It was already 8’clock, the time sped past in a blur and you were still fidgety, anxious as if someone was sending electrical shocks all the way up your nerves the entire night. A eunuch stood there with a scroll and you saw the maid standing behind him, head lowered, a smirk playing upon her lips. He cleared his throat to read out the final decision and the girls already dressed and made-up, all huddled around to wait for the verdict.

You remembered the maid had explained, in all assurance that her plan was going to work. Everything was perfect because tonight was when the Princes were going to make their selection of colours. A lord apparently had forced them to choose tonight after a long hiatus because it was bad publicity for the rest of the court if the harem had been introduced and was not being ‘utilised’ as the order had put it. He was sure they were all hot blooded, young men that needed this kind of company but the Princes just ignored his last dishonourable mention and followed on out of duty.

The final choice selection process was to be passed by the maids to the eunuchs who would read out the final colours in the chambers at exactly 8 o’clock at night, which was the reason for your anxiety, to which the girl would spend the rest of her night with the Prince. The maid had emphasised that miscommunication was the key. Oh, the wonders of distorted information, she had almost cried with joy.

Her plan was this: she was going to do the rounds tonight before 8 as usual and swap all the girls to which the Princes would request. Naturally, she already had bets on who would pick who, and who even choose at all. However what surprised her was the number of princes that chose violet. Surely, she thought, that you had took her words on making an impression too much to heart, either that or you’d a really good job at making your presence known.

The Princes were all in their respective rooms so as per conduct, she went to the eldest first. Knocking meekly on the door of the oldest Prince, she asked him which colour he wanted to be painted tonight and he looked genuinely distraught at having completely forgotten about the entire ordeal. He asked her to repeat the colours and she did. He liked the sound of magenta and so, the maid grinned inwardly but kept her composed appearance. “Great choice your majesty,” she curtsied and walked off. She knew that the eldest would be flustered to bother with paying too close attention, he always gave off that cute and adorable vibe even though he was supposed to be the most mature. She had it in her cards that he would choose a girl out of responsibility as first son and leading the tradition and protocol of the court. He was simple and sweet and always too caught up in his own business and caring for the rest of his brothers to worry about these insignificant matters that he started the ball rolling for the rest of her plan.

Knocking on the door of the second brother’s room, he without qualm asked for violet again – requesting her by name this time, using his privilege as the second in birth to quickly steal her away from the rest of his siblings. So the maid snuck in a modest lie, “Sorry your majesty, violet has already been chosen, please indulge in another,” she was apologetic and very innocent. Luhan looked upset and muttered something about having no eyes for the rest of them but was encourage by the maid to select another out of obligation and he begrudgingly chose Indigo – it was close enough in colour with the purple he so adored.

She was giggling to herself about her own sneaky ways upon reaching the third eldest who looked at the maid with a penetrable stare. Without her even beginning to speak, Prince Wufan ordered violet, again, but unlike Luhan who was soft with his words, this prince was stern. The maid was a little surprised but said that she was already taken and the irritated Prince ruffled his air and thought for a moment before requesting peach again. The youngest girl would know now how things were so it wouldn’t have to be an annoying ordeal. Kris originally wanted the purple clad concubine because he’d wanted to interrogate her of sorts and ask her why she was found, landing on top of him after crashing a window. The girl was exquisite of sorts, but he was curious and vexed, he hadn’t been able to sleep since then and he hoped she would cure his insomnia.

Confused now, she walked to the next brother’s room, but oddly, he didn’t seem to be there. She pulled open his race paper doors only to greet an empty room after knocking repeatedly to no answer. She was about to turn and walk away when she came face to face with his chest. Not so much as startled as she found it strange, the unruffled maid asked Prince YiXing the same question she had been asking the others previously. Lay smiled a little and asked for the same girl the earlier brothers had asked for, which surprised the maid yet again. She apologised and told him that violet was already taken to which Lay laughed a little, saying something about fate not wanting them to meet tonight and then walked off somewhere, calling behind him, “give me any colour that plays good chess!” The maid shrugged and then simply assigned him the same girl he had last time, azure, she didn’t know any others anyway.

Perplexed as to your popularity, when the maid arrived at the doors of the scholar brother, she was met with by a male servant who notified her that the Prince was out for the night for work, dining with other fellow academics. He also passed on the message that Lord Sun-ye had ordered a colour be assigned anyway in his absence to wait his return in his chambers or else he would look bad when all his other brothers had followed practice. It was all about looking the part in this place and knowing that this brother liked sisterly figures, the maid wrote down emerald, the eldest of the harem as his colour for the night.

Upon reaching the final brother’s room, she had half expected him to be absent too, having to call someone to get him from the stables where he was always seen. But he was in his sleeping quarters, calling her to come in instead of meeting her at the door like the other princes. She walked in poised and asked him the question. He was lounging on the bed, his limbs sprawled out around him. “That one that danced,” he said to which the maid raised a quizzical brow, “you mean violet?” He sat up and nodded but she could only answer that she was already chosen and therefore unavailable. The youngest pouted a little and then chose chestnut again. “She was nice.” He said, a hint of sulkiness in his voice.

But before the maid returned to give the eunuch the scroll to read, she changed Kris’s colour to you, even though he had wanted you and was refused. She knew that the youngest peach colour would dread having to return and that nothing with happen with the two of them anyway from previous observation. So she’d assign you to Kris, thus giving you time to escape for the night and she’d then tell Kris that peach was feeling ill and unable to spend the night to which he’d answer with indifference – it was better for him this way, there was no disturbance. Everything worked out and she was so proud of her achievements. No one would suspect a thing.

The names were finally read out and the girls that weren’t chosen sighed in relief. It should be an honour to spend the night with the princes but none of the girls thought it that way. As the maid had predicted, the littlest girl praised the gods and nearly cried with reprieve that she didn’t have to go to anyone, seeing as she was so traumatised from her last experience. You were shocked at having been chosen by Kris and you gave her a hard look, but she came up to you and gripped your arm affirmatively. The other maids went to their respective ladies and then led them to the rooms. Zi-yu looked at you wearily and Chiao-han rolled her eyes.

The 6 of you were then lead in a line down the floral corridor, after exiting the chambers you all went your separate ways, but the maid led you down the labyrinthine corridors till even the map you had remembered could not tell you where you were.

 “Why did you put me with Prince Wufan?! I thought you were going to make me disappear somehow?” your eyes were wide and bulging, even more paranoid now.

“Relax, relax.” She said coolly, fumbling around the draws of the dark alcove you had found yourselves in and pulled out a stack of clothes with a pair of shoes on top. “Strip, then put this on while I talk.”

You took them obediently and subconsciously dressed without worry that she was standing there at all because you wanted to know what was going on. “Okay, so Prince Wufan actually requested peach, the youngest like last time but I swapped you around – now I have to go tell him that she’s not feeling well, it’s not like he’ll care.”

You were too absorbed in the plan to even notice that the clothes she had given you were pants and male’s robes before you reiterated her plan while hobbling around to put on the shoes, “so the harem thinks I’m with Kris, while everyone else thinks I’m still in the harem.” You tried slowly.

“Duh. Gosh, you can be so dim-witted sometimes.” She sighed exasperatedly before helping you tie up your robes, correcting your collar. “Quick, now you have to go. You have less than an hour, we took too long.”

It was when she was helping you that you noticed the clothes were for men, “cross-dressing! Seriously now you’ve stooped to a new level of low.” You grumbled, lifting an arm to look at yourself.

“Shut up. Get over yourself, you’re here to work. And anyway, what kind of woman would wander around the red light district” She began to pack up your old robes and you nodded, giving her the credit to thought.

“Now listen, the name of the brothel is known all over the county, you can’t miss it. It’s got gaudy lanterns stuck out the front and hostesses calling the customers in. It’s called Aphelion (LOL reference to my other story… except the opposite meaning).”

“Aphelion.” You echoed in confusion. “Strange name.”

“It’s quite clever actually.” She had finished packing up the stuff and riding the evidence of the two of you being there.

“It means the point of a planet’s orbit that is farthest from the sun.”

The name reminded you of your nightmare. How far did you have to entreat yourself so that the light was no longer visible? You couldn’t go back now. After that, she left to tell Kris the news and you went your own way. Into the darkness.

So how were you going to scale these palace walls again?

~

Hi~ DID YOU WAIT LONG?~ I hope not! This is to celebrate reaching 1000 views!

When I saw it, I was like:

   I LOST MY MIND!

Then I was like:

I don't know what it is now but I'm so thankful for all your support so I made this chapter longer than usual. Also, because this is an EXO-M not just a say, Luhan fic - even though it seems to be going that way -_- soz... I'm still weaving in interaction with the other brothers, so be patient until then.

If however, you need more fluff, you can read my other EXO oneshot fanfic which started off with all the EXO-K members but now has all 12 of them!!! YAYYAYAY!!! Lol sneaky advertising! I still can't get used to it but I just want more people to enjoy what I write. So I hope you guys keep reading!