Wooyoung hadn't found a squirrel or rabbit. He also hadn't searched as much as he could have, but his spirit was as weak as his knees and he doubted he could have won, even if he found one. He had apologised to San about it since he knew the other man was hungry since the winter solstice ceremony. San had waved it off as they had warmed their bodies with the water. Some herbs on the ceiling still had some flavour to them and Wooyoung sprinkled in some lavender and mint to give their tea an aroma. They sat together on the bed and sipped it until Wooyoung was confident to take off his coat. For the first time since he wore the white ceremonial tunic, he wasn't freezing.

In the quiet solitude of the hut and far away from any trouble caused by Vikings, Wooyoung relaxed. The nightmarish images of murdered children and blood-splattered Vikings were locked away in the depths of his mind, where he didn't have to accept them as a reality. He promised himself that he wouldn't have to return to anything similar ever again and that the world he lived in was far less threatening.

Yet, he knew he would remain jumpy and traumatised until he could actually leave this place and this version of San that reminded him so much of the night in the village.

Wooyoung emptied his bowl and put another piece of wood on their fire. Its warmth filled the entire hut cosily, but the thin slits between the logs forming the walls let in enough fresh air they didn't have to cool it down regularly.

When he sat back down next to San, he glanced at the man's leg. He had pulled it up so it could lie on the bed comfortably, but his features showed no pain.

San caught Wooyoung's gaze.

"Maybe you should leave. You look very shaken."

When Wooyoung cleared his throat, San reached out to brush an untamed strand of Wooyoung's hair behind his ear. He smiled, endeared at the blush that spread on Wooyoung's cheeks.

"I also don't feel so good. But I don't want to leave you behind."

San set his bowl down after emptying it, as well. The clack of it meeting the ground got drowned out by the howling of the wind.

"I told you, I will be fine. Just as much as you want to see me safe, I want you to return to your place to feel comfortable and secure. A lot happened to you since you came here. And as someone not belonging here, it must have been jarring."

Wooyoung nodded weakly. His hands found the leg warmers that San had given him he still wore. He pulled his boots and the fur clothes off to leave them for San. He would need them more than Wooyoung.

While Wooyoung moved to set them down on the pile of the man's wolf's coat and the knife, San's eyes trailed down his legs. His hand followed right after, marvelling at how smooth and hairless Wooyoung's body was. When Wooyoung shivered at the touch, San smirked.

"It's far tamer where I come from, yes. I never got spooked so bad." Wooyoung leaned into him when San wrapped an arm around his shoulders. The kiss the Viking pressed to his cheek had his hunched back to relax so he could sag into San's side.

"That's what I'm saying. Your eyes reveal it all. You don't need to pretend to be strong since this is not your world." When San pulled him down with him to lie next to each other, Wooyoung melted into his embrace without hesitation. Mindful of San's leg, they adjusted their positions. Pressed up against San's side, Wooyoung put his head on San's shoulder. The man's fingers trailed through his hair. Wooyoung didn't mind how hot San's skin against his was. Despite the heat in the room, he still shivered at the memories San woke.

"I thank you for your help and for telling me who you are. And while I despise the price it cost and that we have to part so soon, I can now wait for the future with fresh energy. If what you said is true, we will also meet again," San said. His voice vibrated in his chest. Wooyoung felt their heartbeats match since they were so close.

"If time passes as it did until now, we will, yes. Next time I see you, you will be part of my research on your condition, so I would like to meet up again. I just don't know when. We will have to trust fate to draw us back together."

The arm that San wrapped around Wooyoung's hip loosely spent comfort. While frozen from the inside because of his horror, Wooyoung believed San's heat melted those parts away.

"I think my presence during your studies would be a great idea, yes. Whatever time it is, I will know my way around and protect you."

When Wooyoung raised his head so they could look at each other, their breath mingled. Only centimetres parted their lips from each other, but Wooyoung withstood the need to kiss the man. His heart was already confused by the domestic cosiness the two of them had. While he had been close to San physically all along, he wasn't ready yet to think about their emotional bond. So much happened between them so fast and his heart was down for it, but Wooyoung's brain needed more than just a sexual relationship to consider it.

"That sounds nice, yes," Wooyoung smiled. San grinned back until Wooyoung could see his dimples again.

"Next time you return, tell me how long I will have to wait for you. I want to remember you and see how you act when you aren't terrified."

Wooyoung nodded faintly. He would bug Yongguk until he had two locations this time. With San as his team partner through the past and a valuable opinion on matters concerning immortality, he would have an easier time succeeding. Just maybe, his heart was already unwilling to let go of the idea of San appearing each time Wooyoung travelled into the past, too.

"I will rest a lot and try to pick a less dangerous moment to visit next time. Thank you a lot for saving my life." To convey his thanks, Wooyoung leaned in to press his lips to San's. The Viking reciprocated his caress with his plush lips that held so much passion in them. An innocent kiss soon turned into Wooyoung arching into the Viking and sighing into his mouth as he yearned for more.

San kept things tame. He held Wooyoung close until his embrace was imprinted in Wooyoung's brain. Their kisses deepened until Wooyoung forgot for a few blissful minutes how much had happened to him ever since he had arrived in Norway. The language of their tongues was one he didn't need to worry about; it was easy and got understood without words.

When their lips parted, they remained in each other's space for another moment. San's grip slipped only after a while and allowed Wooyoung to sit up and brush his hair back.

San put his free arm under his head. For last time, the fingers of his left hand brushed over the exposed skin of Wooyoung's thigh where his tunic had slid up.

"I will rest. Nothing will bother me here and I will heal fine. Maybe your visit was my incentive to move on and pick up my search again so we won't miss each other," San said with a crooked grin. Wooyoung liked how much of his attractive face the smile took over. His expression conveyed in every centimetre of his features.

"And I will go home. See you soon, hopefully." Wooyoung crawled over San. His overexerted legs wobbled under his body, but they held him up. With a last smile at San, he reached under his clothing to retrieve the remote. He had made sure not to lose it again and used a loose thread to tie it to the inner side of his tunic. Now that he unwrapped it, he couldn't help but feel unhappy about leaving San once more. He wanted to talk more, wanted to see the man heal, but he shouldn't linger until the man was up on his feet again. Yongguk was already worried because he had sent him here, Wooyoung shouldn't challenge the man's patience.

"I'm off," Wooyoung grinned at San. The Viking waved at him lazily before he laid back down.

Wooyoung left him cosy and warm to exhale deeply. Then, he activated his time remote and stepped through the door leading outside.

This return was one of the rare ones where Wooyoung couldn't be happier to be back. He collapsed right onto the ground of the institute as soon as the door shut behind him. His trembling legs couldn't hold him back any longer, both from his mental and physical exhaustion. In the institute's safety, they finally took their well-deserved rest.

For an undefined amount of time, Wooyoung just leaned against the door. First, he had nearly drowned in the icy North Sea. Then, he had found an immortal whom he had slept with twice now and who had developed an imprint on Wooyoung because they both resisted the natural flow of time. Then, he had nearly got killed and sacrificed to Odin. Then, he had run off with his lover and got attacked by a boar.

Wooyoung never had such a crazy week. This time, he would need the time Yongguk gave him to rest. He would utilise it to the fullest to deal with the traumatic sights and the scientific breakthroughs he had gathered.

When Wooyoung finally pulled himself up to his feet to leave the room, he felt better. The cosiness of his familiar surroundings soothed him. There were no savage Vikings here, no wild boars. Just grand halls, science and dreams.

Wooyoung got dressed in his joggers and a sweater before he left to talk to Yongguk. He didn't cross Seungyoun's path as he wandered over to the bureaus and knocked on the man's door. Everything was as usual inside. A tired Yongguk with mussed-up hair and glee in his eyes when he spotted Wooyoung.

"Woo! You're back. Come, sit down. You look battered."

Wooyoung never agreed more. He slumped on the chair he frequented and just stared at Yongguk. He didn't even know where to start.

Yongguk must have seen it in his eyes, because he pulled up a writing program on his laptop and switched on voice recognition. The detailed report that Wooyoung was about to spill would write itself.

"Before I begin, do you already know where you will send me next?"

Puzzled, Yongguk nodded. His fingers pushed over some coffee and pastries to Wooyoung.

"Yes, you will travel to medieval Great Britain, around 1264."

"And after that?" Wooyoung played down his giddiness and excitement. The middle ages were rough, but that era should be fine. He expected nothing worse than from the Vikings.

"I don't know that yet. Is it urgent?"

Wooyoung mildly shook his head.

"No. I just wanted to tell you as soon as possible that I would like you to find the location after England, so I am prepared for that. I want to leave only after I gathered that information."

When Wooyoung leaned back in his chair to finally start talking, Yongguk just nodded at him in confusion. Wooyoung smiled.

"Now, let me start at the most remarkable thing. I found an immortal."

When Yongguk's mouth dropped open in shock, Wooyoung's grin broadened. He was tired, but telling Yongguk his tale gave him some new motivation.

Yongguk sat up straighter and pulled his chair in. He dedicated his undivided attention to Wooyoung and every word that dropped from his tired lips.

This time, Wooyoung began at the start and he gave Yongguk every single detail about San and his trip. Ranting them off his chest was an immense relief, since Yongguk understood his terror much better than San. They worked out the traumatic parts together with endless patience and guidance from Yongguk's side until Wooyoung was relaxed to continue.

The program wrote his every word down dutifully, and by the time he finished; they had twenty-four pages of a report and a Yongguk who had never looked so floored in his life before.

Things got even spicier when Wooyoung stressed once more how San was also Sandalius and Suusaandar. Yongguk was trapped between reaching for his telephone to call other institutes and giving Wooyoung the nagging of his life.

All that escaped his lips in the end, however, was a heartfelt thank you. He apologised to Wooyoung for the hassle he had to go through and praised him for his findings. Before he sent Wooyoung off to sleep for yet another month, Yongguk promised him to look into future travel destinations already.

Wooyoung trudged home, already giddy to see San again soon.