Eithne Breathnach clutched her great grandmothers leather bound book close to her heart as she hesitated outside the imposing iron fencing that encircled the well kept gardens that she felt sure would entice all romantics allowed to enter the premises. There in the distance she could see it, the house described to her by her great grandmother, a house as ancient as the village itself, and, if the rumors were to be believed, a place so full of magic and powers that all who discovered these secrets were either sworn to secrecy or killed on spot. Finally gathering her courage, Eithne took a deep breath, raised her hand and pressed the gate buzzer.

"How may I help you." a deep voice asked.

"Um, yes, hi, hello." Eithne replied, taking a deep breath to hide the shaky nervousness she felt inside, then continued in a strong confident voice. "My name is Eithne Breathnach, I spoke on the phone with the owner of this house last week? I'm here to research my family's genealogy and connection with the Breathnach Manor. I made arrangements to stay here for the summer?"

A brief clicking sound, and the gates swung open. She was in. Eithne couldnt believe it, after all these years of research, writing and treasure hunting she was finally stepping onto the grounds of her ancient ancestors, of which she was the only descendant according to the lore told her by her great grandmother, and unfortunately backed by her research thus far. She hoped her arrival here though would change that. Surely she was not the only descendant of the secretive Lords and Ladies of the mysterious Breathnach Manor. Maybe there were no relatives back in America, but certainly there would be cousins here in this village, granted many times removed, but still cousins none the the less. And for one who no longer had a single living person to call family, a cousin seperated by fifty generations was still someone that could be called family. 

As she approached the manor, one of the two large ornate wooden doors swung slowly open, and down the steps came a very cheerful looking lad, smiling from ear to ear that then turned to a one of questioning confusion as he looked at Eithne, the book in her arms, then to either side of her as if searching for signs of any kind of baggage. Eithne laughed softly.

"Hi," said the friendly lad. "JB sent me out to help you with your luggage, but you dont have any...?" he finished slowly, almost gingerly as he gave pointed looks around that ended with an awkward smile.

"Yeah, lost luggage, my luck." Eithne sighed, shaking her head, pursing her lips in an awkward smile as she shrugged.

"Well." Said the lad, after an appropriately long pause to appreciate the situation. "Come in, I'm sure we'll figure something out. "My name is Kunpimook by the way, but everyone calls me BamBam. Easier to remember, even easier to say." And he flashed a grin that crinkled up to his eyes as he motioned with his head for Eithne to follow him up the steps, pulling the door open and bowing his head slightly as she passed to enter. He smiled as she gave a soft gasp of amazement, watching as her eyes, full of wonder, took in the majestic entryway of the manor. Huge spiraling staircases rose up on either side, meeting to form a balcony at the second story level, creating a long continuous flow of intricately carved dark wood. 

It was at that moment that he appeared, right there, in the center of the balcony, looking down on her, cool, calm, eyes so fierce and penetratig that Eithne felt he was looking into her very soul. Time stopped, or was it her heart. Her lungs forgot to breath, and unable to tear her eyes away from his, she stood as if bound by a spell, her fingers tightening around her book. In the background she heard BamBam explaining the luggage situation and asking what was to be done, and he, never breaking eye contact from Eithne replied to Bambam in the deepest, sultriest voice, "Show her to her room, I'll take care of the rest."

She was dead. So so dead. 

Somewhere in the far away recesses she heard BamBam's cheerful voice urging her to follow him, and tearing her eyes away from the man on the balcony she followed in a daze as she was led through various general living quarters to a hallway with many doors leading into what could safely be assumed to be bedrooms. She was led into what felt like an enormous and lavish suite, filled with furniture that had withstood the passing of time remarkably well. 

"This is your suite, and here are your keys." Bambam said, taking her hand and dropping a set of appropriately ancient looking keys into it. "We'll have supper in half hour or so, if you want to freshen up. The dining room is just back the way we came, but turn right instead of left, think you can find it?"

Eithne nodded with a smile and with a wave Bambam left, closing the door behind himself. Walking into the bedroom, Eithne set her book carefully on the nightstand next to the side of the bed closest to the large floor to ceiling windows, and pulling aside the drapes marveled at the view of the garden afforded her. Then she remembered Bambam's comment about dinner and furrowed her brows. Her traveling clothes were hardly appropriate to eat dinner in, all things considered, and almost as if by instinct she walked to the large ornate wordrobe and pulled both doors open. Her eyes immediately became awestruck, never had she seen so many elegant dinner dresses in one place before, and instinctively she reached forward and began to examine each one, finally landing on a simple yet elegant pink satin dress with a pearl beaded chiffon overlay. While no less expensive than any of the others, it gave much more the vibe of a nice date in town rather than the movie premiere of an actress that most of the others gave off. Finding a pair of white elegant flats at the bottom of the wardrobe, Eithne washed up and changed, making sure to keep her eye on the time. Further exploration found a jewlery box from which a pearl necklace, pearl earrings and a white rose hair piece were taken to complete her look, Eithne opting to let her long wavy blond hair hang loosely down over her shoulders, pulled slightly back only on the side clipped up and half back by the rose hair clip.

Nodding at herself in the mirror as acceptable she took a deep breath and turned to leave the room, instinctly making the decision not to lock her room or take her keys. Somehow she just knew it wasnt neccesary. Turning to walk down the hall she paused as she reached the point where she would turn left, because at that very moment, dressed in an all white suit, striding from the opposite direction was he. He stared straight ahead, as if she were invisible, and then, having reached just abreast of her he stopped, turned his head, and locked eyes with her for the second time that day. 

Again, time stopped. The silence was long and pronounced, his eyes burning deep into her very soul, her very being reaching out and connecting with his in a way she didnt know was possible through mere eye contact. Without breaking his gaze or saying a word he offered his arm and Eithne took it before she realized what was happening. She heard him take a sharp breath as her hand made contact with his arm, her fingers softly curling around his bicep and subconsciously  squeezing lightly, he unconsciously flexing as she did so and giving her the first inkling of the powerful body he had hidden beneath his suit. 

Her heart was in as he now guided her toward the dining room, his musky scent and overwhelmingly commanding aura was wreaking havoc on her heart, and it took all the self control she could muster to walk forward without showing any signs of outter agitation. Neither spoke, but an intense energy flowed between them, an undeniable tension of instant attraction, recognition even, as two souls knew their other half in the proverbial love at first sight and agonized over whether the feeling was mutual or only imaigened as being so.

 As they approached what Eithne assumed was the dining room the sounds of male voices talking and laughing increased in volume until suddenly they had entered what could only be described as a dining hall rather than as a simple room, and the room fell into sudden silence as the eyes of the other males turned to look at the new arrivals. Eithne heard him take in a deep breath next to her, and then he spoke, in that deep sultry voice that she knew would be the death of her.
"Lads, may I presnt to you Lady Eithne Breathnach. Lady Eithne, may I present Mark, Jackson, Jinyoung, Youngjae, Yugeom and Kunpimook." He left his own name out, conveniently.

"My lady," the lads said, almost in one voice as they bowed their heads in a show of respect, moving to then stand next to different chairs next to the table and respectfully await their guest to be seated. Eithne was led to the head of the table, which she noted was just wide enough for two chairs, and before she knew it her had pulled a chair out, seated her, pushed her up within a comfortable distance of the table, and then seated himself at her side as the others took their seats  to either side of the table at the same time. 

"I hope you are not too tired after your travels my lady," the one who had been introduced as Jackson said respectfully as he proceeded to then stuff a large spoonful of food into his mouth, his face distorting in horror as he then realized the bite was much hotter than expected and he was doomed to burn all his tastes buds regardless of what he did, and with a look of helplessness he resigned himself to his fate as his friends smirked pitilessly in his direction.

"Oh, I think there may have been a misunderstanding, I'm not a Lady." Eithne said, a sudden look of horror crossing over her face as she realized how it sounded the moment the words left . There was a long silent pause as seven pairs of eyes stared at her with a mixture of confusion and horror, and she stuttered as she hurried to correct herself. "I mean, I'm a lady as in I'm a girl, but I'm not a Lady as in royalty, I'm just...me. Plain, regular Eithne Breathnach."

The boys exchanged glances, then looked at her, smiled and nodded in almost frightening, robotic unison.

"So...we can call you Eithne?" the one called Mark asked, to which Eithne smiled and nodded as she took a spoonful of the pumpkin soup before her, her eyes lighting up as she appreciated the flavor and aroma.

"You like the soup?" Jinyoung asked, noticing her reaction. "JB made it himself, its his secret recipe."

Eithne turned her head to the man next to her and their eyes locked. So that was his name. Appropriate. Manly. Filled with a sudden bravery she didnt know she possessed, she smiled at him and addressed him for the first time.

"It's amazing, thank you. You'll have to teach me how to make it."

There was a slight pause, and then he spoke, eyes still never wavering from hers, his voice dropping several octaves as he replied simply, "I will."

There was a long silence before Eithne suddenly realized that she was still staring deep into JB's eyes and he into hers, and breaking the eye contact she turned to the others only to find them staring at her and JB with expressions of dumbstruck astonishment, the one called Yugeom breaking the silence, saying with an awestruck voice, "JB NEVER shares his recipes."

"When you look as beautiful as Lady Eithne in a soft pink dress, I'll consider sharing." the deep sultry voice said from beside her, the seriousness of his voice contrasting with the ridiculousness of his words, causing Eithne to laugh softly before she could stop herself, and then, realizing what he had said, blushed deeply. The boys, also tickled by his words, burst into uproarious laughter, taking jabs at Yugeom who protested the sudden onslaught, unsure if he should defend his manliness or that he indeed was pretty enough to pull off a soft pink dress. 

The rest of the meal continued that way, the boys teasing and taking jabs at each other, Eithne watching and listening to her new form of entertainment with a smile on her face as she finished the soup, placing the napkin from her lap on the table to signal that she was finished, her eyes turning for some reason to seek out again the captivating eyes of the man sitting next to her. He smiled at her, and her heart skipped a beat, her breath catching in . 

"Would you like to take a tour of the gardens Lady Eithne?" he asked. She gave a slight nod in reply, and he, standing, proceeded to pull her chair back and, taking her hand in his, pulled her up gently and effortlessly, but with the same underlying power that spoke of great physical strength, and he, after steadying her, then wrapped her hand around his bicep and once more became her gentleman .