Equinox (for darkyulate) [3/3]

[criticalcapture]

♚ They spot the cave on the morning of the third day, when bare ground starts to give way to sparse grass, and they see only fields and fields of it ahead of them. It's a little later than Zitao had predicted, but they've still got five days to find the other two things. Joonmyun can only hope that it'll be enough. "We don't really have a way to keep a dragon from killing us," Zitao says as they start getting closer to the cave, "so there's only one thing we can do. I'll be there with you guys to try and stop her if anything happens, but if things go well, she won't be awake when we go to get the goblet. If she is, I can knock her out. Or something like that. Do we have anything we can hold the goblet with?" "Wait, wait," Yifan interrupts. "Dragons aren't people, Zitao, are you sure—" "No. But I'm gonna try." "What happens if it doesn't work?" Joonmyun asks apprehensively, glancing over at the cave in the distance. "Then," Zitao says, "we run." They stop thirty feet or so from the cave; it's huge up close, the entrance dark and foreboding, ropes of ivy obscuring their view in. Zitao strides over fearlessly, turning back at the mouth of it to frown at the rest of them. "Hurry up," he mouths, looking impatient. Joonmyun follows after him on shaky legs, blanket held tight in his hand, and he feels Jongdae place a gentle hand on his arm and hears him say softly, so softly Joonmyun barely catches it, "We'll be okay." "Yeah," Joonmyun mumbles back. He can feel his shoulders relaxing as he nods, can feel his apprehension ease a little as he looks into the seemingly endless depths of the mouth of the cave. "Yifan, you're not coming?" Zitao calls. When Joonmyun looks over his shoulder, Yifan's still on his own horse with the rest of their horses and possessions. "I need to watch our things," Yifan says. "Come on," Zitao pouts. "Have a little fun! Have an adventure!" "We're on an adventure." "Aw, but this is so exciting! Haven't you ever wanted to see a dragon?" "Not particularly." "I bet you do," Zitao persists. "Come with us! You know you want to." Yifan casts the entrance of the cave a nervous glance. "How about next time." "Fine," Zitao sighs. "Let's go, then. I hope I wasn't too loud." "Do you think she could've heard?" Joonmyun says, biting his lip and looking up at the cave. It's set in the side of a mountain, the top so high up they haven't been able to see it since they spotted it this morning. Ivy lines the entrance, peeking out from cracks between rocks and hanging over the entrance so thickly the gaps are only big enough for them to fit through. Joonmyun just hopes it's enough of a barrier to muffle the sound of them talking. When they step inside the entrance of the cave, though, their footsteps echo louder than Joonmyun expects them to. Every little sound seems to carry through the area around them as they walk deeper and deeper into the dark, clinging to the rough wall. Joonmyun keeps a hand on Zitao's shoulder, and Jongdae one on Joonmyun's, and it's reassuring to at least feel them near him when he can't see them for himself. There's a pinprick of light in the distance. They follow it, staying close to the wall and feeling the cave open up as they get closer and the sound of their every movement bounces off the opposite wall to them, so far away now. And when they finally, finally get close enough to see what's past the mouth of the entrance of that space, Joonmyun's heart just about stops in his chest. Ivy is unmistakable, bigger than Joonmyun ever could have imagined and a vibrant green, even brighter than the grass and tendrils of ivy all around her. The light from a hole in the ceiling reflects off her scales almost as brightly as it does off of the gold that she's curled around protectively; it's brilliant enough a sight to take Joonmyun's breath away for a moment. At least, until he sees movement and comes to a realization—it's Ivy. Ivy is moving. She's awake. "Shit," Zitao says under his breath, but even that is too loud in the wide, echoey cave, and in an instant they can see Ivy turning towards the entrance to her lair. They freeze in place, flattening themselves against the wall, and hope desperately that she can't see them—not that it matters much anyway. She can probably smell them, smell the fear climbing up Joonmyun's throat and choking him so he can't breathe. Hiding is of no use. They might as well just talk and sing and scream, even, because she already knows they're there. What do we do? Joonmyun wants to say, but Zitao speaks before he can. "I can take her," he says, voice steely. "Whatever happens, just—just find the goblet and run." "Why?" comes Jongdae's voice from behind him. "You barely know us. Why risk your life for us?" There's a long pause, accompanied by muffled noises and the sound of Ivy shifting not fifty feet away. Finally, Zitao says, soft and solemn, "You're important to him. This is important to him. And if he cares enough to come with you here, I'm gonna see this through." They don't need to ask who he is. But as Joonmyun sees Zitao's silhouette start to move towards the entrance, he feels Jongdae let go of his shoulder, too—and then there's Jongdae running ahead of Zitao, towards the light. "Just wait a second!" he whispers, the sound of it loud in the cave as he slows down, approaching the entrance carefully. "I have an idea." Ivy is just inside the entrance. Zitao and Joonmyun watch with bated breath as Jongdae inches in slowly, just as gentle and cautious as he had been when approaching May for the first time back in the stables. It's a full minute before he disappears into the opening, and then another ten of quiet before Jongdae pokes his head back into the cave and calls softly, "You guys can come in now. But take it slow, and don't be loud." Ivy's head is lowered almost all the way to the ground so she's at just the right height for Jongdae to scratch a spot on the side of her neck that makes her close her eyes contentedly; she seems as pleased as Joonmyun could ever imagine a dragon to look. Jongdae's smiling and cooing at her, chatting with and teasing her like he does with May, like she's just another person to talk to. It's sweet. Joonmyun edges in with Zitao, careful to make as little noise as possible on their way in. The two of them split up, Zitao taking one side of Ivy's treasure pile, and Joonmyun the other. It's too loud to dig, so he checks on the surface first, but there's no sign of a cup or a goblet, just jewelry and miscellaneous pieces of furniture. Nothing they want. But the riddle. Beneath Ivy's great tail. It could be… "Jongdae," Joonmyun whispers. Jongdae turns and walks towards Joonmyun, moving so he's still patting Ivy's side comfortingly. "I need to check under her tail." Jongdae frowns. "Do you think she's like a cat? What if she hates having her tail touched?" "I don't know anything about dragons," Joonmyun says helplessly. "Maybe she does. Do you think we could try?" Jongdae looks uncertain, but he nods. "Yeah. Here, I'll…" He moves down towards her tail, where it's curled in towards her abdomen, and Joonmyun stays close by to make sure his steps on top of the pile are steady. Ivy shifts a little in place the further away from her head she moves, and she makes a dissatisfied sound when he takes his hand off her altogether. And when he places a hand on her tail, she thrashes, shifting so plates and spoons and necklaces tumble down the pile of gold and Jongdae almost slips. At the sound of the commotion, Zitao comes around the corner of the pile. "What happened?" "Zitao," Joonmyun says gratefully. "We need your help." Zitao takes Jongdae's place by Ivy's tail as Jongdae tries to soothe her, patting her neck and speaking softly to her until she seems calm again. Jongdae gives them a nod, and Zitao carefully picks her tail up, with great effort; it seems heavy, and Ivy fidgets even when Jongdae does his best to calm her. "Hurry," Zitao hisses. Joonmyun searches desperately for the cup—it's got to be somewhere here, he's sure of it—but it's nowhere to be seen, even here. Ivy starts to shift like she's about to stand and Joonmyun starts slipping down the little hill as the metal starts falling down like an avalanche. But just as Zitao's grip on her tail starts to slip, Joonmyun spots a goblet, glinting brightly in Ivy's shadow. He needs to get back up there—he's falling further and further down by the second—and he tries his best to climb back up, fingers trying to find purchase on something, anything. "Just—hold on a little longer," Joonmyun gasps, fingers reaching for the leg of a chair he spots just a couple of feet away. It's almost completely buried in the pile, so if he can just get to it, he'll have a way back up, but— "Take one more step," Zitao calls. "Right now." One step, and he's on something sturdy, something flat, and he can finally grab onto the chair and pull himself closer. Zitao's struggling to stay standing, too, and it looks like he'll let go at any moment now. Joonmyun holds on to the chair leg tightly, pushing himself closer to the goblet one more time, and finally he manages to pull it out from under Ivy's tail and Zitao finally lets it drop, sighing in relief. "Got it," Zitao calls to Jongdae breathlessly. "Let's go." Almost reluctantly, Jongdae pulls himself away from Ivy and nods, giving them a bright grin and a thumbs-up. "We did it!" "That was so awesome, Jongdae," Zitao says excitedly. They head back into the cave, hurrying back towards the light outside. Behind them, Ivy climbs up off of her gold hill and tries to stick her head through the entrance, too, but it's too small—her neck barely makes it through, and then she can't get any further. Jongdae gives her a sad look, but it's fleeting, gone after just a moment. "How'd you do that? With Ivy." "I'm good with animals," Jongdae shrugs. "They like me. And I figured, if the horses at the palace liked me the first time I met them, a dragon might not mind me either. If I took the right approach." It was amazing, Joonmyun wants to say, but there's a strange feeling in his chest, what comes out instead is, "It was the wrong thing to do." Silence. "What?" Jongdae says. "Did I hear you wrong?" That's not what I meant to say, Joonmyun wants to scream. Instead, he just says, "No, I didn't say anything." "Stop being so weird," Jongdae says. "What's with you?" When Joonmyun opens his mouth to say I don't know, out of nowhere comes "I don't want to be here. That's all." "Joonmyun?" Jongdae says slowly. "Did something happen? Are you okay?" Joonmyun's grip on the goblet in his hand tightens, and—the goblet. It's the goblet. The goblet that lies, Jongdae had said. Anyone who touches it is forced to lie, no matter what it's about or how hard you try to tell the truth. "I'm fine." Zitao seems to understand at the same time Joonmyun does. "The goblet. He's holding the goblet, Jongdae." "Where did the blanket go? I should take it—" "No," Zitao interrupts. "If he's holding it already, it's better that he keeps it for now. Things like that, they take some time to wear off. I don't need both of you spouting lies while we're still in here. In a cave." Joonmyun wishes he could just let go of the goblet and wrap it in his shirt, put something between the goblet and his bare hands, but somehow, the harder he tries, the more tightly he holds onto the goblet. "This whole thing is pointless," he says. His voice sounds so venomous—like it's not even his own. "I hate that I'm here. We're not going to make it anyway. This is stupid." "I just don't like to see him like this," Jongdae says. "It's not. Him. You know?" "What do you mean," Joonmyun says. It feels like his mouth is on autopilot. And the longer he holds the goblet, the more it feels like there's something in his chest, just waiting for a chance to explode. "This is me. You don't even know me, do you?" "Joonmyun, stop," Jongdae says. Joonmyun doesn't know where this is coming from. It doesn't make sense. Why— "I wish you'd never come to Saira in the first place. All you've done is cause trouble for me. I could be happy. But instead I'm stuck here with you, for who knows how long." "Joonmyun," Zitao says. There's a warning note in his voice now, but Joonmyun can't stop. "And you. I don't even know why you're here. We don't need you here—all you do is take up space and waste our time. You should just leave, really—" "Stop," Jongdae says loudly, sounding pained. They're almost at the mouth of the cave now, and they speed up as they get closer. Something's climbing up Joonmyun's throat, choking him and stealing his breath away, and the pressure in his chest makes him feel like it really will burst. "Stop, Joonmyun. Stop." "Don't tell me what to do," Joonmyun says. His voice is so hateful he doesn't even recognize it as his until both Jongdae and Zitao are silent for a moment and he feels a little sick, just for saying it. Even if he didn't mean it. "You know, I really—" "Does the curse make him keep talking?" Zitao asks. "I don't think he's ever talked this much. And I don't think he would if he could stop himself." "Yeah," Jongdae says. His voice is the same way it had been on that first day in the palace, with the servants and the room and Jongdae wanting to help. "I'm sure he's trying to stop." They reach the exit of the cave and Joonmyun has to squint for a moment at how bright the light is; even the fresh air, though, doesn't alleviate the pressure in his chest. Gently, Jongdae says, "Joonmyun, you can let go now—" "I hate you," Joonmyun bursts out, voice so loud, so spiteful that Jongdae almost jumps back in shock. Joonmyun looks down at the goblet, shaking, and finally lets it fall to the ground with a loud clatter. In an instant, the feeling that's been pushing at his chest from the inside out dissipates. Jongdae is looking at him with wide eyes. "You didn't mean—" Joonmyun doesn't trust himself to speak. But he manages to shake his head—at least he's got that much control now. "It wasn't true," Zitao says. "He didn't mean it. It was the goblet speaking for him, you know that." "Yeah, I just—" Jongdae starts, and then stops. "I don't know." Yifan comes over, casting worried glances between Joonmyun and Jongdae as he picks the goblet up and wraps it thickly in one of their extra blankets. "Is everything okay?" "Y-yeah," Joonmyun manages to say. The goblet's curse must still be at work. The others decide to travel back the way they came for now. It's not a good time to discuss where to go next, not when Joonmyun is like this. They don't go very far, stopping early to settle down for the evening in a grassy field a good distance away from the cave. Yifan's scared that Ivy will come after them all, or something like that, but Jongdae says even the hole in the ceiling is too thickly covered with ivy for her to get through. But other than that, he's quieter than usual. Yifan and Zitao give him and Joonmyun a wide berth, and Joonmyun keeps quiet for a while, too. He still doesn't trust himself to speak. The sun's setting when he decides he's ready again. Joonmyun finds Jongdae in his tent and ducks in, asking, "May I?" Jongdae looks up at him, surprised. "Sure," he says, but he sounds hesitant. Joonmyun takes a seat next to him in the cramped, tiny tent, keeping a couple inches of distance between them. Just in case. "You know I didn't mean that," he starts. "But I'm sorry I said it. I'd never—" "I know you wouldn't," Jongdae says. "It's not your fault." "But you," Joonmyun starts, and then falters. "You seemed like you felt—" "It doesn't matter how I feel," Jongdae snaps. Then, his expression softens a little, and he sighs. "I'm sorry. That was… not necessary." "And neither was anything I said," Joonmyun says. "I'm still sorry. If you want me to be honest, I… I really like this, actually, being here, going on this big long crazy adventure with you guys—I used to dream of doing stuff like this when I was a kid. I didn't expect to actually do it, especially after I got a little older, but I'm happy I did. Am. And I'm glad I met you. I think I was going kind of crazy, all by myself in the castle every day. I mean, I had Yifan for company, but…" "Are we trash-talking Yifan now?" Jongdae jokes, cracking a small smile. "Because, I mean, his hair's totally, like—if you know what I mean—" "Stop," Joonmyun laughs, feeling the tension in the air start to evaporate. "I'm trying to be serious here." "I know you are," Jongdae says. "Thanks." "I just wanted to make sure you knew. I didn't mean anything I said then, anything." "Now that I think about it, actually," Jongdae muses, "doesn't the goblet work as sort of a reverse-truth kind of thing? So whatever you said, you meant the opposite." "Maybe?" Joonmyun says uncertainly. "And," says Jongdae, words slow and measured (and Joonmyun swears he sees a little bit of pink dusting his cheeks), "you said. That you hated me. So does that mean—" "It doesn't mean anything," Joonmyun says, but it comes out too fast, too hasty. "I don't know what I was saying anyway," Jongdae says. He clears his throat. "So." "So." "It's late." "It is," Joonmyun says, standing. "I should go to bed. I'll see you in the morning?" "Yeah. And—" Jongdae says haltingly, just before Joonmyun's about to exit the tent. When Joonmyun turns back to look at him, Jongdae meets his eyes for just a moment, and then his gaze flickers away, to the wall of the tent, the ground. Anywhere but him. "And?" "And—never mind," Jongdae says, shaking his head. "It was nothing. Good night." "Good night," Joonmyun echoes, and then he ducks out of the tent and into his own. It's late, and it's been a long day, but somehow even when he lets his eyes close, the rest of him won't shut down. Maybe Jongdae wanted to tell him something important. Or something about the goblet incident. Joonmyun can't stop thinking of all the possibilities. Morning comes too slowly, but too soon, too. Joonmyun's ready to leave before anyone else is, already having eaten breakfast when they wake. "This is early, even for you. Your Highness," Yifan mumbles as he packs up his tent. "Couldn't sleep?" "Yeah," Joonmyun says. He's had this problem for a while, since he was young, probably before he first met Yifan. Even back then, he never stopped thinking. "But it doesn't matter. We should talk about where we're going." "Zitao and I still haven't made any sense of the other two clues, Your Highness," Yifan says. "I have no clue." Joonmyun takes a few minutes to think about it. Jongdae and Zitao emerge and pack their things, too, and Joonmyun talks with them while they eat breakfast. "It doesn't make any sense. There are a lot of things I'd never forget," Joonmyun sighs. "There are too many possibilities. I feel like we'll never figure it out." "Maybe something you keep it means something you've had for a long time," Zitao suggests. "Something you could've gotten rid of, but kept anyway." "That makes a lot of sense, actually," Joonmyun says. What's something he's kept? Something he won't forget? "Think of a memory," Jongdae says. "Maybe if it's something you feel really sentimental about…" And suddenly, Joonmyun's reminded of the story he told Jongdae on their way to Owan. "Yifan, you remember what happened with the paper bag gloves… Didn't I keep them? Somewhere?" "You did, Your Highness," Yifan says. "They're at the palace. I remember where they are, in a drawer in your desk." "Then that's where we're headed," Joonmyun says resolutely. "It's the bags. It has to be." "Didn't you forget them, though?" Jongdae says. "Almost? You didn't even know where they were." "There's nothing else it could be," Joonmyun reasons. "This is all we've got." Zitao knows a shortcut back to the palace, back the way they came and then through a forest just outside of Owan. "It's a two-day trip if we hurry," he says. "We can only stop in Saira for a little while, not overnight, and we'll have to figure out what that last thing is before we get there. And if we can, we might make it in time. But we've gotta hurry." "So let's hurry," Joonmyun says. They set a faster pace than usual today and don't take a break until midday, and even then it's only to let the horses rest and eat. And today, there's none of Jongdae's usual banter or Zitao's petty complaints, just a few questions and then Zitao giving them directions. "A girl who sleeps in the place where you first met," Joonmyun mutters to himself at dinner, taking a bite out of their almost-stale bread. He offers Socks a bit of an apple they picked up a few days ago, but she turns her head away. Not fresh enough, probably. Joonmyun laughs and sighs, "I've spoiled you, haven't I." He goes to find something else for Socks to eat, and when he comes back, there's Jongdae, petting her and feeding her the apple Joonmyun had just left. When Jongdae spots him, he grins. "Jealous?" "Why would I be jealous?" Joonmyun frowns. "Because," Jongdae says, making a face at Socks playfully, "your horse likes me better than you." "Come on," Joonmyun starts, but then his eyes lock on Socks and something clicks. "Wait." "What?" "Socks," Joonmyun says. "What if…" "What do you mean," Jongdae says, eyes wide, but it's not a question. "What if Socks is the girl in the riddle?" Joonmyun says. "I met her in the stables. She slept there every night until we left Saira. And she has ancestors who've been in the family for long enough that it's possible that one of them was stolen back then, centuries ago." Jongdae's eyes widen. "I… think you might be right." Zitao positively beams when Joonmyun tells him. "That makes things easy, then! We don't have to look for anything else. You can just ride with someone else on the way back." "We figured it out," Yifan sighs, sounding relieved. "It's almost over. I can go home." "Yeah," Joonmyun says numbly, looking back at where Socks is drinking water from a bowl behind Yifan. Next to him, Jongdae leans in a little closer, so their arms press together a little, and Joonmyun presses back. Before Joonmyun can go back into his tent for bed, Jongdae catches him by the wrist. "Hey," he says. "Do you want to share a tent tonight? It's cold." "It isn't any colder than usual," Joonmyun says. "Are you sure?" Jongdae sighs. "Just come in." Once they're inside Jongdae's tent, he continues, "I wanted to talk to you. You just—you seemed upset." "I'm not," Joonmyun says, feeling his shoulders tense. "Don't worry about it." "Is it because of Socks?" Jongdae presses on. "I know you're really attached to her. I kinda am, too." Joonmyun hesitates before he admits, "Maybe a little. But I'll get over it. She's just a horse, right? Replaceable." Jongdae studies him for a moment, looking him in the eyes and frowning. "You don't mean that, do you." When Joonmyun looks away, he goes on, voice soft, careful, "You can tell me, you know." "You don't need to do this if you don't want to," Joonmyun says. "I should be happy, I know. Like I said—I'll get over it." "You don't need to just get over it," Jongdae insists. "You don't have to. But it's good to get it out sometimes, you know? I dunno, I thought—maybe it'd help you, I guess, but if you don't feel like it—" "Well," Joonmyun says, "As long as you don't mind." "I really don't." "If you're sure," Joonmyun says slowly, and at Jongdae's nod, he begins. "I really shouldn't be upset, I think—we're so close to the end, and this is everything we've been searching for all this time, but I can't bring myself to celebrate like Yifan and Zitao are. Maybe it's just because I never thought I'd have to give anything up, at least nothing that mattered to me—money or something, maybe, objects I'd have to go on a quest for like the goblet, but not Socks. Not someone I didn't want to let go of. I should've expected it, and I knew I'd lose something, but I guess I just didn't consider the idea that it would hurt." He's rambling. Repeating himself. Joonmyun takes a deep breath. He needs to stop. "It's for me and you, though, and probably all of my ancestors after me, and all of their future husbands and wives and families. I'm just being selfish. One sacrifice shouldn't be too much to ask of me. I'm Prince Joonmyun of Saira. This is my job." "You're always thinking about other people before yourself," Jongdae says. "Why do you do that? Like this entire thing was for me, so I wouldn't be stuck in a marriage I didn't ask for. You probably would've married anybody your parents told you to, as long as it was for the good of the kingdom, and you would've stuck with me as long as I didn't mind. You know I'm right. And you let Zitao come with us just because you knew it'd make Yifan happy, somewhere in his weird, tiny heart—" Joonmyun snorts at this. Yifan's heart is far from tiny. "—even when you knew nothing about him. So I think you deserve to be a little selfish, maybe. If giving up Socks is too much—" "It's not," Joonmyun interrupts. "Really." "I could get used to living in the palace," Jongdae says. "You don't have to do this." "But I do," Joonmyun says. "You don't," Jongdae insists, but Joonmyun shakes his head. "It's fine, Jongdae. I'm going to do what I have to," Joonmyun says. He pushes himself up off the floor of the tent and turns to leave, but Jongdae stops him with a hand on his shoulder. "Wait," he says. "I still meant it when I asked you to sleep here tonight. My blanket's too thin. I've been having trouble sleeping at night." "Then I'll stay," Joonmyun decides, settling back down next to him, "as long as it helps you." "And there it is again," says Jongdae, shaking his head, but there's a hint of a smile pulling at the corners of his lips this time. "Putting my needs before yours. When do you ever do things for you, Joonmyun?" "Why should I?" Joonmyun says back. Jongdae starts to settle down for bed, and Joonmyun helps him set the blanket out. "Like I said, it's my duty. I wouldn't be a good prince if I only ever thought of myself." "But you're not—" Jongdae starts, and then stops, pausing to look at Joonmyun for a few moments, as if searching for something Joonmyun doesn't know is there. "Never mind. It's late." "We should sleep," Joonmyun agrees. "Good night, Jongdae." "Good night." Usually, it's easy to forget about the things he thinks about before he sleeps, as long as he can sleep at all, but even though Joonmyun's well-rested by the next morning, he can't stop thinking about what Jongdae said. When do you ever do things for you, Joonmyun? They repeat themselves over and over in his head in an endless echo, and Joonmyun's stuck in a strange fog until they reach Saira again in the early afternoon. They're ahead of schedule. "Hey, we have some extra time," Zitao says cheerfully. "Yifan! You should take me to the market. I haven't been there in ages. How long has it been since I last visited Saira?" "Years," Yifan says. "Do you even have any money on you?" "Nope," Zitao grins. "I never bring money with me anywhere, you know that. I always lose it anyway. But I'd be really happy, you know, if you bought me something, just one thing—" "So we'll head to the palace now," Joonmyun interrupts. "We'll meet you back here soon." Yifan gives Joonmyun directions to the palace, and, miraculously, he does not get lost in the maze of houses surrounding the main town area like he expects. They sneak back into Joonmyun's room through a passage coming back from the stables and start to turn the whole room upside-down. Joonmyun doesn't have time to feel nostalgic (nostalgic? He hasn't even been gone a month) in the midst of it all, opening every drawer and checking every spot that lies in shadow to see if they can find the bags. But it seems like the longer they search, the farther away they are from finding them, even though Yifan said they were in Joonmyun's desk. "Do you think he was wrong about where they were?" Jongdae says. He's slumped against the foot of Joonmyun's bed, sweaty bangs sticking to his face. Saira is always so warm in the spring. "We've looked everywhere in here. I don't think the bags are in this room at all, actually." "Nowhere we can find, anyway," Joonmyun agrees, taking a seat next to him. If things had gone well, they would've been able to get out of here ages ago, but the sun's starting to drop lower in the sky already and what Joonmyun had thought would be an easy task now seems hopeless. "What if," Jongdae suggests, "it's not the bags at all? What if you didn't keep them, after all?" "You did say they didn't quite work as the solution," Joonmyun says. "Maybe you're right." "Let's find Yifan and Zitao," Jongdae says. "We can talk about it with them and figure something out, maybe. We'll still make it. I know it." "It probably wouldn't be good if we were found here anyway," Joonmyun says, nodding. "Let's go." They make a stealthy escape through the stables and a few winding passages again, quietly tugging Socks and May back out of the stables—the last time for Socks, Joonmyun can't help but think—and head down to the market. This route, at least, Joonmyun knows. Jongdae's brought a square cloth from one of Joonmyun's clothes drawers to disguise him a bit, so no one will recognize him, even if having just the lower half of his face covered doesn't do much to hide him. In plainer clothes than he's used to wearing, though, Joonmyun goes unnoticed as they pass through the streets. Zitao is sitting under the shade of a stall and eating a pastry with a satisfied smile when Joonmyun and Jongdae find him, Yifan by his side. "What took you so long, Yo—I mean, what took you so long?" Yifan asks. "I thought it was supposed to be a quick trip." "We couldn't find the bags," Jongdae tells him. "We searched everywhere we could think of. There's nothing." "Maybe your memory told you wrong," says Zitao. "Maybe it's something else." "That's what we were thinking," Joonmyun says. "I don't know what else it could be, though." "We could stay here for the night," Zitao suggests. "We were ahead of schedule anyway. If we spend the night here, we should still be able to make it if we figure it out and leave by noon tomorrow." "I know the owner of an inn nearby," Yifan says. "We can stay there. And he won't say a word about you, trust me." Joonmyun glances over at Jongdae for a moment, and at Jongdae's nod, he does the same. "It's best we leave now, then. It's getting dark." "We'll figure this out," Jongdae says as they follow Yifan's lead, giving Joonmyun a reassuring smile. "We'll find a way." "Yeah," Joonmyun says. They have to. "We will." ♚ True to Yifan's word, the innkeeper, Lu Han, hardly spares Joonmyun a glance when they arrive. Instead, he full-on tackles Yifan, talking to him so quickly Joonmyun can't even keep up. They spend a whole five minutes chatting, an incredible feat—Zitao is glaring daggers into the side of Lu Han's head, and Joonmyun can't help but admire Lu Han for holding up for so long. Zitao's expression looks downright murderous. "Well, anyway," Lu Han says, casting Zitao a nervous glance and giving a strained laugh, "I'll show you to your room now. Sorry if there's… stuff in there… Haha. That was a joke. Yeah." That, Joonmyun discovers when they open the door to his and Jongdae's room, was not a joke. The room is dusty and smells a little strange; inside, everything looks normal until Joonmyun looks down at the spot by the door and sees a scattering of what looks like droppings. They walk in to set their things down and find a few more spots like it around the room, and Joonmyun swears he sees something brown and furry dart across the room when he walks past the bed. "And, uh, I'm sorry we had to fit you in two rooms. Busy weekend, you know! All booked up," Lu Han says, and leaves hastily. Joonmyun wants to ask him how this place could possibly have regular customers, but this is Yifan's friend. That would be rude. "I don't think I'm gonna be able to sleep tonight," Jongdae shudders, looking around the room. "Think there are bedbugs?" "I wouldn't be surprised if there were," Joonmyun says grimly. "We may as well just sleep on the ground outside." "Honestly, I'd prefer that," Jongdae says. "But anyway. We need to figure out what that last clue means by morning." "Right," Joonmyun nods. "So it's something I've kept and won't forget. I can't think of anything I've been particularly sentimental about other than the bags, though." "Nothing?" Jongdae says. "Talk to me about your childhood. Maybe that'll help you remember something!" "Okay," Joonmyun says, thinking. "When I was little, I always used to try and steal the gloves from the box my mother kept them in, even though she told me time and time again that I couldn't wear them until I was older. I thought they were the coolest things ever, white and gold and so fancy, way better than my stupid plain blue ones. So eventually she started to humor me, sort of—she'd hide the box in a different place every week and I'd spend the whole week searching for it until I found it, even though the box was always locked and I could never get at the gloves inside anyway. It was sort of like a game, I guess, to keep me entertained, and it worked. Until I got a little older, at least. "And when I was fifteen, after I met Yifan, I got to go out to the market for the first time. It was both the best and worst day I had up until that point, I think. I hadn't ever left the castle before that, so I was really excited to find myself surrounded by so many new things, but I guess I expected people to treat me the same way they did in the castle. Like a prince, but only in that they respected me. But it was so different from what I thought it'd be like—everyone backed away when I came close, apologized profusely if they bumped into me or brushed my arm by accident, and offered me everything I could possibly want for free even if I wanted to pay for it. They'd look at my gloves like they were something horrible, and then they'd whisper and stare when they thought I wasn't paying attention. It hurt. But I went back to the palace and all I could think of was the way it felt to be in the midst of a crowd or what it smelled like when I passed by the baker's stall, and all I ever wanted to do after that was go back." "Wait," Jongdae says before Joonmyun can go on. "Did you buy anything that day?" "Only things I used or ate, I think," Joonmyun says. "So nothing that could fit the clue." Jongdae stares up at the ceiling for a moment and hums. "The gloves," he says suddenly, sitting up and looking at Joonmyun with bright eyes. "Your first gloves from when you were young. Did you keep them?" "Not that I remember. And I forgot about them after a while, I think—I barely remember what they looked like." "Your other gloves, then," Jongdae says. "Didn't you keep them on even after I held your hand? You were so sentimental about them. Where did you put them after you took them off?" It takes Joonmyun a moment, but he remembers. "In one of the saddlebags. Do you think—" "Yes," Jongdae says. "At least, it's my best guess." "I can't think of anything better," Joonmyun says, a slow smile spreading across his face. He can feel the adrenaline kicking in, suddenly—he's itching to move, to leave, to finally get to the end of this. They have to go. "You're brilliant, Jongdae. Really." "You flatter me," Jongdae says, mock-swooning and sighing dramatically. But his expression turns serious again after a moment. Now isn't the time to get distracted. "Let's give it a shot. I really think this could be it." "Let's leave," Joonmyun says on impulse, "right now. We don't have much time to spare." "Now?" Jongdae says. "What about Yifan and Zitao?" "We can wake them up," Joonmyun says. "Or go without them if you want, but we should just go. Right now." "If they don't wake up when we knock, we can just go, I guess," Jongdae says, shrugging. Then, he heads for the door, grinning. "Okay. Let's do this." ♚ Jongdae goes to check on Yifan and Zitao while Joonmyun goes to get the horses ready. He meets Joonmyun outside the inn, alone. "They didn't wake up? Yifan's usually a pretty light sleeper," Joonmyun frowns. "They were busy," Jongdae says simply. "I left a note." "Busy?" "Busy." It takes him a moment before Jongdae's meaning registers. "Oh." "Yeah. Let's just go." Somehow, they manage to make their way through the streets of Saira and back to the gate they've been taking in and out of the kingdom. Saira's scarier at night—the streets are all shadows and dark alleyways, so quiet Joonmyun feels like something must be hiding behind them, ready to jump out and attack, even when he knows there isn't. And then they're out the gate, heading through the forest again, and it's far spookier at night than it had been that first spring day when they were leaving Saira, moonlight filtering through the trees and the leaves rustling when a soft breeze blows through. Jongdae's ahead of him, though, and when he turns back just to give Joonmyun a quick glance, Joonmyun can see his reassuring smile, even in the dark. And when the breeze passes through, ruffling Joonmyun's hair just a little bit, he catches that faint, familiar scent on the tips of it, fragrant and sweet. Spring. It's easy to relax after that. They spend the early morning hours traveling quickly on a path that took them half a day the first time around, going at a leisurely pace—but they don't have time for that now. They're taking a four-day trip in three days' time, and rest, for them or their horses, will be a luxury. They stop briefly throughout the day to let their horses rest and to take a couple of naps themselves, one at a time, but not for long—just enough so that they'll have enough energy to make it through another few hours on the move, and no more. There isn't time. Two days left, Joonmyun thinks as he finally drifts off, too tired to let his what-ifs and hows and whys keep him up tonight. They've got two days. They're well on their way to Owan and if they keep going, maybe—just maybe—they'll make it. ♚ "It's today," Jongdae says gravely on the morning of their third day traveling again. "If we make it, it's gonna be today." "Yeah," Joonmyun says. "I almost can't believe it. We're going to break the curse today. This is it." "Let's get going," Jongdae says. "We're not too far from Owan. If we hurry today, we might make it in time." "She said we had a week. So that means we have until this afternoon, right?" "Right. And we should be in Owan by midday. So we'll get there." Even Socks and May seem to feel that there's something important happening today. They go faster than they usually do without being told and don't rest for as long as they usually do, shuffling in place and watching Joonmyun and Jongdae intently until they get up to go again. They're even ahead of schedule when they arrive in Owan. Joonmyun's pretty sure it's not even noon. A short break for lunch, and then they're traveling again and Joonmyun's heart is pounding in his chest as they get closer and closer to the little house in the distance. "You should stay here," he tells Jongdae, starting to lead Socks towards the door on shaky legs, "with May." "Are you sure?" Jongdae frowns. "I can—" "No," Joonmyun says firmly. "This… I think this is something I need to do on my own." Jongdae nods, doesn't press further. "Do you have everything?" Joonmyun does a mental check. Socks. The goblet, tucked safely in a saddlebag and wrapped carefully in a blanket. The gloves, clutched tightly in his other hand. "Yes." The door, now back on its hinges, swings open the moment Joonmyun raises his hand to try the doorknob. There's no one behind it, though, so he leads Socks inside without a word, eyes darting around the house as he passes through. "I have been expecting you," comes a voice, singsongy and too cheerful for Joonmyun when he's nervous like this. The living room. She's in the living room. "You are the first to make it in time. But I knew you would." "I would never forgive myself if I didn't," Joonmyun says honestly, bowing as low as he can when he enters the room. Aria is standing at the side of the room opposite to the door, tall and regal, with dark hair and eyes and clothes. Joonmyun keeps his eyes downcast like his parents always taught him to when meeting people more important than him. He's never had to do this before. He brings Socks in behind him, pulls the goblet out from a saddlebag, and carefully holds it so she can see but it won't touch his skin. His gloves are held in his left hand. She takes a step closer, inspecting the three. "I am impressed." "Thank you," Joonmyun says, bowing again, but Aria holds one finger up before he can say more. "I have not finished speaking. There is something you should know," Aria says. "This curse is magically binding, yes. It forces you to marry the first to hold your hand, no matter what you do to try and stop it. But I do not try to tangle the strings of fate, and I do not change things that I have no authority to change. All the curse did was make sure things happened as they should have—so even if you believe everything that has happened was my fault, look at your situation more carefully. Things always turn out as they should, Kim Joonmyun, even if you have found the solution to my riddle, even if you break my curse. I hope you will remember that." Aria strides forward so that she's facing Joonmyun, looking him straight in the eyes. One long moment, and then he feels something inside him shift, a lock that's finally found its key, and Aria steps back again and takes Socks's reins. "Go," she says. "Do not forget what I have told you, and you will live your life well." She takes the goblet and gloves from his arms. And with one last glance at Socks, one last scratch behind her ear, just where she likes it, Joonmyun heads out the door at back outside, back to where Jongdae waits for him with wide and expectant eyes. "I did it." Then, louder this time, Joonmyun says again, "I did it." A huge smile spreads across Jongdae's face as he jumps down from May's back and all but tackles him, embracing him firmly even as Joonmyun staggers a bit under his weight. "I knew you would," Jongdae says into his ear, still hugging him tightly, and then he pulls back just as Joonmyun starts to wish he wouldn't stop. He looks at Joonmyun for a moment, sobering a little. "Are you sad?" "Maybe," Joonmyun says, "but I'll learn to move on." "Would it be weird to say I'm proud of you?" Jongdae says, eyes warm and bright and sweet even though he's not smiling. Joonmyun just pulls him in close again, closing his eyes and breathing in the smell of sweat and dirt and Jongdae, and he holds him like he's afraid Jongdae'll disappear if he ever lets go. "No," Joonmyun says, so softly he's not sure Jongdae can even hear. "Not at all." ♚ "I'm not your betrothed anymore," Jongdae says back in Owan. "So I guess that means I'm going home." "I guess it does," Joonmyun agrees. There's something else lingering on the tip of his tongue, something he knows he won't say, and he doesn't meet Jongdae's eyes when he says, "Is this where we part ways?" "You don't have any other way to get home," Jongdae starts, but Joonmyun shakes his head. "I can find a way. May is yours. I'll buy another horse or something, so don't worry. I won't inconvenience you." Jongdae's face falls, but only for an instant, and then it's gone, and his expression goes back to one of concern. "Are you sure?" "Yeah, I—" "Hey!" a man calls, drawing the attention of everyone in the square. "Does this horse belong to anyone here?" Joonmyun turns, looking to see where the voice is coming from, and then he freezes. It can't be— "Socks," Jongdae says, amazed. "How'd she get here? I thought—" "Me too," Joonmyun says. And he doesn't even have to call for Socks—she dashes away from the man so fast her reins slip out of his hands, stopping in front of Joonmyun and breathing hard. "She followed us all the way here, didn't she," Jongdae says, shaking his head. He gives Socks a fond smile. "You've got a damn amazing horse." "I know I do," Joonmyun says. "And I guess I've got a way home now, too." "So," Jongdae says. "This is it." "Yeah. Thanks," Joonmyun mumbles, "for, well. Everything." "You, too," Jongdae says, smiling and embracing Joonmyun for a moment, just a moment, so brief it could've just been his imagination, before he turns to leave. Joonmyun watches him leave. He doesn't move until Jongdae is gone, so far away he's nothing more than a tiny speck in the distance. ♚ EPILOGUE Joonmyun always comes to the market on the first day of spring. Granted, it's only been two years since The Adventure, but this is something he plans on making a tradition. It's easy to lose himself in the hustle and bustle of a crowd, in the smell of baking bread and food being cooked in the stalls nearby, and that light, sweet scent that always lingers in the air in spring. Joonmyun'll never tell what the last one always reminds him of. He's turning around to look at the toy booth, having just bought an orange, when he spots a familiar face and does a double take. He's about to move on—it can't be, he looks so different, more mature now—when the man looks to his right and meets Joonmyun's eyes, and then Joonmyun knows. It's him. "Long time no see," Jongdae grins when he's made his way over. His smile is just as bright as Joonmyun remembers, but it's tentative, a little awkward. "It's good to see you," Joonmyun says. "Will you be here for long?" "If things go well, permanently," Jongdae replies. "I found a job here. So I'm living with my cousin until I make enough to afford a house of my own." "That's great," Joonmyun says. "Yifan's not with you?" "Yifan doesn't work for the family anymore, actually," Joonmyun shrugs. "Moved away to the mountains with Zitao. He comes to visit all the time, though." "Oh," Jongdae says. "I'm happy for them." "Me, too." A few uncomfortable moments pass in which neither of them knows exactly what to say, and then—an idea. Something silly, stupid, spontaneous, and Joonmyun feels dumb, but he decides to do it anyway. "Why don't we start over?" he says, sticking out his hand. "Hi. I'm Kim Joonmyun." "Kim Jongdae, formerly of Astra," Jongdae says, taking it. "It's nice to meet you." ♚ "And then what, Appa?" Sehun asks, blinking up at him with wide, excited eyes. "And then," Joonmyun says, exchanging a smile with Jongdae, who's curled up comfortably into his side, "well. That's a story for another day." ♚ one | two | three MOD NOTE: You've reached the end of the fic! Thank you for reading. If you'd like to leave a comment, please do so in THIS livejournal post!