There was a thud, a knife hitting hard into the tree perfectly straight before it was yanked out and after only moments of silent, it made another thud against the tree, vibrating it only slightly before it went still.  A frustrated sigh was released as it was only yanked out yet again, the leaves moving quickly out of the way as fast and unnerving feet shuffled through them.

‘Junsu,’

The man didn’t look up, didn’t acknowledge that someone had stood close to the same tree his knife was soaring into, the knife balancing carefully within his hand, his wrist leveled just enough to make sure the knife was thrown properly, his arm slowly moving back, body twisting with him as he threw it, the knife soaring in a perfectly straight line again and making its usual thud in the tree with the shot hitting only inches from the old indention.

Taecyeon stood leaned against this tree perfectly still, watching as Junsu shuffled angrily towards it, yanked the knife out and moved back to his spot where he took position again.

‘Junsu, you know this isn’t your fault, why are you so angry?’

Taecyeon asked, stepping directly in Junsu’s line of fire, the man crossing his arms over his chest, eyes watching Junsu as he hadn’t moved, his position ready to throw the knife again.  Taecyeon only kept a steady emotion, narrowing his eyes only slightly as Junsu released the knife yet again; the blade smacking into the bark of the tree only inches above his head.

‘I could have killed you.  Move,’

Junsu spoke, stomping over to the tree where he stood on his tip toes to reach the knife he had thrown over Taecyeon’s head.

‘You could have killed me, yet you threw the knife anyway, shocking, but your shots damn near perfect, but you won’t, I know you.’

Taecyeon said; snatching the prince’s wrist and bringing it down to eye level, he flicked the dagger out of Junsu’s hand and onto the ground.  Junsu stared at him through narrowed, angry eyes; Taecyeon only twitched his lip, he could see the sweat on Junsu’s face, his hair plastered on the sides; his cheeks flared and red; he wasn’t tired, just sick.

‘You should be resting, not out here taking your frustration out on a tree.’

Taecyeon stated, watching Junsu as he snorted, trying to tug his wrist free from Taecyeon’s; his attempts were weak, the fever was getting the best of him when it came to his strength…   Or so he thought, Junsu must have caught the small distraction when it was on him because with just the twist of his wrist, Taecyeon was rolling in the dirt, coughing as his mouth was filled with the puff of it, Junsu clearly on top of him, holding him down with a painful death grip.

Wide, terrified eyes stared down at him, maybe even ones filled with tears as Junsu attempted to wipe them away with his shoulder, coughing heavily as well as he leaned forward onto Taecyeon.

‘It is my entire fault Taecyeon…  I’ve been so ing caught up in him that I couldn’t even take care of myself, I was letting him do it all because I was so tired of it.’

Junsu mumbled sitting up almost straight, tears were being bitten back, his eyes glossy and beginning to turn red in color; the prince sniffling, Taecyeon couldn’t help but frown,

‘A-And now he’s so hurt that he could die.  I don’t want that, I couldn’t live with that.’

Junsu groaned, harshly rubbing his face again with his shoulder, it was pitiful and kind of heartbreaking in Taecyeon’s eyes; he couldn’t believe that Junsu was even thinking of that!  Now he gave a slightly laugh, a cheerful kind of thing that Junsu didn’t looked too pleased about.

‘You know, I was wondering why you hadn’t shown that thief up yet, those petty techniques he uses are nothing compared to the things I’ve taught you, hell even my techniques are nothing compared to the things you’ve learned.’

Taecyeon smiled, Junsu’s face twisting before he slapped Taecyeon on the chest, the other wincing out of pure pain,

‘His techniques aren’t petty!  They are his and his alone and he used them to protect me! And this is NOT the time to be joking about anything!  Someone I care for is in a coma state!  And it's because of me!  Because he was so stubborn and hard headed about protecting me!’

Junsu whined with his perfect Daegu accent, it was like he'd never learned any other dialect at all, Taecyeon raising an eyebrow, now lifting himself up into a sitting position, Junsu having to shift to where he was practically sitting in his lap.  It looked stupid from a different point of view and probably very wrong, but that seemed to be the last thing on the prince’s mind as Taecyeon shook his head.

‘He’d be baffled to know you can protect yourself without sometimes even trying. It’s hilarious how you are the complete opposite of clumsy.’

Taecyeon amused, Junsu pushing at him; Taecyeon only catching himself on Junsu, keeping himself in a sitting position.

‘Junsu, Suzy is doing everything she can to help Chansung at the moment, she just has to find out what’s wrong.  But Junho says he might try and let the witch look at him if all else fails and Suzy can’t figure it out, of course not unbinding her, just letting her look, apparently she has this type of sense and also knows quite a bit of healing spells.’

Taecyeon inquired, Junsu’s expression changing little, he had already moved his gaze to stare blankly at Taecyeon’s chest.   The knight sighing heavily, placing both hands on Junsu’s shoulders, heaving them both up into a standing position, Junsu lifted his head then.

‘Junsu, I’m tired of this game you are playing, I played for a little bit because I liked being the knight and protecting you for once, but after a while it gets old and I just miss my partner.’

Taecyeon spoke, running quick fingers through his hair, Junsu his lips, turning his attention towards the knife; he bent down and let his fingers grip it firmly, his chin lifting as he looked up at Taecyeon with confidence.

‘I’m tired of this game as well now…  I think we should finally do the protecting we were meant to do.’

Junsu spoke, twisting the knife skillfully in hand, stopping it with the point directly in front of the tree.  Taecyeon smiled,

‘I think it’s time we show some folks who the true future king of Daegu is.’

Taecyeon patted Junsu’s shoulder playfully,

‘I’m still going to need to get you back home though.’

He announced, Junsu throwing him a quick glare, the taller man’s hands going up in defense with a goofy smile, Junsu rolled his eyes,

‘I’m kidding!  You know I swore the day I became your knight I would follow you to the end of the earth and back if I had to.’

He replied, Junsu wiping at his eyes with his hand, tucking the knife into his belt loop, turning towards where Taecyeon had come, towards the camp.

‘Shush it and let’s go; I want to lay with Chansung before they start experimenting on him to see what’s wrong.’

He mumbled, Taecyeon following closely behind the prince, which his smile slightly faded as they went.

‘Your love for him is frightening my prince.’

--

Junsu stepped carefully over the last fallen log along the beaten path that lead back to the camp site, Taecyeon carefully on his heels as they came upon those who sat outside around the still going fire.  Though the sun was up, there was a little chill to the air with the day still coming.  Junsu instantly pivoted towards the shared tent between him and Chansung; the flap pulled and held open; Suzy crawling out of the tent the moment he approached, her face tense and jaw set firmly as she met eyes with the prince who stopped before her.

‘How is he?’

Junsu asked, Suzy sighing heavily; fingers running through her hair as her shoulders shrugged, Junsu not bothering with a response as he stepped around her, ducking into the tent and closing the flap behind him.  Suzy stood with her head down now, using her finger to twirl at the ends of her hair, about to step forward, but she was stopped yet again, this time by Taecyeon.

‘You should sit down and rest yourself…  It’s chilly out here but you’re sweating like its one hundred degrees out here.’

He assessed, Suzy now looking quite embarrassed, she hadn’t intended to look so bad and run down, it was just she couldn’t figure out what exactly was wrong with Chansung and it was driving her a little over the edge, she didn’t want Junho to be able to allow that witch to look at Chansung.  It made her so uneasy that her stomach was churning and her brain just wasn’t thinking right; brushing her hair quickly over her shoulder she let a nervous smile cross her face as she wrapped her arms around herself.

‘I can’t rest until I know what’s wrong with Chansung.  I’ve been trained for this and yet nothing I know seems to be the problem.  I-I think it’s something on the inside, something my eyes can’t see.’

Suzy spoke quietly, whipping her face with her hand quickly before wrapping it back around her.  She let her gaze flicker to the fire where Junho sat, Hyorin; the witch, sitting perfectly still beside him, and though she was bound, Suzy still felt as though anything could happen.

Bringing her eyes back to Taecyeon, she literally jumped when the man placed his giant hands over her forehead, his other hand resting on the back of her head, holding her there.  Suzy exhaled heavily, shaking off Taecyeon’s hand, backing away a little.

‘I’m not sick Taecyeon.  I can take care of myself!’

She hissed, the knight raising an eyebrow, but turned to look over his shoulder for a moment then turned back to Suzy, his eyes serious as he looked at the female; Suzy could feel her cheeks burning as she grabbed at her hair, twisting it in her fingers, tugging hard at it.

‘Suzy, if you are in over your head maybe it would be smart to allow someone else to help.  You, yourself should know this, you’ve ed at Chansung so much for something similar.’

He stated, causing Suzy’s cheeks to darken more scarlet, her head hanging, but Taecyeon was right, and she was being ridiculous, ridiculously scared of the woman sitting with Junho.  She felt a shiver run up her spine, and the thoughts from her child hood crawled slowly back to her from the back of her mind; her parents mutilated bodies being brought back from the woods, both of them barely recognizable.

‘Suzy!’

She hadn’t felt her knees buckle beneath her, only when she felt Taecyeon’s arms wrap completely around her, holding her up did she realize she out for a moment, the thoughts plaguing her mind as she was guided towards the fire and set carefully down on the ground.  She was trying to stop shaking, but her body seemed to refuse to allow this, her finger instantly shot towards her tent.

‘M-My bag…’

She choked, Taecyeon not having to think about the command, just simply obeying as he quickly moved to get her bag without questions.  Suzy took it with shaky hands, but shoved her hand in roughly, not even having to look into the bag before she pulled out a bottle filled with clear fluid.

‘What are you taking?’

Wooyoung asked out of nowhere now, concern tight in his voice, Junho only watched with a firm expression, only after a moment did he stand up, dragging Hyorin to his feet.  He kept her close behind him, hidden behind him as Suzy drank the liquid with ease.  After she seemed to calm a little she looked to Wooyoung.

‘It was a calming medication…’

She mumbled, pushing her hair again back behind her shoulders, pulling her knees to her chest, hiding her face away from the eyes that were staring.  She felt something rubbing her back, but didn’t want to acknowledge it, her shoulders shrugging.

‘Just let her look at him.  Don’t hurt him.’

She spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, someone saying something that wasn’t really audible for Suzy, but she heard a few things moving around before it was silent, a sort calm coming over everything.  Suzy pulled her knees in tighter towards her, her arms squeezing her knees hard.

--

‘If she hurts him, things will not be pleasant.’

Junsu spoke, a hard look being given to Junho who couldn’t help but flinch; he sat in the corner of the tent, Hyorin directly in front of him, sitting back on her legs, her hands resting on her lap, head lowered, it’s like she was waiting for the blindfold to be removed.

‘I told you not to worry, she’s bound by seals.  Removing the blindfold only releases her senses and tongue.  She won’t speak ill of anyone nor will she lie about anything, she has seals for those wrapped around her.’

Junho inquired, Junsu not relaxing his form but turned to Chansung, leaning forward for a moment, running his fingers carefully through the man’s hair before having to leave the tent, leaving only Junho and Hyorin to do their job.

‘You know what you have to do.’

Junho mumbled once the tent had been cleared, Hyorin unmoving till she felt the blindfold begin to untie from around her eyes, her head slightly lifting, the darkness disappearing to reveal the surroundings.  Her eyes were wide, brown in color, dark circles colored the bottom of her eyes as she let them wander the tent before stopping on Chansung.  The man she was supposed to asses, it didn’t take long for her mind to register the reasons.

‘His right bottom two lower ribs are broken, he’s rather dehydrated.’

She spoke smoothly, not taking her eyes off Chansung as she looked him up and down, Junho crawling onto his own knees, looking over Chansung as well then to Hyorin,

‘He punctured his kidney, it explains the pains he was having to an extent.  His stomach pains are probably from not eating correctly…’

She continued, Junho nodding his head, resting back against his heels as Hyorin turned to him,

‘That’s all there is to tell.  Every other function seems to be in check.’

She replied coolly, staring only at Junho as he seemed to be thinking now,

‘Those things are fixable, but how?’

He asked, his head tilting, hand resting on his chin as he looked at Chansung.  Hyorin lifted both bound hands into the air; Junho puckering his lips shaking his head,

‘I don’t trust you that much now.’

He spoke, Hyorin letting her hands fall into her lap, her face falling a little as well, but she didn’t seem to let it get to her that much, she had to have suspected that, but Junho had no right to trust her, she had tried to kill him and now she was paying for it, she was surprised he was kind enough to allow her to even do this.  Junho hummed slightly now, pulling the girl from her thoughts as she looked towards Junho again.

‘What do you suggest?’  

Junho asked, Hyorin cocking an eyebrow, but had of course another idea in mind since she really couldn’t do much.

‘I can do something, but because I am bound it will take a few hours to actually heal the body, he’ll have to remain like this for that long.  I’ll need his sister to come make a little concoction to keep him sleeping for that long.’

She replied, watching as Junho’s face turned from thoughtful to just plain confused,

‘Sister, Chansung is an only child?’

He implied, Hyorin having to chuckle now, it entertained her with how mortals could never see things that she could, could never feel the important things.  Hyorin was the one shaking her head now, leaning her head back a little to look at Junho.

‘My dear, blood does not lie. That medic out there and this man lying before us share a deep bond that only two human’s in love could create,’

Junho’s shocked expression amused the witch now as he blinked a few times, his mouth opening and shutting to say something, but words didn’t seem to come to him, only a few babbles before he was holding his head.  If this was how he was going to react, then she definitely wanted to see the girl’s reaction out there, because if even this man didn’t know about the two’s relationship, then she was sure that neither did they.

‘You know what…  How about right now, you tell me what she needs to do, and well I’ll see if she knows she got a brother... She’s not going to get anywhere near you, so I’ll just have to relay the message.’

Junho spoke, Hyorin only shrugging her shoulders, it was another interesting little fact to know that the girl outside was terrified of her.  It seemed the girl was more in the dark about herself and life.

‘How about we start with another fact she doesn’t seem to know, I’m surprised no one else could tell, but she is part witch.’

--

‘Our sweet little boy,’

She spoke softly, cooing at the baby she held carefully in her arms, her husband wrapping his arms carefully around her shoulder, her smiling face looking up to him as the baby squirmed, stretched, the woman chuckling as she rocked him now.  Swaying back and forth, she stepped forward placing the child gently into the small crib within the corner of the room, her wide smile, smiling down as the baby yawned and cuddled up against the blanket he was swaddled in.

‘He really is perfect.’

His father spoke, leaning into the crib to lay a kiss upon the dark hair on top of the baby’s head.  The baby wiggled a little, but settled down easily as the two parents wrapped their arms around each other, hugging tightly, his mother’s eyes watching him carefully.

‘I love you…’

Was all the small baby could hear before his world went dark and he was sleeping and seeing the bright colors of his dreams…

 He was woken up when he felt arms lifting him out of the crib, his small dark eyes opening as he again began to squirm, and it was irritating for him, his eyes seeing some man that was not his mother or his father!  He wanted to cry, he was going to cry as a small whine passed his lips, the man seeming displeased by this and began to slowly and carefully rock him in his arms.  It was very soothing that he was doing this, and he could feel the sleep coming back to him; and it did this man was even softly singing to him as they moved to the outside, his eyes slowly drooping close again before yet again, he was sleeping.