Taemin had managed to acquire a bucket and a brush from one of the maids after much persuasion, and so he had started scrubbing the floor of the prince's bathroom furiously. They were still fairly clean, but the boy wanted to prove himself worthy of his stay at the palace. Surely, he couldn't just laze around and do nothing; he may live in the palace but he wasn't royalty.

He dipped the brush into the soapy water again and brought it down on the marble floor, splashing the knees of his pants with water as he did. Using all his strength, he brushed and brushed, until the little remnants of footprints and oil residue disappeared from the floor, making it nice and spotless again.

"Taemin, what are you doing?!" the boy heard all of a sudden, and he dropped the brush from surprise. He looked up from his work and saw the prince rushing to him.

"Cleaning," Taemin said simply, confused as to why Minho looked like he just saw something wrong. Did the prince not want him to clean? He was perfectly capable of doing the same thing as the maids did, maybe even better, at that. "The floor is starting to get dirty."

Not heeding his explanation, the prince pulled at Taemin's still wet hands, urging him to stand from the bathroom floor. 

"Taemin," Minho said his name as if he was just about to reprimand him. "This is not your job. I told you that you are not required to do any chores."

The boy sighed. This again? "But I've been staying here for almost a month and I've been no use to you at all," he said somberly. "It's the least I could do so please let me do it. Besides, it isn't much work, I've done the same thing at the orphanage for years."

"Still," Minho persisted as he dried Taemin's hands with his own shirt. "Housework isn't for you. You can be of service to me, if you really want to, by accompanying me to my training."

Taemin almost lit up at the idea, but he hesitated, just like always. "But won't I get in the way?" 

"Nonsense, you are most welcome to be there, Taemin-ah." Minho smiled and held the boy's dried hands into his own. "I will enjoy your company if you come. Please?"

Taemin could never say no to the smoldering gazes Minho gave him. It was as if those eyes were luring him in by magic, hypnotizing him to abide by whatever the prince said. Nevertheless, he would be obedient to the prince, as payment for such good treatment of him in the palace.

"Of course," Taemin agreed with a generous smile. 

Minho smiled in return and ruffled the boy's soft hair in a brotherly way, unaware of the fact that Taemin's stomach gurgled with butterflies every time he did that. "Come, leave the chores to the maids and accompany me. My father will be watching as I train; he is still weak but the doctor says he can come out for a while at a time."

Taemin delighted at the good news, for he grew closer to the royal family as well as the king, and knowing that Minho's father was getting better and better was relief, too, to his heart.

He had met King Minhyuk as soon as he was allowed to, and the man was as gracious as his wife and son were. The king promised Taemin that as soon as he was able, he would reward the boy for saving his son's life with a grand ball in his honor. Taemin insisted that there was no need, but the king was persistent, and he had already bought Taemin a horse of his own and given him a room in the palace as part of that reward. 

Taemin wished they would stop spoiling him, but the royal family was adamant as if he were someone special, someone worthy of all the love and attention.

~

Minho led Taemin out in the grounds where the rest of his family was waiting. His personal trainer and an excellent warrior, Kim Jonghyun, was there, too. 

Taemin bowed respectfully to the king and queen, seated on an elegant outdoor loveseat by the grass. 

"Ah, the noble savior of my heir. Come, come, sit with me and my wife," the king said kindly, ushering Taemin to a space beside him. He had grown fond of the young boy once he'd gotten to know him, as if he were his own son.

"I am not honorable enough to sit beside your majesty," the boy said sheepishly, utterly convinced that it was true.

"Don't be silly," Minho spoke behind him. "Go sit with my parents, I'll be starting my training now."

Taemin hesitantly sat beside the king, making sure that he wasn't pressing up against the man's rich clothes. He didn't want to dirty them with the skin that had just been touching the bathroom floor.

Minho gave him one small smile before walking towards his trainer. Jonghyun, a short man but with a build of a true warrior, handed him a bow and arrow made of the finest wood and metal. The king, queen, and Taemin then watched as the prince shot each target with utmost precision, never missing a single one. 

Taemin remembered the arrow that had pierced the prince's skin, and he shuddered at the memory. He couldn't believe that he had had the guts to pull it out even then, but he was happy that he did. If he hadn't, the prince wouldn't be there with him at that moment. 

He wouldn't know what would be of him if he didn't do what he did that fateful night, and thankfully, he wouldn't have to know.

~

Training took almost two hours but Taemin never felt boredom weigh down on him for even a second. After archery, there was swordfighting, and Minho demonstrated his skill with the weapon as he fought against his own trainer. Taemin had seen him wield a sword before in past trainings, yet he always marveled at how the man could handle the heavy weapon with such skill.

The training was closed with hands-on combat; no weapons or armor at all. This was the part that Taemin least liked, because sometimes Jonghyun would hit the prince too hard and Taemin didn't like that. However, Minho always won against his trainer, and that marked the end of their session.

"That was wonderful, Minho. As always!" the queen applauded, followed by a second from the king.

"Thank you mother, father," Minho said, still sweaty from exertion. One of the maids standing by came scurrying over with a towel, and Taemin hoped that he could be the one to do that. 

"Taemin, did you enjoy yourself? I apologize if you were bored." Minho came walking up to the boy, who had already stood up from the seat. 

Taemin shook his head, smiling until his eyes scrunched up into crescents. "Of course not! You were good! Definitely good!"

"Well, kind words are always appreciated. Thank you."

Minho stepped forward and gathered the young boy into his arms, feeling his energy immediately return with just a touch of Taemin's skin on his. It was just a simple embrace of gratitude, but the prince's heart wouldn't stop the maddening beating. 

"Well, if I may interrupt," the king said, causing the pair to step apart. "I think the ball is most appropriate for tomorrow."

Minho turned to his father, a worried expression replacing the smile on his face. "But father, you don't have to overexert yourself, the ball can wait until you are fully well."

"I am fully well, son, and I cannot have the people waiting longer," he said. "Taemin here needs a proper introduction as the savior of my son, the prince of this kingdom, and I need to let them know that my condition is stable and there is no need for uncertainty."

"Darling, are you sure?" the queen spoke up.

"Yes, of course. Have the invitations made! The ball will be in three days, at most!" the king declared joyously. 

"Oh, can I help?" Taemin piped up.

Minho turned to the boy, immediately going against his proposal. "No, preparing a ball is tiring and not to mention--"

The queen interrupted her son, smiling at Taemin and saying, "Of course you can, sweetheart."

She turned to the prince. "Minho, you can't keep Taemin in his room unmoving all the time, let him have some activities!"

"But mother..." Minho looked unsurely at Taemin, but the boy pouted and begged through his eyes.

The prince really didn't want to let Taemin do any work, because the boy had already done too much of that in his short life. However, he couldn't resist his friend's wishes; Taemin really wanted to service them in return for letting him stay in the palace.

Giving up, he said, "Alright then, but only if he does it at his own pace. I won't have him being overworked by this, neither you, father."

"Relax, Kibum will take care of it," the queen said, referring to the king's assistant and also the organizer of pretty much everything.

"Thank you, your majesty, for the chance to do something for you," said Taemin with a sincere smile. "I'll do my best, whatever may be commanded upon me."

The king stepped forward whilst releasing a pleased laugh. He reached towards the boy with his hand and gave Taemin's back a fatherly pat, one the latter had never received before. "A marvelous young man, you have here, son. I cannot believe he is from the city!" 

"Well, not all people there are as bad as the judges make them seem," the queen said, placing a hand on her husband's shoulder. 

"When I am done with this sickness, I'll do something about that," the king declared. "I'll stop this segregation of people once and for all. My great grandfather, the former king, had made a mistake to do such a thing in the first place."

"Father, one thing at a time," Minho reminded, even though he was also delighted at the sudden inspiration. "The ball first, then everything else later. You still have to recover your health fully."

The king waved it off, saying something about being invincible despite age as he wobbled back to the palace with the queen. The maids and Jonghyun followed them back, leaving the prince and his friend alone on the grounds.

"I hope his majesty keeps his word about doing something about the city's separation," Taemin said as soon as they were alone. "People there aren't as bad as what the people here make them sound like." 

"Me, too, Taemin," Minho answered. "You are the living example that everyone from the city should be given a chance."

A smile graced Taemin's face as he heard the prince's words. Truly, the man was too kind to him. Everyone was too kind to him, and all he did was save a prince's life.

He hoped he could repay everything they've done for him so far.

"Taemin, what are you doing?!"

The boy jumped away from the large window panes he had been wiping at the sound of Minho's voice. He whirled around to see a prince rushing towards him, which was not an unusual sight anymore after the first time.

"Kibum only had me put the invitations in envelopes. I'm sorry but I am bored," Taemin reasoned with a whine ringing in his voice. It was true; Kibum, the ball's organizer, only had him do the simple tasks that only took him about an hour to do. 

"I told you that you don't have to clean around here," the prince lecutred once again. "But nevermind that, I have to show you something. I'm sure you'll like it."

Taemin put down the rag he had been using on the window sill, following the prince when he was beckoned to. 

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's a surprise," the prince replied simply as he led the way to the queen's powder room. "Something you'll most definitely like."