It was Gale who finally broke.
They'd been staying in Felix's palace for a week now, following him through his days, sitting with him in the evenings, occupying the guest rooms that had perfectly adapted to each of them. And somewhere in that week, the question had been growing, unspoken but impossible to ignore.
What exactly were they doing?
Felix was in his sitting room, sprawled across his usual couch with a dragon hatchling—Shimmer—curled up on his chest, both of them dozing in the afternoon light. He looked peaceful, his pearl-white hair spread across the cushions, his mismatched eyes closed, one hand absently petting the small dragon.
The five rulers sat around the room, and the silence had stretched too long.
"Felix," Gale said suddenly.
"Mmm?" Felix didn't open his eyes.
"What are we?"
Felix's eyes snapped open. "What?"
"What are we?" Gale repeated, sitting forward. "To you. What is this?" He gestured around the room, at all of them.
Felix carefully shifted Shimmer to the couch beside him and sat up, suddenly very awake. "What do you mean?"
"He means," Frost said, his calculating gaze fixed on Felix, "are we dating you? Is this a relationship? Or are we just... people who follow you around?"
Felix's pale skin flushed slightly. "I—that's—why are you asking this?"
"Because we've been here for a week," Solaris said gently. "We sleep in your home. We spend every day with you. We care about you. But we don't know what you want this to be."
"Or what we are to you," Raven added, his red eyes intense.
Felix looked trapped, his hands fidgeting with the edge of his shirt. "You're... you're important to me. Obviously. I let you into my home, into my sanctuary. I don't do that lightly."
"But are we together?" Verdant pressed, his ancient voice patient but firm. "Romantically?"
The flush on Felix's cheeks deepened. "I don't know! Maybe? I've never—" He stopped, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "I've been alone for two thousand years. I don't know how this works!"
"Do you want us?" Gale asked bluntly. "Romantically. Do you want that?"
Felix was quiet for a long moment, his mismatched eyes darting between them. When he finally spoke, his voice was small. "Yes."
The single word hung in the air.
"All of us?" Solaris asked carefully.
Felix's flush spread down his neck. "This is embarrassing."
"Felix," Frost said, softer than any of them had heard him. "Answer the question."
"Yes," Felix said again, barely audible. "All of you. I don't know why, you're all obsessive and controlling and you drive me crazy, but yes. I want—" He gestured helplessly. "This. Whatever this is."
Gale broke into a huge grin. "So we are dating."
"I guess?" Felix said, still looking flustered. "Is that what you want?"
"Obviously," Raven said. "Why do you think we keep staying here? We're obsessed with you."
"You've said that before," Felix muttered, but there was a smile tugging at his lips.
"So to clarify," Frost said, because he needed everything defined, "we are in a romantic relationship. All six of us. Together."
"That sounds insane when you say it like that," Felix protested.
"It is insane," Verdant agreed. "But that appears to be what we're doing."
Felix buried his face in his hands. "I can't believe I'm dating five territorial rulers. Simultaneously. This is a disaster."
"Probably," Solaris agreed cheerfully.
Felix peeked through his fingers. "You're all way too happy about this."
"We've wanted to ask for days," Gale admitted. "But we were afraid you'd say no and kick us out."
"I'm not going to kick you out," Felix said, lowering his hands. "You're... you're mine now, I guess. All of you. Even though you're terrible and obsessive and—"
"We know," Raven interrupted with a smirk. "You've mentioned it. Repeatedly."
Felix glared at him, but there was no heat in it. "So what now?"
"Now," Solaris said, standing and moving to sit beside Felix on the couch, "we actually get to act like we're together. Instead of just hovering awkwardly."
"You were hovering very awkwardly," Felix agreed.
Solaris smiled and, very carefully, very deliberately, leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Felix's cheek.
Felix froze, his eyes wide, a bright flush spreading across his pale features.
"Was that okay?" Solaris asked softly.
"I—yes—that was—" Felix stammered, completely flustered in a way they'd never seen before.
Gale laughed delightedly. "Oh, this is going to be fun."
"Don't make me regret this," Felix warned, but his lips were curved in a smile, and he was leaning slightly into Solaris's warmth.
"Too late," Frost said. "You're stuck with us now."
"Stuck with you," Felix repeated, looking at each of them in turn—these five impossible rulers who had summoned him, stalked him, respected his boundaries, and somehow wormed their way into his heart. "Yeah. I guess I am."
And despite the absurdity of it all—dating five people at once, all of them powerful rulers with control issues, while managing a secret underground sanctuary—Felix found he didn't mind at all.
In fact, he was smiling.
"So," Raven said, his tone teasing. "Do we get to kiss you too, or does Solaris get special privileges?"
Felix threw a cushion at him. "Don't push your luck."
But he was laughing, and his mismatched eyes were bright with happiness, and for the first time in two thousand years, he didn't feel alone.
He felt loved.
And that made everything—the stress, the responsibility, the chaos—completely worth it.