~*~

Does one’s birth define who you are

Or where you shall go in life

No one knows the answer

As a child is only a child

When it is born

~*~

Chapter One

~.~

The day that Himchan was born into the world attracted little to no notice, excluding that of possibly the man who had presumably owned his mother who had either sold the tiny baby for a turnaround profit or left it on the steps of the orphanage where he had grown up with no real thought as to what would happen to the small baby. Though for the most part of the boy’s life that was the main thought pattern that seemed to fill the minds of the adults who were supposed to look after him.

Himchan was quite sickly as a child, prone to catching colds and flus as well as a number of childhood inflicting illnesses that should have quite frankly killed him outright. At least according to the matron of the orphanage they should have killed him but Himchan always had the impression that the woman would be more than glad of his coming of age so that she could boot him out onto the streets so she could be rid of him.

The young man had no idea as to what he had ever done to deserve this sort of indifference treatment, he was positive that he had never been anything but polite, kind and willing to help whereas other boys his age would tear around the orphanage, destroying the toys that were donated and pulling on the hair of the girls to make them cry and generally be a nuisance. Himchan had never displayed any of those signs, he had always gone around to clean up the destroyed rooms, mend the toys that were destroyed to the best of his abilities and once he had managed to calm the hysterical girls down he would pick up their beautiful combs and ribbons to gently braid and twist their hair into patterns that would make them appealing to the potential parents who would arrive on a frequent basis to adopt a child.

Himchan was never chosen to be adopted or even be considered by any of the parents, he was never given anything more fine than a cotton hanbok with the plainest ribbons for his hair which he never used as he generally kept his hair at just a little past his chin. Whilst there had been those who had said that if he grew it long then he could pass himself off as a girl which would entice someone to take him on, Himchan had never really thought about growing his hair any longer or shorter than the style he currently wore.

Just a few days short of sixteen, Himchan stood at just a little short of five foot five with plain black hair and soft brown eyes that made virtually all the town folks sneer at him. They said he looked to feminine, like a doll that was meant to be placed on a shelf to be gawked at but never played with. It was clear that he was never going to be a man, as he was not strong, was too prone to illness and it was impossible to even imagine that he knew what to do to himself, let alone a willing body that would have been begging for him. Though there were secret whispers in some circles of the town that said that Himchan was actually quite beautiful to behold, with a gentle rounded face, plump lips and soft eyes that displayed his emotions in the most captivating of ways.

However today, Himchan’s usual routine of basically taking care of the children in the orphanage was due to be interrupted and for once even Himchan felt excited. An emissary from the Capital was arriving in town and bringing forth a Mariene, a lady of the Bridal house who would be seeking for the most exquisite and beautiful young men and women to take back to the Capital to becomes Brides of the nobility. It was considered to be a great honour to be chosen and it would bring one’s family a great deal of respect and money too. There were many inspiring tales of girls from little backwater villages who had become Queen’s and notable women throughout the whole of Matoki who had been granted the chances to make a real difference in the world because of their husband’s power.

There were also plenty of tales of male carriers making it high in the bridal world too, Matokian’s as a rule did not generally mind this fact at all. In fact, some people preferred to see carriers than they did women and no distinction was ever made between the two.

So with the impending arrival of the Mariene, everyone who was of correct age was making sure to wear their best hanbok’s, style their hair perfectly and wear makeup that enhanced their beauty. Only two people would be selected, one girl and one carrier, to go to the Capital where they would be treated with the uttermost respect and then be married to men and women who held real power, wealth and authority. Therefore, everyone wanted to make sure that they had the best advantage over everyone else in the town and it turned the place into almost chaos.

Except in the orphanage where only five of the children who were coming of age would be presented and one of them was not Himchan. Despite being of the correct age and perfectly the right age, the Matron did not even seem to register this fact and instead told him to make sure that the others were prepared to the highest of standards. Well the two male carriers that were to be presented anyway, the Matron had dragged the three girls off to make up herself despite their protests that they wanted Oppa Himchan to do their hair.

Though both Minki and Minhyun were very happy to have Himchan all to themselves as he carefully prepared them. He dressed them in the finest hanbok’s that the orphanage had, ensured that their skin was clean and fresh with a light layer of glistening moisturiser which he had ‘borrowed’ from Matron without her knowing and he had carefully applied makeup to the two boys. He had chosen to do a very natural appearance on both, highlighting Minki’s delicate feminine features to make him look wide eyed and innocent whilst for Minhyun he had emphasised his cute lines to make him appear more grown up and sharp.

Their hair was currently being tackled in the exact same way, Minhyun going first as his was shorter and merely needed to be style up and over to highlight his sharp cheek bones and adorable pout. Himchan always thought of Minhyun being like a fierce kitten that wanted lots of cuddles but was defensive about receiving them after what had happened to him in the past. For Minki, Himchan brought out the combs which would make his long hair glisten and gleam and carefully styled it into a full headed braid which he set with flowers and a little bit of glitter just to add to the overall effect.

Once both boys were done, Himchan had them stand in front of him just so he could give them a critical once over but he couldn’t help breaking out into the widest possible grin ever, “Oh just look at you two. It would be foolish of her not to take you as you both look so adorable. Come here, let me at least get a hug in before you go.”

“Himchan oppa!” the pair said, hugging him tightly though being careful not to smudge any of the others hard work. “It’s impossible for us both to be picked,” Minki said a little sorrowfully, “But we’ll cheer each other on.”

“That’s good,” Himchan said, kissing the tops of their heads, “Now run along to Matron, I’m sure she’ll be waiting for you.”

Minhyun giggled, “Just so you can get ready yourself right Himchan oppa?”

Everyone in the orphanage called Himchan ‘Oppa’ even if it wasn’t quite the correct term but Himchan never minded. He smiled sweetly to the two boys and nodded, “Yes, now run along and don’t slip or trip over anything.”

The pair of boys giggled and linked hands before hurrying off at a nicely sedate pace so that they would not fall over anything. Himchan smiled sweetly to himself before letting out a little sigh as he began to tidy up the makeup and the brushes that he had used. Even though the words had not been spoken, he knew fine well that he was not going to be expected at the choosing and no one would ever question why his presence was not around. It was disheartening to say the least for the young man, as he did have his own dreams and desires and had wondered vaguely what it would be like to be taken away from this village that despised him for no reason that he could ever figure out but he knew that the odds were against him as he was nothing special. Or so at least everyone said.

Once he was finished with the cleaning, Himchan slipped into the Matron’s bedroom to return the lotion and then went to the communal bathroom to take a quick refreshing wash before changing into a standard cotton robe which was only one of the two that he officially owned. It was his favourite out of the two as it was a pale green colour with daisy’s carefully sewn into the inner sections by himself and he generally kept it in as good of condition as he could because there was no chance of him receiving anything finer in this life.

The clattering of horse hooves signalled the arrival of the Mariene and Himchan headed quickly to the front of the building where it would be possible for him to watch the proceedings from one of the lower ground windows with the other children who were not allowed to be involved this time.

The carriage of the Mariene was stunning in comparison to the pale surroundings as it was a deep pinewood red colour with golden ornaments and decorations that screamed power. A horse as black at the night and taller than the handsome faced driver stood proud and silent as a footman leapt nimbly down to open the door. The two men were dressed in a fine uniform of dark blue with silver buttons and both had Himchan’s heart thumping as they were simply to die for. Though they were immediately overshadowed by the presence of the Mariene, who was a woman in her late forties who carried herself with grace, precision, and a certain elegant style that turned heads regardless of the first fact. She wore a hanbok that shimmered with layers of light mesh and had to be made of nothing short of the finest silks that made the cream colouring sparkle with rainbows of colour. A deep purple sash and a darker cream coat covered the top part of her whilst her effortlessly trestle black hair was swept back in a traditional style.

A gold Matoki mask covered her eyes, the etchings done perfectly to make the metal almost appear to be part of her natural face as no one was to ever know who the Mariene was.

Some of the younger children were scared by that and Himchan gently calmed them down and shushed them so that they would not make a noise. Matron would not be happy with him if the choosing was interrupted because of some over excited children.

After a few moments of walking up and down the line of five, the Mariene waved her hand at both Minki and Minhyun who clearly could not believe their luck and struck up a conversation with the Matron for a short time. At first it was happy and Himchan smiled before stepping back from the children so that they would not see the tears of joy which were flowing down his face. He could not be happier for the two boys as they were truly beautiful but there was just a little bit of bitter sweetness to the feeling though he pushed it aside.

Before jumping out of his skin when the Matron appeared directly in front of him with a face like thunder, “Come with me, right now.”

Too shocked to even register what had been said to him, Himchan followed along behind the Matron and out into the courtyard. He stuttered a little in shock when he found himself face to face with the Mariene who smiled softly at him with all the grace of an understanding mother. “Do not be afraid, young one,” even her voice sounded perfect to Himchan’s ears, “I am merely correcting a mistake that Matron made as I was informed that there were six people to be seen here, not five.”

Unable to utter a response, Himchan lowered his arms and felt very self-conscious as the Mariene walked around him a few times, scrutinizing every last possible angle that he could. Finally, she stopped in front of his face and used her fingers to lift his head so that she could look directly into his dark eyes. From the window he had seen her do this to all of the five who were being looked at and he hadn’t understood why. Now though he got the distinct impression that his soul was being completely laid out before those powerful eyes that swirled ever so slightly with something he had never seen.

For the briefest of seconds, the young man thought he saw a child, with black hair and a wide very happy grin whom held his hands out towards him with an unheard cry of ‘Mama’ before Himchan found himself blinking in surprise as he was brought back to the world that he knew all too well.

“Perfect,” the Mariene said with a genuinely soft smile sent in his direction before she turned to the sour faced Matron, “He is to come with me also. Thank you for being so kind and considerate.”

“But...” the Matron stammered, clearly just as shocked at Himchan was, “He’s of no name nor pride to anyone.”

The Mariene regarded her with a stern expression, “As are all who come to be our Brides. He is to come with us, along with the other two who you presented. Run along boys, gather your things. Within the hour the coach will be here to pick you up to take you to your new lives where I’m sure you’ll create an abundance of brightness for everyone.”

The last words were directed at Himchan and the young man shuddered a little though he had no idea as to why. This couldn’t be real, this had to be some form of dream because no one would ever want to claim him as anything let alone as a Bride. But there was no denying the gold faced woman as she walked proudly back to her own personal coach and then five pairs of arms wrapped around him in delight and sorrow.

The girls were naturally a little upset at not having been chosen but they seemed more thrilled at the idea that their Oppa was going to be a bride and the two boys were more than happy to know that they’d have Himchan with them in order to guide them through the unsure path ahead. Himchan could only just hug them back, unable to share in their excitement because it did not feel real in the slightest.

Though he felt the flickering flame of hope that he hid deep within his chest begin to burn just a little bit brighter. 

authors babbling: and there we go ^^ Chapter 1 started and boy I think this fic is going to be long but hopefully it'll be worth it. And yes that was a very brief blink and you miss it appearance by our baby Jello cause I had to have him in somewhere. Hope you all enjoyed and see you at the next update.