“Don’t drink too much,” I reminded Chanyeol with a warning glare. He sat on the stool near the bar, his hair messy and his face red. In his hand, was a giant glass of vodka, and I did not like to know how many more glasses he had had before I came. The Elites never got drunk in front of me. In fact, I always thought that none of them had enough time to go out and get drunk, given their full schedule of training from morning to night. “Chanyeol, Yeol, slowly. Don’t dunk it down, Giant.”

                  “I am not a Giant,” Chanyeol purred like a wounded puppy and opened his arms welcomingly. I shot him a helpless look when he ducked down to match my height and enveloped me in a bear-hug. Because of his tall stature, I leaned back at the sudden impact with a low yelp of ‘woof’. He was much heavier than me for sure, though with his skinny figure, he did not look like he weighed much. “Sena, Sena, Sena, I could hug you forever. Why are you so huggable?”

                  “Yes, thank you, and you are drunk. Now let me go,” I tried to pry his hands away but he wouldn’t budge. I sighed and motioned Kyungsoo to take him away. Kyungsoo raised his eyebrows, almost rejecting the idea because he was crowding the side of the pool with Taeyong, Sehun and Luhan. I wanted to give him a middle finger – and that was when he decided that I had finally had enough. “Chanyeol, don’t be a big baby and let me go before Kyungsoo comes and does something both of us wouldn’t like.”

                  “I want to be a big baby,” He whined cutely. I almost had a change of heart when he pouted so adorably, but Kyungsoo arrived and swiftly pulled Chanyeol away with one hand. People would expect Chanyeol to be much stronger than Kyungsoo was – and maybe he was – but Kyungsoo was the one in charge. The taller man whined and yawned and pouted – anything he could do to claw his way back, but it was useless. Kyungsoo was immune to his charm. ‘’Sena, Sena, how could you do this to me?”

                  He was drunk, but he also sounded very much awake. His words were not slurred and he spoke with clear pronunciation had it not been his dreamy expression that suggested he was only half-conscious. Chanyeol lied on Kyungsoo’s shoulder and clung onto him tightly. He refused to let go and fell asleep there, clearly feeling very comfortable on the spot. I hid my laughter when Kyungsoo, the shorter of the two almost fell down supporting Chanyeol’s full weight.

                  Taeyong approached me, and unlike Kyungsoo who wore full-clothes to the swimming pool, he was half- and wet from head-to-toe. He was skinny, and while there were muscles in his body, he had legs that would shame any girl to the core, and a pair of very pretty hands. He looked at me up and down and gave me a smirk that was so unlike him. I did not like the devious look he had, as if he was scheming something, and before I could register anything, he already had me bridal-style on his strong arms.

                  The cold water filled my nose and mouth and I immediately closed it. I tried to hit Taeyong under the water, but he held me tighter instead as both of us resurfaced from the depth. I could hear cheers when I coughed out water from my mouth. Taeyong was laughing – ‘tis the very first time I saw his genuine laughter, fully unconstrained and so childlike. My initial annoyance disappeared and was instead, replaced by a small smile of relief.

                  “That’s it. Finally. Goodness, God, you have been scaring everyone away with your heavy frown since the beginning of the party,” Taeyong chuckled, his hands supporting my waist as we swam to the edge. During night time, the view was even more beautiful – the ocean vast and endless. We were soothed by the noises of waves hitting the cliff, the moon half-full, lighting earth with her radiant beauty. The smile on my face ceased as quickly as it came. “Sena, don’t frown again. It’s ugly.”

                  “Lee Taeyong,” I firmly reprimanded with a glare, “That is not how you talk to a girl.”

                  “This is how I talk to a girl,” He proudly announced, drawing closer. I could see the water dropping from his hair slowly, running down his flawless face. There was not a hint of fakery or flattery on him, just brutal honesty. His eyes shone brightly under the moonlight, and I adored them very much. He shook off the water from his hair almost commercially that I burst out laughing instead, “And be glad because there are not many of them.”

                  “If you’re trying to make me feel special, you’re doing it the wrong way.”

                  “I think he’s doing pretty fine, given that you finally have a small smile on your face after hours of furrowing your eyebrows grimly,” Joonmyun appeared from my right side with a grin, showing off a perfect set of pearly white teeth. His usually perfect hair was messed up into sections of wetness, and it looked so damn fine. I tore my gaze away to Kim Minseok, who had two girls from our branch family on each arms. He was flirting with them, not quite so drunk as Chanyeol or Jongdae, who was winding up by the Jacuzzi.

                  “And you are ruining the moment for me,” Taeyong gave Joonmyun a very pointed stare and swam away. He went back to Kyungsoo-Luhan-Sehun trio. The four of them seemed to get along very well, with Yixing joining not long after. I felt the burden lessened slightly when Joonmyun stood next to me, the two of us gazing at the ocean together. “It’s tonight, isn’t it?”

                  “Yes, and if you’re going to give me a long-winded speech about how worried you are, please don’t,” I brutally shot him down before he could even say anything. I had heard plenty of them and I wouldn’t want to hear more of it. “Seriously, Joonmyun, I appreciate your effort but it’s not like I’m dying or something. Most of you look at me as if I’m going to commit suicide soon. So please stop the talk before someone really breaks down and cry.”

                  “Who says you’re going to die?” He looked at me incredulously then rolled his eyes like the drama king he was, “It’s just one mission. You’re gonna do just fine. And besides, you are not alone in this, you know? Am I not here? This is important for me as it is for you. So I came to propose a toast for you for this beautiful night. Without you, partner, I wouldn’t be where I am. Thank you for trusting me.” He gave me a glass of vodka and coca cola – my favourite combination. “Thank you for everything.”

                  I knew. I knew after tonight I would see him no more. Tears gathered in my eyes as I took the glass from him. If he was trying to be strong right now, then it was definitely not working. I could see the mirror of myself through his tears. This was the second time, after his father’s death, that he cried openly in front of me. It was a way of saying a farewell to an old friend. I lifted my glass first and drank it in a shot. To Kim Joonmyun, “To our friendship.” And to forever more. This was the last.

***

                  “Lady Sena!” A voice hurriedly rushed down from the main door to the open area. The seventeen-something girl looked absolutely panicked and helpless. Despair flashed alarmingly in her green-blue eyes, and it silenced the crowd in no less than a minute. I stood up with the grey shirt clinging tightly onto my bikini-clad body, facing her with unamused eyes. Sehun appeared beside me, his eyes furrowed in confusion. “Lady Sena! The headquarter just sent an emergency call. The Byakko is attacking us. They demanded you to hand-in the Genbu refugees.”

                  The Genbu… refugees. All eyes instantly shot towards Minseok. He sobered up, wide-eyed and speechless in one corner. All the pity and guilt I had vanished in that moment as I begrudgingly looked down at the girl. She was kneeling with her head down, tears rushing onto her pretty little face. I recognised her as Lee Jiyeon, Sungyeol’s cousin. Something must have happened to him. “Stand up,” I ordered in a voice that was not like mine. When she didn’t stand up as I told her to, I grew aggravated and commanded loudly, “Stand up and talk!”

                  “Lady Sena,” Jiyeon sobbed and stood up, her hands covering half of her red face. She was looking at the ground when she talked, her words a slur of incoherent language because of her anxiety and fear, “Lady Sena, please. The headquarter is attacked by Byun Baekhyun. There are dozens of Shadow fighters and legions of people. They didn’t know what to do. Please help them, Lady Sena. My cousin and my brother… My brother is in there.”

                  “How many casualties?” I asked rigidly, clenching my fists in a defensive manner.

                  At first, Jiyeon looked everywhere but me. She stopped sobbing, as if she was scared of my wrath. I swore that this girl was here to test my patience, so before others could react, I grabbed her wrist tightly and hissed, “How many are there? Are you deaf or stupid?”

                  “E… Everyone is held captive. Byakko can’t go inside our headquarter, but none of our people can go out, either. There are more than two hundreds people inside.”

                  Two hundreds. I inhaled the air sharply and turned around to look at everyone. They all looked scared, confused, torn and ready to fight. I glanced at Jongdae, whose drunk red face looked ridiculously foolish tonight. Hatred filled my entire being when my eyes finally landed on Kim Minseok. This man was the source of every trouble within the last two years and I wanted very much to choke him to death. I walked up to him, imposing and threatening, and Sehun – who would usually calm me down – walked behind me, as if he understood that Kim Minseok deserved everything that came his way tonight.

                  “Kim Minseok,” I put my hands on his neck. My fingers were itching to strangle him, but I gave him a little more time to talk. Instead of asking, I could only spat out that despicable name that burnt my tongue when I called him out, “Kim Minseok. Explain yourself.”

                  He looked nervous, as he should be. “W… What do I have to explain? It’s not like I staged that attack.”

                  I smiled coldly and tightened my hold around his neck as he struggled. When he tried to push me away, I kicked him on the chest and sent him flying across the couch until he doubled over in pain, rolling on the ground. I knelt down and wiped away the blood on his lips as I used my nails to claw at his cheeks, leaving a trail of scarlet lines on his smooth face, “What do I do with you, Kim Minseok? Will you take responsibility over the casualties? Should I hand you over to Byun Baekhyun as part of negotiation?”

                  “Y… Yoon Sena,” He hissed in pain and spoke as he choked, “You can’t do this to me. I am the leader of Genbu. We have an agreement!”

                  “Agreement?” I was amused by his words and even more amused by his pride. I continued clawing, pinning him down on the ground. The drunk man’s strength was no match to mine. I heard Jongdae’s quiet argument when I continued with a scowl, “Well-said, Kim Minseok. Very well, indeed. What kind of agreement did we have? Last time I remembered, you kicked me out of your clan with the same reason. And did you care that I was the leader of Seiryuu at that time? Did you care that I was dying with a gun-shot, bleeding unconsciously from my chest?”

                  “I…” He tried to explain himself, but found no excuse. So he stopped struggling, only begging for pity. It was such a shame that I had none for him. Two years ago, I wasn’t the only one who felt this injustice. Joonmyun and my Elites had to suffer with me, and for two years, Genbu refused any kind of connection with the Seiryuu. In the end, I asked myself if this agreement was really worth it if it wasn’t for Kim Joonmyun. It truly wasn’t. My clan was stronger than Genbu. I didn’t need his help. I had held a grudge on him ever since.

                  “You have two choices: get out of my territory in one hour, or I will hand you over to Byun Baekhyun,” I threatened, “This is not kindness I will show to you, but to your brothers. The two of you should get out as well.” I turned to Joonmyun and Jongdae angrily. “I hope that you regret ever taking the crown from your father, Kim Minseok, because I will make your clan suffer and beg for mercy. Any Genbu members found in my territory will be killed, and anyone aiding the children of theirs will be banished. Is that understood?”

                  The heavy choruses of ‘yes’ resounded in the room, drowning Minseok’s weak protest. I loosened my grip on Minseok’s neck and turned to my protector who looked at me readily, “Sehun, announce this to the whole world: from here onward, Seiryuu declares an open war with Genbu.”            

A/N: I honestly think that a scarier thing for a writer is not experiencing the inability to produce new ideas, but the inability to write again. It's seriously so scary.

Anyway, I promise I will explain more of Sena's action in the later chapters. Don't call her dumb or rash just yet, a'rite? Thanks for reading!