“Where do you think General Namjoon took them? All the best guys of the force too..”  MiNam said between his third sip of wine. 

“General!” MinHyuk spat out the word and made a bitter face.“That wretch who should have been rotting in some distant village at the outskirts of the capital by now. General!” Minhyuk exhaled in irritation.

MiNam shook his head, “It was a pity, what happened with your brother. He was next in line to be the Commander, wasn’t he?”
MinHyuk hissed, “All because of that darned magician! Why Seokjin is so hypnotised by his opinion all the time is beyond my understanding!...The High Minister believes in second chances – huh! Sometimes I wonder if the king is in love with that Min Yoongi or something!” 
MiNam sniggered, taking swigs of his alcohol. He shook his head and pointed his glass at MinHyuk. “But no...no, that’s not the way it is. Rumour has it, the high minister has a thing for that silver haired pretty faced cousin of Seokjin’s! Park Jimin!”
MiNam said this and started to laugh but MinHyuk coughed, looking startled at his comment. He looked around, behind them at the castle, now dark except for a few dim lights in some of the windows and those lining the corridors.  They were behind one of thicker barked trees in the garden behind the castle. 
MiNam stopped laughing , observing MinHyuk’s reaction. 
“What?...Don’t tell me you’re afraid of Jimin now!” Minam sniggered again. 
Minhyuk reached over and smacked his head. 
“You’re only a year old at the castle. If you had been here as long as me, you would think twice before talking.” Minhyuk said, his voice lowered. “He might look like a pint sized little nymph. But he’s actually a minion of Satan. Ever since he arrived here five years ago – he’s had everyone terrified. No one dares to cross him. He’s believed to be the second physically strongest hybrid after Seokjin. I don’t know if that belief’s true, but I wouldn’t like to test it.”
MiNam stopped smiling and lowered his head, finishing the rest of his drink. 
“You know I heard King Seokjin is away on some kind of mission. Maybe he took Namjoon with him.” MiNam said. 

“Or maybe Namjoon was actually kicked out, like he should have been long ago. He won’t last here, I’m telling you. One of these days-...” MinHyuk froze, his words lost mid-sentence as his eye caught something in front of him and went wide with terror. 

“I’d be more concerned about how long you will last.”

MiNam’s hand jerked and his drink spluttered out his glass at the sound of the sugar sweet voice. In a split second, he was up and posed in a formal stiff stance, shoulders straightened, his eyes focused on Jimin’s shoes. 
MinHyuk had not recovered his common sense yet. He was still staring, shell shocked at Jimin, who was a few feet away from them. He realised the situation finally and stood up, attempting to hide his drink. Jimin’s eyes followed his glass and Minhyuk gulped. 
“P-p-p...P-prince J-J-Jimin!  Y-your Highness!!” He stuttered. His face was as pale as a ghost’s.

“Filth.” Jimin said, his frown full of disgust, crossing his hands in front of his chest and looking from Minhyuk to Minam. “You are filth. You gossip and you waste your pathetic selves away. And on top of that, you fail at your duty.”

“Wh-what?!... NO NO... Prince Jimin, we’re off duty now, we’re on break!” Minam stuttered.

“You’re as useless as snails when you stand on guard anyway!” Jimin said, taking a step forward. Minhyuk cringed and retreated back against the tree. 
“HOW could you let Prince Taehyung get out of the castle?  YOU USELESS PIECES OF !” 

Minam and Minhyuk both gasped in shock. Minhyuk retreated even further back, his back now touching the tree bark. 
“Wh-what are you saying, your highness, that’s not possible?!” Minhyuk’s voice came out shrill.

Jimin rolled the sleeves of his grey jacket up to his elbows. “Unfortunately for you, I don’t believe in second chances like the high minister.” He advanced towards Minhyuk. 
Minhyuk cowered, his hands in front of his face, falling to his knees. “Pleeaase, your highness!  No-!!”

A sudden noise of commotion coming from the other side of the castle made Jimin stop, his head going up and his eyes narrowed, focusing on the source of the noise. 
Minhyuk gasped and breathed out loudly in relief as Jimin was gone the next moment.

At the main gate of the castle, a crowd of guards was gathered, talking in loud voices, facing the gate.

“WHAT KIND OF A CIRCUS IS HAPPENING HERE?” Jimin demanded and the guards looked back, startled. 
They bowed and moved out of the way. When the view was cleared, Jimin gasped. 
“Oh... My... God -... TAEHYUNG!”

Jimin moved up to the boy, all clad in black, who had Taehyung in his arms and without a look at his face, he hooked his arms around Taehyung’s frame, trying to take him away into his own arms.

The boy shifted back in a swift move and Jimin’s hands were left empty. Jimin looked up at the boy’s face, his eyes wide and flaming with rage and disbelief. 

“GIVE HIM. TO ME.” Jimin hissed through gritted teeth.

The boy looked at Jimin’s face, his own features perfectly calm. 
“No.” He replied. 

Jimin stared at the boy, dumbfounded. His mouth fell open. He clenched his fists to keep down his anger and took a step forward, his eyes, now red, on the boy’s face, a dangerous look on his face. 
“Do you wish to die?” He said, his voice a low hiss. A low growl rose from his chest. 

The boy’s face hadn’t registered Jimin’s reaction. The beautiful face remained the same, an ocean of perfect calmness.
“I don’t know who you are. I’ve brought the prince this far and I’m not going to hand him over to anyone other than the King.”
Jimin’s mouth fell open again, his eyes going wide. He stared at the boy incredulously. He opened his mouth twice and closed it, his hands shaking. 
He could not hurt a commoner without any proper reason. 
He breathed in and exhaled slowly, trying to calm himself.

“You don’t know Prince Jimin? What are you a mad man?” One of the guards shouted. 

The boy did not even look at the guard. 

“Do you recognise me?” Yoongi’s voice was heard from behind. 
Jimin let out a sigh at the sound of his voice and turned back. Yoongi could be trusted with holding him back from murdering a subject. 
Yoongi walked up beside Jimin and said, “I’m the High Minister of this dominion. I’m responsible for Prince Taehyung’s safekeeping in his absence.”

The boy’s eyes, as soon as they caught sight of Yoongi seemed to take on a strange gleam. He smiled a little and nodded softly in a show of respect to Yoongi and said in a voice that was incomparably pleasing and polite, “Sir, I beg your forgiveness.”

“And this is Prince Jimin, King Seokjin’s cousin.” Yoongi said, looking sideways at Jimin’s puffed up cheek as the latter glared at the boy holding Taehyung in his arms. Yoongi concealed the smile that wanted to creep up on his lips, watching this picture, even in this tense situation.

The boy turned a pair of sapphire blue eyes to Jimin and smiled slowly. The most breathtaking, angelic smile. Childlike innocence and seductive attraction combined in one. 
Jimin’s frown disappeared. His face showed surprise again, but there was no anger in it. Yoongi observed from the side that Jimin gulped and blinked a few times.

“Forgive me, your highness.” The boy said in the voice that was as sweet to the ears as the sounds that arise from the chords of a harp. “I apologise for my insolence. I did not mean to offend you. But I wanted to make sure of Prince Taehyung’s safety.”

Jimin blinked again and looked away from the boy. The boy put Taehyung down on the ground, looking up at Jimin, implying that he expected Jimin to take Taehyung now.

“Jimin shi...” Yoongi said softly.

Jimin walked forward, kneeling down and taking Taehyung’s head in his hands, slowly pulling him onto his lap. He looked up once and met the boy’s eyes, before looking down at Taehyung again.

“Where did you find him?” Yoongi asked.

“I found him in the forest. But, Sir, we will have time for such questions later. Prince Taehyung passed out from trauma-...”

Jimin’s head shot up at this and the boy looked down and met his gaze again. Jimin’s eyes gave away his fear. 
“There’s no reason to worry, your highness. I will tell you people everything. But first you need to get someone who can treat the prince.” He said, his eyes still on Jimin’s face. 

“He’ll need blood. Jimin shi, please take Prince Taehyung up to his room.” Yoongi said.

Jimin nodded at Yoongi. He was about to pick Taehyung up in his arms when Taehyung shuffled, his eyelids twitching.

“Taetae! Are you okay?” Jimin touched Taehyung’s cheek. Taehyung very slowly opened his eyes. As his eyelids moved apart very narrowly, his eyes moved around, seeming to search for something. 
“Taetae!” Jimin breathed in relief. 

Yoongi came up to them and kneeled beside Jimin, leaning over to look at Taehyung. 

“Prince Taehyung, are you okay?”

Taehyung looked up at Yoongi’s face and then to Jimin’s. His eyes seemed to move around, searching, until he looked in the opposite direction. His eyes came to rest on the boy who had brought him here and he parted his lips very weakly, as if trying to say something that he couldn’t, out of weakness. He lifted up an arm slowly, and his fingers touched the boy’s hand. 
Taehyung moved his lips, looking up at the boy.

“What’s he saying? It’s not audible to me.” Yoongi whispered to Jimin. 
“He said- ‘you saved me’.” Jimin said. He looked up at the boy dressed in black, his face now altered. “Taehyung says this boy saved his life.”
Yoongi raised his eyes to the boy too, a warm smile forming on his lips. 
He stood up and said, “I can’t express how grateful I am, if that’s true. What’s your name? Where are you from?”

The boy’s eyes seemed to pierce into Yoongi’s as his lips, very slowly, arched up into the hypnotising smile.

“You know me. You just don’t recognise me.” He said.

Yoongi’s smile fell. He could not understand what it was in this boy’s gaze that made a coldness run down his spine.

“Wh-what?” He found himself stuttering.

“I mean-... You came to my village once, on a visit. You met me when I was a child. You wouldn’t be able to recognise me now, even if you did remember...” The boy gave a pause before finishing his sentence. “... An insignificant little child.”

Yoongi gulped and exhaled. “Oh!... Well, I have to meet a lot people... I guess I don’t remember.”

Jimin made a worried noise as Taehyung shivered in the cold weather.

“Jimin, pick him up, quick.” Yoongi said. 
Jimin scooped up Taehyung’s light body. He was stopped mid-way between his movement forward by an arm on his shoulder and looked back.

“Here,” The boy had taken off his jacket and he put it around Taehyung in a swift swirl. Taehyung looked at him and extended his hands to him again, grabbing the boy’s sleeve. Taehyung’s eyes were drooping but he managed to make a small sound, parting his lips.

“He-... He’s asking him not to leave.” Jimin said in a low voice, looking at the boy with knitted eyebrows and a frown. 

The boy looked from Jimin to Taehyung. He caught hold of Taehyung’s hand and said in a whisper, “It’s okay, Prince Taehyung. You’re safe now. I have no place here at the royal castle.”

“No, of course you do. You rescued Taehyung, we are indebted to you.” Yoongi said. “You will stay the night here at the castle. Besides, I need to talk to about whatever happened and we might need your help for-...”

“His help? For what?” Jimin hissed.

Jungkook ignored Jimin and looked at Yoongi. “If you want me to, Sir. I will.”

Jimin rolled his eyes and the next moment both him and Taehyung were gone. 

Yoongi turned to one of the guards and said, “I will need Hoseok in Taehyung’s room. Inform me as soon as he comes in. And you,” He said, turning to Jungkook. “Come with me.”
.................................................................................................... 

[Jungkook’s POV]

I walked behind the warlock. Seokjin’s best friend, his advisor and confidante. As he guided me down through my own home, introducing the different parts of it to the person whom the castle would have belonged to today. 
He asked me my name. Showing benevolence as he spoke to me and the much practised act of kindness that he has used over decades to cast a spell over the people of the dominion. A spell that hadn’t required magic, only a perfect mask of selflessness, humility and virtue. Min Yoongi was the perfect badge on Seokjin’s shoulder. The compassionate High Minister, who guides the king on the path of virtue, always sympathetic and forgiving towards everyone.
I could have ripped his head off his shoulders and displayed it to the people, to show them the ugly truth that lay below that mask. But I couldn’t. Not right away. 
I needed him. Him and his noblemen as well as that short tempered silver haired cousin of Seokjin’s. I could deal with each of them later. Min Yoongi would get his individual special attention when it was time. 
Not killing Yoongi wasn’t the hardest part though. 
The hardest part was not killing Taehyung. 
I could have done whatever I wanted with him. Given him as much pain as I’d always wanted to. The kind of pain I’ve always imagined giving him, watching him scream in, for as long as I can remember. The kind of pain that would finally give me some relief from this constant fire that keeps burning me, that doesn’t let me rest. 
When I saw that pathetic joke in the name of a rebel try to hurt him, I knew I had to kill him... If anyone would get to kill Taehyung, it would be me. Taehyung owed me his life. 
My life had been discarded... Thrown away like a piece of waste... to keep him alive. 
If anyone was going to finish his life, it would be me. 
And I had him, finally. 
But I couldn’t finish the story there. Because I needed him alive. I needed his confidence, to gain the confidence of the entire dominion in due course of time. 
Yoongi asked me my name and I said they call me “Jay.” He didn’t ask any further questions. I asked him, with a perfectly concerned voice, how prince Taehyung was and if I could, please, maybe, see him once. He’s not the only one who knows how to act, he falls prey to acts too at times. When they are put up by better actors, who know how to act even more saintly than him. And he did fall prey, when he agreed to let me see Taehyung.
When I walked in, behind him, I found Park Jimin and Yoongi’s brother, Hoseok, huddled around the half-blood’s bed. Hoseok, with his hands on the blonde hair of the half-blood, some reddish light emanating from his palms as he uttered something under his breath. All three of them looked like the ground under their feet had shifted from place…and that was because this imbecile was slightly weaker than usual.
That’s how much they care for this half-blood. Even today…this son of the traitor who tried to kill my father…this half-blood is loved by these people like he is an angel that descended into their lives from heaven. Like he were novelty.
This worthless weakling is second in command to the pretend-king, Seokjin. I felt like laughing. He wasn’t even capable of protecting himself. And he was supposed to be responsible for the entire dominion…
The fire in my chest burned again. Every muscle in my body was asking me to end this then and there.
One hybrid, two warlocks, one half human.
It wouldn’t take me long.
But I kept up a façade of calmness and concern for the half-blood. 
“It’s not working. He’s really weak…and he’s not drinking the blood.” Hoseok said.
I looked at the glass chalice placed at the half-blood’s bedside. This was another joke that made me want to laugh so badly. A vampire being offered blood in a glass…wow…
A helpless baby being offered a milk bottle, as he couldn’t possibly fend for himself. Seokjin’s little angel. They would do anything for him. They would probably set down their lives there and then if they needed to, to keep this angel safe. 

Or put up another life for sale for his sake. It was easy.

 As I looked at the half-blood’s face, my chest burned with a mad desire to set everything around me on flames. Bring this whole building down…Drain the last drop of blood out of each and every inmate of this castle…maybe then this fire inside me would start to go down. I burnt from the inside, every second as I looked at Taehyung.
I burnt because I hated myself…hated myself for finding him so beautiful.
His face…Why was it so beautiful?
I felt a mad rage at myself for not being able to tear my eyes away from his face. I hated myself in that moment.
His eyes…his lips…his skin…his hair…Why couldn’t I stop myself from looking at him?
My nails dug into the skin of my palm, I felt them forming deep gashes which I knew would heal in a minute. Even this pain couldn’t divert my eyes.
And then he opened his eyes and looked at me. His eyes met mine.
I have always loved it when I look into someone’s eyes and their breath speeds up, their voice shakes. I have always loved being able to do that to someone. Have an influence on them just by looking into their eyes, not even needing to touch them.
I had never thought, in my wildest dreams, that it could happen to me. Like it did, when this boy’s eyes met mine and he smiled at me.
Maybe I had actually gone mad. The desire for revenge had driven me mad. Because I was breathing hard, as he opened his mouth to speak. And I thought about the pink colour of his lips, the way the light fell on his fair cheeks, the colour of his eyes…the sea-green shade of his eyes. My mind wondered whether I had ever seen this shade before.
I reminded myself that I hated this boy. That he was the reason I had lost everything in life.
“Hey…” He said and extended a hand with long pale fingers towards me. He looked so fragile…
I clenched my fists tighter, using the pain to remind myself of my hatred.
“Prince Taehyung” Yoongi said in a worried voice.
“Yoongi hyung, I want him to come near me. He saved me…He saved my life. I want to say thanks to him.” Taehyung said. His voice is so deep, I found myself thinking. So different from the rest of him.
I found all the other three turning their heads to look at me and realised I should say something now.
 “There’s no need for that, your highness. I merely carried out my duty as a subject of yours.” I said, flinching internally at my own words. 
“Aish subject shmubject!” Taehyung said, waving his hands dismissively and sat up. There were worried reactions from three directions. The baby had moved…what a marvel.
“You’re the reason I’m alive. I would have died if it weren’t for you…We’re equals.” Taehyung said.

I don’t know what it was at these words that seemed to give me a push back. I felt like somebody had just shaken me.

“Equals? You’re not equal to me.” A part of me was trying to say.
The other part kept repeating Taehyung’s words to me. And I don’t know why I craved to listen to only that second part so badly.
“Come here.” Taehyung held out his hand to me again.
I must say something-…I knew I must say something. But I couldn’t. 
Yes, I must have gone mad. I was sure of it now. I was staring at Taehyung and I didn’t have any words ready.

“Taetae, you need to rest. You need sleep.” The silver haired pixie said these words to Taehyung in a sweet voice. Taehyung grinned at him and said, “I’m okay, Jiminiie. I’ll rest, don’t worry. But please let me talk to him.”

I should definitely have said something by now. My plan for tonight, to play them according to my tune and it had worked so far. But I had lost track of what I supposed to do right now.

“Taetae, you will sleep.” Hoseok pushed him back onto the pillows and Taehyung pouted at him. “You can talk to-…umm, whoever this is-…”He said pointing at me. “-…You can talk to him tomorrow morning.”

“One of us should stay with Taehyung tonight to care of him. We can’t leave him alone after what happened tonight. Jimin shi, will you?” Yoongi said. 

This was like a snap of fingers, waking me up from my reverie. Can’t leave him alone…
What had Taehyung done to deserve this much care?

I looked away from them and I fought hard within myself to not let the façade be broken. Not let it be broken by this feeling…I’m not a child. I’m not a common jealous child. There’s no place for this emotion that I’ve long since decided will never unsettle me. I only have place in my heart for hatred.

“Hyung, please let him stay with me tonight.” Taehyung said pointing to me and my face erupted in shock once for a second before I controlled it. I noticed the other’s faces had not recovered like mine.
“What?!”…”Absolutely not!”…. “Prince Taehyung!” They said all at once.

I stayed silent as they argued amongst themselves. The chatter of voices had helped me regain my train of thought. I avoided looking at Taehyung and said to Yoongi, “Sir, I apologise for speaking in between. But if you are keeping me, a commoner, at your castle for a night, I might as well make myself useful.” I bowed to Hoseok and said, “Sir, if you may give me instructions for whatever I need to do, I’m ready to stay up and take care of the prince.” 

Hoseok didn’t seem to mind the idea. He looked at Yoongi and shrugged. Yoongi on the other did not seem pleased.

“No…That’s not done. Taehyung needs someone known to him. And besides, I told you I needed to have a talk with you about-…” 
“I know him!...I mean, I don’t yet. But he risked his life to save mine, what more do I even need to know?” Taehyung said.
Yoongi sighed tiredly and said, “Well, that’s okay. But what about-…” 

“You can talk to the boy tomorrow.” The pixie said and Yoongi stopped talking. “It’s okay if Taehyung feels safe with him, here, I guess.”

I watched the two of them exchanging some words silently through their eyes. 
The affair between the High Minister and some unknown hybrid…of course.
 Sehun hyung had mentioned it once, having heard a rumour. How stupid were the people in this castle to not have figured out by now, if these two made it so darn obvious all the time?

 “O-..Okay.” Yoongi said. “Fine.” 

I understood what had just passed between the two. The pixie wanted his boyfriend to stay with him tonight probably. That’s why he had intervened and Yoongi had relented too. So, this was Yoongi’s weakness. And apparently, even the people at this castle were intimidated by this doll of Yoongi’s.

It would be interesting. Having Jimin on my side. I didn’t need him but it would be fun. Specially, for what it would do to Min Yoongi. I savoured the idea silently.

“I’m glad to be of use here, Sir.” I said and bowed to Yoongi.

They left with different words to their precious golden haired baby. The assurances and love exchanged between doting parents and their child before the child went to sleep. How long would I have to bear this pitiable before I got to have some fun, I thought.

After they had left, Taehyung turned to me and again he smiled at me. I stood a few feet away from the bed…In what was once supposed to have been my room. The room on the third floor facing the garden, over the old oak tree. I knew this had been my room once. It was s