A Knight of Fire 15/?
Title: A Knight of Fire 15/?
Pairing: Yunho/Jaejoong, Yoochun/Junsu, Changmin/Junho, Heechul/Yoohwan
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: They aren't mine and I can't even claim the idea as mine because it is all devilaugh's fault.
Summary: Jaejoong is a scribe in King Ahn Chilhyun's court. He is sent to small seaside village to teach the people how to read, and instead finds a lover who has a secret that will end up endangering the entire world.
A/N: This fic is all devilaugh's fault. It was her idea on the post about the picture of Jaejoong, so this fic was partially inspired by this picture
Part 15:
Fanfic poster by back_to_five!!! Perfection! <3 <3
By the time they arrived near the Air Knights Village, Junsu and Yoochun had learned to control their powers together. Yunho worked with Yoochun also, but the combination of air and fire was so destructive that they stopped before they hurt each other or someone else. They traveled steadily across the plains for days, over tracks in the ground barely considered roads. Clouds tossed rain at them intermittently and a steady stream of wind and breezes tossed their hair and clothes about.
After more than a week, homesteads appeared. The Plains turned to cultivated squares with irrigation ditches and fences, and herds of animals roamed through the pastures. The people working in the fields stared at them in distrust and said nothing to them.
“Why are they so suspicious?” Jaejoong murmured.
“Home sweet home,” Yoochun said and pointed ahead of them.
Roofs and towers from buildings appeared just above the next hill. They could not see details of the village yet, still a few hours ahead of them, over and around hillocks and valleys. They crossed three streams that Junsu said tumbled toward the main river that cut across their country.
Near the village, but between the village and the last farm homestead, Yoochun told Junsu to stop the horse. “I am not going farther than this. I have been chased from this place once already, I will not go again.”
Yoohwan smiled at his brother, moved his horse close and gripped his shoulder. “Where is the History Book?”
“Still in the attic, in its hiding place.”
“I will get it. You do not have to go into the town.” Yoohwan dismounted and handed the reins to his brother. “We need two more horses, so it is better to go in without them. Lead the rest of them around the town. I will meet with you on the other side.”
“You should not go alone,” Junsu said.
“I will go with you,” Jaejoong said.
“And Yunho, for protection,” Junho added. “No offense, Jaejoong-hyung, but you are not good with a sword.”
“I am very good with Yunho’s sword.”
Yoochun and Junho laughed.
“It will take longer to walk into the village from here,” Jaejoong said even as he climbed from his horse. Yunho followed suit and gathered a few of their bags. He rearranged some supplies before hefting two bags onto his back and giving the other to Junsu.
“It is early in the morning. We will be done before supper,” Yoohwan assured.
“Tell Heechul I said to fuck off,” Yoochun said and turned his head, pressing his face between Junsu’s shoulders.
“You can ride your own horse now, hyung,” Yoohwan said.
Yoochun smiled and let his hands drop along Junsu’s front. “No fun in that.”
Junsu snorted and shifted his arms until Yoochun smiled and put his hands demurely around his waist. Junho was the first to move, pressing his knees into the sides of Yunho’s horse. Jaejoong’s horse trotted behind them.
“Be safe and respect the tides,” Junho said.
Yunho nodded. “You, too.”
Yoohwan led the way up the road. Sometime during the previous day, the road had gone from a muddy and dusty swath of land to firmly packed and more easily traversed. With a smile, Yunho held out his hand and Jaejoong chuckled, entwining their fingers. As they walked down the road, breeze blowing around them, it was almost like they had never left the Water Knights Village.
Except for the distrusting glares of the villagers.
The village lay on the opposite side of a river. A bridge stretched over its expanse, and there were a few villagers fishing off its side. Yoohwan said nothing to them, and Jaejoong had to bite his lip and follow his example. He had never met anyone that did not at least say hello to visitors.
One man glared at their joined hands and Jaejoong hastily let go. Yunho frowned over at him, but nodded in understanding. They did not want to attract more attention or unnecessary attention. Especially when they saw their first city guards. Their metal shone in the light, and their horses were adorned with the green and blue banners of the city’s colors.
Jaejoong lifted the hood of his cloak, half obscuring his face. Just in case.
Yoohwan saw them, too, and motioned them to the side of a house. “We’ll stay out of the village square.”
“Where are we going?” Jaejoong asked.
“Heechul’s,” Yoohwan said and smiled. “It is much safer if I move around by myself. I look different enough than I did when I left that fewer people will recognize me. And with soldiers here, it is not safe for either of you to be out in the open.”
They wove through dim alleys, away from the sun. Anyone they passed hurried by, eyes on the ground.
“Have people always been like this?” Jaejoong asked.
Yoohwan nodded. “We are very private people. Do not ask questions. It is not your business. Of course, that did not mean that the villagers kept their mouths shut. You can say anything about anyone behind closed doors, but we only talk to each other when we need to.”
“That is so very strange,” Yunho said.
Yoohwan smirked over his shoulder. “Imagine how it was leaving this place and suddenly having people come up and talk to you. That was difficult for Yoochun and me to get used to.”
They walked deeper into the village. The houses were closer together, some even sharing walls. How could you be so close to your neighbor and yet ignore them on the street?
At one house, Yoohwan walked up rickety steps to a door. The neighbor’s door was only a few inches from this one. He knocked softly, and in a pattern. When no one came to the door, he tried a bit louder. The window on the neighbor’s house shifted.
Yoohwan took a deep breath and knocked again.
This time, the door flew open, answered by a man wearing nothing more than breeches tied low at his hips. His hair was auburn, almost red, and long, blowing in the breeze and brushing almost to his stomach. He was skinny but muscled. A deep scar cut over his side. His bright blue eyes widened in shock.
“Hwannie.” It was a whisper of breath, awed and confused.
“Hi hyung,” Yoohwan said just before he was yanked forward, against the man’s chest, and hugged tightly. His face pressed almost into his stomach since he was standing one stair lower.
“God, Hwannie, what the hell? Where the hell have you been? What the fuck?”
Yoohwan laughed. “Can we come inside?”
The man looked at Jaejoong and Yunho. His eyes widened further. “They are--”
“Inside, hyung, please.”
“Fuck, you are going to get me killed.”
Yoohwan laughed and pushed him backwards. The man let him, and Jaejoong and Yunho followed them into the house. The door shut behind them with a thud, and another thud echoed around them as Yoohwan pinned the man to the wall and kissed him.
The man’s protest was muffled for only a moment and then he relaxed, let one hand slide up into Yoohwan’s hair, cupping the back of his head, and the other curled around his waist. They kissed for a moment before the control went from Yoohwan to the other and then Yoohwan shivered in his hold, pressing closer. They kissed until Jaejoong cleared his throat.
Yoohwan pulled back slowly, smiling at the man. “Been dreaming about that.”
The man rolled his eyes, but he was smiling too. “Where have you been? And why the fuck have you brought fugitives into my house?”
Yoohwan took a very deep breath. “Can I trust you, hyung?”
His eyes flashed with anger and the growled. “You ask me that? You dare to ask me that?”
Yoohwan laughed and covered his mouth. “Yes, I dare. You are the one that told everyone about my brother, remember?”
“Yes, well, your brother is an idiot. If I had known that it meant that you were going to leave for eight fucking years, then I would have kept my mouth shut.”
“You are a bit of an idiot, too, hyung.”
He snorted.
With a wide smile, Yoohwan pressed one more kiss against his lips, and then turned around in his arms, leaning against his body. “Hyung, this is Kim Jaejoong, former King’s Scribe, and Jung Yunho, A Knight of Fire. Guys, this is Heechul.”
“It is nice to meet you,” Jaejoong said. “Yoohwan talks favorably about you.”
Heechul snorted again. “They are fugitives. There are guards here with their pictures. They killed an entire battalion of soldiers.”
“They did not, but I am sure that they could. Yunho-hyung anyway. Jaejoong is just a scribe.”
“Knowledge is power,” Jaejoong said with a pout, making Yoohwan laugh.
“So what do you need?” Heechul asked, turning Yoohwan back around in his arms. “If this is all you came for, you would have come alone.”
Yoohwan smiled. “And if we were alone ...”
“I am not sure that not being alone will matter right now.” His hands slipped lower, yanking Yoohwan against him by his ass.
“I need to go to my house and collect some things that my brother did not bring with us. We need them. I need you to let Jaejoong and Yunho stay here until I get back.”
“You want me to harbor fugitives.”
“Please, hyung. We will be gone before sunset.”
Heechul shook his head and shoved him away. “To follow your bitch of a brother. Fuck you, then. I will not be used.”
“Hyung.”
Heechul ignored him, disappearing up a rickety set of stairs.
Yoohwan shut his eyes and took a very deep breath. “Well, stay here,” he said. He waved away Yunho’s protest. “I will be back.”
“But-”
“Heechul will keep his mouth shut.”
There was another loud snort from up the stairs.
Yoohwan smiled and turned around left. The old door clacked against its frame with a finality that Jaejoong did not like. They stood in the tiny eating room, the hearth bare, the table covered in dust. To their left was a sitting room with two rockers and another fire. Again, the hearth was cold. Unused. Beyond a window and the set of stairs, there was not much else.
Footsteps fell on the stairs and Heechul reemerged. He had put on a bright red tunic covered in embroidered flowers and vines. His long hair had been tamed and twisted up onto his head. He stared at them for a moment, sneered, and left the house.
“Well, that was unexpected,” Yunho said and moved to the sitting room. He put their bags down and sat carefully in the chair and Jaejoong moved next to him, but sat, not in the chair, but on the floor. There was a small table and Jaejoong pulled it closer and took out his book and his quill.
He read through all of his notes twice, leaning against Yunho’s legs.
“I have been thinking about this,” Yunho said suddenly, pointing to a passage about the destruction of the Fire Knights Village.
Jaejoong nodded. “I think of little else.” He turned his head and smiled widely up at Yunho.
“What?”
“A fisherman from the coast can read the King’s Language.”
“Brat,” Yunho said. “I had a good teacher.” He leaned down and pressed their lips together. He wanted to climb up into Yunho’s lap, but he did not think that chair would hold both of them. They broke apart and smiled before turning back to Jaejoong’s notes.
“And remember what Yoochun said,” Yunho said, “that it was not an accident.”
“I wish we knew where the Fire Knights Village was so we could go investigate.”
“Dangerous.”
“Everything lately has been dangerous.”
There was a loud sneeze from the other side of the wall, and they met each other’s eyes.
“Perhaps we should not discuss this here,” Jaejoong whispered.
Yunho nodded.
Jaejoong kept his eyes on his notes, tapping the end of the quill on his lips as he thought of that. Yoochun had said he thought blackmail was involved. Why had Jaejoong not talked to him further about this? They had the time now. It was the first question he would ask the Knight of Air when they saw each other again. If they were not being chased out of town, that is.
Was Yoohwan all right? Had he gotten to his house safely? How would his parents treat him?
And then he started worrying about Changmin. Changmin had said in his letter that he would leave before he was discovered, but it sounded like that had not happened. It sounded like Changmin was a captured. So what was going to happen? If the city and the castle had been closed off, like Miyavi had said, there was no way they could rescue him. Even with the elementals, Jaejoong did not think they could hold off the entire King’s Army.
But they were so powerful. Especially Yunho and Yoochun. The fire they created together burned hotter than any hearth.
Fingers brushed down his neck.
“You are worrying about something, Scribe-of-Mine,” Yunho whispered.
Jaejoong nodded. “The usual.” He leaned into the touches on his neck and cheek, turned his head and leaned his cheek against Yunho’s thigh. “How long do you think we will be left alone?” he asked, walking his fingertips up Yunho’s leg.
Yunho inhaled sharply, cock twitching in his breeches. “Not long enough,” he whispered, ending on a gasp as Jaejoong gripped him through his pants.
“Long enough,” Jaejoong pressed, rising up to his knees, “for me to pleasure you?”
“Gods, no. What if ...”
A door opened and slammed and Jaejoong jerked away from him, but it had been the neighbor’s door. Jaejoong chuckled and resettled against Yunho’s legs. “Fine, fine. But I owe you.”
Yunho groaned and nodded. “Tonight.”
“If we are not running for our lives.”
“Yeah. Tonight.”
_-/^/^¯^\^\-_
It was hours later before Yoohwan returned. Yunho and Jaejoong had eaten rations and took turns sleeping for a little while. Heechul remained absent.
Yoohwan had a cut on his cheek and he seemed out of breath.
“Gods, nothing good comes from you being bloody and gasping,” Jaejoong said.
Yoohwan smiled. “No worries. Just ... just my mother.”
Jaejoong frowned as he wiped at the blood on his face. “Your mother hit you.”
“When I told her I was leaving, betraying her again, leaving with my demon brother. The usual.” His eyes shut and he took a deep breath.
“What else happened?”
Yoohwan bit his lip and a tear fell from his cheek. Jaejoong continued to clean the wound and waited until Yoohwan whispered, “My father died, just last year. My mother is not ... she is not handling that very well.”
“I am sorry,” Jaejoong said.
“Heechul is not here?”
“He left right after you did,” Yunho said. “He has not been back.”
“We better go,” Yoohwan said. “I may trust him, but he has broken that trust before.”
Jaejoong moved away and helped Yunho pack up their things. The three of them left the house in the same state of disarray that they had found it. Two horses waited in the alley for them, and Yoohwan rubbed the mare’s neck and pressed his face to her side. He took a very deep breath and led them through the winding alleys.
“Leaving without saying goodbye again,” a voice said to their left.
They jerked to the side, but it was only Heechul, leaning against the wall of a dilapidated barn.
Yoohwan took a step to him and then stopped. “Come with me.”
“No, thank you.”
“Hyung.”
“I will not follow your idiot brother to my death. I already said that once.”
Jaejoong touched Yoohwan’s arm and nodded. Yoohwan looked over at him and Jaejoong knew that he just knew what the look meant.
“Keep following this road,” Yoohwan said. “When you get to the broken well, go west. That trail will lead you out of town. Just keep going until you find the others. Ride the horses now. Just in case you need to hurry.”
Jaejoong nodded.
Yoohwan smiled and gave Jaejoong the reins of the horses. Yunho mounted the stallion and Jaejoong climbed onto the back of the mare.
Yoohwan went right up to Heechul and kissed him, much like he had the first time, and Heechul stayed frozen until finally relaxing and pulling him closer. When his hands dipped into Yoohwan’s breeches, Jaejoong knew the two of them were going to do much more than kiss.
He smiled at Yunho and clucked the horse forward, following Yoohwan’s instructions.
Part 16: Flurry
Part 14: Sizzle
Part 13: Storm
Part 12: Tempest
Part 11: Blow
(Part 10: Soak) | (Part 9: Blaze) | (Part 8: Hot) | (Part 7: Rekindle) | (Part 6: Bloom) | (Part 5: Sprout) | (Part 4: Burn) | (Part 3: Flicker) | (Part 2: Flare) | (Part 1: Spark)
.
Pairing: Yunho/Jaejoong, Yoochun/Junsu, Changmin/Junho, Heechul/Yoohwan
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: They aren't mine and I can't even claim the idea as mine because it is all devilaugh's fault.
Summary: Jaejoong is a scribe in King Ahn Chilhyun's court. He is sent to small seaside village to teach the people how to read, and instead finds a lover who has a secret that will end up endangering the entire world.
A/N: This fic is all devilaugh's fault. It was her idea on the post about the picture of Jaejoong, so this fic was partially inspired by this picture
Part 15:
Fanfic poster by back_to_five!!! Perfection! <3 <3
By the time they arrived near the Air Knights Village, Junsu and Yoochun had learned to control their powers together. Yunho worked with Yoochun also, but the combination of air and fire was so destructive that they stopped before they hurt each other or someone else. They traveled steadily across the plains for days, over tracks in the ground barely considered roads. Clouds tossed rain at them intermittently and a steady stream of wind and breezes tossed their hair and clothes about.
After more than a week, homesteads appeared. The Plains turned to cultivated squares with irrigation ditches and fences, and herds of animals roamed through the pastures. The people working in the fields stared at them in distrust and said nothing to them.
“Why are they so suspicious?” Jaejoong murmured.
“Home sweet home,” Yoochun said and pointed ahead of them.
Roofs and towers from buildings appeared just above the next hill. They could not see details of the village yet, still a few hours ahead of them, over and around hillocks and valleys. They crossed three streams that Junsu said tumbled toward the main river that cut across their country.
Near the village, but between the village and the last farm homestead, Yoochun told Junsu to stop the horse. “I am not going farther than this. I have been chased from this place once already, I will not go again.”
Yoohwan smiled at his brother, moved his horse close and gripped his shoulder. “Where is the History Book?”
“Still in the attic, in its hiding place.”
“I will get it. You do not have to go into the town.” Yoohwan dismounted and handed the reins to his brother. “We need two more horses, so it is better to go in without them. Lead the rest of them around the town. I will meet with you on the other side.”
“You should not go alone,” Junsu said.
“I will go with you,” Jaejoong said.
“And Yunho, for protection,” Junho added. “No offense, Jaejoong-hyung, but you are not good with a sword.”
“I am very good with Yunho’s sword.”
Yoochun and Junho laughed.
“It will take longer to walk into the village from here,” Jaejoong said even as he climbed from his horse. Yunho followed suit and gathered a few of their bags. He rearranged some supplies before hefting two bags onto his back and giving the other to Junsu.
“It is early in the morning. We will be done before supper,” Yoohwan assured.
“Tell Heechul I said to fuck off,” Yoochun said and turned his head, pressing his face between Junsu’s shoulders.
“You can ride your own horse now, hyung,” Yoohwan said.
Yoochun smiled and let his hands drop along Junsu’s front. “No fun in that.”
Junsu snorted and shifted his arms until Yoochun smiled and put his hands demurely around his waist. Junho was the first to move, pressing his knees into the sides of Yunho’s horse. Jaejoong’s horse trotted behind them.
“Be safe and respect the tides,” Junho said.
Yunho nodded. “You, too.”
Yoohwan led the way up the road. Sometime during the previous day, the road had gone from a muddy and dusty swath of land to firmly packed and more easily traversed. With a smile, Yunho held out his hand and Jaejoong chuckled, entwining their fingers. As they walked down the road, breeze blowing around them, it was almost like they had never left the Water Knights Village.
Except for the distrusting glares of the villagers.
The village lay on the opposite side of a river. A bridge stretched over its expanse, and there were a few villagers fishing off its side. Yoohwan said nothing to them, and Jaejoong had to bite his lip and follow his example. He had never met anyone that did not at least say hello to visitors.
One man glared at their joined hands and Jaejoong hastily let go. Yunho frowned over at him, but nodded in understanding. They did not want to attract more attention or unnecessary attention. Especially when they saw their first city guards. Their metal shone in the light, and their horses were adorned with the green and blue banners of the city’s colors.
Jaejoong lifted the hood of his cloak, half obscuring his face. Just in case.
Yoohwan saw them, too, and motioned them to the side of a house. “We’ll stay out of the village square.”
“Where are we going?” Jaejoong asked.
“Heechul’s,” Yoohwan said and smiled. “It is much safer if I move around by myself. I look different enough than I did when I left that fewer people will recognize me. And with soldiers here, it is not safe for either of you to be out in the open.”
They wove through dim alleys, away from the sun. Anyone they passed hurried by, eyes on the ground.
“Have people always been like this?” Jaejoong asked.
Yoohwan nodded. “We are very private people. Do not ask questions. It is not your business. Of course, that did not mean that the villagers kept their mouths shut. You can say anything about anyone behind closed doors, but we only talk to each other when we need to.”
“That is so very strange,” Yunho said.
Yoohwan smirked over his shoulder. “Imagine how it was leaving this place and suddenly having people come up and talk to you. That was difficult for Yoochun and me to get used to.”
They walked deeper into the village. The houses were closer together, some even sharing walls. How could you be so close to your neighbor and yet ignore them on the street?
At one house, Yoohwan walked up rickety steps to a door. The neighbor’s door was only a few inches from this one. He knocked softly, and in a pattern. When no one came to the door, he tried a bit louder. The window on the neighbor’s house shifted.
Yoohwan took a deep breath and knocked again.
This time, the door flew open, answered by a man wearing nothing more than breeches tied low at his hips. His hair was auburn, almost red, and long, blowing in the breeze and brushing almost to his stomach. He was skinny but muscled. A deep scar cut over his side. His bright blue eyes widened in shock.
“Hwannie.” It was a whisper of breath, awed and confused.
“Hi hyung,” Yoohwan said just before he was yanked forward, against the man’s chest, and hugged tightly. His face pressed almost into his stomach since he was standing one stair lower.
“God, Hwannie, what the hell? Where the hell have you been? What the fuck?”
Yoohwan laughed. “Can we come inside?”
The man looked at Jaejoong and Yunho. His eyes widened further. “They are--”
“Inside, hyung, please.”
“Fuck, you are going to get me killed.”
Yoohwan laughed and pushed him backwards. The man let him, and Jaejoong and Yunho followed them into the house. The door shut behind them with a thud, and another thud echoed around them as Yoohwan pinned the man to the wall and kissed him.
The man’s protest was muffled for only a moment and then he relaxed, let one hand slide up into Yoohwan’s hair, cupping the back of his head, and the other curled around his waist. They kissed for a moment before the control went from Yoohwan to the other and then Yoohwan shivered in his hold, pressing closer. They kissed until Jaejoong cleared his throat.
Yoohwan pulled back slowly, smiling at the man. “Been dreaming about that.”
The man rolled his eyes, but he was smiling too. “Where have you been? And why the fuck have you brought fugitives into my house?”
Yoohwan took a very deep breath. “Can I trust you, hyung?”
His eyes flashed with anger and the growled. “You ask me that? You dare to ask me that?”
Yoohwan laughed and covered his mouth. “Yes, I dare. You are the one that told everyone about my brother, remember?”
“Yes, well, your brother is an idiot. If I had known that it meant that you were going to leave for eight fucking years, then I would have kept my mouth shut.”
“You are a bit of an idiot, too, hyung.”
He snorted.
With a wide smile, Yoohwan pressed one more kiss against his lips, and then turned around in his arms, leaning against his body. “Hyung, this is Kim Jaejoong, former King’s Scribe, and Jung Yunho, A Knight of Fire. Guys, this is Heechul.”
“It is nice to meet you,” Jaejoong said. “Yoohwan talks favorably about you.”
Heechul snorted again. “They are fugitives. There are guards here with their pictures. They killed an entire battalion of soldiers.”
“They did not, but I am sure that they could. Yunho-hyung anyway. Jaejoong is just a scribe.”
“Knowledge is power,” Jaejoong said with a pout, making Yoohwan laugh.
“So what do you need?” Heechul asked, turning Yoohwan back around in his arms. “If this is all you came for, you would have come alone.”
Yoohwan smiled. “And if we were alone ...”
“I am not sure that not being alone will matter right now.” His hands slipped lower, yanking Yoohwan against him by his ass.
“I need to go to my house and collect some things that my brother did not bring with us. We need them. I need you to let Jaejoong and Yunho stay here until I get back.”
“You want me to harbor fugitives.”
“Please, hyung. We will be gone before sunset.”
Heechul shook his head and shoved him away. “To follow your bitch of a brother. Fuck you, then. I will not be used.”
“Hyung.”
Heechul ignored him, disappearing up a rickety set of stairs.
Yoohwan shut his eyes and took a very deep breath. “Well, stay here,” he said. He waved away Yunho’s protest. “I will be back.”
“But-”
“Heechul will keep his mouth shut.”
There was another loud snort from up the stairs.
Yoohwan smiled and turned around left. The old door clacked against its frame with a finality that Jaejoong did not like. They stood in the tiny eating room, the hearth bare, the table covered in dust. To their left was a sitting room with two rockers and another fire. Again, the hearth was cold. Unused. Beyond a window and the set of stairs, there was not much else.
Footsteps fell on the stairs and Heechul reemerged. He had put on a bright red tunic covered in embroidered flowers and vines. His long hair had been tamed and twisted up onto his head. He stared at them for a moment, sneered, and left the house.
“Well, that was unexpected,” Yunho said and moved to the sitting room. He put their bags down and sat carefully in the chair and Jaejoong moved next to him, but sat, not in the chair, but on the floor. There was a small table and Jaejoong pulled it closer and took out his book and his quill.
He read through all of his notes twice, leaning against Yunho’s legs.
“I have been thinking about this,” Yunho said suddenly, pointing to a passage about the destruction of the Fire Knights Village.
Jaejoong nodded. “I think of little else.” He turned his head and smiled widely up at Yunho.
“What?”
“A fisherman from the coast can read the King’s Language.”
“Brat,” Yunho said. “I had a good teacher.” He leaned down and pressed their lips together. He wanted to climb up into Yunho’s lap, but he did not think that chair would hold both of them. They broke apart and smiled before turning back to Jaejoong’s notes.
“And remember what Yoochun said,” Yunho said, “that it was not an accident.”
“I wish we knew where the Fire Knights Village was so we could go investigate.”
“Dangerous.”
“Everything lately has been dangerous.”
There was a loud sneeze from the other side of the wall, and they met each other’s eyes.
“Perhaps we should not discuss this here,” Jaejoong whispered.
Yunho nodded.
Jaejoong kept his eyes on his notes, tapping the end of the quill on his lips as he thought of that. Yoochun had said he thought blackmail was involved. Why had Jaejoong not talked to him further about this? They had the time now. It was the first question he would ask the Knight of Air when they saw each other again. If they were not being chased out of town, that is.
Was Yoohwan all right? Had he gotten to his house safely? How would his parents treat him?
And then he started worrying about Changmin. Changmin had said in his letter that he would leave before he was discovered, but it sounded like that had not happened. It sounded like Changmin was a captured. So what was going to happen? If the city and the castle had been closed off, like Miyavi had said, there was no way they could rescue him. Even with the elementals, Jaejoong did not think they could hold off the entire King’s Army.
But they were so powerful. Especially Yunho and Yoochun. The fire they created together burned hotter than any hearth.
Fingers brushed down his neck.
“You are worrying about something, Scribe-of-Mine,” Yunho whispered.
Jaejoong nodded. “The usual.” He leaned into the touches on his neck and cheek, turned his head and leaned his cheek against Yunho’s thigh. “How long do you think we will be left alone?” he asked, walking his fingertips up Yunho’s leg.
Yunho inhaled sharply, cock twitching in his breeches. “Not long enough,” he whispered, ending on a gasp as Jaejoong gripped him through his pants.
“Long enough,” Jaejoong pressed, rising up to his knees, “for me to pleasure you?”
“Gods, no. What if ...”
A door opened and slammed and Jaejoong jerked away from him, but it had been the neighbor’s door. Jaejoong chuckled and resettled against Yunho’s legs. “Fine, fine. But I owe you.”
Yunho groaned and nodded. “Tonight.”
“If we are not running for our lives.”
“Yeah. Tonight.”
_-/^/^¯^\^\-_
It was hours later before Yoohwan returned. Yunho and Jaejoong had eaten rations and took turns sleeping for a little while. Heechul remained absent.
Yoohwan had a cut on his cheek and he seemed out of breath.
“Gods, nothing good comes from you being bloody and gasping,” Jaejoong said.
Yoohwan smiled. “No worries. Just ... just my mother.”
Jaejoong frowned as he wiped at the blood on his face. “Your mother hit you.”
“When I told her I was leaving, betraying her again, leaving with my demon brother. The usual.” His eyes shut and he took a deep breath.
“What else happened?”
Yoohwan bit his lip and a tear fell from his cheek. Jaejoong continued to clean the wound and waited until Yoohwan whispered, “My father died, just last year. My mother is not ... she is not handling that very well.”
“I am sorry,” Jaejoong said.
“Heechul is not here?”
“He left right after you did,” Yunho said. “He has not been back.”
“We better go,” Yoohwan said. “I may trust him, but he has broken that trust before.”
Jaejoong moved away and helped Yunho pack up their things. The three of them left the house in the same state of disarray that they had found it. Two horses waited in the alley for them, and Yoohwan rubbed the mare’s neck and pressed his face to her side. He took a very deep breath and led them through the winding alleys.
“Leaving without saying goodbye again,” a voice said to their left.
They jerked to the side, but it was only Heechul, leaning against the wall of a dilapidated barn.
Yoohwan took a step to him and then stopped. “Come with me.”
“No, thank you.”
“Hyung.”
“I will not follow your idiot brother to my death. I already said that once.”
Jaejoong touched Yoohwan’s arm and nodded. Yoohwan looked over at him and Jaejoong knew that he just knew what the look meant.
“Keep following this road,” Yoohwan said. “When you get to the broken well, go west. That trail will lead you out of town. Just keep going until you find the others. Ride the horses now. Just in case you need to hurry.”
Jaejoong nodded.
Yoohwan smiled and gave Jaejoong the reins of the horses. Yunho mounted the stallion and Jaejoong climbed onto the back of the mare.
Yoohwan went right up to Heechul and kissed him, much like he had the first time, and Heechul stayed frozen until finally relaxing and pulling him closer. When his hands dipped into Yoohwan’s breeches, Jaejoong knew the two of them were going to do much more than kiss.
He smiled at Yunho and clucked the horse forward, following Yoohwan’s instructions.
Part 16: Flurry
Part 14: Sizzle
Part 13: Storm
Part 12: Tempest
Part 11: Blow
(Part 10: Soak) | (Part 9: Blaze) | (Part 8: Hot) | (Part 7: Rekindle) | (Part 6: Bloom) | (Part 5: Sprout) | (Part 4: Burn) | (Part 3: Flicker) | (Part 2: Flare) | (Part 1: Spark)
.