✮ Cold War ✮

Byun Baekhyun ||Park Chanyeol [Exo] || Nightmare [Oc]

angst. friendship. historical

Description: With no one left but themselves, Baekhyun and his mare are left to fend for themselves after a war. As much as he hates his horse, he knows his horse needs him- as much as he needs her.

Hooves clacked against the cold hard ground, dust coming up in small puffs as the mare slowly came to a halt. The boy swung his legs over his horse, his feet crunching as he jumped to the ground. A small knife was slotted in the back of his worn belt, and the traditional hwarot he was wearing brushed past his limbs. An open wound showed just below his knee before the clothing covered it again. He let go of the horse's rein and started looking around, his horse following him idly. He was covered in dirt, his long hair cropped messily around his shoulders.

The stale air filled with tense silence as he looked around, making sure there was no one in sight. Once he's sure, he sighed and closed his eyes, his fingers pressing against his forehead. 

"They're gone," He finally spoke, his voice hoarse. He hadn't had a sip of water in days, and his throat was dry and itchy. He knew his horse needed water, too, or she would collapse in due time and then both of them would really be doomed.

Nightfall soon came, the sky starless, filled with nothing but black. The cold breeze blew past him and he only shivered in response. He got up and started to search for wood. A few moments later, he came back with a few logs of wood in his arms. He started to make a fire, letting the warmth engulf him. His horse who was resting perked up, twitching her ears. He hugged himself, ignoring her.

Tomorrow, he thought. Tomorrow we'll find water.

Having nothing to do and being unable to sleep, he decided to practice his aiming skills again. He had to be extra cautious and alert now, what if soldiers chasing after him. Baekhyun fished his knife out, and threw it at the nearby tree. It hit the bark with a loud screech. His horse perked up, growling lowly at him.

He ignored her, throwing knife after knife. It wasn't only after his fiftieth throw that his knife grazed past the horse's ear, hitting a tree branch. She whinned, trotting behind a tree, but Baekhyun only rolled his eyes. 

Soon, he felt his eyelids getting heavy and he rest himself on a nearby tree, sleep claiming him in seconds.

Baekhyun was woken up not long later by his horse, who was nudging him with her snout impatiently.

"Ugh," He grunted, pushing her away. "What-" 

He paused when she trotted to the firewood and started pawing on it, hitting the ends of the wood with her hooves. She gave a low grunt, working hard on pawing the ground. The fire had grew smaller as she worked. 

"What the hell are you doing?" Baekhyun growled, tugging at her reins. "Stop!"

The mare turned, grunting at him. Baekhyun could only watch as the fire slowly extinguished.

"Look at what you've done. Stop being an , okay?!" He huffed, kicking at a nearby rock before stalking off to find more wood. Two could play at that game.

Before he could walk any further however, the mare neighed and galloped towards him, whinning desperately. Baekhyun was about to shut her up when he heard shoutings. 

"Oh no," He gasped, and quickly swung himself onto the horse. "Go, go."

She galloped off as Baekhyun hung onto the reins for dear life. 

"How did they..." Baekhyun frowned. They had travelled out of their palace, far away from their hometown. How did they manage to find them? Unless...

"Stupid, I'm so stupid," He grunted, staring behind at the trail of smoke making its way into the sky. "The smoke. They must have seen the smoke."

He sighed. "Fine, you're smart for once, horse."

.~.

When Baekhyun woke, he could not hear the once cheerful bird calls or the scratching of squirrels. The silence enveloped him, and he finally took in that he was really alone. Alone in the woods, with no one to help him.

He got up and looked around, his eyes landing on a certain forlorn mare. Sighing, he turned away from her and played with the leaves. A long scar adorned the inside of his right arm, and there were a few small scars on his fingers, each one a story untold. 

With his unscarred hand, he lightly grazed his sealed wounds. Memories flashed before his eyes. A whip. A woman with messy cropped hair. He dropped his hands. Even after all these time, he couldn't forget.

He ped his small pouch to reveal a few nuts and grapes that his mother had shoved onto his palm before she was taken away.

"Run," She had called. The war was over, the soldiers were overtaking the palace. They'd kill anyone who fought against them, and his mother had tried to keep safe at all costs. "Gyeongbukgung palace," She had whispered. "Your father is there. Go."

Shaking his head, he popped a few nuts into his mouth and got up. He kicked the mare awake, and she let out a grunt before he swung up her back easily. 

"We're going to go find water now. I assume you'll figure out how to find it?" Raising an eyebrow, Baekhyun let the tired mare trudge forward.

The walk was long and endless. The boy was close to falling asleep on the mare's back when she came to a stop, her ears twitching as she scanned her surroundings.

"What are you doing?" Baekhyun slurred, opening an eye. The horse gave a huff, and looked behind her.

Frowning, Baekhyun took note of his surroundings. He was about to tell the mare off for being paranoid when he heard it. Footsteps.

No, not footsteps, but hooves trotting.

Widening his eyes, Baekhyun whispered, "Run."

Immediately aware, the mare went into a full-scale gallop, although the previous speed and strength lost.

The clacking of hooves became more audible, and Baekhyun could almost hear horses grunting and neighing in unison.

They were near.

"Quick!" Baekhyun hissed, his voice harsh. When the boy looked back, he could almost catch sight of several horses slowly coming into view. "Come on," He grit his teeth, his grip tightening on the mare's manes.

He knew they close to getting caught when he heard something.

The sound of water crashing.

Baekhyun's eyes widened. "It's a waterfall! Quick, once we get there we'll be able to find our way home."

Hearing the familiar sound too, adrenaline rushed through the horse and her speed picked up. Trees brushed past them, and finally made way to show a small waterfall leading down a river.

Baekhyun gasped, immediately jumping off the horse and rushing to the riverbank. Squatting, he splashed his face with water and had a few mouthfuls. Water had never tasted so good in his life.

Feeling refreshed, he turned to the mare who was gulping down river water as well. It seemed like all was well, but Baekhyun recalled that the warriors still chasing after them.

Quickly grabbing his horse's rein, he made his way into the river but was pulled back sharply almost immediately.

He tilted his head at the horse. "What are you doing?" Baekhyun hissed, hearing the sound of hooves nearing as each moment passed. The stubborn mare refused to budge, pushing all its weight to its legs. "Get in!" Baekhyun's eyes narrowed. But the mare stopped just at the edge of the bank, as if afraid of the water.

The group of horses came into view, and Baekhyun's heartbeat quickened. Looking at his horse one last time, he dove into the river.

All Baekhyun could think of was that he needed air, he needed to breathe. It was only moments ago that he desperately needed water, yet now as he is surrounded by it, all he could think of is air.

He couldn't be sure if they were gone yet, but he knew that it was either he died by being killed by others, or being killed by himself. 

Water splashed as Baekhyun broke the surface, taking in large gulps of sweet, fresh air. Trying to keep his head closest to the water, he peeked out. There was no sign of any horses or soldier at all, as if they weren't being chased just earlier. He sighed in relief.

Panick soon kicked in when he realised he'd left his horse to be caught. His eyes searched around desperately, and it was just then that a snout splashed out of the water surface to reveal his horse. 

"Ohmygod," He breathed in relief. Pushing through the current, he clutched the horse's snout and hugged her tightly. "What am I going to do without you, you idiot?"

.~.

They had crossed the river, although the mare was rather terrified on her part. When they reached dry land, it's only then that Baekhyun could rest without worry. "You stubborn mare," He muttered. "You almost gave me a nightmare back there..."

Baekhyun furrowed his brows. "Nightmare... yeah, you really are a nightmare." He raised an eyebrow contemplating the nickname. "You know, I should give you a name. Horses should have names too, right? How about nightmare? It fits yo