"Kyungsoo." ... "Kyungsoo!" Tao calls a little more forcefully after getting no response from the addressee.

"Huh, what?" Kyungsoo shakes himself out of the stupor the bright lights and bedazzled people had put him in.

"I just wanted to remind you one last time to be on your best behavior.  I will be unable to remain with you throughout the duration of this tedious event, so I expect you to behave properly and remember everything that I have taught you. Do not allow anyone to ruffle your feathers and you will be fine."

"Don't worry, I shall remain unfazed to everything anyone says to me!" Kyungsoo responds enthusiastically, eager to get inside and observe the people up close.

"I am so sure." Tao replies, but with a sigh, he realizes that Kyungsoo has once again stopped listening to anything he is saying.  "Shall we proceed?"

Kyungsoo nods his head eagerly, walking towards the manor at a pace that Tao did not know he was capable of.

As the two of them step into the building, they are immediately greeted by a row of Lord Xi's servants who proceed to take their cloaks and offer them wine and various small finger foods that all have Kyungsoo's eyes getting bigger and bigger.  Tao declines all services, but Kyungsoo, the eager high school student he is, happily takes a glass of a deep red wine offered to him, sipping on it tentatively as he follows Tao the rest of the way in.

Before the two of them make it to the main hall where the majority of the guests seem to be located, they stop just short of the entrance way.

"Lord Xi, thank you for the invitation," Tao intones, folding into a very elegant and well-rehearsed bow.  Kyungsoo follows his example and executes a far less gracefull bow of his own.

"Tao, it is wonderful to see you, as always," Lord Xi greets warmly as he clasps Tao's elbow in a familiar gesture. "And who is your lovely companion?" he questions, looking to Kyungsoo for the first time.

As he meets Lord Xi's eyes, Kyungsoo is struck by how pretty the nobleman is.  His eyes are almost as large as his own, his nose is small and delicate, and his pretty flower lips are full and pink.  Kyungsoo can't help but be reminded of all of the pretty boys that are popular in kpop in his own world. 

"Lord Xi, allow me to introduce Do Kyungsoo.  He has been sent to the palace by his father in hopes that he will lose some of his country demeanor and become slightly more...refined." Kyungsoo can tell that Tao is making fun of him, but it apparently goes over Lord Xi's head.

"Do Kyungsoo, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Lord Xi takes Kyungsoo's hand into his own warm one and bows slightly.

"I am equally thrilled to meet you," Kyungsoo responds, hoping Tao won't kill him later for his probable lack of etiquette. 

"I will hold your attention no longer, Lord Xi. I am sure you have other guests to attend to." Tao says after Kyungsoo's hand has been relinquished.

"Yes, of course Tao. I shall see you again later?" Lord Xi questions. It's supposed to be a simple formality, but Kyungsoo can't help but to think he sees a hint of longing in his doe eyes as he says it.

Tao's lips tug up subtly at the corners. "It would be my pleasure."

And with one final, polite bow, the two of them continue on into the herd of people.

Kyungsoo is swept up in the crowd faster than he could ever have anticipated.  Suddenly Tao is no longer by his side and he is left alone to navigate the sea of people and politics.  He's suddenly nervous as the realization of his situation sinks in.  He's never been to a party before, and now he's at one for wealthy nobleman in a totally different world. He has no understanding of social etiquette, not really, and he has no idea what he is supposed to do with himself.

He can feel the edges of panic creeping up his sides.  Kyungsoo tries to take a few deep breaths to calm himself down, but the air he is taking in is hot and thick with the various perfumes and colognes that create a sickly sweet atmosphere.  Dizzy with anxiety and unable to breathe, Kyungsoo looks around him frantically to find an empty place to regain his senses.  Spotting a recessed area of the wall, Kyungsoo gives himself a quick and encouraging fistpump before beginning to weave through the crowd.  Under normal circumstances, Kyungsoo is often annoyed with his lack of height and small frame, but at the moment, he feels as if he is truly blessed with his stature as it allows him to more nimbly navigate the crowd.

Sooner than he thought, but still too long for his liking, Kyungsoo finds himself on the edge of the mass of bodies, nestled into the alcove that he had been aiming for.  Leaning against the wall, he takes a much needed deep breath.  The air that fills his lungs now is cool and without the presence of other humans.  Allowing the coolness of the stones to spread through his body, Kyungsoo begins to relax and his anxiety begins to fade.

His eyes are shut and the ambient noise is very loud, which is why, he guesses, that he doesn't notice the person approaching him.

"Hello," a velvety voice vibrates too close to his ear.

Releasing an unmanly squeal, Kyungsoo jumps away from the sound and slams his shoulder into the wall way too hard.

"Mother er!" He exclaims as he rubs his shoulder. "What the hell was that for!?"

He turns to see a bemused expression on the man's face.

"Uh, I mean...hello?" Now Kyungsoo feels embarrassed. Not only did he completely neglect to utilize all of the training Tao has put him through, he managed to make a complete fool of himself in front of this stranger, who, holy , is quite attractive.

Well, maybe the handsome stranger thinks it's endearing considering he's grinning quite widely, his chocolate brown eyes crinkled in amusement.

"Well hello to you too," the stranger's smile doesn't fade. "I'm Kim Jongin," he introduces as he extends his hand.

"Um, Do Kyungsoo," Kyungsoo puts his hand into the stranger's, expecting a handshake. What he did not expect was for Kim Jongin to bring his knuckles to his lips and kiss them in greeting.

Attempting to keep the blush off of his face, Kyungsoo pulls his hand back and allows it to dangle awkwardly at his side.

"I do not believe I have ever had the pleasure of meeting you before, Do Kyungsoo. I like to think I would remember if I had. It is not often I forget a face, especially one as handsome as yours."

He has to fight harder to keep the red from tingeing his cheeks, recalling his promise to Tao to remain unaffected by anything anybody says to him. "I just moved here recently, actually. I'm from out of town." Kyungsoo thinks that's an understatement if ever he's heard one.

"You are certainly an exotic beauty," Jongin leans in and brushes a stray lock of Kyungsoo's vivid red hair out of his face.

"Yes, well," Kyungsoo takes a step back, uncomfortable at how direct this Kim Jongin is. Clearing his throat, Kyungsoo looks around for an escape, but finds one unnecessary when Lord Xi approaches them.

"Ah, Kim Jongin, just the man I was looking for!  Ambassador Park wishes to speak with you. I do believe that he can be found over by the drink table in the far corner of the room."

"He cannot be a moment without my presence!" Jongin declares dramatically, but Kyungsoo notices that the smile he has on his face now is much more boyish this time around, and a whole lot less sensual.

"Please forgive, him, he is truly a sweet boy." Lord Xi says once Kim Jongin is fully out of earshot.

"Is he always so...direct?" Kyungsoo finally allows himself to blush, feeling comfortable around the Lord.

"That is just his style. He is an ambassador from the Seon dynasty. It is quite literally in his job description to be flirtatious and charming. But as I said, he is actually a fairly dopey child. You have nothing to be intimidated about, either, he has no interest in you.  Truthfully, he and his fellow ambassador, Park Chanyeol are inseperable."

"Ah," Kyungsoo breathes out a sigh of relief, feeling a lot better about the fairly awkward encounter. "Thank you, Lord Xi."

"Please, simply call me Luhan."

Kyungsoo knew there was a reason he liked this guy, more than just his pretty face that is. "Well then, thank you Luhan.  I was not at all sure how I was going to get out of that situation."

"Yes, well," Luhan joins him in leaning against the wall and watching the people around them. "Tao told me that you may not have the easiest time navigating these social waters."

Kyungsoo shrugs, choosing not to answer, but to instead continue to observe the people move, and dance, and engage in small talk as they all tried to make themselves seem more important than their companions.  Besides, he has the sneaking suspicion that Luhan knows more than he's letting on.

The two of them continue in comfortable silence for a few minutes longer. That is, until the figures of Yi Fan and Yixing drift into view.  The two of them are talking with each other animatedly.  Yi Fan apparently says something that Yixing disagrees with because now he's pouting up at him cutely.  Yi Fan holds his stern gaze a moment longer, but sooner than Kyungsoo predicted, his expression is softening and he's agreeing with whatever it is Yixing wants.

"They get along remarkably well, all things considering." Luhan breaks their silence.

"What does that mean?" Kyungsoo inquires curiously, eyes still locked on the pair.

"The royal line has a very interesting family dynamic.  The King's wife is Yixing's mother, but Yi Fan is the illegitimate son of one of his courtesans.  When the King found out about Yi Fan's mother's pregnancy, he determined to keep the child, as he was without an heir anyway.  Yi Fan's mother stayed in the picture for a few years, but there was always quite a bit of tension between her and the Queen, though the Queen did her best to remain civil.  Yi Fan's mother always had quite a fiery temper, which I suppose is where the prince gets his own from.

"Anyway, shortly after Yixing was born, Yi Fan's mother simply vanished. No one truly knows what happened to her, though it is suspected that she was murdered; she really did not have a wonderful reputation.  After her disappearance, the Queen decided to officially adopt Yi Fan as her own son, and he became the legal heir to the throne.  You would think that Yixing would be resentful of Yi Fan. Afterall, under normal circumstances the throne would belong to him, but as you can see, this is not the case.  Yixing loves his older brother and Yi Fan in turn thinks the world of his sibling.  The two are closer than one could imagine when taking into consideration how much their mothers hated each other."

"I think it probably has something to do with Yixing's undeniably sweet disposition." Kyungsoo adds, thoughtfully considering the story he was just told.  Now that he is aware of the fact that the two are only half brothers, the differences in their facial features becomes a lot more apparent.

"Yes, I do believe that you are right about that.  He balances out Yi Fan nicely."

"Yes, the crown prince doesn't have the most charming personality." Kyungsoo mutters.

When he hears a snigger come from Luhan instead of a proper response, Kyungsoo lifts his head to look over at him, but is instead confronted with the scowling face of Yi Fan.

"Speak of the devil, and he will appear."

"I thought that we had determined we would try better to get along?" Yi Fan inquires in the most civil way he knows how as Yixing strides over to Kyungsoo and slings an arm around his shoulders.

"Must've slipped my mind.  Hey, Yixing."

Luhan's sniggering turns into an all out guffaw.

"Oh, Yi Fan, I see you have at long last met your match!"

Kyungsoo is taken aback by Luhan's casual means of addressing his nation's crown prince, but he is even further surprised when Yi Fan smiles at him in response.

"I didn't know you could smile!" Kyungsoo exclaims. "Yixing, why didn't you tell me he has a sense of humor!"

"Maybe if you were not constantly provoking me, you would have discovered this far sooner." Yi Fan's grumpy demeanor has returned.

"Somehow, I seriously doubt that. Besides, you're the one who started all of this nonsense." Kyungsoo retorts.

"It was an honest mistake."

"One for which I had to literally force an apology out of you."

"Yixing, shall we leave them to their lover's quarrel?" Luhan asks Yixing, taking his arm in his and sauntering out of the alcove and back into the crowd, completely unnoticed by either Kyungsoo or Yi Fan as they continue to bicker.

A/N:

Wow guys, I'm sorry it's been nearly a month since I last updated. I'm a mess, I'm well aware. The days and weeks are just blurring together, and time is passing scarily fast.

I hope that this chapter appeases you though. Please leave me many comments as they fill my heart with joy. I love each and every one of you, and I hope you continue to stick with me despite the fact that my updates are few and far between.