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This is a fanfic prize for Sepseriis! She won third place in the Valentine's Day contest for the Earth King Kuei fangroup, #TheRoyalCommoner . Congratulations and thank you for participating, Sepseriis!

Long Feng was not a man given to passion. Or at least that was what he told himself.

Yet there was something about the Earth King that drew him to Kuei, the young man he had mentored when convenient, had sent to be cloistered away when convenient, and only thought of when convenient.

But now, at the age of twenty-two, Kuei had grown into a surprisingly attractive adult. Long Feng, unsettled at the sudden shift in the way he saw the Earth King, entered the throne room with extra care in his steps. The strong jawline and sharp nose complemented the man's expression of utter trust as he looked at Long Feng.

Long Feng busied himself checking for loose threads in his robe as he spoke somewhat distractedly of Kuei's continuing (but carefully monitored and circumscribed) education in diplomacy.

Kuei, for his part, continued to look at him with no guile in those green eyes, no suspicion that Long Feng's feelings had changed at all.

"Long Feng?"

His head snapped up as he replied, "Yes, Your Majesty?"

"You seem, well, distracted today. Is Bosco bothering you?"

The bear looked at Kuei, and Long Feng only just realized Bosco had been chewing the rug.

"No, Your Highness," replied Long Feng as the bear blinked at him and licked his paw.

"Are you unwell? I can summon the healer, or--"

Long Feng waved off the suggestion. "Nothing at all. Truthfully."

Kuei had stood up in his agitation at seeing Long Feng's unusual behavior, and the older man couldn't help but notice how Kuei's shoulders filled out his royal robes quite well, and how he was just the right height for an emb--

"I'm not sure I believe that, Long Feng." Kuei had moved to within arm's length, and Long Feng forced himself not to show anything untoward as he regarded the Earth King, who seemed to be utterly convinced something was wrong with Long Feng.

In desperation, Long Feng tried to change the subject. "Confidentially, Your Majesty, I... have recently met a person who I might be romantically compatible with."

A mixture of truth and lie went into that. Long Feng felt as though he stood at the edge of a precipice. The slightest misstep could have ruinous consequences.

Kuei smiled widely, not realizing he was sending Long Feng's heart rate dangerously upwards. "Ah! I understand. When may I meet her?"

Long Feng replied uneasily, "Your Majesty, if I may, I would prefer to wait some time before I introduce... this person?"

Kuei blinked, then smiled again. "Of course, you're courting. I understand. If you'll excuse me, Long Feng, I believe Bosco is getting bored. He will be wanting a walk, and so will I."

Keeping his face impassive, Long Feng bowed deeply. "As you wish, Your Highness."

As Kuei summoned the Royal Bear-Walker and left the throne room with Bosco, Long Feng breathed a sigh of relief. He returned to his office and tried to distract himself with affairs of state, such as the petition by the owner of the inn at Misty Palms Oasis to garrison some Earth Kingdom soldiers there. He quickly signed a denial, sneering at the transparent attempt to divert some money into a town of little import, and continued.

That night in his bedchambers, as he lay on his bed, Long Feng had nothing to distract himself with. As he closed his eyes, he permitted himself to imagine a different sequence of events: Kuei seeing the truth behind his claims of a woman's affections, permitting himself to be embraced by Long Feng, Long Feng feeling the weight of Kuei in his arms as he lowered the younger man to the floor of the throne room, only for Kuei to roll on top to look down on him and lower his head for a kiss...