delgal crept into his bed at night changed, from a little boy scared by a nightmare, to a young man seeking another kind of comfort. Thistle was here to be a companion to the king's son, and he did his best to fulfill that duty. "Please," Delgal whispered, "kiss me, let me touch you," and so Thistle did as was expected of him. He welcomed the prince's clumsy embraces, accommodating his requests, taking satisfaction more from the special bond they shared than from the sticky fumbling in the dark."Promise you'll always stay with me, Thistle," Delgal said afterwards. Thistle twined his fingers through Delgal's pale hair and made his vow.2.Of course, Delgal had to get married. As a prince, it was as necessary a course of action as learning to ride a horse or read a charter, for if he didn't have an heir, the kingdom would fall into instability and decline. The maiden that his father picked was pretty, well-mannered, and more importantly, well-connected. Delgal was courteous and respectful to her, but he had no particular love for her."Love can come later," his father counseled. Thistle was nearby, playing his lute as he usually did, so he couldn't help but hear King Freinag's advice to his son as they sat before the fireplace. "What's important is that she brings land and wealth. As long as you can stand being near her, other feelings will develop with time," he said, clapping Delgal on the shoulder.Later, after the king had gone off to his bedchamber, Delgal pulled Thistle onto his lap, kissing his neck. Thistle squirmed to get comfortable, putting his lute aside so it wouldn't be damaged, and let Delgal fondle him. "What do you think of her, Thistle?" he asked."It's not my place to say, your highness," Thistle replied, because he didn't like the girl through no fault of her own."You know it won't make any difference to us, though, don't you?" Delgal's fingers worked open the laces of his hose, and Thistle shivered, clinging closer to him, burying his face in the cradle of his foster-brother-master's shoulder. "You'll always be mine."3."Save us," Delgal had told him, and Thistle had done what needed to be done. The cost had been surprisingly easy to pay, or at least, so he thought at first. He did it to protect the kingdom and its inhabitants, but most of all he did it to protect Delgal, his family, his position as ruler. It was his duty to look after Delgal, and that was what he did.For a while, things seemed to have returned to normal. The kingdom was stable, whole, protected under his guardianship. Nothing had changed. Nothing would change.The silver strands that were mixed into Delgal's hair remained exactly as they had been, no longer increasing day by day. Thistle could have counted them to know precisely, but he didn't need to - it was enough to know that Delgal was no longer aging, that he could keep him forever.And Delgal was grateful, as he ought to have been. "You did it!" he said, "I don't know how, but you did it!" Scooping Thistle up in his arms, he embraced him, kissing him on the forehead, and Thistle knew that even if the cost had been far greater, even if it had meant his heart and soul and mind being consumed by forces he didn't understand, he would still have paid it willingly to know that Delgal was his.+1.As Thistle's spirit left his body, he drifted up, looking down at his feeble frame being held in Delgal's arms. It didn't hurt. It felt like falling asleep.And there was someone waiting for him. He looked back and forth, as if seeing double, but Delgal was there, cradling his body, and Delgal was here, in front of him, young and handsome, translucent arms wide to welcome him. "I didn't know if you would forgive me," Thistle said, before being pulled into his ghostly embrace. In this state of being, they merged into one another, bodies mingling closer than they ever could in life."I waited for you, Thistle," Delgal whispered - or maybe he didn't need to say anything aloud, maybe his words were flowing directly into Thistle. "I held on as long as I could, even after the body I was using crumbled into dust. I wasn't sure if you would come find me.""Always," Thistle said, as they drifted higher. "I promised, didn't I?"