In the midst of a strained, tense silence sits Kim Mingyu. Though his features were schooled into a look of indifference, the twitch of his fingers interlocked in his lap was undeniable. He was nervous, but ready, for what? He wasn't quite sure. But something heavy sat within the silence enveloping the slightly packed room, something that sent a sense of anxiousness in the pit of his gut.

“What are you saying?”

Seungcheol's voice snaps him back to attention, terse and disgruntled. The sudden animosity, poorly hidden by the elder, makes Mingyu spare a glance at his leader. Stiff would be an understatement in describing the way the elder sat at the edge of his chair, hands clenching the edge of the table tightly in barely repressed anger. Following his leader's heated gaze, at the end of the large, oak table in their contrasting royal and sky blue robes, stood both the leaders of the northern and southern Water Kingdoms respectively, Hong Jisoo and Yoon Jeonghan.

Due to having just recently inherited his position, having lost his father in the recent war (one of the many fatal losses) a representative spoke in Jeonghan's place. Judging by the look on the blond water bender's face, Mingyu figured the elder didn't quite agree with the idea of his voice being disregarded despite his new position. Mingyu knew that if given the chance, the blond would agree with Seungcheol in a heart beat. The pair had developed a strong bond despite the sudden tension between both of their kingdoms, something that was looked at oddly as considering the Earth King's well known temperament and Jeonghan's own headstrong mindset, people assumed the pair would clash greatly. But they proved to do quite the opposite and he figured that out of fear of said bond, a representative was sent to stand in Jeonghan's place.

Beside the conflicted blond stood Hong Jisoo, bearing a rather serene expression despite the tense atmosphere. Having inherited his position just before the war, Jisoo had proven himself a valuable and trusted leader in keeping his kingdom afloat and still standing, whereas even the greatest of kingdom's fell, the Earth Kingdom included amongst the rubble. For this, the brunet water bender had been granted a voice in the council as the northern water kingdom leader. In contrast to Jeonghan, the brunet was more passive, not quite disagreeing with Seungcheol, but not willing to go against his own people either. Instead, he opted for a more neutral route, only agreeing when more peaceful options were in consideration.

“I'm saying, that we all consider it a major loss for a kingdom so great as your own to have fell in such dire times and we are more than willing to assist you in your time of need, as we ask the same in return.” The representative for the Southern Water Kingdom spoke, smiling pleasantly despite being the source of Seungcheol's unwavering glare, “However, as you stated earlier, recovery is a long road isn't it? In this case we cannot afford to be picky. Both of our kingdoms are in shambles. We must act quickly and accept what is offered to us-”

“How pathetic-” Seungcheol scoffs and Mingyu is already grinning at the collective gasps that sound in the packed room. His leader was brash, blunt and if it weren't obvious enough, it was now. Seungcheol was no diplomat. He was more of the man you called last minute when war is brewing on the horizon and you needed someone to lead your troops to victory. More often than not, his leader had expressed his disdain for council meetings, but it was mandatory, just as maintaining peace with the people he had been raised to disdain was.

Unlike both Jisoo and Jeonghan, Seungcheol had been raised to lead, and had been given the task at a very young age. Following in his father's footsteps was no easy task, considering the elder Choi had been one of the greatest monarch's to ever grace the Earth Kingdom. But Seungcheol was determined, and soon that determination had payed off, and Seungcheol found himself in talk amongst the greats. Despite his upfront nature, everything he did was for his people. Often times, his undying sense of loyalty led to a blinded need of revenge against those who had harmed said people. This is where Mingyu himself was supposed to step in, as he was the right hand man of the Earth King and was considered to be the more sensible one of the pair, but even he himself had his own bias and itch for revenge, unjust or not.

“Cowering from an enemy that has already surrendered? Pathetic. We should be the one making demands! My kingdom is in shambles, my people are starving, homeless and you expect me to listen to what those fire breathing freaks have to say? Also, they still have prisoners of war. Speaking of which, there will be no further negotiations until that is settled.”

“I assure you, we are not cowering by any means, but-” The representative starts, offense obvious in the stiffness of his posture.

“Then why are peace treaties being discussed already when the ones that already existed were disregarded? I want them to build the walls they broke down, to rebuild the homes they destroyed, and release the people they have imprisoned to their rightful kingdom. Until then, the Earth Kingdom is withdrawing from any further treaty discussions.”

The silence that follows is even more tense than the last as Mingyu watches the representatives poor attempts at suppressing the various emotions crossing his features.

“I understand” Is his response, through gritted teeth, head bowed slightly in defeat. Then again, no one could ever argue successfully against Seungcheol, Mingyu himself included.

“Then it appears this meeting is over, until next time.”

Mingyu rises to a stand alongside the other Earth Kingdom representatives as Seungcheol bids the council farewell, bowing low before exiting the room alongside his leader. Like clock work, Seungcheol immediately switches from a failed diplomat to his general mindset, calling out orders at a rapid pace, making Mingyu's head spin.

“That went well” He comments sarcastically, referring to the poor excuse of a council meeting.

“As well as expected” Seungcheol shrugs, “But even they cannot admit I am right. Their yearning for peace blinds them of obvious threats. I won't trust those traitors until our ships are on their shore, and even then, how do you trust someone who has already breached such a sacred bond in the first place? I trust Jeonghan, I trust Jisoo, I trust Soonyoung, and I may even trust their shady council members, but watching Jihoon partake in the destruction of my kingdom, the kingdom my father helped build- I will never, I could never-”

The elder cuts himself off then, but Mingyu doesn't miss the tightening of his fists or the clenching of his jaw. If there were ever a fresh wound, he thinks Jihoon's betrayal still stung the most. Though they were currently on the road to peace and reconstruction, and Seungcheol had spared Jihoon's life, a first of many, Mingyu knew things would never be the same. How could you retract after a betrayal as vital as that? He wonders.

“Seungcheol!”

The pair glance behind them, pausing in their previous hasty pace to find Jeonghan rapidly approaching, a remorseful frown marring his features.

“I'm sorry about my representative. The elders chose him.”

“I figured as much” Seungcheol mumbles. Mingyu outright rolls his eyes at the elder when he continues walking at his unrelenting pace, Jeonghan struggling to keep up while Mingyu was used to his leader's unreasonable behavior.

“ I mean- I agree with you, Jisoo does too. But everyone is still a little shocked from the aftermath, and recuperation will be difficult. The elders are not easy to convince either, but in the end Jisoo and I will have the final say-” At that Seungcheol pauses once more, turning to face the younger with a sudden keen interest. Jeonghan hesitates under his intense gaze, a faint pink dusting his cheeks, before continuing, “And we will stand with you. It won't be easy coming from this war, with all of this destruction and these losses, but we must stand together… I trust you and your guidance, more than my own actually.”

There's a small pause before a rare, but genuine smile appears on Seungcheol's face as he grips the younger's shoulder. Jeonghan blinks owlishly up at him at that, but Mingyu doesn't miss the fondness emitting from the water bender in regards to his leader. He figures he's intruding on a personal moment now, so he leaves the pair, heading out of the open area to the docks. His fellow Earth benders are busy loading the ships up with supplies courtesy of the Water Kingdom, mostly medicine and other medical supplies. Amongst them is Junhui, helping load the ships as he waits for his own leader, Jeonghan.

“You look evil with that thing on.” Mingyu says as he approaches, nodding at the eye patch covering the brunet's left eye.

“Would you rather stare at my empty eye socket instead?” The elder asks sarcastically, rolling his eye at the other brunet.

“As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll pass” The younger grins, narrowly avoiding the empty box the elder sends flying his way, “You were absent from the meeting. Why?”

The pause that ensues sends Mingyu's mind into overdrive. The way Junhui hesitates, his single eye straying from Mingyu slightly. He was hiding something, which in turn meant the Water Kingdom was hiding something.

“Ah, you know I hate those boring meetings.” The brunet replies casually with a small smile, only for it to fall completely when not returned, “Something else called for my attention.”

“Since the meetings are mandatory for both of us, then it must have been pretty important for you to withdraw last minute.” Mingyu notes with the slight raising of his brow.

“What are you getting at?” Junhui inquires suddenly, the conversation taking a tense turn rather quickly.

“That whatever it is you all are hiding, you should speak up about. We are allies, aren't we?”

One of the many thing Mingyu had learned under Seungcheol's tutelage was how to maintain the upper hand of a conversation, which usually meant guilt tripping or taking the aggressive route. With water benders, being as they were quite stubborn but unwaveringly loyal, he often found wavering their alliance in front of them to be the most successful of the two. Judging by the way Junhui's sudden hostility immediately quells to a remorseful frown, he figures he's been more than successful.

“We are. I… I'm sorry for jumping at you like that. This war has taken it's toll on all of us. I can't express with words how relieved I am that it is finally over.” The elder smiles sadly, “I can assure you, any threats or immediate danger to my kingdom you all will be among the first to know about.”

“I am glad.” Mingyu admits with a small smile, gripping the elder's shoulder with a small bow to which Junhui returns with a more genuine smile of his own, “Until next time”

He breezes past the other brunet then, onto the ship, smile falling almost immediately. A few of his fellow benders, upon noticing his sour expression, pause in their work to inquire if he's okay but he just waves them off, telling them to load the ship up quicker. Seungcheol emerges from the council building moments later, Jeonghan beaming pleasantly beside him. Junhui hurries over to his leader almost immediately, bowing low to Seungcheol in the process. Mingyu motions toward his own leader to inform him the ship is ready to sail back home.

He watches then, with avid interest as Seungcheol bids the pair a quick farewell. Even from his position on the boat, Mingyu can see the way Jeonghan's hand lingers on his leader's arm. Similar to Mingyu himself earlier, Seungcheol's own smile disappears upon turning away from the water benders to board the ship. Mingyu seeks his gaze out and they share a knowing look.

“It seems that there will be no peace after all.” Seungcheol says once he's boarded the ship, breezing past Mingyu to his personal chambers.

Mingyu watches, as the ship begins to pull away, Jeonghan and Junhui's enthusiastic waves of farewell, returning them with a single wave of his own before turning and following Seungcheol, trying to ignore the dread creeping into the pit of his gut.

“Should we have told them?”

Jeonghan glances up from the pile of treaties littering his desk. Junhui is leaning against the door frame, looking more conflicted than Jeonghan has ever seen. The elder found himself frowning since it was usually the other way around.

“I don't know.” He answers honestly, because if there were ever a person he could completely be himself with, doubts and insecurities included, it was Junhui. Jeonghan was no perfect leader, but he at least wanted to be an assuring figure for his people. He found it easier said than done though. How could one maintain a sense of calm and assurance with the uncertainty lingering around each bend?

He wondered how Jisoo did it. On more than one occasion, Jeonghan found himself having to depend on the council in terms of major and sudden decisions. He often found himself at a loss for words in council meetings also. When he was finally considered the official leader, in terms of having a voice, would he too have to go against Seungcheol in the meetings? Or would his people trust him enough to follow the Earth King? He had meant what he'd said earlier, about trusting Seungcheol's leadership more than his own.

However, he wasn't blind to the elder's change in mindset following the war. To Seungcheol, an ally simply meant a potential traitor. Jeonghan, on the other than, considered everyone who wasn't an enemy a potential ally. He figured there would be some sort of disagreement between them by now, but Jeonghan often found himself agreeing with the rash, blunt Earth King.

The Fire Kingdom had destroyed both the Earth Kingdom and the Southern Water Kingdom. Having them aid in repairing it seemed the most logical, but he couldn't help think it was also Seungcheol's way of being spiteful. The Fire Kingdom was in shambles also. But what surprised Jeonghan the most was Seungcheol's mercy in regards to former banished prince turned Fire Kingdom King, Lee Jihoon. He remembers quite vividly the look on Seungcheol's face upon exiting the Fire Kingdom's palace after his final battle with Jihoon, a look of utter defeat and pure misery.

Now Jihoon was rotting in prison, a peace treaty had as of yet to be agreed upon, the tension between his kingdom and the Earth Kingdom was growing stronger every day, Soonyoung and his people have been absent since the ending of the war, and now a new threat was looming on the surface. Jeonghan wonders when this will all end, but he knows it won't be anytime soon.

“Have Jisoo and the others left yet?” He asks in effort to distract himself from his oncoming headache.

“They left about an hour ago. He said he didn't want to disturb you so he sent his best wishes.”

“Ah, I see...” The blond mumbles, fumbling with the steadily growing pile of treaties before rising to a stand but Junhui is quicker, approaching in two large strides and placing careful hands on his leader's shoulders to urge him remain to seated.

“Is your head bothering you again?” The brunet inquires, placing gentle hands on either side of the blond's head before Jeonghan can even reply.

The elder slips his eyes closed at the soothing sensation that follows. Junhui laughs at that and it's just like every other evening in his study except something is off, something feels off. But before Jeonghan can even question it, a scream sounds, making him jump, or at least he would have jumped.

“Junhui?” He mumbles, frowning at the sudden numbness encasing him. Another scream sounds followed shortly by other muffled noises, but to Jeonghan they all seemed so distant. To add to his confusion, his own visions begins to blur, dark spots forming rapidly.

What was happening?

“Rest well, my king” Is all Jeonghan hears before everything goes black.