Dance into the Fire

~*~

If you kiss a frog will he turn into a Prince?

Is the beast the one to really love?

Can a Prince be a real charming man?

Or is it just the stuff of fairy tails

~*~

Chapter Sixteen

~.~

Himchan had already been accused of walking around the bridal quarters with a stupid smile on his face in a playful manner at least twice already but he did not really mind. He could barely begin to describe how his heart fluttered at the mere thought of the General and everything that had occurred. He had barely slept last night, unable to shake the giddy feeling inside his heart and making him bounce around uncontrollably like a hyperactive child on the eve of the most exciting festival ever.

Already he had written at least a half a dozen pages of a letter to Key Umma but he planned to rewrite it so that it would not just be a bunch of cliché gushes though even he accepted the fact that he was practically a walking cliché himself. He was practically glowing despite being unable to actually state the full reason as to why and everything was just that little bit brighter and nicer.

Tiffany practically giggled when she saw him, immediately linking arms around his and tugging him towards the table which was being set with a rather lavish breakfast of freshly cut fruits, raw hams and wonderfully warm smelling breads as it was known that many of the Brides would be suffering with hangovers from the events of last night and it was best to have a very strong but balanced breakfast. Himchan was glad that he did not even feel the smallest bit tired in the slightest because some of the others looked like complete wrecks.

“So I’m guessing that I don’t need to ask you how last night went,” Tiffany giggled as they sat down next to one another, “You’re practically glowing so brightly that you’re blinding.”

“You as well,” Himchan giggled back towards the girl who was just as smiley and bright as he was indeed, “I’m guessing that the gentleman was next to perfect?”

Tiffany smiled brightly, flushing a little as she leaned back, “I would have never thought that I would meet anyone like him, let alone catch his attention.”

Himchan chuckled, “He could barely keep his eyes off you from the second you walked in. He was so shy that he didn’t even want to use his power to get straight to you.”

The girl chuckled brightly, shaking her head, “Well I can assure you that he was not shy in the slightest once he did get around to talking to me. But what’s this about you and your General on the balcony?”

A new blush crossed Himchan’s face as the events of last night resurfaced and a wistful little sigh escaped his lips as he gently them, “We nearly kissed.”

“Nearly?” Tiffany opened in surprise, “What do you mean only nearly?”

“Well the Dragon caught us before anything could happen,” Himchan said with a new blush, “But I think if she hadn’t been there then…”

“Oh you are so cute you know that?” Tiffany practically squeed towards him and pinched his cheeks, “Man in a way I’m jealous but I’m also not really surprised because hell half of the men in that room were after you until they noticed the General’s eyes on you and they all backed away. Nickhyun said it was funny to actually watch cause you looked to be like a scared little rabbit because you thought no one was talking to you when they were all too scared to go anywhere near you.”

Staring at the other in surprise, Himchan found that he could barely even begin to form a coherent sentence on how to reply to that statement but there came a sudden tap on a glass with a fork and everyone turned to where the Dragon was standing with a letter held firmly in her hand. She was in a smoky grey hanbok with her silver hair held up high with long trestles coming down the back. If not for the mask that she wore it was easy to say that she would have been extremely pretty.

“I wish to commend you all on a very successful ball last night,” the Dragon started, “There have been few as successful as that and I am very glad that many of you have wonderful bright smiles on your faces rather than horrible frowns. However there has been a slight change of plan to the usual routine that whilst I normally would not condone in the slightest but seeing as this does deal with our very own Princes who are of age, I am sure that many of you will be rather pleased to hear about it.”

There was an immediate flutter of conversation around the entire room but it was sharply stopped by the Dragon who tapped on her glass again, “This evening you shall be all attending a picnic with the Princes’ and a select number of the suitors. Whilst I understand this is very short notice, I do believe however that you should all be able to find the outfits which will make you shine like the stars that you are. Please eat your breakfast in a leisurely style and then speak to your handmaidens so they can begin their work.”

She left after that and so did half of the assembled brides, clearly all of them rushing off to try and get themselves all made up because it was an ultimate goal to snag a prince as it were. Himchan and Tiffany however spent their time far more leisurely and enjoyed the fresh fruit and drinks that were available. They engaged in playful conversation and idled about for the better part of the morning as they were already pretty much besotted with two very handsome gentlemen.

But they wouldn’t miss out on a Picnic with the Princes, it would be rude to refuse after all.

~*~

Laying back in the gloriously warm bath, Himchan found himself randomly humming a happy song to himself whilst he could hear Jongup carefully clattering about as he got everything set and sorted. It was strange, the previous night he had been nothing short of a wreck who did not know where his life would go and was trying to find any excuse to escape from the ball because he believed that he would not be chosen by anyone. Now tonight he was rather looking forward to the picnic because he had high hopes that he would be able to see Yongguk again and cement their relationship further.

Or maybe just try to steal away to find out what a kiss from the General would actually be like because boy he wanted to know oh so bad.

However, he knew that he couldn’t just go in any old outfit because there were still going to be two royal Princes whom were always surrounded by beauty and therefore needed something different to look at. Himchan had lost count of the number of handmaids he had seen desperately rushing back and forth with ever more expensive silks and cottons as their brides only demanded the best because they wanted to be noticed first. To Himchan it all seemed to be just a bit too much of a fuss because he was sure that any Prince actually worth his salt would only be interested in someone who was actually aware of how the real world worked and was more inclined towards the fairer side of life. Someone who could read elegantly, paint beautiful pictures, manage an estate without getting themselves caught up in debt or causing an uproar with the neighbours.

Whilst he had read many tails over the years of gallant Prince’s heading off to save damsels in distress, Himchan had always preferred the tails of women who had come from next to nothing and captured the Prince’s eye by their sheer natural beauty, charm and grace rather than an act which was clear as day to see through and would cause too many problems in the long run.

The sad thing was, Himchan never quite believed the stories of the plain girls who caught the eyes of a Prince. In his head, such a thing was impossible because those of a noble birth had a completely different set of rules to live by and whilst he knew full well that one of Matoki’s most treasured Empresses had indeed been a lowly servant girl, the idea of a Prince falling in love with a commoner was silly. He never even entertained the idea despite what Key and Jin would say, in fact he was still a little surprised to have caught the attention of a General.

In his heart though he had already steeled himself for the fate that was to come, as Himchan had convinced himself that once Yongguk learnt that he was nothing more than a simple orphan boy from some distant back water village that no one had ever heard of save for those who walked the trade routes that like the bright green leaves of spring, the affection would turn to the hews of autumn before tumbling away when the winter came. Himchan brought little to the table in terms of wealth, prestige or family ties and therefore he had already chosen his own sad little self-fulfilling prophecy about how things would go.

It did not occur to him that maybe Yongguk would love him regardless of any of his fears, he just made his presumptions and opted to enjoy his time with the General for now because it was indeed something that he had never expected to have happen.

“Are you ready to get out now or do you wish to have another half-hour, my lord?” Jongup’s sweet little voice came from the doorway where he was lingering, clearly checking to see if Himchan was ready for him or not.

Himchan was still a little unused to having a servant to order around and shifted lightly, convinced that he would never get used to having someone practically weight on him hand and foot all of the time, “You can call my Hyung, Jongup, I’m not going to get offended and yes I am finished for now.”

Jongup nodded and stepped forward with a large fluffy towel which Himchan gratefully wrapped around himself. “Your mentor sent you up an outfit which I believe will be perfect for you tonight, Hyung, it should set off your colourings beautifully. I’ve laid it out on the bed for you to inspect.”

“Oh right, thank you,” Himchan said, realising that he hadn’t even bothered to think about what he was actually going to wear that night in the slightest and wondering if the whole of the court regime was taken up with pointless hours of choosing the right outfit for any occasion. Though he paused in the doorway, “Oh Jongup, leave the water in. You can use it after me.”

Jongup startled and looked towards Himchan in fright, “What?”

“You can take a bath,” Himchan smiled warmly, “the water is still warm and it seems a shame to waste those fine fragrances.”

“But Hyung, I’m not permitted to…” Jongup started, feeling just a little flushed as he glanced at the very soapy looking water.

A chuckle escaped Himchan’s lips, realising there was one bit of power he wouldn’t mind using on Jongup, “I order you to take a bath Jongup, then once you are done you can help me with my hair because I am sure whatever Key Umma has sent up for me will be a joy to wear and will not require any adjustments. Go on, I know you’ve been dying to try it out since you’ve got here and I don’t like being selfish with nice things.”

Before Jongup could even argue the counterpoint, Himchan had stepped away from the door and lightly pushed it closed with his foot before making his way over to the bed where he let out a contented little sigh at seeing what the youngster had picked out. Key had sent up at least ten different outfits for him, apparently unable to let go of his beautifully little butterfly according to the letters that he would receive from Jin, Ren, Jinki and Minhyun even though he had taken on a new apprentice and was already beginning to teach Taemin the ways that were sure to make everyone entrapped by him.

This one though, definitely had a flare of Jin’s inspiration behind it and Himchan was actually rather glad to have received it. Whilst it was beautiful, it was sedate, modest and would blend in perfectly so as not to drawn too much attention to himself. Or so Himchan deluded himself into believing but the day when he had his own full self-confidence was still a long way off.

Whilst he waited for Jongup to be finished in the bath, smiling at his reflection as he heard the young man begin to sing softly to himself with a gentle almost angelic voice, Himchan carefully pulled on his under garments and the plain white under skirt and top so that he felt comfortable and relaxed in it before the outer layer was applied to him. But he would wait for the additional help from Jongup for that and instead took a few long moments to run the brush through his long black hair and silently he marvelled at how delicate it all looked.

Plus, his voice started to blend with Jongup’s, barely registering the fact that he had even begun to sing and their harmony drifted together in an almost perfect way that it was impossible to describe as anything other than perfection. Himchan let himself become lost in the words, in the moment and the movement of the song that he almost jumped out of his skin when Jongup actually took hold of the brush from his fingers to begin taking over the task of brushing and styling the other’s hair.

Neither one of the stopped their singing however, enjoying the sound more now that they were closer and able to feel the notes bouncing off one another and adjust accordingly. It was a moment that only they could have shared and participated in together and that just somehow made it all the more magical. Reaching the final note of their song together, the pair burst into slight giggles as Jongup carefully applied the last clip into place and arranged the petals of the flower so that they stood out tall and proud. He smiled, “I did not know that you could sing Himchan.”

Gently Himchan shook his head, “You were the singer there Jongup, I merely harmonised with you. Though I am surprised that you know that song, it’s one from the country.”

A sigh escaped Jongup as he helped Himchan to stand and began draping the light blue silk across the others body, “We spent a lot of time in the country when I was younger, so I probably picked it up then. You do sing beautifully though Hyung, far prettier than what I can manage.”

Opening his mouth to protest, Himchan instead chuckled and allowed himself to be dressed as really the argument would loop around and around in a constant circle with no stopping if they let it continue on like this. The pair worked swiftly and effectively, Himchan having to guide Jongup occasionally but he was not really surprised seeing as the other had never come across a kimono before and Himchan was only thankful that he had been made to wear a couple by Key for his dates with Jin.

The blue base of the kimono was offset by a highly intricate and cleverly designed flower pattern that covered most of the lower parts of his legs and the long sleeves whilst the light pink obi was carefully decorated with dark red ribbons and an artfully placed flower that allured to the sweetness of his heart. It also helped to balance out the rather shorter style to his hair that was kept simple and wavy with just a little bit of a flick to the side in order to give it definition.

Jongup smiled once they were done, “You make everything look so artistic hyung, I don’t doubt that many eyes will follow you tonight as well.”

Himchan chuckled and shook his head, “I’ll be grateful if only one pair do Jongup.”

For a second the handmaid really wished that he could tell his current master that Yongguk was probably just as giddy to see him again but would not be there that night as there were some diplomatic problems that had called the General away. However, he kept his lips sealed as it was not his place to go prying in the slightest but he had a good feeling about the pairing indeed. “I’m sure they will, now come, we must hurry or else someone will beat you there and steal all of the lime light.”

Wanting to roll his eyes at the notion, because that was the exact point of why Himchan had lingered far longer in the bath than he should have, Himchan instead let out a happy sigh and followed his handmaiden down to the courtyard where the carriages were waiting to the stunningly dressed brides to the location of the Prince’s Picnic.

Himchan barely noticed the stares that he was receiving as he joined one of the girls on the available rikshaw as Tiffany had already gone ahead, instead he just planned on enjoying the evening ahead and not allowing himself to become stressed in the slightest.

However, that picnic saw Himchan start down a path which would eventually force him to make a decision between two very different people. Though of course, at that moment in time, he was not to know what fate had waiting for him.