In the Prince's Garden - Part Two
The tinkling of the bell as he opened the door would have alerted her to his presence, but she likely had been expecting him anyway. There was a box, plain and unremarkable, bearing nothing more than the symbol of the shop as a mark of her trade on the counter. Her hands worked over a large mass of fabric, expertly pinning pieces together and she nodded to him in greeting. “That there on the counter is yours for your Prince.”
“He will be pleased,” Hangeng replied curtly. “He plans to hold a party tomorrow evening and he would love to show off such fine work.”
“I heard,” she said gently, pausing in her motions. “That there was an incident with his Highness yesterday.”
“Perhaps there was,” Hangeng replied curtly, gathering the box in his arms.
“Maybe it isn’t my place, but I’ve been making clothing for the both of you since he could walk and if there is one thing I know, it is that the Prince needs you now more than ever,” she told him softly.
“What he needs is a good spanking,” Hangeng snapped, then flushed. Statements like that could get him thrown in the dungeon or worse.
“Perhaps so,” she agreed with a smile, turning back to her work. “But something tells me he would enjoy that coming from you.”
Hangeng had no idea what to say to her, so he bowed deeply instead and dealt with the business at hand. “Payment shall be sent to you in the usual fashion. Thank you for your fine work. I’m certain the Prince will appreciate it.”
“And if he doesn’t I’m certain I will hear of that as well.”
-o-o-o-o-o-
The Garden was strangely empty when he walked through it, and that worried him. Although it wasn’t uncommon for one of two of the Prince’s Petals to be bathing or in the private rooms just for their use, never had they all been absent before. He hoped the Prince had not done anything rash in a fit of anger as he was prone to do.
“My Prince,” Hangeng announced himself, bowing over the box in his arms, “I have picked up the clothing you ordered.”
“Place it on the bed,” Heechul said with a wave of his hand, not looking up from his position at the desk in his room, another oddity. Until this point Hangeng had thought the piece of furniture just another flat surface to hold the Prince’s things. Now it was clear save for the stack of books and papers upon it.
“May I ask you a question, your Highness?” Hangeng asked as he deposited the box on the bed as he had been ordered.
“You have never respected protocol, I don’t know why you would start now,” Heechul replied off handedly.
True as they were, the words irked him. “Where have your Petals gone? The Garden seems strangely empty.”
“They have gone wherever I bid them to go,” was the immediate reply.
Hangeng bit down the immediate response that bubbled up in him and settled for something more neutral then accusations. “And where would you have me go?” Hangeng asked.
There was silence for long enough that he wondered if Heechul was really ever going to answer. Finally the man put down the pen he had been writing with and looked at Hangeng. “One of my Petals, you have never been. A wild cat that I have foolishly tried to tame, perhaps, but a Petal, never.”
Although the words were truth, it was somewhat of a shock to hear the admission flow from Heechul’s mouth. They had always operated under the pretense that he was one of Heechul’s Petals and no one had ever questioned that, but never had he truly acted like one. He wasn’t any less angry with Heechul than he had been yesterday but something in him could look past that. “Where would you like me to go?” he repeated.
The corners of Heechul’s mouth turned up and he rose from his chair. Slowly, in motions that could almost be marked as seductive, he moved around the desk until he was standing in front of Hangeng. “I would like you to go wherever you like, and do whatever you please. Then at the end of the day I would like you to return to my side to lie with me as lovers do,” he reached out, slender fingers tracing the curve of Hangeng’s face, “simply because that is where you would like to be. I would like you to feel like I am the last bit of water in the kingdom and you are a man dying of thirst for me.”
His hand slid down Hangeng’s neck to his chest leaving a trail of tingling fire in its wake. “But since that cannot be,” Heechul murmured and Hangeng couldn’t help but hear the regret coloring his voice. “I simply ask that you be by my side tomorrow evening and the morning following that. After that time I will ask nothing more of you, Hangeng.”
He didn’t know if it was the words, or the sound of his name spoken as it should be for the first time, that made his heart stutter for a moment. Before he could say anything, a protest, a comment, anything, Heechul was pulling away and moving back around his desk. “I don’t need anything further until tomorrow evening,” he said, stronger this time, in the voice of an order.
Clearly dismissed and spared the need to find his tongue, Hangeng bowed low and walked from the room.
-o-o-o-o-o-
It was a terrible time for the Garden to disappear in its entirety. He could have used Siwon, his best friend and confidant, or anyone else really to talk to. Yet as the day ended and the next rolled on towards its close, there hadn’t been a word from the absent men. Hangeng found things to keep him busy, helping the maids, exercising, pacing, or anything that would keep his body and hopefully his mind occupied.
Nothing he did seemed to help him to forget Heechul’s words. It wasn’t as though he was frightened Heechul would do something rash, the man almost always acted on a rash whim without thought regardless of the opinions of those around him. No, he found himself terrified of the opposite, frightened that Heechul would chose to do nothing. Then again, he had to admit to himself, that the Prince had been doing that for quite a long time now, just never where he was concerned.
His mind wouldn’t leave the thoughts of what it could mean alone, which left him with a decent sized knot in the pit of his stomach by the time he arrived at the Prince’s room. Thankfully, the Prince was dressed already, in the robes that he had picked up for him the previous day. The reds and gold were highlighted through with orange that made the garment appear to be fire as Heechul shifted. The Prince’s long black hair was down and flowing deceptively plain down his back.
On his head was the circlet of gold signifying his rank along with more gold and jewels scattered about his person then Hangeng would ever be able to own in his lifetime. Yet, somehow, the entire presentation simply made Heechul appear breathtaking and not ostentatious as he should. Heechul turned, as he entered, and looked him over carefully before turning his attention back to his own face in the mirror. Hangeng figured he must have passed some sort of inspection since the Prince said nothing further to him for several moments.
When he was finished with what he had been doing, Heechul moved to Hangeng and reached up. For a moment, Hangeng felt something curl within him in expectation of the touch, but the slender fingers simply smoothed his clothing against his shoulders and then fell away. “Tonight I wish to have you by my side,” the Prince told him.
Hangeng inclined his head in a respectful bow, “It will be as you wish, my Prince.” He watched as something flashed across Heechul’s face briefly, but then the man covered it with a composed smile.
“I don’t need to tell you how to behave,” Heechul murmured, it wasn’t a question, but a statement. Although it had been a fair amount of time since the last time they had attended a function together, Hangeng still remembered how to be the Prince’s eyes when he couldn’t be.
“Of course not, my Prince. I will be on my best behavior,” a bit of a smile crept into his face at those words and he let it.
“Well then we best go. It wouldn’t do to be too late to my own party,” Heechul said with a sly smile.
-o-o-o-o-o-
The party, as most of Heechul’s were, was no simple matter. One of the largest ballrooms in the palace had been converted for his use. Various couches and chairs were scattered in small pods for the guests to relax on at their leisure. To one side of the room was a massive table laid out with a variety of food, to the other side a large open dance floor was set up with couples already moving slowly back and forth across it. The front of the room held a stage, unoccupied at the moment, but clearly waiting for something.
When the Prince had entered, the already full room had ceased all activity and bowed in unison to him. It truly was an impressive sight that left Heechul smiling as he ordered his guests to enjoy their evening and he began to mingle amongst them. Hangeng immediately recognized several city officials and employees that Heechul greeted by name. No one was interested in him beyond something pleasant to look at for a moment, and that left him to watch the activities going on around the room without hindrance.
Heechul was in the middle of charming a group of women when Hangeng spotted a man dressed as only a ruler would, in a flowing outfit of white with gold trim, and a circlet much like Heechul’s upon his brow. Hangeng, careful of protocol and not wanting to interrupt, touched Prince Heechul lightly in the center of his back, and then slid his hand in the direction of the man he had spotted. Not a moment later Heechul bid the guests he was speaking to to have a good time, and moved off in the direction Hangeng had directed him.
“Prince Leeteuk,” Heechul greeted politely as they approached, inclining his head in a form of acknowledgement. “I was so pleased to see you here this evening. I had been afraid that you wouldn’t accept my invitation.”
Prince Leeteuk, as Heechul had named him, turned to face the men with a polite smile on his face. “I was flattered to be invited to one of your parties Prince Heechul, what with our history and everything.” His voice was soft and if he was feeling any ill will towards the Prince, it was well covered. The man standing behind him however was openly frowning at Heechul.
“Yes, I hope that you will remain in my palace as an honored guest beyond the evening. We have much to talk about that cannot be discussed here,” Heechul told him. Hangeng could tell that his Prince was pouring on the honey in efforts to get the other prince to stay, for reasons he couldn’t fathom.
“Thank you for your gracious offer, your Highness, but we have prior obligations,” the man standing behind Prince Leeteuk said gruffly.
Prince Leeteuk smiled, “That is alright Kangin,” he said gently, patting the man who had spoken on the arm. “There is nothing that we cannot put off for another day yet, we would be honored to be your guests.”
“Excellent,” Heechul agreed brightly. “I shall have a room prepared for you at once. In the mean time, please, enjoy yourselves.”
“Thank you,” Prince Leeteuk smiled and bowed ever so slightly, to which Heechul did the same before both men turned and went their separate directions.
“Hangeng,” Heechul called softly as they wove through the crowd. “I’m thirsty, see to it.”
“Yes, my Lord,” Hangeng replied politely more for the sake of any possible listening ears, since Heechul had already turned his attention on a tradesman from the lower quarter of the city.
Carefully Hangeng slipped through the crowd to the area where refreshments would be located. As his body performed the now familiar motions of pausing here, darting there, his mind puzzled over the behavior of his Prince. On a typical night at a party, Heechul did tend to make the rounds and see everyone and everything, but tonight he seemed distracted. It was almost as if the Prince was carrying with him a motive that none of them knew of, something that was driving him that Hangeng couldn’t put his finger on.
At the table he motioned a server closer and asked for a drink for the Prince. It would have to be specially prepared and placed into Heechul’s own cup, tasks that the servant hurried off to complete leaving Hangeng with nothing to do but wait. The nearby dinner servers rearranged and added dishes to the already overflowing table and he watched with amusement as a person who appeared to be the head chef barked orders and gestured wildly for a moment. It wasn’t until he really looked at the arm of the chef and noticed the tell tale flower tattooed on his wrist, that his mind placed who he was looking at.
“Shindong?” Hangeng murmured, moving forward with confusion on his face. The man was one of Heechul’s Petals, given to him on his twentieth birthday, and had remarkable control over his body. Apparently he also boasted a real talent for cooking.
“Oh, hello, Hangeng. Did you need something for Prince Heechul?” Shindong asked, pausing for a moment.
“It’s being taken care of,” he replied dismissively. “You cook?”
The smile that fell across Shindong’s face was the brightest he had ever seen, “Yeah. My family owned our own restaurant and I always used to help out until the taxes drove us out of business.” Hangeng was about to reply when Shindong caught sight of something and snapped to a servant, “Not like that! Turn it to forty five degrees! It’s about presentation!” he snapped.
“I can see you are busy,” Hangeng said smiling. Just then the server returned with Heechul’s drink and he accepted it with a nod of thanks. “I’ll just be off to our Prince.”
“Probably best,” Shindong agreed, his attention still on the man hesitantly arranging the dishes. Hangeng was turning to leave when Shindong called his attention back. “Oh and Hangeng,” Hangeng turned to look at him, a question on his face, “Siwon said to tell you that he thinks Heechul is beginning to live again. He said you would know what that means.”
“Thank you,” Hangeng replied softly, he wasn’t entirely sure what the answer to the riddle was but he had a small inkling what Siwon had meant. Shindong nodded and turned his attention back to the table and Hangeng slipped back into the crowd.
It was easy to find Heechul, since every eye in the room tended to gravitate to him in one way or another, and he found him standing with the King’s Advisor. Hangeng had never liked the man, and he frowned as he adjusted his trajectory towards the Prince. After the King, his Queen and Daughter had passed from the accident, the King’s Advisor had stepped up to aid with the running of the kingdom. By his rank he could speak for the ruling monarch if given permission and in the absence of a King was allowed to make decisions himself. Hangeng hated him. It had been years since he had consulted the ruling monarch, Heechul, on any decision he had made and longer still since the Prince had show an interest in caring in the slightest.
“Your Highness,” Hangeng said softly, offering the Prince his drink. Heechul accepted it from him without turning his attention from one of the men that he was speaking with.
The King’s Advisor turned his attention from the conversation at hand to look at Hangeng. His eyes drifted from the man’s head to his toe and then he offered him a leer that made his skin crawl. Hangeng had to bite his tongue to refrain from saying several of the things he so desperately wanted to. He didn’t think that the King’s Advisor was stupid enough to try anything directly in front of the Prince, but he would rather not give him the opportunity.
“I see,” Heechul said, startling Hangeng that his attention was on them and not whoever had been talking, “that you appreciate one of my Petals. I find him incredibly pleasing as well.” The Prince’s hand fell on his shoulder in a clearly possessive manner.
“Yes, your Highness,” the King’s Advisor said with a smile. “He is quite lovely. The King, rest his soul, did very well when picking him to be your first.”
“That he did,” the corners of Heechul’s mouth turned up as he spoke. “He is also equally as dangerous as he is beautiful. My father was even more pleased with that.”
The King’s Advisor produced a fake smile in response, “I am certain he was.”
“If you find him enjoyable, then you will very much enjoy what I have planned for you,” Heechul’s grin was dangerous.
Upon some signal that Hangeng couldn’t make out, the lights dimmed and an excited hush fell on the room. The stage, previously empty, was illuminated in light and onto it stepped four men. Hangeng recognized the four as Heechul’s Petals immediately and soft music began to play. Despite everything he thought he knew about them, he was incredibly surprised when Ryeowook opened his mouth and began to sing. A moment later Yesung joined his voice with Ryeowook’s. As they sang, Eunhyuk and Donghae began a slow and graceful dance across the stage.
“Exquisite,” the King’s Advisor breathed, lust plain on his face.
“I thought you might enjoy them as I have, after all it was you who gave the dancers to me. Perhaps you would enjoy them entertaining you tonight as a reward for all you have done?” Heechul offered, his hand tightening unnoticeably on Hangeng’s shoulder, stilling any protest he would have made. The Prince’s Petals were not common whores to be given away on the Prince’s whim.
“Oh,” the man sounded surprised, “I would enjoy that ever so much your Highness.”
“Then the four of them are yours for the evening. Please enjoy them,” Heechul told him.
“Thank you my Lord. You are too kind,” he murmured, bowing and taking Heechul’s hand to kiss.
“It is nothing. Be certain they find their way back to me in the morning.”
“I will, my Lord,” the man replied, turning to watch the four Petal’s with lust clear on his face.
“Come, Hangeng, there are people we must meet,” Heechul instructed, directing him with a firm hand on his lower back. Hangeng could say nothing now, he could hardly correct the Prince or protest his decision in public, but he didn’t have to approve of it. He knew that Heechul knew when a bitter feeling settled in the pit of his stomach and remained there for the rest of the party.
-o-o-o-o-o-
“We are not your whores to sell off as you please!” Hangeng exclaimed the moment the door closed on the privacy of the Prince’s rooms.
“Every one of you in my Garden are mine to serve me as I wish,” Heechul said simply, settling on a bench in front of the mirror to begin removing his excessive jewelry.
“People are not playthings Heechul!” Hangeng snapped. Heechul simply hummed his agreement. “Heechul! He will hurt them!” he stepped forward and grabbed Heechul’s wrist, intending to do what he wasn’t sure.
“I am well aware of what he intends to do.”
Hangeng jerked, pulling Heechul to his feet. “Then how could you allow him to have them. He couldn’t touch them if you refuse to let him,” Hangeng hissed.
The Prince’s eyes were dangerous as the stared at one another, “Would you replace them?” He couldn’t answer that. The thought of that man’s hands on him, just a single touch, made his skin crawl. He knew he couldn’t replace them but that didn’t make it right. Heechul took his silence for his answer. “Then let me go.”
A moment more he looked into the eyes of the man he had fallen in love with and discovered that he wasn’t certain that man was alive any longer. ‘Siwon has no idea what he is talking about,’ Hangeng murmured in his native tongue before releasing Heechul’s arm.
If the Prince understood him, he offered no further response, simply placed himself back on the bench and continued what he had been doing. Hangeng longed to leave, to get away from the man he was more and more certain he didn’t know, but he had promised the Prince the night and the morning, and he intended to keep that promise. Instead of walking back out the door and not coming back, he moved to the corner of the room and settled onto the plush carpet with his legs crossed and eyes closed. As Heechul continued to remove the marks of his station from his person, Hangeng tried to forget the fate that awaited his friends.
By the time the light clicked off throwing the room into darkness, Hangeng was certain the Prince had been much more successful then he was.
-o-o-o-o-o-
There was a huge knot in his stomach the likes of which he had never felt before. It wasn’t one of anticipation, but a coil of worry with a side of pure terror that curled like something deadly there. Hangeng, who had helped him into his robes this morning, was there beside him, not willing, but there, in honor of the promise he had made. Even his pretense, as unwilling as it may be, was a comfort to him as he stepped into the spacious room.
At the end of the long carpet sat a throne. The cavernous room was hung with tapestries depicting the kings of the past, and boasted more wealth in the building materials, than any other place in the palace. The first time he had been here, he had been a child, running up the carpet to leap into the arms of his laughing father. The last time he had been here, had been on the eve of his family’s death.
The memories sent a pang through his heart as he lifted his chin and moved towards the throne. He wasn’t supposed to be here, not yet, as the Prince was not suppose to take the throne until he reached the age of thirty, an age where he should have had all the training and wisdom necessary to be a King. Yet his father, the King, had passed from an accident that none could explain when he was barely sixteen, taking his mother and sister with him, and leaving a hole in the Prince’s heart that hadn’t been filled. Perhaps it never would be.
His fingers touched the smooth wood of the armrests and drifted over the soft padding. Great men had sat in this chair, men much better then he could ever hope to be. He glanced behind the throne and saw the tapestry of his father staring back at him from where it hung. There were so many things he wanted to say but none of them would matter anymore.
“Your Highness?” Hangeng said softly in question, the title that he had taken to calling Heechul. Heechul hated the sound of it and he turned, sitting himself upon the throne so quickly that the crown on his head nearly fell to the floor. He straightened it with one hand and then leaned back in the throne as if it was where he belonged, and he supposed it was, even if he didn’t feel it yet. Without another word Hangeng moved to stand behind and to the left side of the throne, where his father’s most trusted man would have stood. That was fitting as well, he supposed.
After a nod from him, the door at the end of the great hall opened, and in walked Prince Leeteuk from the neighboring kingdom. The Prince was dressed in white and behind him was his attendant and, if Heechul had to guess, lover. Kangin was still scowling at him in a way that he found amusing. “Your Highness,” Leeteuk murmured, dropping into a polite bow at the bottom of the stairs leading to the throne. Kangin, still scowling, bowed deeply as was proper.
“Prince Leeteuk. I am pleased that you have chosen to remain. If you would, it would please me greatly if you would sit beside me,” Heechul gestured to his right where a second throne had been brought in and placed. It was not as lavish as his own, but it was a throne nevertheless.
“It would be my honor,” Leeteuk murmured after a moment and he rose to gracefully take his place on the throne. The moment he settled upon the furniture, Heechul felt a bit of the knot begin to uncoil in his stomach. Kangin took up his place behind his Prince, but not before giving Heechul an extra scowl for good measure.
Once they were arranged to Heechul’s satisfaction he nodded, “Bring in the accused,” he declared. The chamber was designed in such a way that his voice would carry through the entire thing without him having to raise it above a normal level.
The doors opened once more and a group of people at entered, approaching his throne at a brisk pace. At the front of the group were his four Petals, all of whom seemed unharmed. At the sight of them he relaxed further into his chair. Perhaps it would be possible for everything to work out after all.
“Your Highness,” Yesung said as they stopped at the foot of the stairs. He bowed deeply as did the other three of his Petals and every other man and woman in the small group. “We have brought to you the man accused.”
“All those not accused, please place yourself on the Observing Benches,” Heechul ordered, waving his hand to the side indicating the double rows of benches that lined the wall. Obediently the people shuffled to them, but he could feel a hint of tension in them as they did so.
“Who accuses this man?” he called, as was standard protocol for a hearing before any ruling monarch.
“I do,” the sound of Kyuhyun’s voice made him relax further, and the man stepped through a small side door. He moved to the steps leading to the throne and dropped to a knee, head bowed.
“Very well,” Heechul said in acknowledgement. “The accused seems to be unconscious,” he looked between Eunhyuk and Donghae where a man hung disheveled and head lulling.
“Poison of the Verhem snake, your Highness,” Yesung said smoothly, exchanging a quick look with Ryeowook who stood beside him. “It was necessary to render the accused unconscious. He was resisting us and refused to cooperate.”
“Can you awaken him?” Heechul asked as if he really didn’t care one way or another.
“Of course, your Highness,” Yesung said smoothly.
“Then do so.” With a grin Yesung pulled a small slender metal object out of his pocket and dipped it into a tiny vial that he pulled from his pocket as well. When the metal object was dripping with liquid, he reached to the unconscious man and tilted his head to the side. A quick flick of his wrist imbedded the metal into his neck in a way that almost made Heechul wince in sympathy. Calmly Yesung slid the metal from his neck and tucked it away.
“It will take a moment,” Yesung informed Heechul causally and the Prince nodded. A minute or even several they had.
It only took a few before there was a gasp and the man struggled to rise to his feet. Now that he was conscious and moving it was easy to see who the man was. “Wha is the meaning of thisss?” the King’s Advisor asked, his words slurring together.
“You are before the Prince, you will bow,” Eunhyuk said shortly and kicked the man sharply in the back of the knees.
With a strangled noise, the man collapsed onto his knees and then fell upon his face as he was released. “Eunhyuk, that is not necessary. I’m certain the King’s Advisor knows how to bow better than any of us and can do so without your assistance.”
“Of course your Highness, forgive me,” Eunhyuk said with a short bow of his own and a smile that declared he was anything but sorry.
“Now we shall hear what you are being accused of,” Heechul said calmly, trying his best to sound as if he was bored.
“What!? I have done nothing wrong, if anything these-”
“Silence!” Heechul snapped, cutting him off immediately. “You will not speak until you are asked to do so.” The King’s Advisor was seething and very likely biting his tongue simply to remain silent, but he managed to do so. “Proceed,” Heechul told Kyuhyun.
“The charges, your Highness, are simple. This man is charged with treason of the highest order. We have evidence to prove that not only has he been undermining the King’s wishes for years, but he intends to take over the throne himself,” Kyuhyun said calmly. There was a gasp from those collected in the audience.
“Preposterous!” the man exclaimed.
“Hold your tongue before his Highness or I will remove it from your head,” Yesung told him in clipped tones.
“Yesung,” Heechul chided, simply because he couldn’t allow people to think that anyone could get away with that behavior. Then he turned his attention to the King’s Advisor, “You will hold your tongue or I will find someone to hold it for you.” The look of disdain was completely uncovered this time and Heechul’s mouth turned up in a smirk for the briefest of moments at the sight of it.
Then he turned his attention on Kyuhyun. “Those are steep accusations. What proof do you have?”
“Firstly,” Kyuhyun said bowing and gesturing to the side where Sungmin was standing, previously unobserved. “We have proof that he has tried to ruin any powerful allegiances that you may have forged your Highness. We found letters from Prince Leeteuk, written to you, in his desk.”
“I have never seen these,” Heechul said sounding much more confused than he was. “Bring them to me.”
Dutifully Sungmin stepped forward with an armload of paper. He bowed at Heechul’s feet and held out the papers for him to reach. The Prince gathered them up and placed them on his lap, picking up the top one and skimming it. “I have never read these before. Where did you obtain these?”
“They were lying on his desk. I saw them when I was cleaning your Highness,” Sungmin told him softly not looking up.
“Lies!” the King’s Advisor screamed.
“I will not tell you again,” Heechul said calmly, sending him a look that could freeze water.
“Prince Leeteuk,” Heechul asked, glancing to the side. “Perhaps you could shed some light on these letters.” He handed several to the Prince who gave him a searching look before accepting them.
It only took a moment for Leeteuk to skim them before he spoke, “I wrote these.”
“What prompted them if you please?” Heechul asked.
“I wrote them in response to letters that you had sent last spring, detailing that our trade agreement was no longer in effect,” Leeteuk looked both pained and hurt as he looked at the notes. “They were a plea for you to reconsider your position.”
“Did you get a letter in response?” Heechul asked.
“I did. One I thought was penned by your very own hand,” Leeteuk replied.
“What time of year would this have been?” Heechul continued.
“Last spring,” Leeteuk answered immediately.
“It would have been impossible for me to write that letter since I was not even in the Palace last spring. You may ask any in my Garden, I was far too busy to pen letters,” Heechul told him.
Leeteuk gave him a look as though he was pondering something and for a moment the knot in Heechul’s stomach tightened. If the other prince were to call him a liar now, everything could come crashing down on him. As quickly as it had come the look of suspicion was gone. “Then I would say, Prince Heechul, that someone here has been writing letters for you.”
“I would say that is a safe bet. I had wondered why we had ceased to receive anything from your Kingdom. I hope you would be willing to discuss this matter at length at another time,” Heechul said with a smile.
“I would indeed,” Leeteuk agreed.
“Then if you don’t mind,” Heechul inclined his head indicating the seething man on the floor.
“By all means,” Leeteuk agreed with a gesture.
“Someone has clearly been writing letters in my stead, but this alone is not enough to convict of treason since there is no way of knowing it was the King’s Advisor. Is there something else that the accused has done?”
“Yes my Lord,” Kyuhyun said bowing again. “He has tampered with your city taking money from those he should not and taxing so heavily that most of your citizens cannot afford their next meal.”
“What proof do you have?” Heechul prompted.
“I have witnesses to speak for themselves,” Kyuhyun replied glancing to the side door. Heechul nodded his permission and Kyuhyun moved to it, opening it.
For a moment he didn’t recognize the men who entered, even the way they were carrying themselves was different, but as they bowed to him, each one glanced up and offered him a quick smile just for him. “The witnesses will speak for themselves. Come forward one at a time,” Heechul ordered.
The first to move was Siwon who bowed again and reached into his long flowing robe for something. “Your Highness. I am a priest from the church in town. I have here, a signed and sealed letter from the High Priest, detailing what has happened to our humble place of worship.” Heechul held out his hand for the roll of paper and Siwon passed it to him.
Carefully he broke the seal and made a show of reading the contents of the letter. He already knew what was contained within it, but he wanted to make it appear as though this were the first time he was seeing it. With his brow suitably wrinkled, he rolled the letter again and looked to Siwon. “For those in the audience, please describe what this letter states.”
“Of course your Highness. The letter details the money that has been demanded from the church. So much so that it cannot afford to aid the people around it as it has no money to give to its people. The church, your Highness, is not something that was ever supposed to be taxed, that is the agreement that was reached with Kings long past, but now there are taxes upon us that we cannot pay,” Siwon’s voice held an air of sorrow in it.
“Thank you for your testimony,” Heechul told him, both dismissing him and trying to give him all the comfort he could. “Next.”
Siwon bowed again and stepped back, while Zhou mi shuffled forward. The man, one of his favorite Petals, was dressed in attire that was foreign to his Kingdom. “I come to represent the foreign nations that seek shelter in your lands,” Zhou mi said, his voice heavy with an accent that was not normally present.
“Proceed,” Heechul permitted him.
“Your Highness. Long have people known that they may seek shelter in your lands. Yet now there are fewer and fewer of us, with more people leaving then staying. My people cannot find jobs in your land, and any jobs that they find they are paid so little that they cannot live from it. When inquiring as to why this is, we found a law that said only native residents of the kingdom could make more than the meager sum we were being paid. We had never known this to be true,” Zhou mi murmured.
“This is the first I have heard of this,” Heechul replied, sounding confused.
“It was, from what we have found, put into place after the last harvest,” Zhou mi murmured.
Heechul nodded in acknowledgment. “Thank you for your testimony. Next.”
Zhou mi bowed and traded places with Henry who was dressed in rags and looked nervous and skittish, most of which was likely not an act. “Please feel free to speak your mind here,” Heechul told him gently. The rest of his Petals would have prepared Henry for this, or so he hoped.
“I-I come from the orphanage your Highness,” Henry said with a stutter.
“And what news do you have about the generation to inherit my kingdom?” Heechul asked.
“Nothing good, your Highness,” he said sadly. “The children, down to the youngest child, have no choice but to take up work.”
“Why would this happen?” Heechul sounded shocked.
“The money is gone, your Highness. Or that is what they tell us. No more comes from the Palace. I overheard the mother of the house saying that they would have to close after too much longer. I don’t know what will become of the children,” Henry sounded crushed, and if Heechul wasn’t mistaken there were tears forming in his eyes.
“Do not worry,” Heechul murmured gently. “We will see that the problem is corrected immediately. It will be taken care of.”
“Thank you,” Henry bowed deeply and then shuffled backwards.
“Thank you,” Heechul said, keeping the gentle tone. “Your testimony has been heard.” He waited until Henry had made it back to the side of the other two and the three had moved together to the side in case they were needed again. With some satisfaction he saw both Siwon and Zhou mi subtly place their hands on Henry’s back.
“Is there anything further that he is accused of?” Heechul asked.
“There is my Lord,” Kyuhyun said moving forward. “It was heard from his mouth last night that, he would take your throne himself.”
“These are steep accusations that you make,” Heechul accused. “How do you propose to show them as truth?”
“The one who heard wishes to come forward and show what he has heard,” Kyuhyun gestured to one final man who waited in the shadows.
“Come,” Heechul gestured.
Slowly and silently, Kibum, one of his favorite and most subtle Petals, walked forward. In his hands was a giant glass orb. “Your Highness,” he said bowing carefully so as not to drop his burden. “If I may I would like to show you what I have seen and heard.”
“And how may you do this?” Heechul pressed, trying his best to keep the smirk off his face. He had seen Kibum’s rare talent a time or two, himself.
“I have the ability to place any memory of my own into the sphere for all to see,” Kibum said shortly, as if it were no big deal.
“Interesting. Please proceed,” Heechul ordered.
Kibum nodded and glanced down at the orb in his hands. For a long moment, nothing happened, and then suddenly colors began swirling until they formed into pictures. He could clearly make out the form of the King’s Advisor rutting against Eunhyuk’s who was chained to the bed.
“So good,” the image of the King’s Advisor moaned in the orb. On the floor of the chamber the man watched his own image with wide eyes and dawning horror as Eunhyuk’s image let out a whimper. “That is right little bitch, let me hear you.” Another whimper came from the orb, louder this time, and Heechul heard Hangeng shift behind him. He hoped that the man held his position.
‘When I throw that little brat from his throne, you will be mine to do with as I please every night,’ the image of the King’s Advisor gloated. There was another pained whimper as before the picture disappeared.
A moment of silence rang through the chamber, then suddenly the King’s Advisor sprang to his feet. “I am being set up!” he screamed. “These are all lies!”
“Was that or was that not you?” Heechul asked calmly.
“Men say things when finding pleasure! It meant nothing! I am being set up!” he screamed.
“Perhaps,” Heechul replied calmly. “But the evidence seems overwhelming to point otherwise.”
“You son of a bitch!” the King’s Advisor screamed, losing all sense of control. “You set this up! All of these witnesses are your whores and will say whatever you tell them to say! I should have killed you like I killed your father!” The moment the words were out the man’s face went pale.
“And the truth spills free,” Heechul murmured softly. Then, his voice rising and strengthening, “For your crimes committed against the Kingdom and its leaders you will be stripped of your title and your wealth and sentenced to permanent exile in the wilderness.”
“If I may,” Leeteuk interrupted softly, “This man admitted to killing the King, the punishment for which must be death.”
Heechul’s face twisted into a sadistic smirk at last, “His fate is to be worse than death,” he reassured Leeteuk, then he turned his attention back on the man. “You are to be given no shelter, and no kingdom is to take you in, lest they then bear the punishment with you. From this day forward no land will be yours, and no man will bow a knee to you. If, by chance, you are given the gift of life, you will spend it alone.”
“I’ll-” the man started to scream, but never made it farther as Yesung’s hand struck out and hit him solidly on the temple. The man’s head lolled to the side again and Yesung offered his Prince a small smile.
“Get him out of my kingdom,” Heechul declared. At once several soldiers moved forward and lifted the man, carrying him out of the room. Heechul waited until they were gone before looking over at the gathered audience. “If there are any who were conspiring with him, come forward now and lessen your punishment.”
He paused to give them ample time to do so, but none did. With a nod Heechul looked towards the young man who was sitting on the bench with his head drooping and looking nervous. “You there,” the young man jumped. “You were his apprentice?”
“Y-yes my Lord,” the young man stuttered glancing up. “I swear I had no idea what he was doing,” he added hurriedly.
“I don’t imagine you did,” Heechul agreed. Then, “You have just been promoted to the Prince’s Advisor, congratulations. As your first task I would like everything that he has written into law and every decision he has made since my father’s death. Leave nothing out.”
“Yes my Lord,” the young man replied wide eyed.
“How soon can you get it done?”
“A week?” he offered.
“You have two days,” Heechul replied. Then, seeing that the young man wasn’t yet moving, he added, “You had better get to work then shouldn’t you?”
“Y-yes my Lord!” the young man stuttered, jumping to his feet. Belatedly he remembered to turn and bow to the Prince before running out of the room.
Smiling Heechul turned to the audience that was still in a stunned silence. “I believe you all have things you best attend to. Or shall I find something for you to do?” He had never seen a room clear so quickly. Once the last person in the audience was gone Heechul turned to look at Leeteuk, who was watching him.
“This really was all a set up for him, wasn’t it?” Leeteuk asked.
Heechul smiled at him. “It would be a bad idea to start repairing our relationship with a lie, wouldn’t it?”
Leeteuk looked more amused than upset when he replied. “Yes, very.”
“Then yes. This was a set up for him, but it doesn’t make the evidence any less true,” Heechul told him.
“For a man who just learned who killed his family you are strangely calm,” Leeteuk pointed out.
“I have known for a long time, I simply did not have any way of catching him, until now. As for his punishment, I happen to know the wolves hunt well at night,” he said cryptically.
“Yes well,” Leeteuk agreed with an understanding smile. “I will let you rest for now. I could make myself available to you this evening if you wish to talk.”
“Yes, I think that will work best,” Heechul replied politely.
Leeteuk rose, bowing and waiting for Kangin to do the same before walking gracefully down the stairs and out the door they had come through. Heechul was amused to notice that Kangin’s glare was just a touch softer as they left.
Once the door closed behind them, he released a sigh and sagged in his chair. The men left in the room looked watched him with a mixture of emotions in their eyes, waiting to take their cue from him. “Come, my Petals, let us return to our Garden.”
-o-o-o-o-o-
Hangeng had no idea what to think and he couldn’t do more than smile hesitantly back to Siwon as the man walked past him. He had no idea that this was what Heechul had been planning. Then again, the man that Heechul had been always came up with these elaborate schemes for one thing or another.
The men waited until they made it back to the Garden before the room exploded in chatter. Henry, shaking, fell onto a bed bordered by both Zhou mi and Kyuhyun. The other men were rapidly exchanging stories, most more animated than usual.
“Hankyung,” Heechul told him. “With me please.”
His feet obediently followed the Prince and was surprised when they paused by Eunhyuk. “Is there anything you need?” Heechul asked him softly, and Hangeng thought he saw a flash of sorrow.
“A bar of expensive soap would be nice,” Eunhyuk said with a smirk.
“Done,” Heechul replied seriously. “And anything else you may want.”
“Seriously, Heechul,” Eunhyuk reached out and touched the Prince lightly on the arm. “I have done much worse than that.”
“Fair enough,” Heechul replied, “You still have the rest of the week to do as you please. You and Donghae both.”
“And I intend to enjoy that,” Eunhyuk said, his grin back in place and an arm around Donghae’s waist.
Heechul nodded and moved forward once more with Hangeng in his wake. Only once they were in his room did Heechul remove the crown from his head and threw it towards the bed, in a display of anger. “Help me with my clothing,” Heechul ordered. Obediently Hangeng stepped forward and began unlacing the complicated weaving on the back of the clothing. “When you are finished with that you are free to go. You kept your end of the bargain, and I intend to keep mine.”
He said nothing for a moment. There were questions that he wanted answers to, things that he had to know. “How long did you know?” he murmured softly, his fingers never stopping their motion.
“A few years,” Heechul replied stiffly.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Hangeng asked. “We could have helped you.”
“Do what? Help me wallow in the sorrow I couldn’t handle? Help me try to figure out a plan that wouldn’t fail to bring down the man my father had given all of his power too?” Heechul snapped.
“Yes! We could have helped you with something!” Hangeng replied.
“No, you couldn’t have. You were too convinced that I couldn’t see a thing that was going on with my people to care anymore!” Heechul snapped and he pulled forward struggling his way out of his clothing on his own.
“You didn’t,” Hangeng replied softly. If nothing else he was convinced of that much.
“My family was dead and I couldn’t do anything about it! How do you think I felt?!” Heechul exclaimed, jerking off jewelry and throwing it as it came free.
“You don’t get the luxury of thinking only of yourself when you are a Prince,” Hangeng said gently.
“I know that!” Heechul spun, fury in his eyes. “I will make this right!”
It was as if the years of neglect had melted away and once more Hangeng was standing in front of a Prince who was passionate about his people and doing right by them. Suddenly the man he had fallen in love with was there, shinning through the Prince’s eyes again, and he didn’t know what to feel. “I know you will,” he whispered.
As suddenly as the anger came, it seemed to flow from Heechul and he stood there in the center of his room in his undergarments looking, for all the world, defeated. “Just leave. You don’t plan to stay so just get out.”
“I hadn’t planned to stay,” Hangeng agreed, bending to pick up the discarded clothing, simply because he needed something to do. “I couldn’t stay with a prince who couldn’t look after his own people or see their needs,” he carefully carried the clothing to the closet where he smoothed it out and hung it up before turning. Heechul was watching him, caution plain in his face.
“But with you, Heechul,” Hangeng murmured, stepping back to the Prince and reaching out to touch his cheek. “With you, the real Heechul, and not the spoiled brat you had become, I will stay forever.”
Heechul, whether he meant to or not, was leaning into the simple touch of his hand. “If you are playing with me, I will castrate you myself.”
“I’m not,” Hangeng affirmed, drawing Heechul’s body closer to his own.
“I thought my touch disgusted you,” Heechul sneered at him.
Hangeng, used to the man who pushed and clung all at once simply smiled. “Your touch never disgusted me. I never stopped desiring you,” Hangeng admitted. “I simply couldn’t stand the reasons for which you were touching me.”
“Those reasons haven’t changed,” Heechul told him with narrowed eyes.
“Probably not,” Hangeng agreed, “but the man behind them has.” Heechul snorted as if he didn’t believe him, yet he moved forward eagerly, shifting his body into Hangeng’s hold.
“How much of this was just you trying to get my attention?” Hangeng asked.
Heechul snorted. “Are you so conceited to think any of this was about you?”
Hangeng smiled and leaned forward pressing their lips together. The small noise that Heechul made, coupled with the way he leaned forward, clutching at Hangeng’s clothing was nearly his undoing. Just this once, simply so they could keep kissing or so he told himself, he let Heechul get away with not answering his question.
-o-o-o-o-o-
He waited patiently until the Prince’s pen stopped scratching across the paper, and the young man leaned back in his chair with a satisfied look. “If that doesn’t get my point across, I will march to his palace and tell him myself,” Heechul grumbled.
For the past week Heechul had been busy trying to rebuild not only his kingdom that had nearly destroyed itself, but his relationships with the surrounding monarchs as well. Leeteuk had made everything easier by not only speaking up for Heechul to the other leaders, but also donating a large sum of money to both the church and orphanages of Heechul’s kingdom. Still, the foreign Prince drove a hard bargain and Hangeng was fairly certain that, if ever left alone, the two monarchs could argue for hours over something as small as what to charge for the year’s supply of feathers.
“I am certain he will accept that,” Hangeng told him, moving closer. His fingers captured the Prince’s hair and moved it to the side, baring the skin of his neck which he bent and placed a soft kiss to.
“You don’t even know what it is all about,” Heechul told him, although he didn’t seem the least bit upset about it.
“No idea,” Hangeng agreed, his hands falling to the Prince’s shoulders and rubbing at the tense muscle there. “You work too hard.”
“Umm,” Heechul hummed. “You are too lazy.”
Hangeng laughed at that and the Prince closed his eyes and leaned his head back against Hangeng’s chest, enjoying the man’s touch. There was a soft knock at the door and Heechul growled lightly. “I swear if it is that sorry excuse for an advisor again, I will kill him where he stands.”
Stifling a laugh, Hangeng didn’t stop the motion of his hands, “He only wants to make certain he is doing everything right.”
“He doesn’t need to ask me for every little thing,” Heechul snapped. “I think he can sign a permit for leave without my help.” The knock came again and Heechul looked ready to kill something. “Come in!” he yelled.
The door opened to reveal Siwon who was smiling, and as he normally had been, lacking any clothing. “I can come back later,” the man teased.
Heechul made a show of letting his eyes drag over Siwon’s body, “And deprive me of the view? I don’t think so.”
“Well I just came to deliver this,” he held out a sealed letter to Heechul and exchanged a look with Hangeng.
“I don’t want it,” Heechul pouted, but accepted the thing anyway.
“It is an update from the church,” Siwon told him. “Things are progressing well.”
“I certainly hope that you wore clothing when you went to pick that up,” Hangeng told him with a grin.
“A bit yes,” Siwon agreed. “I will leave you to get to your work,” Siwon told him with a polite bow and a grin that spoke more than his words did.
Heechul watched him with a content leer as he walked out of the room. “I may enjoy the view of him leaving even more than him coming.”
Hangeng frowned as the door closed, “I thought we talked about allowing him to wear clothing.”
“We did,” Heechul said with a shrug, “Not wearing them was his choice in the first place. Some religious penance thing or something,” the Prince gathered the letter to himself and broke the seal before unfolding it and setting to reading.
Clearly forgotten for the moment, Hangeng moved away and settled on the bed. The past week had been more than he had ever expected, and Heechul seemed to be back to the man he remembered when they had been teenagers. His Garden, although not for lack of trying on Heechul’s part, hadn’t shrunk by one person, and although some things in it were starting to change, Hangeng thought it might be a long time before any of them left. Not that he was too upset by that fact. The men in the Garden had proven to be useful for more than just their bodies or talents in bed, which brought him back to a question he had never had answered.
“How did you know what all of your Petals were capable of?” Hangeng blurted, knowing he was likely interrupting the Prince.
There was a long moment of silence as Heechul finished reading and then laughed as he picked up his pen and scribbled a few notes on the letter. Hangeng was about to ask his question again when Heechul looked up with a devious look on his face. “I’m the Prince. It is my job to know things.”
Even so the fact remained that Heechul hadn’t even picked half of the men he had in his Garden, and Hangeng could hardly believe they were there by chance. “That doesn’t explain anything,” he told the Prince.
“Even the rattiest cloth can be useful at some point, if only to wipe up a spill,” Heechul replied cryptically.
“And what is my use? To stand there behind you and look pretty?” Hangeng countered, not entirely untruthfully.
“Your use,” Heechul said with a wicked smile as he placed his pen back on the desk, “is to belong to me.”
Hangeng noticed the look in Heechul’s eyes, “And what does that entail?”
“Being my eyes and ears, when I cannot be either,” Heechul said rising slowly. “Being at my back so that I can worry only about my front,” he took a step forward. “Keeping things flowing smoothly so I don’t have to worry about the mundane,” another step. “Silencing those who need it,” a knee settled on the bed. “Being a voice for those who I cannot hear,” the other knee landed on the bed. “And making those petty ladies of the court jealous with your looks.”
“Just that?” Hangeng asked with a smile, leaning his weight back on his hands in clear invitation.
“And then,” Heechul continued as if Hangeng had not spoken, moving forward as he did so. “You are the one who warms my bed at night and brings me unspeakable pleasure.” Heechul was straddling Hangeng’s hips as he stilled and he placed a hand in the center of the man’s chest.
“Just that then,” Hangeng replied with a smile.
“Yes, just that,” Heechul returned, and then he leaned up and claimed Hangeng’s lips in a passionate kiss. Hangeng’s hand lifted to tangle in the Prince’s long hair, drawing him closer as he lowered himself onto his back. After a moment of the shared kiss, Heechul pulled away from him so he could simply smirk down at him.
Carefully Hangeng reached up and pulled the circlet from Heechul’s head, placing it safely on the bed beside them. Then he gently brushed the dark strands of hair from the face of the man above him. Emotion overwhelmed him, causing him to speak words that he perhaps should have kept to himself.
“I love you, you know,” he said softly.
Heechul’s smile was completely satisfied as he leaned down, lips brushing Hangeng’s as he spoke, “I know.”
AN: This was originally written for team AU for kpopolymfics (which my team won. Go us!) Unfortunately I think only 2 people voted on it and the votes were so so for it. Still I decided to share it here since I am suspicious that most of you never made it over there. I hope you enjoyed this!
“He will be pleased,” Hangeng replied curtly. “He plans to hold a party tomorrow evening and he would love to show off such fine work.”
“I heard,” she said gently, pausing in her motions. “That there was an incident with his Highness yesterday.”
“Perhaps there was,” Hangeng replied curtly, gathering the box in his arms.
“Maybe it isn’t my place, but I’ve been making clothing for the both of you since he could walk and if there is one thing I know, it is that the Prince needs you now more than ever,” she told him softly.
“What he needs is a good spanking,” Hangeng snapped, then flushed. Statements like that could get him thrown in the dungeon or worse.
“Perhaps so,” she agreed with a smile, turning back to her work. “But something tells me he would enjoy that coming from you.”
Hangeng had no idea what to say to her, so he bowed deeply instead and dealt with the business at hand. “Payment shall be sent to you in the usual fashion. Thank you for your fine work. I’m certain the Prince will appreciate it.”
“And if he doesn’t I’m certain I will hear of that as well.”
-o-o-o-o-o-
The Garden was strangely empty when he walked through it, and that worried him. Although it wasn’t uncommon for one of two of the Prince’s Petals to be bathing or in the private rooms just for their use, never had they all been absent before. He hoped the Prince had not done anything rash in a fit of anger as he was prone to do.
“My Prince,” Hangeng announced himself, bowing over the box in his arms, “I have picked up the clothing you ordered.”
“Place it on the bed,” Heechul said with a wave of his hand, not looking up from his position at the desk in his room, another oddity. Until this point Hangeng had thought the piece of furniture just another flat surface to hold the Prince’s things. Now it was clear save for the stack of books and papers upon it.
“May I ask you a question, your Highness?” Hangeng asked as he deposited the box on the bed as he had been ordered.
“You have never respected protocol, I don’t know why you would start now,” Heechul replied off handedly.
True as they were, the words irked him. “Where have your Petals gone? The Garden seems strangely empty.”
“They have gone wherever I bid them to go,” was the immediate reply.
Hangeng bit down the immediate response that bubbled up in him and settled for something more neutral then accusations. “And where would you have me go?” Hangeng asked.
There was silence for long enough that he wondered if Heechul was really ever going to answer. Finally the man put down the pen he had been writing with and looked at Hangeng. “One of my Petals, you have never been. A wild cat that I have foolishly tried to tame, perhaps, but a Petal, never.”
Although the words were truth, it was somewhat of a shock to hear the admission flow from Heechul’s mouth. They had always operated under the pretense that he was one of Heechul’s Petals and no one had ever questioned that, but never had he truly acted like one. He wasn’t any less angry with Heechul than he had been yesterday but something in him could look past that. “Where would you like me to go?” he repeated.
The corners of Heechul’s mouth turned up and he rose from his chair. Slowly, in motions that could almost be marked as seductive, he moved around the desk until he was standing in front of Hangeng. “I would like you to go wherever you like, and do whatever you please. Then at the end of the day I would like you to return to my side to lie with me as lovers do,” he reached out, slender fingers tracing the curve of Hangeng’s face, “simply because that is where you would like to be. I would like you to feel like I am the last bit of water in the kingdom and you are a man dying of thirst for me.”
His hand slid down Hangeng’s neck to his chest leaving a trail of tingling fire in its wake. “But since that cannot be,” Heechul murmured and Hangeng couldn’t help but hear the regret coloring his voice. “I simply ask that you be by my side tomorrow evening and the morning following that. After that time I will ask nothing more of you, Hangeng.”
He didn’t know if it was the words, or the sound of his name spoken as it should be for the first time, that made his heart stutter for a moment. Before he could say anything, a protest, a comment, anything, Heechul was pulling away and moving back around his desk. “I don’t need anything further until tomorrow evening,” he said, stronger this time, in the voice of an order.
Clearly dismissed and spared the need to find his tongue, Hangeng bowed low and walked from the room.
-o-o-o-o-o-
It was a terrible time for the Garden to disappear in its entirety. He could have used Siwon, his best friend and confidant, or anyone else really to talk to. Yet as the day ended and the next rolled on towards its close, there hadn’t been a word from the absent men. Hangeng found things to keep him busy, helping the maids, exercising, pacing, or anything that would keep his body and hopefully his mind occupied.
Nothing he did seemed to help him to forget Heechul’s words. It wasn’t as though he was frightened Heechul would do something rash, the man almost always acted on a rash whim without thought regardless of the opinions of those around him. No, he found himself terrified of the opposite, frightened that Heechul would chose to do nothing. Then again, he had to admit to himself, that the Prince had been doing that for quite a long time now, just never where he was concerned.
His mind wouldn’t leave the thoughts of what it could mean alone, which left him with a decent sized knot in the pit of his stomach by the time he arrived at the Prince’s room. Thankfully, the Prince was dressed already, in the robes that he had picked up for him the previous day. The reds and gold were highlighted through with orange that made the garment appear to be fire as Heechul shifted. The Prince’s long black hair was down and flowing deceptively plain down his back.
On his head was the circlet of gold signifying his rank along with more gold and jewels scattered about his person then Hangeng would ever be able to own in his lifetime. Yet, somehow, the entire presentation simply made Heechul appear breathtaking and not ostentatious as he should. Heechul turned, as he entered, and looked him over carefully before turning his attention back to his own face in the mirror. Hangeng figured he must have passed some sort of inspection since the Prince said nothing further to him for several moments.
When he was finished with what he had been doing, Heechul moved to Hangeng and reached up. For a moment, Hangeng felt something curl within him in expectation of the touch, but the slender fingers simply smoothed his clothing against his shoulders and then fell away. “Tonight I wish to have you by my side,” the Prince told him.
Hangeng inclined his head in a respectful bow, “It will be as you wish, my Prince.” He watched as something flashed across Heechul’s face briefly, but then the man covered it with a composed smile.
“I don’t need to tell you how to behave,” Heechul murmured, it wasn’t a question, but a statement. Although it had been a fair amount of time since the last time they had attended a function together, Hangeng still remembered how to be the Prince’s eyes when he couldn’t be.
“Of course not, my Prince. I will be on my best behavior,” a bit of a smile crept into his face at those words and he let it.
“Well then we best go. It wouldn’t do to be too late to my own party,” Heechul said with a sly smile.
-o-o-o-o-o-
The party, as most of Heechul’s were, was no simple matter. One of the largest ballrooms in the palace had been converted for his use. Various couches and chairs were scattered in small pods for the guests to relax on at their leisure. To one side of the room was a massive table laid out with a variety of food, to the other side a large open dance floor was set up with couples already moving slowly back and forth across it. The front of the room held a stage, unoccupied at the moment, but clearly waiting for something.
When the Prince had entered, the already full room had ceased all activity and bowed in unison to him. It truly was an impressive sight that left Heechul smiling as he ordered his guests to enjoy their evening and he began to mingle amongst them. Hangeng immediately recognized several city officials and employees that Heechul greeted by name. No one was interested in him beyond something pleasant to look at for a moment, and that left him to watch the activities going on around the room without hindrance.
Heechul was in the middle of charming a group of women when Hangeng spotted a man dressed as only a ruler would, in a flowing outfit of white with gold trim, and a circlet much like Heechul’s upon his brow. Hangeng, careful of protocol and not wanting to interrupt, touched Prince Heechul lightly in the center of his back, and then slid his hand in the direction of the man he had spotted. Not a moment later Heechul bid the guests he was speaking to to have a good time, and moved off in the direction Hangeng had directed him.
“Prince Leeteuk,” Heechul greeted politely as they approached, inclining his head in a form of acknowledgement. “I was so pleased to see you here this evening. I had been afraid that you wouldn’t accept my invitation.”
Prince Leeteuk, as Heechul had named him, turned to face the men with a polite smile on his face. “I was flattered to be invited to one of your parties Prince Heechul, what with our history and everything.” His voice was soft and if he was feeling any ill will towards the Prince, it was well covered. The man standing behind him however was openly frowning at Heechul.
“Yes, I hope that you will remain in my palace as an honored guest beyond the evening. We have much to talk about that cannot be discussed here,” Heechul told him. Hangeng could tell that his Prince was pouring on the honey in efforts to get the other prince to stay, for reasons he couldn’t fathom.
“Thank you for your gracious offer, your Highness, but we have prior obligations,” the man standing behind Prince Leeteuk said gruffly.
Prince Leeteuk smiled, “That is alright Kangin,” he said gently, patting the man who had spoken on the arm. “There is nothing that we cannot put off for another day yet, we would be honored to be your guests.”
“Excellent,” Heechul agreed brightly. “I shall have a room prepared for you at once. In the mean time, please, enjoy yourselves.”
“Thank you,” Prince Leeteuk smiled and bowed ever so slightly, to which Heechul did the same before both men turned and went their separate directions.
“Hangeng,” Heechul called softly as they wove through the crowd. “I’m thirsty, see to it.”
“Yes, my Lord,” Hangeng replied politely more for the sake of any possible listening ears, since Heechul had already turned his attention on a tradesman from the lower quarter of the city.
Carefully Hangeng slipped through the crowd to the area where refreshments would be located. As his body performed the now familiar motions of pausing here, darting there, his mind puzzled over the behavior of his Prince. On a typical night at a party, Heechul did tend to make the rounds and see everyone and everything, but tonight he seemed distracted. It was almost as if the Prince was carrying with him a motive that none of them knew of, something that was driving him that Hangeng couldn’t put his finger on.
At the table he motioned a server closer and asked for a drink for the Prince. It would have to be specially prepared and placed into Heechul’s own cup, tasks that the servant hurried off to complete leaving Hangeng with nothing to do but wait. The nearby dinner servers rearranged and added dishes to the already overflowing table and he watched with amusement as a person who appeared to be the head chef barked orders and gestured wildly for a moment. It wasn’t until he really looked at the arm of the chef and noticed the tell tale flower tattooed on his wrist, that his mind placed who he was looking at.
“Shindong?” Hangeng murmured, moving forward with confusion on his face. The man was one of Heechul’s Petals, given to him on his twentieth birthday, and had remarkable control over his body. Apparently he also boasted a real talent for cooking.
“Oh, hello, Hangeng. Did you need something for Prince Heechul?” Shindong asked, pausing for a moment.
“It’s being taken care of,” he replied dismissively. “You cook?”
The smile that fell across Shindong’s face was the brightest he had ever seen, “Yeah. My family owned our own restaurant and I always used to help out until the taxes drove us out of business.” Hangeng was about to reply when Shindong caught sight of something and snapped to a servant, “Not like that! Turn it to forty five degrees! It’s about presentation!” he snapped.
“I can see you are busy,” Hangeng said smiling. Just then the server returned with Heechul’s drink and he accepted it with a nod of thanks. “I’ll just be off to our Prince.”
“Probably best,” Shindong agreed, his attention still on the man hesitantly arranging the dishes. Hangeng was turning to leave when Shindong called his attention back. “Oh and Hangeng,” Hangeng turned to look at him, a question on his face, “Siwon said to tell you that he thinks Heechul is beginning to live again. He said you would know what that means.”
“Thank you,” Hangeng replied softly, he wasn’t entirely sure what the answer to the riddle was but he had a small inkling what Siwon had meant. Shindong nodded and turned his attention back to the table and Hangeng slipped back into the crowd.
It was easy to find Heechul, since every eye in the room tended to gravitate to him in one way or another, and he found him standing with the King’s Advisor. Hangeng had never liked the man, and he frowned as he adjusted his trajectory towards the Prince. After the King, his Queen and Daughter had passed from the accident, the King’s Advisor had stepped up to aid with the running of the kingdom. By his rank he could speak for the ruling monarch if given permission and in the absence of a King was allowed to make decisions himself. Hangeng hated him. It had been years since he had consulted the ruling monarch, Heechul, on any decision he had made and longer still since the Prince had show an interest in caring in the slightest.
“Your Highness,” Hangeng said softly, offering the Prince his drink. Heechul accepted it from him without turning his attention from one of the men that he was speaking with.
The King’s Advisor turned his attention from the conversation at hand to look at Hangeng. His eyes drifted from the man’s head to his toe and then he offered him a leer that made his skin crawl. Hangeng had to bite his tongue to refrain from saying several of the things he so desperately wanted to. He didn’t think that the King’s Advisor was stupid enough to try anything directly in front of the Prince, but he would rather not give him the opportunity.
“I see,” Heechul said, startling Hangeng that his attention was on them and not whoever had been talking, “that you appreciate one of my Petals. I find him incredibly pleasing as well.” The Prince’s hand fell on his shoulder in a clearly possessive manner.
“Yes, your Highness,” the King’s Advisor said with a smile. “He is quite lovely. The King, rest his soul, did very well when picking him to be your first.”
“That he did,” the corners of Heechul’s mouth turned up as he spoke. “He is also equally as dangerous as he is beautiful. My father was even more pleased with that.”
The King’s Advisor produced a fake smile in response, “I am certain he was.”
“If you find him enjoyable, then you will very much enjoy what I have planned for you,” Heechul’s grin was dangerous.
Upon some signal that Hangeng couldn’t make out, the lights dimmed and an excited hush fell on the room. The stage, previously empty, was illuminated in light and onto it stepped four men. Hangeng recognized the four as Heechul’s Petals immediately and soft music began to play. Despite everything he thought he knew about them, he was incredibly surprised when Ryeowook opened his mouth and began to sing. A moment later Yesung joined his voice with Ryeowook’s. As they sang, Eunhyuk and Donghae began a slow and graceful dance across the stage.
“Exquisite,” the King’s Advisor breathed, lust plain on his face.
“I thought you might enjoy them as I have, after all it was you who gave the dancers to me. Perhaps you would enjoy them entertaining you tonight as a reward for all you have done?” Heechul offered, his hand tightening unnoticeably on Hangeng’s shoulder, stilling any protest he would have made. The Prince’s Petals were not common whores to be given away on the Prince’s whim.
“Oh,” the man sounded surprised, “I would enjoy that ever so much your Highness.”
“Then the four of them are yours for the evening. Please enjoy them,” Heechul told him.
“Thank you my Lord. You are too kind,” he murmured, bowing and taking Heechul’s hand to kiss.
“It is nothing. Be certain they find their way back to me in the morning.”
“I will, my Lord,” the man replied, turning to watch the four Petal’s with lust clear on his face.
“Come, Hangeng, there are people we must meet,” Heechul instructed, directing him with a firm hand on his lower back. Hangeng could say nothing now, he could hardly correct the Prince or protest his decision in public, but he didn’t have to approve of it. He knew that Heechul knew when a bitter feeling settled in the pit of his stomach and remained there for the rest of the party.
-o-o-o-o-o-
“We are not your whores to sell off as you please!” Hangeng exclaimed the moment the door closed on the privacy of the Prince’s rooms.
“Every one of you in my Garden are mine to serve me as I wish,” Heechul said simply, settling on a bench in front of the mirror to begin removing his excessive jewelry.
“People are not playthings Heechul!” Hangeng snapped. Heechul simply hummed his agreement. “Heechul! He will hurt them!” he stepped forward and grabbed Heechul’s wrist, intending to do what he wasn’t sure.
“I am well aware of what he intends to do.”
Hangeng jerked, pulling Heechul to his feet. “Then how could you allow him to have them. He couldn’t touch them if you refuse to let him,” Hangeng hissed.
The Prince’s eyes were dangerous as the stared at one another, “Would you replace them?” He couldn’t answer that. The thought of that man’s hands on him, just a single touch, made his skin crawl. He knew he couldn’t replace them but that didn’t make it right. Heechul took his silence for his answer. “Then let me go.”
A moment more he looked into the eyes of the man he had fallen in love with and discovered that he wasn’t certain that man was alive any longer. ‘Siwon has no idea what he is talking about,’ Hangeng murmured in his native tongue before releasing Heechul’s arm.
If the Prince understood him, he offered no further response, simply placed himself back on the bench and continued what he had been doing. Hangeng longed to leave, to get away from the man he was more and more certain he didn’t know, but he had promised the Prince the night and the morning, and he intended to keep that promise. Instead of walking back out the door and not coming back, he moved to the corner of the room and settled onto the plush carpet with his legs crossed and eyes closed. As Heechul continued to remove the marks of his station from his person, Hangeng tried to forget the fate that awaited his friends.
By the time the light clicked off throwing the room into darkness, Hangeng was certain the Prince had been much more successful then he was.
-o-o-o-o-o-
There was a huge knot in his stomach the likes of which he had never felt before. It wasn’t one of anticipation, but a coil of worry with a side of pure terror that curled like something deadly there. Hangeng, who had helped him into his robes this morning, was there beside him, not willing, but there, in honor of the promise he had made. Even his pretense, as unwilling as it may be, was a comfort to him as he stepped into the spacious room.
At the end of the long carpet sat a throne. The cavernous room was hung with tapestries depicting the kings of the past, and boasted more wealth in the building materials, than any other place in the palace. The first time he had been here, he had been a child, running up the carpet to leap into the arms of his laughing father. The last time he had been here, had been on the eve of his family’s death.
The memories sent a pang through his heart as he lifted his chin and moved towards the throne. He wasn’t supposed to be here, not yet, as the Prince was not suppose to take the throne until he reached the age of thirty, an age where he should have had all the training and wisdom necessary to be a King. Yet his father, the King, had passed from an accident that none could explain when he was barely sixteen, taking his mother and sister with him, and leaving a hole in the Prince’s heart that hadn’t been filled. Perhaps it never would be.
His fingers touched the smooth wood of the armrests and drifted over the soft padding. Great men had sat in this chair, men much better then he could ever hope to be. He glanced behind the throne and saw the tapestry of his father staring back at him from where it hung. There were so many things he wanted to say but none of them would matter anymore.
“Your Highness?” Hangeng said softly in question, the title that he had taken to calling Heechul. Heechul hated the sound of it and he turned, sitting himself upon the throne so quickly that the crown on his head nearly fell to the floor. He straightened it with one hand and then leaned back in the throne as if it was where he belonged, and he supposed it was, even if he didn’t feel it yet. Without another word Hangeng moved to stand behind and to the left side of the throne, where his father’s most trusted man would have stood. That was fitting as well, he supposed.
After a nod from him, the door at the end of the great hall opened, and in walked Prince Leeteuk from the neighboring kingdom. The Prince was dressed in white and behind him was his attendant and, if Heechul had to guess, lover. Kangin was still scowling at him in a way that he found amusing. “Your Highness,” Leeteuk murmured, dropping into a polite bow at the bottom of the stairs leading to the throne. Kangin, still scowling, bowed deeply as was proper.
“Prince Leeteuk. I am pleased that you have chosen to remain. If you would, it would please me greatly if you would sit beside me,” Heechul gestured to his right where a second throne had been brought in and placed. It was not as lavish as his own, but it was a throne nevertheless.
“It would be my honor,” Leeteuk murmured after a moment and he rose to gracefully take his place on the throne. The moment he settled upon the furniture, Heechul felt a bit of the knot begin to uncoil in his stomach. Kangin took up his place behind his Prince, but not before giving Heechul an extra scowl for good measure.
Once they were arranged to Heechul’s satisfaction he nodded, “Bring in the accused,” he declared. The chamber was designed in such a way that his voice would carry through the entire thing without him having to raise it above a normal level.
The doors opened once more and a group of people at entered, approaching his throne at a brisk pace. At the front of the group were his four Petals, all of whom seemed unharmed. At the sight of them he relaxed further into his chair. Perhaps it would be possible for everything to work out after all.
“Your Highness,” Yesung said as they stopped at the foot of the stairs. He bowed deeply as did the other three of his Petals and every other man and woman in the small group. “We have brought to you the man accused.”
“All those not accused, please place yourself on the Observing Benches,” Heechul ordered, waving his hand to the side indicating the double rows of benches that lined the wall. Obediently the people shuffled to them, but he could feel a hint of tension in them as they did so.
“Who accuses this man?” he called, as was standard protocol for a hearing before any ruling monarch.
“I do,” the sound of Kyuhyun’s voice made him relax further, and the man stepped through a small side door. He moved to the steps leading to the throne and dropped to a knee, head bowed.
“Very well,” Heechul said in acknowledgement. “The accused seems to be unconscious,” he looked between Eunhyuk and Donghae where a man hung disheveled and head lulling.
“Poison of the Verhem snake, your Highness,” Yesung said smoothly, exchanging a quick look with Ryeowook who stood beside him. “It was necessary to render the accused unconscious. He was resisting us and refused to cooperate.”
“Can you awaken him?” Heechul asked as if he really didn’t care one way or another.
“Of course, your Highness,” Yesung said smoothly.
“Then do so.” With a grin Yesung pulled a small slender metal object out of his pocket and dipped it into a tiny vial that he pulled from his pocket as well. When the metal object was dripping with liquid, he reached to the unconscious man and tilted his head to the side. A quick flick of his wrist imbedded the metal into his neck in a way that almost made Heechul wince in sympathy. Calmly Yesung slid the metal from his neck and tucked it away.
“It will take a moment,” Yesung informed Heechul causally and the Prince nodded. A minute or even several they had.
It only took a few before there was a gasp and the man struggled to rise to his feet. Now that he was conscious and moving it was easy to see who the man was. “Wha is the meaning of thisss?” the King’s Advisor asked, his words slurring together.
“You are before the Prince, you will bow,” Eunhyuk said shortly and kicked the man sharply in the back of the knees.
With a strangled noise, the man collapsed onto his knees and then fell upon his face as he was released. “Eunhyuk, that is not necessary. I’m certain the King’s Advisor knows how to bow better than any of us and can do so without your assistance.”
“Of course your Highness, forgive me,” Eunhyuk said with a short bow of his own and a smile that declared he was anything but sorry.
“Now we shall hear what you are being accused of,” Heechul said calmly, trying his best to sound as if he was bored.
“What!? I have done nothing wrong, if anything these-”
“Silence!” Heechul snapped, cutting him off immediately. “You will not speak until you are asked to do so.” The King’s Advisor was seething and very likely biting his tongue simply to remain silent, but he managed to do so. “Proceed,” Heechul told Kyuhyun.
“The charges, your Highness, are simple. This man is charged with treason of the highest order. We have evidence to prove that not only has he been undermining the King’s wishes for years, but he intends to take over the throne himself,” Kyuhyun said calmly. There was a gasp from those collected in the audience.
“Preposterous!” the man exclaimed.
“Hold your tongue before his Highness or I will remove it from your head,” Yesung told him in clipped tones.
“Yesung,” Heechul chided, simply because he couldn’t allow people to think that anyone could get away with that behavior. Then he turned his attention to the King’s Advisor, “You will hold your tongue or I will find someone to hold it for you.” The look of disdain was completely uncovered this time and Heechul’s mouth turned up in a smirk for the briefest of moments at the sight of it.
Then he turned his attention on Kyuhyun. “Those are steep accusations. What proof do you have?”
“Firstly,” Kyuhyun said bowing and gesturing to the side where Sungmin was standing, previously unobserved. “We have proof that he has tried to ruin any powerful allegiances that you may have forged your Highness. We found letters from Prince Leeteuk, written to you, in his desk.”
“I have never seen these,” Heechul said sounding much more confused than he was. “Bring them to me.”
Dutifully Sungmin stepped forward with an armload of paper. He bowed at Heechul’s feet and held out the papers for him to reach. The Prince gathered them up and placed them on his lap, picking up the top one and skimming it. “I have never read these before. Where did you obtain these?”
“They were lying on his desk. I saw them when I was cleaning your Highness,” Sungmin told him softly not looking up.
“Lies!” the King’s Advisor screamed.
“I will not tell you again,” Heechul said calmly, sending him a look that could freeze water.
“Prince Leeteuk,” Heechul asked, glancing to the side. “Perhaps you could shed some light on these letters.” He handed several to the Prince who gave him a searching look before accepting them.
It only took a moment for Leeteuk to skim them before he spoke, “I wrote these.”
“What prompted them if you please?” Heechul asked.
“I wrote them in response to letters that you had sent last spring, detailing that our trade agreement was no longer in effect,” Leeteuk looked both pained and hurt as he looked at the notes. “They were a plea for you to reconsider your position.”
“Did you get a letter in response?” Heechul asked.
“I did. One I thought was penned by your very own hand,” Leeteuk replied.
“What time of year would this have been?” Heechul continued.
“Last spring,” Leeteuk answered immediately.
“It would have been impossible for me to write that letter since I was not even in the Palace last spring. You may ask any in my Garden, I was far too busy to pen letters,” Heechul told him.
Leeteuk gave him a look as though he was pondering something and for a moment the knot in Heechul’s stomach tightened. If the other prince were to call him a liar now, everything could come crashing down on him. As quickly as it had come the look of suspicion was gone. “Then I would say, Prince Heechul, that someone here has been writing letters for you.”
“I would say that is a safe bet. I had wondered why we had ceased to receive anything from your Kingdom. I hope you would be willing to discuss this matter at length at another time,” Heechul said with a smile.
“I would indeed,” Leeteuk agreed.
“Then if you don’t mind,” Heechul inclined his head indicating the seething man on the floor.
“By all means,” Leeteuk agreed with a gesture.
“Someone has clearly been writing letters in my stead, but this alone is not enough to convict of treason since there is no way of knowing it was the King’s Advisor. Is there something else that the accused has done?”
“Yes my Lord,” Kyuhyun said bowing again. “He has tampered with your city taking money from those he should not and taxing so heavily that most of your citizens cannot afford their next meal.”
“What proof do you have?” Heechul prompted.
“I have witnesses to speak for themselves,” Kyuhyun replied glancing to the side door. Heechul nodded his permission and Kyuhyun moved to it, opening it.
For a moment he didn’t recognize the men who entered, even the way they were carrying themselves was different, but as they bowed to him, each one glanced up and offered him a quick smile just for him. “The witnesses will speak for themselves. Come forward one at a time,” Heechul ordered.
The first to move was Siwon who bowed again and reached into his long flowing robe for something. “Your Highness. I am a priest from the church in town. I have here, a signed and sealed letter from the High Priest, detailing what has happened to our humble place of worship.” Heechul held out his hand for the roll of paper and Siwon passed it to him.
Carefully he broke the seal and made a show of reading the contents of the letter. He already knew what was contained within it, but he wanted to make it appear as though this were the first time he was seeing it. With his brow suitably wrinkled, he rolled the letter again and looked to Siwon. “For those in the audience, please describe what this letter states.”
“Of course your Highness. The letter details the money that has been demanded from the church. So much so that it cannot afford to aid the people around it as it has no money to give to its people. The church, your Highness, is not something that was ever supposed to be taxed, that is the agreement that was reached with Kings long past, but now there are taxes upon us that we cannot pay,” Siwon’s voice held an air of sorrow in it.
“Thank you for your testimony,” Heechul told him, both dismissing him and trying to give him all the comfort he could. “Next.”
Siwon bowed again and stepped back, while Zhou mi shuffled forward. The man, one of his favorite Petals, was dressed in attire that was foreign to his Kingdom. “I come to represent the foreign nations that seek shelter in your lands,” Zhou mi said, his voice heavy with an accent that was not normally present.
“Proceed,” Heechul permitted him.
“Your Highness. Long have people known that they may seek shelter in your lands. Yet now there are fewer and fewer of us, with more people leaving then staying. My people cannot find jobs in your land, and any jobs that they find they are paid so little that they cannot live from it. When inquiring as to why this is, we found a law that said only native residents of the kingdom could make more than the meager sum we were being paid. We had never known this to be true,” Zhou mi murmured.
“This is the first I have heard of this,” Heechul replied, sounding confused.
“It was, from what we have found, put into place after the last harvest,” Zhou mi murmured.
Heechul nodded in acknowledgment. “Thank you for your testimony. Next.”
Zhou mi bowed and traded places with Henry who was dressed in rags and looked nervous and skittish, most of which was likely not an act. “Please feel free to speak your mind here,” Heechul told him gently. The rest of his Petals would have prepared Henry for this, or so he hoped.
“I-I come from the orphanage your Highness,” Henry said with a stutter.
“And what news do you have about the generation to inherit my kingdom?” Heechul asked.
“Nothing good, your Highness,” he said sadly. “The children, down to the youngest child, have no choice but to take up work.”
“Why would this happen?” Heechul sounded shocked.
“The money is gone, your Highness. Or that is what they tell us. No more comes from the Palace. I overheard the mother of the house saying that they would have to close after too much longer. I don’t know what will become of the children,” Henry sounded crushed, and if Heechul wasn’t mistaken there were tears forming in his eyes.
“Do not worry,” Heechul murmured gently. “We will see that the problem is corrected immediately. It will be taken care of.”
“Thank you,” Henry bowed deeply and then shuffled backwards.
“Thank you,” Heechul said, keeping the gentle tone. “Your testimony has been heard.” He waited until Henry had made it back to the side of the other two and the three had moved together to the side in case they were needed again. With some satisfaction he saw both Siwon and Zhou mi subtly place their hands on Henry’s back.
“Is there anything further that he is accused of?” Heechul asked.
“There is my Lord,” Kyuhyun said moving forward. “It was heard from his mouth last night that, he would take your throne himself.”
“These are steep accusations that you make,” Heechul accused. “How do you propose to show them as truth?”
“The one who heard wishes to come forward and show what he has heard,” Kyuhyun gestured to one final man who waited in the shadows.
“Come,” Heechul gestured.
Slowly and silently, Kibum, one of his favorite and most subtle Petals, walked forward. In his hands was a giant glass orb. “Your Highness,” he said bowing carefully so as not to drop his burden. “If I may I would like to show you what I have seen and heard.”
“And how may you do this?” Heechul pressed, trying his best to keep the smirk off his face. He had seen Kibum’s rare talent a time or two, himself.
“I have the ability to place any memory of my own into the sphere for all to see,” Kibum said shortly, as if it were no big deal.
“Interesting. Please proceed,” Heechul ordered.
Kibum nodded and glanced down at the orb in his hands. For a long moment, nothing happened, and then suddenly colors began swirling until they formed into pictures. He could clearly make out the form of the King’s Advisor rutting against Eunhyuk’s who was chained to the bed.
“So good,” the image of the King’s Advisor moaned in the orb. On the floor of the chamber the man watched his own image with wide eyes and dawning horror as Eunhyuk’s image let out a whimper. “That is right little bitch, let me hear you.” Another whimper came from the orb, louder this time, and Heechul heard Hangeng shift behind him. He hoped that the man held his position.
‘When I throw that little brat from his throne, you will be mine to do with as I please every night,’ the image of the King’s Advisor gloated. There was another pained whimper as before the picture disappeared.
A moment of silence rang through the chamber, then suddenly the King’s Advisor sprang to his feet. “I am being set up!” he screamed. “These are all lies!”
“Was that or was that not you?” Heechul asked calmly.
“Men say things when finding pleasure! It meant nothing! I am being set up!” he screamed.
“Perhaps,” Heechul replied calmly. “But the evidence seems overwhelming to point otherwise.”
“You son of a bitch!” the King’s Advisor screamed, losing all sense of control. “You set this up! All of these witnesses are your whores and will say whatever you tell them to say! I should have killed you like I killed your father!” The moment the words were out the man’s face went pale.
“And the truth spills free,” Heechul murmured softly. Then, his voice rising and strengthening, “For your crimes committed against the Kingdom and its leaders you will be stripped of your title and your wealth and sentenced to permanent exile in the wilderness.”
“If I may,” Leeteuk interrupted softly, “This man admitted to killing the King, the punishment for which must be death.”
Heechul’s face twisted into a sadistic smirk at last, “His fate is to be worse than death,” he reassured Leeteuk, then he turned his attention back on the man. “You are to be given no shelter, and no kingdom is to take you in, lest they then bear the punishment with you. From this day forward no land will be yours, and no man will bow a knee to you. If, by chance, you are given the gift of life, you will spend it alone.”
“I’ll-” the man started to scream, but never made it farther as Yesung’s hand struck out and hit him solidly on the temple. The man’s head lolled to the side again and Yesung offered his Prince a small smile.
“Get him out of my kingdom,” Heechul declared. At once several soldiers moved forward and lifted the man, carrying him out of the room. Heechul waited until they were gone before looking over at the gathered audience. “If there are any who were conspiring with him, come forward now and lessen your punishment.”
He paused to give them ample time to do so, but none did. With a nod Heechul looked towards the young man who was sitting on the bench with his head drooping and looking nervous. “You there,” the young man jumped. “You were his apprentice?”
“Y-yes my Lord,” the young man stuttered glancing up. “I swear I had no idea what he was doing,” he added hurriedly.
“I don’t imagine you did,” Heechul agreed. Then, “You have just been promoted to the Prince’s Advisor, congratulations. As your first task I would like everything that he has written into law and every decision he has made since my father’s death. Leave nothing out.”
“Yes my Lord,” the young man replied wide eyed.
“How soon can you get it done?”
“A week?” he offered.
“You have two days,” Heechul replied. Then, seeing that the young man wasn’t yet moving, he added, “You had better get to work then shouldn’t you?”
“Y-yes my Lord!” the young man stuttered, jumping to his feet. Belatedly he remembered to turn and bow to the Prince before running out of the room.
Smiling Heechul turned to the audience that was still in a stunned silence. “I believe you all have things you best attend to. Or shall I find something for you to do?” He had never seen a room clear so quickly. Once the last person in the audience was gone Heechul turned to look at Leeteuk, who was watching him.
“This really was all a set up for him, wasn’t it?” Leeteuk asked.
Heechul smiled at him. “It would be a bad idea to start repairing our relationship with a lie, wouldn’t it?”
Leeteuk looked more amused than upset when he replied. “Yes, very.”
“Then yes. This was a set up for him, but it doesn’t make the evidence any less true,” Heechul told him.
“For a man who just learned who killed his family you are strangely calm,” Leeteuk pointed out.
“I have known for a long time, I simply did not have any way of catching him, until now. As for his punishment, I happen to know the wolves hunt well at night,” he said cryptically.
“Yes well,” Leeteuk agreed with an understanding smile. “I will let you rest for now. I could make myself available to you this evening if you wish to talk.”
“Yes, I think that will work best,” Heechul replied politely.
Leeteuk rose, bowing and waiting for Kangin to do the same before walking gracefully down the stairs and out the door they had come through. Heechul was amused to notice that Kangin’s glare was just a touch softer as they left.
Once the door closed behind them, he released a sigh and sagged in his chair. The men left in the room looked watched him with a mixture of emotions in their eyes, waiting to take their cue from him. “Come, my Petals, let us return to our Garden.”
-o-o-o-o-o-
Hangeng had no idea what to think and he couldn’t do more than smile hesitantly back to Siwon as the man walked past him. He had no idea that this was what Heechul had been planning. Then again, the man that Heechul had been always came up with these elaborate schemes for one thing or another.
The men waited until they made it back to the Garden before the room exploded in chatter. Henry, shaking, fell onto a bed bordered by both Zhou mi and Kyuhyun. The other men were rapidly exchanging stories, most more animated than usual.
“Hankyung,” Heechul told him. “With me please.”
His feet obediently followed the Prince and was surprised when they paused by Eunhyuk. “Is there anything you need?” Heechul asked him softly, and Hangeng thought he saw a flash of sorrow.
“A bar of expensive soap would be nice,” Eunhyuk said with a smirk.
“Done,” Heechul replied seriously. “And anything else you may want.”
“Seriously, Heechul,” Eunhyuk reached out and touched the Prince lightly on the arm. “I have done much worse than that.”
“Fair enough,” Heechul replied, “You still have the rest of the week to do as you please. You and Donghae both.”
“And I intend to enjoy that,” Eunhyuk said, his grin back in place and an arm around Donghae’s waist.
Heechul nodded and moved forward once more with Hangeng in his wake. Only once they were in his room did Heechul remove the crown from his head and threw it towards the bed, in a display of anger. “Help me with my clothing,” Heechul ordered. Obediently Hangeng stepped forward and began unlacing the complicated weaving on the back of the clothing. “When you are finished with that you are free to go. You kept your end of the bargain, and I intend to keep mine.”
He said nothing for a moment. There were questions that he wanted answers to, things that he had to know. “How long did you know?” he murmured softly, his fingers never stopping their motion.
“A few years,” Heechul replied stiffly.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Hangeng asked. “We could have helped you.”
“Do what? Help me wallow in the sorrow I couldn’t handle? Help me try to figure out a plan that wouldn’t fail to bring down the man my father had given all of his power too?” Heechul snapped.
“Yes! We could have helped you with something!” Hangeng replied.
“No, you couldn’t have. You were too convinced that I couldn’t see a thing that was going on with my people to care anymore!” Heechul snapped and he pulled forward struggling his way out of his clothing on his own.
“You didn’t,” Hangeng replied softly. If nothing else he was convinced of that much.
“My family was dead and I couldn’t do anything about it! How do you think I felt?!” Heechul exclaimed, jerking off jewelry and throwing it as it came free.
“You don’t get the luxury of thinking only of yourself when you are a Prince,” Hangeng said gently.
“I know that!” Heechul spun, fury in his eyes. “I will make this right!”
It was as if the years of neglect had melted away and once more Hangeng was standing in front of a Prince who was passionate about his people and doing right by them. Suddenly the man he had fallen in love with was there, shinning through the Prince’s eyes again, and he didn’t know what to feel. “I know you will,” he whispered.
As suddenly as the anger came, it seemed to flow from Heechul and he stood there in the center of his room in his undergarments looking, for all the world, defeated. “Just leave. You don’t plan to stay so just get out.”
“I hadn’t planned to stay,” Hangeng agreed, bending to pick up the discarded clothing, simply because he needed something to do. “I couldn’t stay with a prince who couldn’t look after his own people or see their needs,” he carefully carried the clothing to the closet where he smoothed it out and hung it up before turning. Heechul was watching him, caution plain in his face.
“But with you, Heechul,” Hangeng murmured, stepping back to the Prince and reaching out to touch his cheek. “With you, the real Heechul, and not the spoiled brat you had become, I will stay forever.”
Heechul, whether he meant to or not, was leaning into the simple touch of his hand. “If you are playing with me, I will castrate you myself.”
“I’m not,” Hangeng affirmed, drawing Heechul’s body closer to his own.
“I thought my touch disgusted you,” Heechul sneered at him.
Hangeng, used to the man who pushed and clung all at once simply smiled. “Your touch never disgusted me. I never stopped desiring you,” Hangeng admitted. “I simply couldn’t stand the reasons for which you were touching me.”
“Those reasons haven’t changed,” Heechul told him with narrowed eyes.
“Probably not,” Hangeng agreed, “but the man behind them has.” Heechul snorted as if he didn’t believe him, yet he moved forward eagerly, shifting his body into Hangeng’s hold.
“How much of this was just you trying to get my attention?” Hangeng asked.
Heechul snorted. “Are you so conceited to think any of this was about you?”
Hangeng smiled and leaned forward pressing their lips together. The small noise that Heechul made, coupled with the way he leaned forward, clutching at Hangeng’s clothing was nearly his undoing. Just this once, simply so they could keep kissing or so he told himself, he let Heechul get away with not answering his question.
-o-o-o-o-o-
He waited patiently until the Prince’s pen stopped scratching across the paper, and the young man leaned back in his chair with a satisfied look. “If that doesn’t get my point across, I will march to his palace and tell him myself,” Heechul grumbled.
For the past week Heechul had been busy trying to rebuild not only his kingdom that had nearly destroyed itself, but his relationships with the surrounding monarchs as well. Leeteuk had made everything easier by not only speaking up for Heechul to the other leaders, but also donating a large sum of money to both the church and orphanages of Heechul’s kingdom. Still, the foreign Prince drove a hard bargain and Hangeng was fairly certain that, if ever left alone, the two monarchs could argue for hours over something as small as what to charge for the year’s supply of feathers.
“I am certain he will accept that,” Hangeng told him, moving closer. His fingers captured the Prince’s hair and moved it to the side, baring the skin of his neck which he bent and placed a soft kiss to.
“You don’t even know what it is all about,” Heechul told him, although he didn’t seem the least bit upset about it.
“No idea,” Hangeng agreed, his hands falling to the Prince’s shoulders and rubbing at the tense muscle there. “You work too hard.”
“Umm,” Heechul hummed. “You are too lazy.”
Hangeng laughed at that and the Prince closed his eyes and leaned his head back against Hangeng’s chest, enjoying the man’s touch. There was a soft knock at the door and Heechul growled lightly. “I swear if it is that sorry excuse for an advisor again, I will kill him where he stands.”
Stifling a laugh, Hangeng didn’t stop the motion of his hands, “He only wants to make certain he is doing everything right.”
“He doesn’t need to ask me for every little thing,” Heechul snapped. “I think he can sign a permit for leave without my help.” The knock came again and Heechul looked ready to kill something. “Come in!” he yelled.
The door opened to reveal Siwon who was smiling, and as he normally had been, lacking any clothing. “I can come back later,” the man teased.
Heechul made a show of letting his eyes drag over Siwon’s body, “And deprive me of the view? I don’t think so.”
“Well I just came to deliver this,” he held out a sealed letter to Heechul and exchanged a look with Hangeng.
“I don’t want it,” Heechul pouted, but accepted the thing anyway.
“It is an update from the church,” Siwon told him. “Things are progressing well.”
“I certainly hope that you wore clothing when you went to pick that up,” Hangeng told him with a grin.
“A bit yes,” Siwon agreed. “I will leave you to get to your work,” Siwon told him with a polite bow and a grin that spoke more than his words did.
Heechul watched him with a content leer as he walked out of the room. “I may enjoy the view of him leaving even more than him coming.”
Hangeng frowned as the door closed, “I thought we talked about allowing him to wear clothing.”
“We did,” Heechul said with a shrug, “Not wearing them was his choice in the first place. Some religious penance thing or something,” the Prince gathered the letter to himself and broke the seal before unfolding it and setting to reading.
Clearly forgotten for the moment, Hangeng moved away and settled on the bed. The past week had been more than he had ever expected, and Heechul seemed to be back to the man he remembered when they had been teenagers. His Garden, although not for lack of trying on Heechul’s part, hadn’t shrunk by one person, and although some things in it were starting to change, Hangeng thought it might be a long time before any of them left. Not that he was too upset by that fact. The men in the Garden had proven to be useful for more than just their bodies or talents in bed, which brought him back to a question he had never had answered.
“How did you know what all of your Petals were capable of?” Hangeng blurted, knowing he was likely interrupting the Prince.
There was a long moment of silence as Heechul finished reading and then laughed as he picked up his pen and scribbled a few notes on the letter. Hangeng was about to ask his question again when Heechul looked up with a devious look on his face. “I’m the Prince. It is my job to know things.”
Even so the fact remained that Heechul hadn’t even picked half of the men he had in his Garden, and Hangeng could hardly believe they were there by chance. “That doesn’t explain anything,” he told the Prince.
“Even the rattiest cloth can be useful at some point, if only to wipe up a spill,” Heechul replied cryptically.
“And what is my use? To stand there behind you and look pretty?” Hangeng countered, not entirely untruthfully.
“Your use,” Heechul said with a wicked smile as he placed his pen back on the desk, “is to belong to me.”
Hangeng noticed the look in Heechul’s eyes, “And what does that entail?”
“Being my eyes and ears, when I cannot be either,” Heechul said rising slowly. “Being at my back so that I can worry only about my front,” he took a step forward. “Keeping things flowing smoothly so I don’t have to worry about the mundane,” another step. “Silencing those who need it,” a knee settled on the bed. “Being a voice for those who I cannot hear,” the other knee landed on the bed. “And making those petty ladies of the court jealous with your looks.”
“Just that?” Hangeng asked with a smile, leaning his weight back on his hands in clear invitation.
“And then,” Heechul continued as if Hangeng had not spoken, moving forward as he did so. “You are the one who warms my bed at night and brings me unspeakable pleasure.” Heechul was straddling Hangeng’s hips as he stilled and he placed a hand in the center of the man’s chest.
“Just that then,” Hangeng replied with a smile.
“Yes, just that,” Heechul returned, and then he leaned up and claimed Hangeng’s lips in a passionate kiss. Hangeng’s hand lifted to tangle in the Prince’s long hair, drawing him closer as he lowered himself onto his back. After a moment of the shared kiss, Heechul pulled away from him so he could simply smirk down at him.
Carefully Hangeng reached up and pulled the circlet from Heechul’s head, placing it safely on the bed beside them. Then he gently brushed the dark strands of hair from the face of the man above him. Emotion overwhelmed him, causing him to speak words that he perhaps should have kept to himself.
“I love you, you know,” he said softly.
Heechul’s smile was completely satisfied as he leaned down, lips brushing Hangeng’s as he spoke, “I know.”
AN: This was originally written for team AU for kpopolymfics (which my team won. Go us!) Unfortunately I think only 2 people voted on it and the votes were so so for it. Still I decided to share it here since I am suspicious that most of you never made it over there. I hope you enjoyed this!