Not much later, Ryeowook fed from a human for the first time, and they stayed. His cooking skills improved with the other three’s help, and they stayed. He started to get a feeling for his power, and they stayed. He slowly got better on the market, taking longer distances, both space and time-wise from Kyuhyun, and they stayed. He and Kyuhyun took new steps in their relationship, and they stayed.

And finally, the temperatures began to drop. And they stayed.

So, when Kyuhyun spoke up one night and asked if Hangeng and Heechul were really okay with letting the other two stay until the mid-Autumn festival was over, none of them was surprised. Shortly after, Ryeowook heard word spread in town that a talented fire artist would come to the festival and a single glance at Heechul was enough for Ryeowook to know who had started the rumors; Heechul looked too self-satisfied with the rumors to not have been the source of them.

One side effect that Ryeowook had not expected, though, was that Kyuhyun stayed out longer to practice. Hangeng also got busier with preparation for the festival, yet he still always returned before Kyuhyun did to the point where he and Heechul sometimes left for their designated nights apart before Kyuhyun returned, exhausted from using his power a lot. Yet Ryeowook didn’t want to voice out his thoughts—he was making so little progress with his own power, so it only made sense that practice was needed to fully stay in control of one’s power. But still, he missed having Kyuhyun by his side.

There was only about a week left until the festival when Heechul suddenly turned to look out the kitchen window, seeming surprised. Ryeowook raised an eyebrow, mindlessly stirring the leftovers from a hotpot they had made recently, but he didn’t need to speak up for Heechul to explain himself.

“They’re both coming home.”

“Huh?” Ryeowook straightened his back, his stirring coming to a halt, and he also turned towards the window, trying to pick up any indicators for Kyuhyun returning together with Hangeng, but his vampire senses didn’t reach far enough to register their approach. “Do you know why? Does that mean Kyuhyun will have dinner with us?”

Heechul shrugged. “They seem to be talking about the other performers that have announced their participation in the festival, so I don’t know. But I sure hope that Kyuhyun will spend time with us tonight.”

“I’m glad you feel that way.” Of course Heechul had always been vocal about wanting to spend time together, but each affirmation that he and Kyuhyun were indeed welcome made Ryeowook’s heart feel at ease and happiness spread through him.

Heechul looked back at Ryeowook with a fond smile. “How could I not? Especially you have been nothing but sweet and accepting and I understand that Kyuhyun just wants to protect you but is growing more and more used to us as well. I’ll miss you two. Both Hangeng and I will miss you two.”

“I’ll miss you, too. It’s so comfortable here.” Ryeowook lowered his eyes to the simmering hotpot. They had barely two weeks left before they’d move on into the unknown—leaving Hangeng and Heechul behind. Would it be a goodbye forever? Or would they meet again one day? With winter approaching, how far would he and Kyuhyun be able to travel before having to take another stop? Which way would they even travel? Back North? Further South? Towards the West, maybe over the silk road? But wasn’t the silk road too obvious?

He pushed all of those thoughts to the back of his head when Kyuhyun and Hangeng arrived, greeting them with a bright smile instead.

Dinner was as comfortable as ever, though Ryeowook couldn’t hide the fact that he was extra happy to have Kyuhyun present for a change.

After they finished eating, Kyuhyun was the first to rise, though he held a hand out to Ryeowook. “Mind if I kidnap you for a while?”

“Huh? Of course not.” Ryeowook looked back and forth between the dishes that he had intended on taking to the kitchen and Kyuhyun’s hand, a little torn between going right away and still helping tidy up first.

“Go, don’t worry about this here.” Heechul nodded towards Kyuhyun, making Ryeowook smile. He still felt a little bad for not helping with the dishes, but if Heechul said that it was fine, he had learned not to argue—any playful argument would be lost by the person who was not Heechul. Maybe not logically, but once the other person was left speechless, Heechul claimed the victory for himself.

Ryeowook let Kyuhyun lead them outside and into the direction of the river, waiting until they were at least out of earshot until he asked, “What did you want to kidnap me for?”

“Because we get too little us-time recently?” Ryeowook raised an eyebrow at the blatant—though kind of true—lie and Kyuhyun laughed. “You’re right, that’s not it. I actually want to give you a proper private show.”

Excitement immediately spread through Ryeowook when he heard those words and he beamed. “The one that you’ll hold at the festival?”

“Yes. And I’d also like to hear your opinion on it. You have to be honest with me, okay? And as objective as possible.”

“I’m not sure if I can be objective about this.”

“Try at least?”

Ryeowook huffed in playful defeat but nodded. “What do you want my opinion on?”

“Everything, pretty much. I want to know what you think about it—if it’s maybe too grand, if there’s something else you’d like to see, something that you think would be better left out… Anything like that, really.”

“That sounds like a lot of responsibility.” But would he even find anything that he could criticize? After all, he knew how grand Kyuhyun’s play with fire was and hadn’t suspected anything strange when he had still been human despite all the things that Kyuhyun had woven into his fire, so how was he supposed to criticize anything now?

“You’re a prince, I’m sure you’ll be able to handle this,” Kyuhyun , earning a nudge from Ryeowook as he looked away in embarrassment.

“Well, not a prince anymore, right?”

“Huh? But isn’t that what you always say to justify why you can do certain things or know certain things?”

Ryeowook nodded slowly, feeling conflicted. “I do, but… I ran away. So I’m not a prince anymore. I was raised as a prince, that is true, but I’m not the prince of Joseon anymore because I chose you over my country and my family…” It was a thought he kept going back to recently and as much as it hurt, he also couldn’t deny it. After all, in order to survive and stay with Kyuhyun, he had indeed left behind his former life.

“Is everything okay?” Kyuhyun’s voice was gentle, affectionate, sounding a lot less like the question was about Ryeowook’s words and more about the silence that followed.

Braving up, Ryeowook faced Kyuhyun and nodded, smiling at the other. “It’s just something I’m thinking about lately. Maybe it’s because the festival is approaching and we did meet through the spring festival, after all?”

“You’re not just saying that to make me happy, right?”

Ryeowook shook his head and took Kyuhyun’s hand, their fingers automatically intertwining, the temperatures low enough that the contact was comfortable and not immediately sticky, too hot, and just too much. “I mean it. Total transparency, right? I did leave a lot behind and I’m sad about that, but I’m happy that I went with you, that I’m here with you, that I get to experience all these things with you.”

Kyuhyun searched in his eyes a little longer before he nodded with a smile. “I’m glad you feel that way.”

“Now, how much further do we have to walk? I didn’t grab any of my belongings, so you better not kidnap me fully already!”

Kyuhyun laughed and shook his head. “We’re almost there, don’t worry.”

They were close to the river where they usually got water, its happy gurgling making the atmosphere bright and soon, the trees and bushes cleared a little to reveal the view. The river was much smaller at this part than it was in the city, but it still sent the last rays of sunlight sparkling right back at them.

A little ahead of them, the river split around a boulder, and they walked right towards it, leaving Ryeowook entirely unsurprised when Kyuhyun let go of his hand and hopped onto the boulder. He wanted to say ‘jump’, but really, the distance wasn’t far enough to justify that word. Ryeowook’s eyes went up as he took in the area that Kyuhyun had to have spent an unmeasurable amount of time in recently while practicing for his show, and he startled. One of the trees had a very bare and rather black-ish spot, if he wasn’t mistaken…

“That was an accident.” Kyuhyun’s voice sounded sheepish, making Ryeowook laugh.

“Well, where do you want me to stand to avoid any accidents?”

“A little back will probably give you a better view. But don’t worry, no more accidents will happen. There is a reason, after all, why I’ve picked this spot to practice.”

Ryeowook nodded and stepped back until a small flame light up in Kyuhyun’s hand, quickly growing in size as Kyuhyun started his show, beginning with small and fun tricks of guiding the fire up one arm or boosting out huge flames that went high into the sky. Slowly, he wove details into the fire: lucky red envelopes, the flag, impressions of Wuhan that appeared and disappeared in a heartbeat, staying just long enough to be seen and so shortly that they would seem nothing but the trick of the eye to any human. Kyuhyun finished the show with a dragon that flew up into the air before bursting into a million sparks that slowly sank into the water, making the air around him glitter.

“Wow.”

Kyuhyun laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck, looking away while Ryeowook finally managed to return into reality.

“That was amazing! It looked so beautiful and so magical! But I don’t think it was too much, so you can absolutely use this for your official show as well!”

“I mean, for the show itself, I would of course interact a little more with the torch… But you’re sure that I can use it? There’s nothing I’ll need to change, nothing that’s too obviously not humanly possible?”

Ryeowook shook his head and took the few steps needed to join Kyuhyun on the boulder when the other didn’t make a move to return to the river bank. He took Kyuhyun’s hands into his, squeezing them and smiling when Kyuhyun finally made eye contact. “Really, it looks amazing. When I was a human, your fire art never made me wonder too much about you, I only wondered if my eyes were playing tricks on me and if all those things that I thought I saw weren’t actually there. So there’s nothing you’ll have to be afraid of. Okay?”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

Finally, Kyuhyun smiled back at him, though he still looked a little embarrassed, and he nodded the promise off. Ryeowook grinned, then he leaned closer and sealed the promise with a kiss, while happiness and excitement still jolted through him, making him feel fuzzy. He wasn’t sure if his very biased response had helped Kyuhyun even a bit, but knowing that the other had wanted his feedback before going on stage with his act made Ryeowook feel important. He couldn’t wait to hear about the townspeople’s reaction!

☆ ☆ ☆

It was a total success. Of course it was! Already on the first evening when Kyuhyun had performed a slightly toned-down version of his show, wanting to save the full extent for the final evening, the people were blown away. That was at least what Kyuhyun told Ryeowook afterwards when he came back together with Heechul, both of them elated from the success of the first day. Hangeng had returned a little earlier than the other two despite his busy schedule, taking pity on Ryeowook who had been left on his own, sulking over his inability to just ask his maids to accompany him to the festival and enjoy it as he always had as a human. But he also hadn’t been able to protest against Kyuhyun, once again dressed in his tighter, all-black performance clothes, when he had reasoned that it would be best for him to first see what the ambience of the festival was like. Plus, that day hadn’t been a feeding day for Ryeowook.

But hearing especially Kyuhyun and Heechul, who was still surrounded by a heavy cloud of incense from his work as a fortune teller, speak about all the things and acts they had seen at the festival made Ryeowook even more excited when he got ready the next day. He was also nervous at the aspect of having to face crowds, but Kyuhyun had assured him that they would be together no matter what happened and that Ryeowook had been improving a lot with his independence training and was normally fine going to the market. Those words did help ease Ryeowook’s worry at least a little.

He looked himself over in Hangeng’s mirror once more before he turned to Kyuhyun who leaned in the doorway, looking as handsome as always, clad completely in black, though still donning his proper outer robe with the red sash because he had promised to come back to the house with Ryeowook, so there was no need for him to already look ready for his performance.

“Ready?”

Ryeowook nodded, a little shy under Kyuhyun’s gaze because this was the first time since they had left court that he had actually put effort into his appearance. Did he look good? Had he done his hair properly? There was nothing amiss from his appearance, was there? Maybe he wasn’t the prince of Joseon, but going out to meet a lot of people, and going with someone who had just made himself a name the day before made him want to look perfect. And maybe he also wanted to impress Kyuhyun.

“I think so.”

“Then let’s go.”

Ryeowook glanced at the mirror once more, easily spotting all the things that would have been a disgrace to the royal court if he had gone out like this while still bearing his prince title, then he tore his eyes away. “Let’s go,” he agreed, his confidence getting a boost from the way Kyuhyun looked at him.

The walk to town was comfortable and Ryeowook got to enjoy more stories of Kyuhyun’s life as a wandering artist.

Unsure what exactly to expect, Ryeowook took Kyuhyun’s hand when they were close to the market. The usually familiar chatter was even louder than normal and the overall scent of humans was a lot more intense. The vampire inside him stirred a little, too satiated to cause a scene, but the intense humanness around triggering a response nevertheless. Ryeowook heard some children squeal, the ruffling of clothes, people talking, vendors calling loudly to attract more customers, artists advertising their specialties, a fire somewhere, the scent of food…

A gentle squeeze of his hand brought him back into the ‘here and now’ and Ryeowook flashed Kyuhyun a grateful smile.

The size of the festival had pushed the vendors and artists even outside the normal market area even though they stood even closer together than normally. A spark of thrilled excitement rushed through Ryeowook, momentarily overshadowing his worries. It had been so long since he had been able to enjoy the bustle of a festival, the all-encompassing joy, the moments in which he could mostly forget about his status. Just that the latter wasn’t possible this time.

Ryeowook continued walking, entering the bustling market. Almost immediately, he was certain to hear merchants calling for them, in part ignoring their current customers, but Ryeowook merely glanced at the carts as he continued walking. His human self would have been easily tempted by the sweets that these merchants offered, but as a vampire, he couldn’t care much less. Maybe he and Kyuhyun would nevertheless pick up some snacks later to bring home for the four of them.

When they came to a juggler, Ryeowook pulled Kyuhyun towards him, watching with a child-like heart, pushing away the thought that juggling had seemed so much more difficult when he had still been human. No, he wouldn’t let his better senses and different speed and time perception ruin this day!

After some time, the juggler bowed, so Ryeowook continued to walk, his hand still securely attached to Kyuhyun’s. “Come this way.”

“Huh?” Before he fully realized it, Ryeowook was pulled into a different direction, catching a flirtatious smirk from Kyuhyun. The masses engulfed them and Ryeowook hurried to stay close to Kyuhyun, trying to get a good glimpse of what lay ahead of them, but there were too many people in the way and the fruit stand that he could see seemed unlikely to be their destination.

A few steps later, they arrived at a tiny cart, squeezed between two bigger ones, that was single-handedly managed by a beautiful young woman with a flower crown and surrounded by a mix of sweet scents, almost overwhelming in their abundance. Her hands were working on another flower chain, while her eyes periodically scanned her surroundings, smiling when she noticed Kyuhyun and Ryeowook arriving.

The cart, as tiny as it seemed, held more flowers than Ryeowook had thought possible—some standing in cups, some lying loosely, their myriad of colors bright and beautiful. The woman placed the flower chain somewhere beneath the cart as she turned her attention to the two of them. “Hello gentlemen.” Her voice was as gentle as her entire demeanor and Ryeowook couldn’t help the thought that she looked like she belonged to a court instead of the market.

Ryeowook smiled at her in a greeting and turned back to the flowers, spellbound by their beauty and variety. Kyuhyun reached out next to him, picking two of the flowers and laying them on top. “I’d like these two, please,” he said while freeing his second hand, Ryeowook’s hand automatically moving upwards until it rested on Kyuhyun’s upper arm, not restricting the other’s movements.

Finally, he could tear his eyes away from the other flowers to look at the ones Kyuhyun had picked, causing an instant blush to rise to his cheeks. An orchid and a pink rose lay on top of the stack until Kyuhyun picked them up just a moment later, handing them to Ryeowook with an almost coy smile as they continued walking. “For you,” he said quietly in Korean and Ryeowook took them carefully, unable to stop smiling.

“Thank you.” He raised the flowers to smell them individually, amazed at their intensity, at the newness of their scents, and using the chance to hide his smile. Kyuhyun had given him flowers!

They stopped at another wandering artist who Ryeowook assumed advertised with his strength, but Ryeowook quickly lost interest and they went further. They passed several carts with wood toys and various foods before they arrived at one with knives and Ryeowook could barely hold back his laughter when Kyuhyun immediately slowed down. He still couldn’t understand the other’s fascination for knives, so after looking at the blades for a short while, his eyes went to the next cart, instantly intrigued when he spotted the honey snacks that he knew Hangeng liked. His heart immediately gravitated towards them, but a single glance at Kyuhyun let him know that the other still needed time.

Could he or could he not?

Ryeowook looked back at the honey snacks, his mind racing through all the past tries when he had increased the distance between himself and Kyuhyun—often with Heechul or Hangeng, on less than a handful of occasions on his own.

Could he or could he not?

He glanced at the knives, but they still didn’t hold the same secrets and miracles for him as they did for Kyuhyun. The honey snacks on the other hand promised a lot of joy and gave him the chance to give back to Hangeng and Heechul a little bit.

Could he?

Ryeowook looked at Kyuhyun, took in the other’s furrowed eyebrows and gaze that seemed to read every single blade.

Yes, he could.

Ryeowook gently pulled on Kyuhyun’s arm, making the other look up quickly, eyes darting to Ryeowook, briefly behind them, then back, making the latter smile. “I want to get some honey snacks. Will you stay a little closer to the next cart?”

Kyuhyun’s eyes searched in Ryeowook’s, his full focus immediately on the younger vampire. “You’ll be fine?”

Ryeowook nodded. “I think I can do this. I’m basically right next to you, I won’t take long. So I can do this.”

Kyuhyun held his gaze a little longer, then he slowly nodded. “If you can’t, call for me, okay?”

“I will.”

Ryeowook smiled, pride filling him because the easy agreement showed him that Kyuhyun trusted him and also believed that he could do it.

Ryeowook pulled Kyuhyun half a step closer to the next cart, squeezing his arm once more, catching another smile, then he squared his shoulders, reminded himself of all the tricks and facts that had helped him so far, then he let go and took a step away. One more step and he was in front of the honey snack cart, forcing himself not to look back right away. No, where should Kyuhyun have gone in this short time?

The vendor immediately started talking to him and he flashed her a polite smile before he continued looking at the snacks. How many should he get? Four definitely wouldn’t be enough, so… Eight? Or even twelve, since they wouldn’t go bad anytime soon?

He couldn’t resist a glance to his side. His heart immediately fluttered anxiously when he noticed that the gap between him and Kyuhyun had already been filled, but then he spotted Kyuhyun, calmly studying the knives.

Ryeowook turned to the honey snacks, just making up his mind that he should totally get twelve of them, when a past-Kyuhyun scolded him in his mind for spending his own money. Okay, maybe taking eight would be better then—as delicious as the snacks were, they also made at least him feel so full, that two per person should already take a long time to finish them.

“Can I have eight, please?”

“Of course, of course, dear gentleman! You picked the best ones in all of Hubei!”

Ryeowook smiled at line after line of self-praise from the vendor while he retrieved his money, handing over roughly the right amount, taking the bag of honey snacks in return.

He had made it! He had actually just bought something on his own! Finally!

He turned around, unable to wait to share his happiness.

Instead of Kyuhyun, he was met with an all too familiar person, clad in toned down royal colors, meeting his eyes with a polite smile. All the color drained from Ryeowook’s face while the other man’s expression didn’t change, not even as he bowed.

“It’s been a long time, my Prince.”