The emperor is dead.

Yoongi watches the emperor slump down in his saddle before toppling over and onto the ground, skin blackened and face charred almost beyond recognition. Next to him, Namjoon slowly lowers his hand, fire still at his fingers, eyes unreadable.

The war is over.

The battle starts dying down once the soldiers notice what has happened. Swords clatter to the ground and friends reunite in victory, tight hugs repairing bonds frayed by the tensions between the emperor and the rebels.

The emperor is dead and the war is over.

Yoongi is elated. Everything they’ve fought for, everything they gave up, was for this moment.

He knows better than to rejoice in front of Namjoon.

“Soldiers, pull out! Let the people know that we have won!” Hoseok yells from the opposite side of Namjoon. He exchanges a look and a nod with Yoongi, a hard won acknowledgement of each other’s strength. A horse jostles into Hoseok’s and then the moment has passed.

Yoongi turns back to Namjoon, places a hand on his shoulder. “This is the end, Namjoon. We won. Come, there’s an empire for you to build now.”

“My father,” Namjoon begins, voice strangled and muscles tight.

“Is dead,” Yoongi finished for him. “And has left you an empire to run.” When Namjoon doesn’t reply, Yoongi sighs, softens his voice, and takes Namjoon’s horse by the reigns. “What’s done is done. You ended the war. You saved the lives of every person on this battlefield. You saved this country. We’ll go back to the palace, get the servants to draw you up a bath, and I’ll handle everything until tomorrow morning, yeah?”

Slowly, Namjoon loosens the clench of his jaw and nods, eyes cast down. “Thanks, Yoongi,” he whispers.

Uncomfortable now in the face of sincerity, Yoongi slaps a hand against Namjoon’s back and leads the way. He stays between Namjoon and most of the soldiers, shielding the eldest prince (now the emperor) from the sometimes curious, sometimes prying eyes of the people.

The battlefield is a long and lonely walk away from the kingdom’s capital, when you’re not surrounded by a small army and there isn’t a thick layer of anxiety mixed with anticipation in the air. The silence is still straining, a heavy pressure on Yoongi to fill it, to comfort Namjoon, to do something.

As the capital city comes into view, something changes.

The sky is blue and bright, the sun shining. Yoongi comes back with the thought, “we won, the war is over,” flittering around his mind, and he sees the city for what feels like the first time. The people are awake, crowding the streets, eager to hear from the battle front.

They do not expect their crown prince and his right hand man to be the shadowy figures coming back from war.

“We have won,” Yoongi announces, voice carrying over the hushed anticipation of the crowd.

A moment of silence, to process his words, and then: a cheer erupts from the crowd, enough to make Namjoon lift his head and look around. The people throw hats into the air, scarves, they lift their children and shout for joy. They part to make way for Yoongi, a path that goes straight to the palace.

Yoongi scans the crowd as they go along, watching it grow thicker and more exuberant. There will be a city-wide celebration tonight, he knows, and a hungover city the next morning to make an official announcement to.

Well. There’s also much to celebrate. Yoongi refocuses on the path ahead and continues marching on.

There are servants waiting for them the second they enter through the gates. Jimin stands to the side, Taehyung behind him, as Yoongi drops to the ground and helps Namjoon slide off of his horse. They approach after Yoongi sends the rest of the servants away, insisting on supporting Namjoon himself.

“We heard the news,” starts Jimin. “Congratulations.” He doesn’t look at Namjoon, but he doesn’t look at Yoongi either.

After a glance at Jimin’s dark circles and soft frown, Yoongi has to look away, too. “News travels fast,” he comments. “I’ll bring your brother to his room.”

Taehyung steps forward, reaching for Namjoon’s other arm. “Let me help.”

“He’s in shock, not crippled,” Yoongi informs him, an amused smirk pulling at the corners of his lips. At his words, Taehyung steps back, smiling sheepishly in response. “I got it. You should prepare for the other soldiers. They’ll be home soon.”

Jimin meets his eyes for the first time in what feels like decades and gives him a crisp nod. “We’ll take care of everything.”

“Thanks.” Yoongi curls his fingers into the back of Namjoon’s shirt to keep from reaching out. He leaves with a, “Second Prince, Taehyung,” a nod to both, and Taehyung shouting after them to expect visitors that night.

Yoongi lifts a hand in a lazy wave of acknowledgement and waits for them to be out of hearing range to nudge Namjoon. “Come on, Joon, I’m not gonna lug you up two flights of stairs.”

“I’m sorry,” Namjoon murmurs, extracting himself from Yoongi’s grip. “I’m sorry. I’ll pull myself together.”

Eyeing Namjoon’s swaying form carefully, Yoongi replies, “No pressure. What you did wasn’t easy, Namjoon. No one’s expecting you to be okay. Instead of apologizing, let’s get you cleaned up first.”

They stumble up the stairs, Namjoon clutching the railings and Yoongi following behind him. There’s no one in sight once they reach the hallway outside of the royal suites, but there’s a bath prepared for Namjoon in his room and a change of clothes laid out on the bed.

Namjoon pauses in the threshold to his room for a moment, just looking around. After a moment, he lets out a breath and his shoulders slump. He trudges to his bathroom and Yoongi leaves him in peace when he closes the door behind him.

“How is he?”

Yoongi starts, turning so that his back is to the wall as he meets the eyes of the – “Jimin?”

Jimin stands with his hands behind his back, his silent affirmation in the amused quirk of his brow.

Scowling, Yoongi runs a hand through his hair. “, don’t creep up on people like that.”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Jimin says before repeating his question. “How’s Namjoon?”

Sighing, Yoongi considers the question. To anyone else, he would give pleasantries, the answer they want to hear, but it’s Jimin and Jimin deserves the truth. (He doesn’t know if he could ever lie to Jimin anyway). So he says, “I don’t know. Functioning, but… it took a lot from him. I think he saw the father the emperor used to be, instead of the monster he became.”

Just the night before, Namjoon had confessed that he still had one precious memory of their family before it had fallen apart, from when he was a young child and his father had packed a picnic for their family on an open, flowering field. Yoongi doesn’t tell this to Jimin, nor does he mention the haunted look that had slowly crept into Namjoon’s eyes after the battle.

Yoongi shuts the door behind him, motioning with his head for Jimin to walk with him. “I think we should let him rest for the night.”

Silently, Jimin falls into step beside Yoongi. Somehow, it’s both companionable and awkward, from their years of knowing each other and weeks of tiptoeing around their relationship. The only sound comes from the heels of their shoes padding along marble floors and their quiet, even breaths.

It’s kind of nice, Yoongi dares to think, once. If he didn’t have so many things to worry about, he would try to enjoy it. As it is, he feels he has strained his relationship with Jimin enough to stop thinking about it.

“Namjoon might take a while to recover,” he says instead, falling back onto a neutral topic. “We’ve both seen what war can do to people. You may have to step up as the Second Prince so there isn’t a power vacuum.”

Jimin doesn’t scoff like he would’ve before, but Yoongi still hears it in his head. “Please. You’re more fit to rule than I am.”

“Magic doesn’t make a good emperor. You still have the bloodline.” And this is an argument they’ve been on the brink of having for years, so Yoongi decides it’s finally time to do something about it. “And the people’s favor. Besides, Namjoon is strong. I have faith that he’ll make it through this. He just needs time.”

“You’re very fond of people needing time,” Jimin remarks sardonically, glancing at Yoongi.

Surprised by the comment, Yoongi freezes, unsure of what to say (sorry is on the tip of his tongue, but he won’t say it until he can commit to it) but after a beat Jimin chuckles and moves on.

“I understand,” he continues when Yoongi catches up to him. There’s a new resolve in his posture, the straightening of his back and shoulders. “I’ll do what is best for my country.”

Their path is taking them outside of the private area. Yoongi can see the doors where, once they walk through, there will be no turning back, literally and figuratively. There are people waiting on the other side, waiting for them.

“Yoongi,” Jimin starts again, hesitantly. “I won’t pressure you. But you’re Namjoon’s trusted advisor and I trust you.”

“I’ll help you,” Yoongi replies quietly, before Jimin can finish his request. “I’ll be with you, every step of the way, until Namjoon is ready to take his place again.”

The stiffness runs out of Jimin’s face, a small smile taking its place. Small, but breathtaking, and Yoongi has to take a second to remember to breathe.

“Thank you, Yoongi.”

Instead of replying, Yoongi reaches out to hold the door open for Jimin, tilting his head in a silent after you. Jimin narrows his eyes at Yoongi before walking through the doors.

Immediately, one of the council members sees him and rushes over, and Yoongi thinks: there’s no going back now.

a/n: *muted screaming* this isn't edited but as always reviews are loved and concrit is much appreciated!! there'll be another chapter or two because i'm not satisfied with this ending and this is only 1.6k but i really like this au (edit: future chapters may or may not be coming)