Vagabond [va-gə-ˌbänd] n. - an idle wanderer without a permanent home or visible means of support

“Han Agassi, your driver, Jaesuk, has arrived and is waiting for you outside,” the woman Mihyun recognized as the receptionist of the front desk came to inform her.

Mihyun glanced down at her watch, and frowned when the time of 5:00 flashed back at her. “He shouldn’t be picking me up for another hour, did he explain why he has come so early?”

The receptionist shook her head and simply stated that Jaesuk requested that she would leave at that moment.

“Do you have to go?” Baekhyun pouted as he childishly wrapped his arms around Mihyun’s leg to prevent her from leaving.

Mihyun chuckled at the other’s immature behavior, and she her leg gently to loosen his grip. “I don’t want to keep Jaesuk waiting for long. If he has come early, he must have good reason to do so.” When she was met with the pouts of Baekhyun and Kyungsoo, she simply laughed and promised that she would return the next day at a much earlier time than usual. That seemed to be a satisfactory deal to the two, so they waved her goodbye with large smiles stretched across their faces.

“Good evening Agassi,” Jaesuk greeted her as she walked out of the Noye house.

She returned the greeting to her relatively young chauffeur and tilted her head in confusion, “Why are we leaving so early today, Jaesuk?”

“It’s your father’s request,” Jaesuk explained as he opened the passenger door for the girl. “Apparently the runaways of the Noye riot have gotten as far as Seoul, now, so your father would prefer for you to be safely situated at home before the sun begins to set.”

Mihyun bit down on her bottom lip, but nodded her head as she climbed into the car. Of course her father would right away assume that the runaway Noyes would have nothing better to do than to wreak nothing but havoc.

It seemed as though Jaesuk had come to fetch her at quite a good time, because no more than a few minutes had passed after they began driving that rain began to splatter against the roof of the car.

Mihyun trained her gaze at the waving trees and dancing rain drops outside of the window, and let her thoughts travel. She had been serious when she spoke of having their own Noye rebellion there in Seoul, and she planned on following through, even if she didn’t have the support of a majority of the Noyes. She would show them soon enough that they were capable of getting a taste of freedom if they just mustered up the courage and motivation to fight for it. It would be hard, but it would be worth it in the end, wouldn’t it?

Her thoughts were interrupted when she noticed that the pace of the car was beginning to slow down. Too little time had passed for them to possibly have arrived home already.

“Jaesuk, what is wrong?” Mihyun asked with furrowed eyebrows when the car stilled to a stop. The car’s engine cut off abruptly, and all she could hear was the heavy pattering of rain against the roof of the car.

“There seems to be a body collapsed on the road, Agassi,” Jaesuk responded in a frighteningly calm voice as he stared at the possibly dead body. “Would you like me to take another road?”

His question had gone unheard, because Mihyun had already exited the car and was running towards the soaking body. Jaesuk sighed as he pulled an umbrella from the compartment to shield his Agassi from the hard rain.

Mihyun rolled the man onto his back, searching his body for any visible wounds. She was relieved to see that there weren’t any physical wounds, nor was there blood decorating his shirt. She pressed her fingers against the man’s abnormally cold wrist, and hoped to feel a pulse beat against her skin. Mihyun took a shaky breath of relief when she managed to detect a weak pulse, and looked up at Jaesuk who was towering over her with an umbrella in hand.

He recognized the look on his Agassi’s face, and sighed as he stared down at the man. His eyes widened slightly in surprise, and he shook his head before Mihyun could even open to voice her question. “We cannot take him to a hospital, Agassi.”

“Why is that, Jaesuk?” Mihyun asked with narrowed eyes, almost daring him to speak against her wishes.

“Look at his neck, Agassi, do you not recognize that mark?” Jaesuk asked quietly.

Mihyun’s eyes drifted up to the man’s pale neck, and she spotted the small tattoo carved in the shape of a sun. “He’s a Noye.”

“Not just any Noye, Agassi. The sun is the symbol of Gwangju, which means that is a rebelling Noye of the city. If we are to take him to the hospital, he will be killed within a minute,” Jaesuk explained.

Mihyun bit hard on her bottom lip, not knowing what she should do. If she were to leave him out here, he would die, but if she was to take him to safety, he would still meet the same fate. With a sigh she stood on her feet, “Let’s bring him home, Jaesuk.”

Jaesuk wasn’t surprised with her decision, and uttered no words of protest. Already he was used to the kind hearted soul of his Agassi, and although often her decisions seemed to be foolish, he knew that she made each of them with the uttermost caution.

“Yes, Agassi,” Jaesuk bowed as he handed Mihyun the umbrella. He bent down to slip his arms under the shivering body of the man, and lifted him up to put in the car. “Will you be okay with this stranger at your side, Agassi?”

Mihyun nodded his head, and Jaesuk proceeded to lay his wet body against the leather seats of the car, cringing mentally at the thought of having to clean after the stranger’s mess later on.

Mihyun climbed in shortly after, and turned the knob next to her to increase the heat in the back of the car. She pried the man’s sopping wet jacket off of him, and laid it on the seat next to her. She frowned as she stared at the man’s shivering body, and shrugged out of her own jacket to lay it across the stranger.

“Jaesuk, please notify Dr. Jang that we would require his assistance,” Mihyun called out as she brushed the stranger’s wet hair from his eyes. She knew that she could trust the man to tend to the stranger’s health without spreading the news to the officials. Almost everyone would jump at the chance of snitching on the whereabouts of a runaway Noye to receive a grand payment in return, but Dr. Jang would do no such thing. He had lost his own brother he had died under the title of being a Noye, and wanted nothing more than their freedom.

“Yes, Agassi,” Jaesuk nodded already dialing in a number to call.

“And Jaesuk, please don’t notify my father of this event,” Mihyun added in quietly.

Jaesuk nodded his head knowingly. “Yes, Agassi.”

The young man may have been hired by Chando, but his loyalty lied with the kind daughter of the family. He would do whatever the girl wished, and cared for her as if she was his own daughter. Similarly to how Sehun had been the savior of Mihyun’s belief in humanity, Mihyun was the savior of Jaesuk’s.

Mihyun walked into her bedroom the next morning carrying a tray of steaming porridge and a glass of tea to see the stranger sitting upright on her bed with a confused expression across his face. “You’re awake.”

She watched as the man immediately turned rigid. He darted for the heavy book that was on her bed table and held it up threateningly, “Don’t come any closer.”

Mihyun stared at him for a few seconds before quietly going over to the table to place down the tray. She then stepped towards him, ignoring his protests for her to get away.

“You think I will hurt you,” Mihyun sighed as she stared sadly into the man’s eyes. “What makes you think so? I believe you are at least twice my size, are you not?”

The man glanced down at the tiny girl and his cheeks flushed a bright red at the thought of the tiny human managing to overpower his giant self.

“You are right to be cautious,” Mihyun smiled as she took another step towards the man, watching the book that was in his hand. “I found you on the street last night, you had passed out in the middle of the road.” She clicked her tongue, “If you felt as if you were going to pass out, why would you wait until you were in the middle of a road? Do you not realize that anybody else would have easily just driven over you?”

The man’s hand lowered just the slightest inch at Mihyun’s words.

“I had my doctor inspect you, and he stated that you fainted because you haven’t eaten for a few days, nor have you slept. Do you not know how to take care of your health?” Mihyun sighed as she took another step forward.

The man’s hand lowered a couple of more inches.

“My name is Han Mihyun, what is yours?” Mihyun asked.

The man ignored her question and slowly let out a few words, allowing Mihyun to hear his deep voice for the first time. “Do you know what I am?”

Mihyun cocked her head in confusion at his question. “What do you mean? You’re a human, are you not?”

The man relaxed at the girl’s naivety.

“Oh, do you mean the fact that you are a rebelling Noye?” Mihyun continued. She snapped to the side to abvoid the heavy book that was thrown at her head. “That was rather rude, don’t you think? I was simply answering your question when you had so obviously ignored mine.”

“Get away from me!” the man shouted, scrambling off the bed to search for another object to throw at her.

“Calm yourself,” Mihyun spoke in a hard voice, forcing him to freeze his movements. “If I wanted to report you to the authorities, you wouldn’t have woken in my room, foolish boy. You wouldn’t have woken up at all.”

“Now sit down before you collapse from exhaustion once more,” Mihyun commanded as she pointed to the bed.

The man realized just how dizzy he felt, and quickly stabilized himself with the bed underneath him. “What do you want from me?”

“What makes you think that I want something from you?” Mihyun asked with a raised eyebrow as she went back to the table to retrieve the tray she had previously dropped off. “And even if I did want something, I hardly believe that you have everything to provide it.”

She walked next to him, and smiled lightly in satisfaction when he didn’t protest to her close presence. “I had the cooks make you something to eat. It isn’t too heavy, so it shouldn’t put too much harm on your body for eating so suddenly.”

The man’s mouth watered as he stared at the tray of porridge next to him, but clenched his fists tightly to prevent himself from pouncing on the food like a ravage animal. How was he to know that she didn’t poison it?

“And what good would I get by poisoning you?” Mihyun asked, reading the man’s expression. “If I really did want something from you like you think I do, what good would it be for you to be dead?”

She brought up a good point, so he decided to abandon all manners. He jerked the tray of food to his side, and messily ate the porridge in front of him. When the delicious taste touched his taste buds, his mind simply with blank and the only thought was to eat.  The meal was gone within minutes, and his pride had rece he stared at the mess he had made on the girl’s bed. His eyes slowly turned to her, and he watched as she stared at the mess as well.

Mihyun let out a loud sigh, and pulled the tray off her bed and over to the table. “I guess I should have known better than to let you eat on the bed.”

The man stared shamefully at the large spots that stained her blankets as he wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeves.

“Now,” Mihyun stated as she returned to his side. “I think I deserve your name, don’t you think?”

The man stared at her for a long while, not knowing whether or not he could actually trust the tiny girl in front of him. Deciding that telling her his name wouldn’t be of any harm, he silently answered the girl’s question with a single word. “Kris.”

“Kris?” Mihyun repeats, testing the name on her tongue. She stared at him for a few seconds, and he felt nervous under her intense stare.

“Are you still hungry, Kris?” Mihyun asked with the of her head.

Kris sheepishly shook his head, not wanting to make a fool out of himself by making another mess.

"Where are you headed? Do you need help getting there?" Mihyun asked with a concerned expression stretched across her face.

Kris opened his mouth to reply, but slowly closed it once more before he shook his head, "I don't have anywhere to go."

“Okay, then do you want to come some place with me?” Mihyun asked as she checked the time on her wrist watch. It was about time to visit the others, and she couldn’t leave Kris alone at home just waiting to get caught by the other maids and butlers – or worse, her father.

“No,” Kris immediately replied with a tensed jaw. She was a fool if he thought he was going anywhere with her. The chance that she was going to ship him off to the authorities was a pretty high chance in his mind.

“But you see Kris,” Mihyun stated uncertainly as she crouched down in front of him to be at the same height as the man who was sitting on the bed. “I can’t leave you here. If anybody finds you, you’re going to be reported.”

Kris immediately tensed even more at her words.

“The other people in this house aren’t welcoming of illegal stowaways,” Mihyun shrugged as she went to her closet to pick out some pieces of clothes. “So unless you want to come with me, you’re welcomed to stay here and take your chances.”

“Where are you going?” Kris asked as he his dry lips.

“To visit my friends,” Mihyun answered as she pulled a dress out of her closet to change into. “Don’t worry, they won’t rat you out. They… I guess you can say they’re under the same predicament as you, somewhat.”

Kris was confused with her words, but he decided that he would accompany the girl to wherever she was to go. So far she hadn’t shown any reason to distrust her, and he knew it was foolish, but he’d rather go along with wherever she was going than to be caught by a maid and sent off. “I’ll come with you, then.”

Mihyun nodded her head and tossed him a sweater. “Where that, it should be of your size. I had Jaesuk go off and collect some things for you.”

“I don’t need it,” Kris responded coldly.

Mihyun stared at him with a soft sigh. “I can see your tattoo on your neck. You will wear it unless you want the whole world to see that you are a rebelling Noye.”

Kris glanced down to where his tattoo was, despite not being able to see it. He swore under his breath and reluctantly tore off his shirt to replace it with the new sweater.

"Why are you.. so kind to me?" Kris asked hesitantly as he slid on the new piece of clothing. He immediately averted his eyes when they met Mihyun's, and awkwardly rubbed the side of his arm. "Why are you being so nice to somebody you don't know?"

Mihyun stared at him for a few seconds before she let out a soft chuckle. "Don't be fooled, I'm no saint."

Kris glanced at her curiously.

"I'm kind to whomever I think deserves it," Mihyun stated simply as she picked her bag up from her side table. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. I believe in justice, not being the bigger person. If you do something wrong, I'll retaliate in a more brutal way - it's as simple as that. So discard any false persona you mind bestow on me unless you want to be disappointed."

Kris frowned as he heard her crude response. An eye for an eye? 

Mihyun gave him no more time to ponder her words.“Come,” she ordered as she gestured for him to follow her with a single crook of a finger.

Kris found himself almost obediently following the girl’s commands, and had to stop a few steps later to reorganize his brain. He wasn’t going to be dragged around by some stranger that he had known for less than an even an hour! She could be a murderer for all he knew, and he wasn’t going to take down all his walls just because of this tiny human. Despite his thoughts, he found him almost sprinting to her side when she called out, “What are you doing? Hurry up.”

“Do you think we should do it?” Chanyeol asked in a casual tone. His question had been rather sudden, interrupting the silence the 6 Noyes had been basking in.

Baekhyun jolted up from his previous position of leaning against the other’s shoulder. “Are you mad? We can’t… we can’t do that.”

Kyungsoo nodded in agreement. “I-It’s too ris-risky and da-danger-erous.”

Jongin glanced down at Kyungsoo as he thought about the words Mihyun had stated yesterday. He knew all about the situation Kyungsoo was currently in after eavesdropping on the pair a couple of days ago. He was hurt that Kyungsoo hadn’t confided to him, but understood why nonetheless.

“I don’t know… I think I’m with Chanyeol on this one,” Jongin finally stated, averting his eyes when Kyungsoo stared at him incredulously. He bit down hard on his bottom lip. He knew the chances of Kyungsoo being chosen in the next hallway browsing was close to none, and he wouldn’t let Kyungsoo leave him without a fight. He was his best friend, his brother.

“What about you, Sehun? What do you think about this? You can’t possibly agree with them, can you?” Baekhyun scoffed as he stared at the younger.

Sehun stared hard into the ground as he thought over his words. A rebellion wasn’t as easy as it might have sounded. To actually rebel against the state that fed them would take time and planning, money and support that they didn’t have, and lives. It would cause so much bloodshed.

Sehun winced at the thought of having Luhan or Mihyun taken away from him, and immediately opened his mouth to say that he didn’t want to do it. He wanted to take no part in the event that could end their lives. Then he paused and thought some more. His eyes stared briefly at the faces of each of his four hyungs. What would happen to them?

He and Luhan were safe, for they would be under the care of Mihyun’s protective blanket soon enough, but the others…

“Why are we asking him? He obviously wouldn’t want to risk his life when he can already enjoy such a good one with Mihyun,” Chanyeol scoffed bitterly.

Sehun’s eyes flashed with anger and hurt at the other’s words, and he opened his mouth to defend himself until another did it for him.

“Don’t you dare insult Sehun like that,” Baekhyun glared with narrowed eyes. “If you’re so bitter, then why didn’t you accept Mihyun’s father’s offer? You could be free without the rest of us.”

“I…” Chanyeol opened his mouth. “I… I’m sorry, Sehun. That was uncalled for.”

Sehun easily forgave him. He knew what mental stress Chanyeol must have been enduring – what they all must have been enduring. The answer to their question wouldn’t be solved with a simple yes or no; the decision would alter their futures forever. The decision could take away their future forever. Were they willing to give it up?

“I… I don’t want to live the rest of my life regretting,” Baekhyun admitted as he pulled his knees to his chest. “What if were to all go wrong? People are going to die, that’s inevitable, but what if… what the people that died…”

They all knew what he was going to say next.

“If we’re going to stand idly by, we’re all going to be separated in the future and never see each other again, anyways – isn’t that almost the same thing as dying?” Chanyeol asked. He wrapped his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and pulled the small male close to him. “But with this… we have a chance. Mihyun’s giving us a chance.”

“Would we be fools for not taking it?” Jongin asked quietly. “Or for taking it?”

A somber silence engulfed the room once again as each Noye sat there mentally dissecting their thoughts – the consequence, the awards, the tears, the pain, would it all be worth it in the end?

Six heads perked up all at once when they registered the quiet footsteps they recognized all too well, followed by a pair of rather loud, heavy ones. Sure enough, Mihyun eventually appeared at the front gate of the cage with a stranger beside her.

Sehun let out a low growl as he stared at the unfamiliar man standing at Mihyun’s side. Who the hell was he? And why did he think he had the right to stand close enough to Sehun’s master?

His anger was quickly erased when Mihyun’s soft voice floated into his ears, and he found himself bounding towards her like an eager puppy. “I’ve brought you guys breakfast.”

Before Mihyun could even reach into her bag to pull out the said meal, Sehun had already wrapped his hand around the girl’s tiny wrist, and yanked her over to his side. “Who is he?” he almost snarled as he made eye contact with the faced man in front of him.

“Sehun,” Mihyun’s sharp tone was enough to serve as a scold for the boy, and he backed down with a frown carved into his face. “This is Kris.”

Kris could almost feel the hostility radiating from not only the man named Sehun, but from almost every other man in the room as well. He had been more than surprised when Mihyun’s ‘friends’ consisted completely of the opposite gender, and even more when they ended up being Noyes as well.

“I don’t want to know his name, I want to know what he’s doing here,” another man other than Sehun growled in his direction.

“Jongin,” Mihyun stated warningly.

Kris almost chuckled out at how Jongin immediately turned his head to the smaller boy besides him. “Why’d she have to bring someone with her, Kyungsoo?” he whined in a hushed tone. It seemed as if she had all of them on a fairly short leash.

“What are you smirking at? Think you’re better than us?” another asked. The deep voice startled Kris for a few seconds, and his eyes zeroed in on the baby faced man who spoke them. If he hadn’t been set with such a childish face, Kris bet he would have almost felt threatened by the man’s deep voice and challenging height.

“Will you guys stop treating him so badly?” Mihyun frowned as she smacked the tall man gently against the arm.

“That hurts, Mihyun,” the tall one quickly pouted as he rubbed his arm. “Baekhyun! Mihyun hit me!”

Kris’s line of sight then turned to the small male besides him and he bit his lip to stop himself from cooing at the man, if he could even call him one.

“That’s what you get, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun scolded the taller before turning to Kris with a bright smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Kris nodded his head, not daring to allow himself to speak any words in the fear of making a fool out of himself.

Baekhyun frowned at the giant’s lack of friendliness, but shrugged it off. He didn’t blame  Kris for being so tense when all the others were practically glaring him down.

 “Do you remember the Noye rebellion I told you all about a few days ago?” Mihyun asked in a hushed voice, not wanting any other Noyes or guards to hear the information she was about to say.

“Don’t tell me…” Baekhyun gasped as his eyes darted to the tall male.

Mihyun smiled, not needing to say anymore words to get the others to understand just who Kris was. She crossed her arms and gazed into the eyes of each of the 6 boys. “Now tell me. Are you still not willing to change your own fate?”