The next morning, Kyuhyun seemed more than unwilling to head back to the castle.  After a few gentle reminders, and a few more not-so-gentle reminders, Kyuhyun finally got out of bed, grumbling and cursing under his breath.  I rolled my eyes, but didn’t scold him as I packed up enough clothing to last the span of the three day conference.

When I exited the tent, I was surprised to find Donghae waiting with a smile.  I quickly bowed before greeting,

“Good morning Lieutenant, what brings you here?”

“Morning Ryeowook-sshi, I’m here to you to the castle.  King Hangeng thought you might have some trouble convincing the Commander to comply with the arrangement, so I’m here for back-up”

I grinned and nodded, silently thanking the king for his commendable foresight.

“Well if you don’t mind helping me, I was able to get the Commander out of bed but he refuses to get ready”

Donghae nodded and made his way towards the opening of the tent.  Just before he entered, he turned around and sent me a worried look,

“Ryeowook-sshi, are you okay?  Yesterday the Commander seemed a bit… on edge”

I blinked, startled by the kind Lieutenant’s concern.  Slowly my face broke into a grateful and reassuring grin,

“Don’t worry Lieutenant, everything is fine”

He accepted my answer with a small smile before entering the tent.  I stifled my laughter as I heard Kyuhyun groan loudly.  Kyuhyun might have been able to evade me, but he wouldn’t dare act so childishly in the face of his colleague.

As I finished packing the carriage, Donghae reappeared with a slightly perturbed Kyuhyun in tow.  I raised my brow in amusement as Kyuhyun immediately made his way into the carriage, shooting me a sulky look.

Donghae mounted his horse and as soon as I accompanied Kyuhyun in the carriage, we set off towards the castle.  Keeping the curtains drawn so no one could see inside, Kyuhyun beckoned me over to his side, holding his blanket out in a resigned manner.

I rolled my eyes, but scooted next to him enjoying the warmth that both he and the thick blanket provided. 

“I really don’t want to do this” he grumbled, sounding annoyed.

I shrugged, knowing there was nothing he could really do about the situation.

“You don’t want to go because it will be boring, or simply because you don’t want to see your father?”

Kyuhyun scrunched up his face and gave an irritated sigh.

“To be honest I’m dreading having to sit still while a bunch of senile old men tell me how to run my army.  The lovely thought of seeing my father is just an added bonus” he answered in a voice dripping with blatant sarcasm.

I nodded, but didn’t push the subject knowing that Kyuhyun’s father was somewhat of a taboo.  Instead, I grabbed his arm and began rubbing it soothingly.   Almost instantly I could feel him relax and I smiled when I saw the terse look slip from his face.

We didn’t speak for the rest of the journey, but I continued to run my hands over his forearm for the duration of the trip.

~*~*~

“Please come with me”

I shot Kyuhyun an exasperated look before answering,

“I still need to unpack and arrange all your things.  Your bed needs to be made and your clothes need to be aired out.  I don’t have time to attend some meeting that I won’t understand anyway”

He huffed and tried to reason with me,

“We’re only gonna be here for three days, what’s the point of unpacking everything when you’ll have to pack it right back up?  The other servants are perfectly capable of making the bed and taking care of my clothes”

I released a silent sigh and resisted the urge to rub my temples.

“You would let random strangers touch your personal items?  My master would never allow it”

Kyuhyun’s eyes darkened and he spat out in a cold tone,

“Don’t ing compare me to that bastard, Ryeowook”

I mentally slapped myself for bringing up Yesung, that definitely wasn’t the way to placate Kyuhyun.  When I finally looked up at him, his eyes were dangerous.  Knowing I had no other choice I reluctantly stopped arranging his toiletries and sighed,

“Fine, I’ll go”

It was obvious Kyuhyun was still displeased, but his eyes softened slightly as he reached for my hand.  I allowed him to hold on to me until we made it out to the corridor.  Once we were out of the safety of his chamber, I quickly pulled my hand away, wary of prying eyes.

Kyuhyun frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything as we were quickly joined by Donghae.  The two began discussing battle plans as I walked a little bit behind them, wondering how mad Kyuhyun would get if I ditched him and went back to his chambers.  Almost as if he could read my mind, Kyuhyun looked back at me and sent me a mild glare.

I huffed, but obediently followed after him, falling back into my role as his slave.  Before long, the three of us arrived at the large meeting room.  I quickly scanned the area and let out a sigh of relief when Kyuhyun’s father wasn’t in sight.

Upon entering the room, all heads turned to face Kyuhyun.  He simply ignored the attention, quietly heading towards the king.  King Hangeng greeted us with a warm smile, quickly dismissing the deep bow that Donghae and I sent his way.

“I thought for sure you would find a way to get out of this meeting” the king commented, his eyes shining with amusement.

Kyuhyun broke into a wry grin and replied drily,

“Believe me, I did try”

“I don’t doubt that” the king laughed, seemingly pleased that Kyuhyun was being amicable.

Donghae left the two to talk, gesturing for me to follow him.  He sat down, leaving a chair for Kyuhyun and I settled behind his designated space.  Donghae shot me a confused look and I answered the question in his eyes,

“Slaves don’t sit at a table full of their betters”

The kind lieutenant looked stumped before his face broke out in a sheepish grin,

“That’s right, I keep forgetting that you’re the Commander’s servant.  Although technically as his lover you really are equal with everyone attending, well except maybe the king”

I stared at him in alarm and I could feel the blood draining from my face,

“Y-you knew?” I stuttered.

He smiled easily and nodded almost proudly,

“Yup!  Figured it out almost right away”

He must have seen my horrified look because he quickly reassured me.

“Oh don’t worry!  I won’t tell anyone it’s really not my business and I promise I don’t think it’s weird or anything and actually I think you two are really cute and-“

Donghae snapped his mouth close in the middle of his nervous rambling when Kyuhyun walked up to us.  Kyuhyun looked at me, then his eyes trailed to Donghae, then back to me.

“Everything alight?” he asked suspiciously.

Donghae and I exchanged looks before nodding.  Kyuhyun raised his brow at this and I could see him trying to keep his cool.

“You sure? He asked again, his voice slightly strained.

Instead of answering, Donghae quickly turned to the person sitting next to him and started talking enthusiastically.  I silently cursed him for leaving me to deal with a nosy and possibly jealous Kyuhyun. 

Kyuhyun shot me a pointed look and sat down in his chair, angling himself so he was facing me.  I shot a quick glance around the room before leaning close and whispering,

“It’s no big deal, I’ll tell you later”

He looked like he wanted to protest, but I shot him a pleading look and squeezed his arm inconspicuously.  He hesitated a bit before nodding, a small pout on his lips.  I was about to laugh at his expression when suddenly the room went silent.

Kyuhyun turned around to see what was going on and I peeked past him to get a look.  My blood ran cold as I saw Kyuhyun’s father walk in.  I saw Kyuhyun tense slightly, but otherwise he didn’t show any hints of discomfort.

Everyone else on the room, even King Hangeng looked between father and son uncomfortably.  Kyuhyun and his father didn’t even make eye contact, yet the tension between them was so thick that it made me squirm.

Kyuhyun’s father approached, obviously heading for the seat next to Kyuhyun, the seat reserved for the Head General.  Finally, once there was no avoiding it, father and son made eye contact.  I couldn’t see Kyuhyun’s expression, but judging from the Head General’s icy smirk Kyuhyun must have looked blank as usual.

“Feeling better?” the elder asked, his voice carrying a chilling hostility.

“I suppose” Kyuhyun answered back, his voice just as biting.

I gulped slightly as the two continued to stare each other down, remembering how badly their last encounter had gone.  Luckily, the king seemed to share my sentiments because he quickly broke through the charged silence as he boomed,

“Well, now that everyone seems to be here, let’s get this meeting started”

The Head General finally looked away from Kyuhyun as he bowed to the king in consent before taking his seat.  I let out a silent breath of relief and I saw Donghae’s shoulders relax as well.  King Hangeng took his seat at the head of the large table and the meeting was officially called into session.

At first, I tried to keep up with what was going on, but after a while I gave up, getting lost amidst the military jargon and references to past battles I didn’t even know existed.  I allowed my mind to wander, occasionally paying attention whenever Kyuhyun would speak.

For the most part, the meeting consisted of reviewing the status of the army and possible plans that Siwon might use to attack.  I could see why Kyuhyun hated these types of engagements, seeing as Kyuhyun no doubt had a much better understanding of what was going on than the advisors ever would.

Still, I was rather proud of how seriously Kyuhyun seemed to be taking this.  I knew Kyuhyun was a great leader, but something about how knowledgeable and confident he seemed made my stomach go fluttery.  I blushed when I realized that I found his intent face highly attractive.

Sub-consciously, my tongue began to tingle as a reminder of the heated kiss we shared last night.  I tried not to think about it as I felt my body heat up and the faintest stirrings of desire infiltrated my blood.  I was surprised and confused all at the same time, never had my body responded to anything like it was now.  It alarmed me slightly and that fear was enough to push such strange feelings away.

“Ryeowook-sshi?”

I blinked, and looked up in surprise.  Donghae and Kyuhyun where both standing and looking at me, obviously waiting for me to rise as well.  I flushed slightly and quickly got to my feet.

“Sorry” I mumbled, bowing my head in embarrassment.

Donghae smiled good naturedly while Kyuhyun kept his stoic mask in place.  The room was mostly empty now, just a few advisors talking quietly amongst themselves.  I followed the two out of the meeting room, but once we exited, Donghae excused himself, saying something about checking on his horse.  Kyuhyun nodded and I bowed as he left us.

For a while Kyuhyun and I walked in silence, both of us deciding it would be prudent.  Once we turned down a quieter, more private corridor, Kyuhyun wormed his hand into mine.  I shot him a worried look, but he smiled and held tight even when I tried to pull away.

“Kyuhyun” I said in a warning voice, but he squeezed my hand reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, no one will see us”

I sighed, but didn’t fight it knowing Kyuhyun was too stubborn.  There was a nagging feeling of dread in my stomach, but I brushed it away, hoping it was nothing.  I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and I turned my head to look in that direction.  I looked but didn’t find anything suspicious and once again pushed away the feeling that we were being watched.

I wish I had seen the Head General hiding behind a pillar.

*bows repeatedly*

Oh my Shisus, I'm so sorry for abandoning you guys for so long >.<

However, this past week I moved into my college dorm and I started my university courses and things were just so crazy that I couldn't find a spare moment to write.  I'm really sorry for the delay, but believe me when I tell you that it's really hard to adjust to college life.

Lol, even now, I'm paranoid that my roommate is reading over my shoulder! O_O

I can't promise that the next update will bve soon, but I swear I will stick with this fic, it's my baby and I will finish this!

I'm sorry and I love you guys for being so patient with me ^^  Love you guys lots!

Music: "It's Still a Dark Night"- Cover by EXO on Immortal Songs 2 (I am so obsessed with this song that it's really not healthy... it's just not...)