The Council chambers, where Jonghyun will be testifying were held behind miles of stone and in a crowded room. It seemed Seung-Hyun’s punishment wasn’t done as any other Council meeting, a small Council group from the Southern Villages had traveled to the Palace to hear the accusations about their Lord and awaiting a verdict.

Jonghyun wanted to shrink into himself, or perhaps even run upon seeing the many eyes on him, judging him and probably working against him, but Jinki’s hand on the small of his back gave him some strength. Strength enough, at least, to straighten his back and keep him moving forward.

‘’Sit here my Love,’’ Jinki whispered, not trying to draw more attention to Jonghyun with endearments. The blond nodded, sitting himself down next to the Crown Prince and nervously fiddling with his hair, brushing it back as large eyes flicked like a cautious deer around the chamber.


Most of the Council members were staring at him but as soon as they were caught they looked away. It left Jonghyun uneasy and unsure if he should tell his side of the story.

‘’All rise for the King!’’ Leeteuk announced like always. Everyone stood up including Jonghyun as the King entered through the double doors. Jonghyun all of a sudden had the feeling as if he was looking at an older version of Jinki.


His father had the same face structure, the same warm smile, the only difference was the eyes, Jinki’s were almond-shaped whereas the King had downturned eyes, not to mention a beard.

That very warm smile was now directed at him as the King passed with a polite nod. Jonghyun hadn’t met the King and Queen yet although Jinki had told him that there was no rush, his health came first.


As soon as everyone was seated, the King didn’t beat around the bush by directing kind eyes to Jonghyun and turning slightly in his direction. ‘’You must be Jonghyun, it’s good to have you amongst us boy,’’

Jonghyun bowed, smiling shyly. ‘’It’s an honor, your Highness.’’ It was nerve-racking to converse with the King, the blond didn’t know the proper custom, with Jinki it had been easy. The man had demanded to be treated as equal and they were already surprisingly comfortable with each other.
 

The King, however, didn’t seem to notice his internal struggle, instead responded with a curt nod. ‘’Since you’re here to tell your side of the story, why don’t you start at the very beginning please?’’

Jonghyun inhaled, body tensing up, a hand courtesy of Jinki rested on his shoulder briefly and squeezed, instantly bringing him the confidence to start.


‘’The first contact with Seung-Hyun…’’ Jonghyun began only to be interrupted by a Council member from the South. ‘’Lord Seung-Hyun for you.’’ A man remarked with disapproval, Jonghyun winced and Jinki frowned, disliking the interruption and attitude towards his lover.


‘’The first contact with Lord Seung-Hyun was at the market more than a month ago, I accidentally stumbled upon him and managed to spill his drink all over his clothing resulting in him threatening me to get a 100 golden coins at the end of the month or else he would take me like his personal slave.’’

The Council Members glanced at each other, obviously progressing the situation and thinking about any questions as doubt was always present in their minds. ‘’How do we know this meeting happened or this blackmail as is clearly implied?’’ A stern woman on the other side of the table asked curiously.

Jonghyun blinked, trying to figure out what they wanted to hear from him. ‘’No one was there to witness it but ask Taeyeon, Yung, Jiah and the bartender Eunhyuk what I went through after that.’’ He replied with honesty in his tone, he believed whole-heartedly in being honest during this sort of conversation.


The stern woman pursed her lips in thought, however, the King nodded in encouragement for him to continue.


With a deep breath and a rub on his shoulder from Jinki, he continued. Telling them about his struggle to gather a 100 golden coins before the end of the month, the announcement about the Banquet, him getting a costume only for Beatrice to rip it apart in a fit of anger to him running away and finding Taemin in the middle of being abducted.

‘’The bandits were under a contract of Lord Seung-Hyun as they were the same who helped the Lord abducting me when I didn’t have the coins he asked for.’’

A buzz of noise echoed around the Council chambers as the Council communicated their concerns and speculations to each other.

‘’This is absurd, I never heard the Lord do such hideous things.’’ A man this time voiced his thoughts, eyeing Jonghyun up as if he was a disgrace. The man stood up, placing his hands flat on the table. ‘’Maybe you’re lying right now, who knows? What if this was all a plan?’’


The King raised an eyebrow, holding up a hand to comment silence. The man snapped his jaw shut, staring at the King with confusion.


‘’I understand the need for observations but I don’t respect your way of bringing them to the table.’’ The King said in his neutral, calm voice. ‘’Please refrain yourself from interrupting the word of another or else your questions will be dismissed.’’ His brown eyes flashed around the room in a warning.

The Council nodded, heeding his warnings seriously. ‘’You may continue.’’


‘’Right.’’ The man muttered, glancing at Jonghyun once again making the blond feel nervous. ‘’What if this was all a plan to mingle yourself in his riches, don’t you live in an Orphanage?’’

Jonghyun frowned, what had his Orphanage life to do with seeing Taemin get abducted or his abduction for that matter and the whole manipulation after that? ‘’I don’t see the connection, sir.’’

The man crossed his arms, ‘’How rude, it’s Lord for you! didn’t your mother teach you any manners?’’ That was just cruel, The blond shrank away at the mention of his mother.

‘’OBJECTION!’’ Jinki protested with a fearsome glare, standing up roughly. ‘’Lord Geun that’s enough. Jonghyun is only here to testify not to be interrogated like he is our prisoner. I don’t know what you’re trying to accomplish but your time to speak is hereby over.’’

The Council member from the South namely Geun gasped and looked at the King for support. The King dismissed him with a swipe of his hand. Jinki was the Crown Prince and future King, this was a good exercise for him and to be bland, the King couldn’t agree more with his remarks.

Geun sat down with a huff, surprisingly not fighting back. Jinki sat back down with a deep inhale, a smile worked its way across his face and into his eyes as he felt slender fingers intertwine with his under the table.

The Crown Prince met twinkling Mocha eyes, ‘’Thank you.’’ Jonghyun mouthed, a sweet smile on his face although a small tremble wrecked his frame.

Jinki squeezed his hand, stopping the urge to take the small man in an embrace. He just winked for the time being and hoped to pamper the blond later, he had a surprise for Jonghyun after all.

‘’Go on ahead,’’ Jinki said out loud gently, brushing a thumb over his knuckles. Jonghyun, feeling the comfort come at him in waves from the Crown Prince, went on like suggested.

‘’The abduction happened, Yung who is like a father to me tried to stop it but got impaled by Lord Seung-Hyun’s sword, Jiah, Taeyeon, and Eunhyuk were there as a witness.’’

He closed his eyes, the memory of Yung getting injured still fresh. Thank god the man was alright and completely healthy now. ‘’The Princes and the General rescued me in the Shadow Forest and as they tried to find a way to arrest Lord Seung-Hyun, I tried to distract him but got manipulated into killing the Crown Prince.’’

Jonghyun opened his eyes, brown eyes somber and mouth turned down as he looked at Jinki. ‘’I tried to fight his control but as I’m not experienced with it, I suffered in my mind while my body obeyed without my consent.’’

He couldn’t say more, the thought disturbed him, he was still searching for parts that were lost, still struggling with nightmares and most of all the fear of losing a loved one.

The King and Crown Prince both nodded, Jinki, Minho and Taemin story crossed paths with his, the whole picture was complete. ‘’You did well,’’ Jinki whispered softly, proudly even as Jonghyun locked eyes with him, relief in his sharp features.

‘’Is there anyone still in the need of clarification before we end it here?’’ The King asked, his voice pitched low. Jonghyun and Jinki waited with bated breath, they hoped this would be over soon, Jinki never expected the Council to be so doubtful. Wasn’t this Kingdom build on love and trust? They barely believed their people!

The same stern woman from before lifted her hand, the King gestured for her to speak her mind. ‘’This doesn’t explain the accusations for ual assault.’’ Jinki scoffed, they all had heard from Minho, Taemin and himself how Lord Seung-Hyun kissed Jonghyun and touched him without his permission.

Jonghyun swallowed, why did he have the feeling this problem was going to get mentioned? Like he would ever forget what Seung-Hyun would have done with him as a servant or how he got kissed and his was d.

He shuddered violently, that reaction should have been enough explanation for her. ‘’He promised dark things when becoming his servant but he kissed and d me openly, one time was when I was under his control, unable to fight back.’’

The woman from the South scoffed, ‘’How should we believe that you didn’t enjoy the attention?’’ A gasp followed the accusation as the King’s Council frowned at the rude question. Jinki hit his fist on the table, a glare on his handsome features. ‘’That’s enough!’’

Jonghyun, on the other hand, couldn’t find his voice to respond, shaking his head as his lips worked fruitlessly. He felt like crying or screaming at the ridiculousness of the situation.

‘’Y-you don’t know what it is like-’’ The blond was utterly baffled, averting Mocha eyes to his hands which he curled into fists as his jaw clenched. ‘’-You don’t know what it’s like to be a prisoner in your own mind, watching your own hands hurt a person you care about not to mention being unable to stop a kiss or assault on your body from happening when your love interest is standing close by.’’ He snapped angrily, successful pulling emotion from the woman’s face as she flinched.

It wasn’t a secret that Jinki was planning on courting Jonghyun as the blond was the man Jinki had been longing for since the Banquet and that the love between them wasn’t one-sided.

‘’I think Jonghyun has enough, is he free to go, father?’’ Jinki asked permission from The King. Jinki had understood the situation Jonghyun would be presented with but the questions were getting bolder and disrespectful and all because they had the need to defend their Lord.

‘’You may go.’’ The King's voice broke him from his thoughts. With a gracious smile, Jinki stood up and held out a hand to Jonghyun.

Jonghyun’s eyes flicked over Jinki’s profile as he accepted the hand then bowed alongside