A Liar Will Steal...

Alike to their lost travel mates, Suho and Lay were less than content while crossing the desert terrain. Everything was all flooding back now and their stay at Bangtan diminished into a mere memory. The rocks that protruded the dry ground reminded the boys of the harsh nature they walked through and the ruthless winds enforced the brutal reality of the lands they trod. 

"How long now?" Lay panted as Suho took the lead. The blonde had no clue though and merely attempted to gauge the time by peering at the bright, midday sun. 
"I don't know Xingie." He sighed, squinting as he peered into the distance. When the sun went behind the few clouds in the clear sky, the Korean swore he noticed some buildings on the horizon, but still couldn't be sure. "Just power on for another hour." 
Lay scowled as he trudged behind his boyfriend. This time last year, if one had told Zhang Yixing that he was going back to China he would have laughed. If he was told that he was going back to China to re-enstate Tao (Tao!) he would have flipped , jumped out of his bedroom window and ended it. On the other hand, if a mystical force informed Lay that, a year from then, he was going to score a tonne of cannabis, he may have stuck around.

"What were you chatting to Jungkook about before we left anyway?" Suho wondered as he definitely saw infrastructure up ahead and sighed in relief. They had been walking for almost three hours and knew Incheon had to be close. Lay in his cheek and scowled, "Nothing much," He lied, "Just having a chat about the journey..."
This seemed to service and Suho hung back a second to walk next to his boyfriend, "Not long now," He proclaimed with a smile as he took Lay's hand in his, "we can rest as soon as we find the others."
"I have to make one stop first," Lay told, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. Suho didn't seem to sense anything strange though and only nodded. The pair were in one of their honeymoon periods: the few days after a major fight. Lay knew exactly how to play these to his advantage and continued to smile as Suho squeezed his hand.
"I do love you Kim Suho." He beamed, that single dimple showing as he kissed Suho's pale cheek, "I really do."
 

When Kris finally came across the dingy little store located at the bottom of a back alley, he was in the frame of mind to just leave it. Sure, living with Lay had indulged a certain side to him, allowed his addictive nature to get the better of him yet he didn’t need it. 
No, he was better than that. 
Kris scoffed as he his heel, ready to leave the shop in his dust. That wasn’t the case though as a calling for what it supplied rung in Kris’s ears and he craved the release the drug provided. Release from the guilt that he may have been the one who drove Suho away, release from the abandonment that came with that, and releases from the responsibility that plagued him in the form of nine annoying companions. 

Kris was caught as the buzz of the city around him became ever the more muffled and drowned out by noises of another origin.  The dingy drip-drop of water falling from the leaking pipes caused the tall Chinese to sneer as he dodged them skilfully, the repetitive melody echoed as the droplets fused with many a puddle making the cobblestone path all the more tricky to walk. This, not wanting to soil his only pair of shoes, was a good incentive to turn around, Kris thought. 
He looked back.
he had come too far now.

“Sir, please.” A middle age woman caught Kris’s attention as a dirty water droplet caught him too, hitting his scalp. “I need money to get back to 53,” 
Kris thought back to his many years living in Qingdao; he would have just passed the beggars by, not sparing a second glance. Kris wasn’t bad, however, not bad how Tao was, and his heart grew heavier every time. 
“I wouldn’t bother,” Kris admitted, eyes averted to the stone ground while the wind howled through the passageway. “The camps are being picked off one by one.”
She seemed outraged, her painted lips falling agape as her brow furrowed. Kris decided that she wasn’t homeless, no, she was just a traveller.  Another thing interesting was her accent, it was like his.
“Do... you know of 53?” 
Kris nodded, “Tents were set up for survivors... it seemed.” 
The woman smiled emptily, “I should never have let them get on that boat.” She proclaimed with glass-like eyes. It was obvious now, Kris knew that she was like him. 
“How is... China these days?” He requested, digging through his back pocket for whatever change he could spare. Worst case scenario he would let Baekhyun earn back the losses.  Besides, Baekhyun liked his job, right? 
The women  shrugged, realising she was in the company of someone alike to her as Kris handed over what he could salvage. “Thank you.” She told before elaborating on the question, “It's the same as always, ever since the Prince Zitao and Prince Yifan vanished nationwide searches haven’t stopped, people of suspicion have been mercilessly killed while the civil war has continued. We are divided.”
Kris’s heart sunk, his escape had ruined so many lives.
It was all him.
“Well let’s see if I can’t change that.” He proclaimed, continuing to walk as the lady became ever the more confused.  She tried to call after him, asking what he meant yet it fell on deaf ears. 
Kris was gone. 

The prince sheepishly pushed open the creaky door to the small shop. It appeared to be selling herbal medicines and did look like the perfect home for a large stash of hidden drugs. Kris didn’t need a lot, though... just enough to last him this journey. Kris smiled as he considered his bull rather effective, almost buying it himself. 

“Hello?” Kris called into the cluttered space where no one was to be found. Every wall in the box room was lined ceiling to floor with remedies and miscellaneous bottles, giving his eyes an array of things to graze over.  “Hello?” He tried once more, taking into account that the ceiling was very low, meaning he had to crouch a little as to keep his head. Worse yet, the darkness of the room heightened the probability of a fatal trip; Kris couldn’t afford to go flying through the constricted place, only to break all in sight. 

Finally, a