Empire of Ashes (2b/?)
Title: Empire of Ashes (2b/?)
Genre: AU/Romance
Rating: eventually up to NC-17 (PG-13 for this chapter)
Pairing/Focus: het!2min (Taeyeon/Minho), het!Jongkey (Gwiboon/Jonghyun), Onew/badassery
Previous Chapters: 1, 2a
Chapter 2b:
Outshining the Sun
“There. You’re all set.” Sujin leaned back, surveying her work.
Taeyeon opened her eyes, blinking a few times. Whatever powder Sujin had brushed on her lids was weightless. She didn’t feel any different at all.
Hyegyo, who was sitting behind her, leaned forward to get a look. “She doesn’t look like an overgrown toddler for once,” she remarked, nodding approvingly.
Sujin snorted. “I’ll take that as a compliment.” She tapped Taeyeon on the knee with the end of her brush. “Get up. Hyegyo’s next.”
Taeyeon rose and let the other girl take her place on the cushion. Sujin picked out a round metal tin from the assortment of cosmetics she had laid out.
“What’s that?” Hyegyo asked warily. “You didn’t use it on Taeyeon.”
“Powder,” Sujin explained, shaking the tin. “Sorry to say, but you’re darker than a farmer.”
“Not everyone can have perfect baby skin like Taeyeon,” Hyegyo grumbled as she closed her eyes and relented to Sujin’s ministrations.
There was a sharp knock on the door.
“It’s me!” said a muffled voice from outside.
“Jinyoung?” Taeyeon rose and went to open the door.
Jinyoung entered in a flurry of rustling silks. She was wrapped in a dark purple skirt that fell from the tops of her breasts all the way to the floor. Over it, she wore a cropped black jacket embroidered with silver moons and stars. Her long braid was gathered at the back of her head in a thick bun and held in place by a long jade hairpin with one end carved in the shape of a dragon’s head.
“Taeyeon! Look at you!” She reached out and wound a lock of Taeyeon’s hair around her finger. “You look amazing!”
“You think so?” Taeyeon asked shyly.
In truth, she had been reluctant to let her hair out of its usual braid. After all, loose hair on a woman was often associated with loose morals, and like most girls, Taeyeon had worn her hair in a modest braid since she had turned thirteen. However, Sujin had bullied Taeyeon until she caved and let the other girl brush out her hair so that it fell in soft waves down her back. It felt strange and heavy hanging loosely behind her. As a final touch, Sujin had tucked a large golden clip in the shape of a sunflower above her left ear.
“Definitely. Here, look.” Jinyoung picked up the silver hand mirror they had borrowed from Mistress Kwon. She held it at arms length so that they could both see their reflections. “See? We match.”
The seamstress Mistress Kwon had hired had designed their outfits as a set. The cut was exactly the same, but Taeyeon’s skirt was bright, buttercup yellow and her jacket was deep red with a pattern of swirling, golden clouds.
Taeyeon’s makeup was also lighter than Jinyoung’s. Mistress Kwon had instructed Sujin to keep her look natural, so the older girl had groomed Taeyeon’s brows, applied a sheer shimmer to her lids, dabbed a soft pink color on her lips, and rubbed a bit of rouge on the apples of her cheeks so that she had a flushed, rosy glow. Staring at her reflection, Taeyeon had to admit that Hyegyo was right. She did seem a little more grown-up than usual, though her appearance remained fresh and youthful.
Jinyoung, on the other hand, looked like a young woman who had already discarded the wide-eyed innocence of her girlhood. Her brows had been darkened to give them a stronger arch, and her lips were painted a bright red that popped out against the pallor of her skin. Most striking of all were her eyes, which were rimmed in a smoky black that exaggerated their slant and made her appear both alluring and enigmatic.
Day and night. Light and shadow. Taeyeon and Jinyoung were a careful study in contrasts.
After Sujin was done with Hyegyo, Jinyoung and Taeyeon helped their partner into her outfit for the evening, a simple pale blue dress with fitted sleeves that wouldn’t get in the way of her drumming. Together, the three girls filed out of the readying room and made the short walk to Mistress Kwon’s quarters.
They found Mistress Kwon at her writing desk buried in a stack of papers. When they entered, she removed her reading glasses and watched as the girls bowed and arranged themselves neatly in a row for her final inspection. She rose, crossed the room, and paced up and down the line, pausing here and there to straighten a pin or adjust a ribbon. When she was satisfied with her assessment, she came to a stop in front of Jinyoung.
“You look ready,” she said, gazing down at her student with sharp, probing eyes.
“I feel ready,” Jinyoung replied.
“Hmph, I should hope you are.” Mistress Kwon went over to her desk and picked up a small blue box that was sitting on a corner. “According to the contract, your assignment starts at nine and you’ve been booked until midnight. However, as you know, these sorts of engagements tend run over. I expect you to be home late but not too late. Use your best judgment and choose an appropriate time to leave. If you run into any trouble, don’t hesitate to call for the guards. There will always be one posted within hearing range. Any questions?”
“No, mistress."
“Very well then.” Mistress Kwon opened the blue box in her hand and withdrew two black pearls suspended on silver hooks. It was customary for the house mistress to lend a piece of her own jewelry for her student’s debut. Gently, Mistress Kwon threaded a pearl through each of Jinyoung’s ears. The teardrop-shaped gems flashed with a purplish luster under the soft glow of the lights.
Next, Mistress Kwon went to her bookshelf and pulled down a glass jar brimming with a translucent, amber-colored fluid. Setting the jar on the table, she unscrewed the metal lid. The tantalizing, heavy aroma of honey filled the room.
Jinyoung had explained the ritual to Taeyeon beforehand, so she knew that as the youngest in their group she was expected to be the first to come forward. She kneeled, closed her eyes, and opened her mouth, letting Mistress Kwon pushed a generous spoonful of honey past her lips. The sticky substance coated her tongue with its dizzying sweetness. She savored the smooth, thick texture of it running down the walls of her throat as she swallowed. It had been a long time since she had tasted honey; it was a luxury most people couldn’t afford.
After Hami received her dose of honey as well, it was Jinyoung's turn. This time, Mistress Kwon tore a blank page from a notebook sitting on her desk and burned the sheet of paper with a candle. She blew out the fire before it could reach her fingers and gathered the ashes that had fallen into a small, metal saucer. She spooned a dollop of honey into the saucer, stirring it with the ashes. Jinyoung’s face remained impassive as she accepted the golden, grayish mixture Mistress Kwon fed her, though Taeyeon imagined that the concoction must have tasted foul.
Taeyeon had learned from Jinyoung that the reason why the debuting dancer had to eat both the honey and the ash was to remind her that life was full of both sweetness and bitterness. The ash came from a blank page because the future of the dancer remained unwritten. Each of the four dance houses had their own unique take on this rite of passage. Taeyeon heard that the House of Spring collected morning dew for their ritual while the House of Autumn preferred wine.
Jinyoung stood once more. Mistress Kwon placed her hands on the girl's shoulders, planting a light kiss on Jinyoung’s forehead.
“The guards are waiting for you with the carriage by the outer gates,” she said. “Good luck, ladies.”
The three girls bowed, and armed with their mistress’s blessing, headed outside.
It had stopped snowing. The air around them was quiet and still. Above, the night sky was an endless field of glittering stars. Taeyeon would have appreciated their beauty more if it wasn’t freezing as well.
"Gods, it's cold," Jinyoung said, wrapping her black cloak tightly around her. Her warm breath billowed into the air.
"Well, no point whining about it," Hami said, practical as always. "Let's get moving. The cold is going to damage my drum if we stay out here."
Together, they wound their way across the academy’s grounds. When they reached the main courtyard, there were, to their surprise, about thirty students shivering and waiting for them in the cold.
“Sister." One of them, a senior Taeyeon didn't recognize, stepped forward. She pulled down her scarf from her face, placed a soft kiss on Jinyoung's cheek, and pressed something into the other girl’s hands.
"We would have gotten you real flowers, but you just had to be the special one and debut out of season," the girl teased.
Taeyeon looked more closely and saw that she had given Jinyoung a star lily folded out of a sheet of pink paper. One by one, the other students--Dami, Seonyoung, and Jinju were in their midst-approached Jinyoung and handed her flowers as well. Soon, her arms were overflowing with a bright, rustling bouquet.
“T-thank you,” Jinyoung said, her voice quivering slightly with emotion. She appeared to be genuinely astonished by their support. “Thank you all, my sisters. I won’t forget this.”
“We love you, Jinyoung!” a student cried out. The rest of the girls joined in, chanting her name and cheering.
Jinyoung smiled brilliantly, waved one last time, and with Taeyeon and Hyegyo trailing behind her, descended the stairs leading out of the academy.
At the bottom, two guards were waiting for them with the carriage and horses. They were different from the men that Taeyeon had seen escorting the Summer Sun.
The taller one, a middle-aged man with a broad, smiling face that was partially obscured by a thick beard, took a look at Jinyoung and let out a long whistle.
“Well, what do we have here?” He grinned, displaying a few missing teeth. “All grown up now, are we? I still remember when you first got here. You were a wee thing.” He held his hand level to his hip. “About this big. Now look at ya!”
Jinyoung slapped him playfully on the arm. “I was taller than that!” she protested, laughing. "How are the kids, by the way?"
"Good, good,” he said brightly. "Though last week, my son got sent home from school for fighting. Of course, the wife gave me an earful for that. Luckily, my daughter isn't nearly as much trouble. She’ll be turning three soon. You should see her. Bet she’s the prettiest thing you’ll ever lay your eyes on. And sharp as a whip. Why the other day, I was playing with her and-“
“Jung-gon,” the other guard groaned, shivering in the driver's seat. “Hurry up. I’m freezing my balls off here.”
Jung-gon chuckled. "Pardon Bo-kyung’s language. We've been waiting out here for a while."
"Then we should probably get going," Jinyoung said.
After Jung-gon helped the three girls settle into the carriage, he went up front to join Bo-kyung in the driver's seat. The girls heard the snap of reins as Bo-kyung urged the horses forward. The carriage lurched and began to move.
"I can't believe this is finally happening," Jinyoung said distantly. "But you know what's strange? I don't feel afraid anymore." She looked down at the flowers gathered in her arms, her eyes shining. "I feel--I feel like I can do anything. Like everything’s going to be fine and nothing’s going to go wrong after all."
“Ah! Don’t cry! You’ll ruin your make-up!” Hami darted forward, dabbing away a stray tear with her handkerchief.
Jinyoung laughed. “Well yes, there’s always that.”
~*~
Taeyeon had been born in Aeyas and lived on its streets for years. However, from the carriage window, the capital looked much more impressive and spectacular than she remembered it being. Had there always been this many people? Had it always been so loud? It was like her seclusion in the mountains had made her hyper-sensitive to the pulse of the city. Its very streets seemed to seethe and overflow with life.
She wasn’t the only one fascinated by their surroundings. Jinyoung and Hyegyo also crowded the carriage window with her, the three of them drinking in the sights, sounds, and smells of a world that was for the most part, off-limits to them.
It was a thirty minute journey from the academy to the site of their assignment. On the way, they passed by landmarks such as the Eel’s Den, the city’s largest wet market. Although it was already closed for the evening, the area still smelled overpoweringly of fish and livestock. Later on, they drove past Food Street, a long stretch of restaurants that was lit up with strings of yellow lanterns. A group of drunken men stumbling around near the entrance arch hooted and hollered as they caught sight of the girls. Taeyeon and Jinyoung laughed as Hyegyo responded with a rude gesture that would have gotten her the switch if they had still been at the academy.
They headed to the northwestern margins of the city. Taeyeon recognized a broad avenue lined with ancient, gnarled cherry trees. It was the road leading to the House of Spring. While the trees were barren now, in a few months, the whole neighborhood would be covered in a blinding blizzard of pink and white petals.
As they neared Changsoo’s villa, the carriage broke off from the main road, proceeding down a labyrinth of winding alleyways, the streets growing narrower the deeper they traveled. Finally, they came to a stop in front of a pair of faded green double-doors leading into a walled enclosure.
“I guess this is it.” Jinyoung glanced over at the other girls. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Taeyeon confirmed, gripping her fan case tightly in her hands. Hyegyo answered with a grunt of assent.
Jung-gon lent each of the girls a hand as they exited the carriage. Together, the group of four walked up to the entrance, leaving Bo-kyung behind to tend to the horses.
Jung-gon raised a mighty fist and banged on the door. Within moments, they heard the scuttling of footsteps on the other side.
“Who is it?” a raspy male voice called out.
Jung-gon bellowed back, “Delegates from the House of Summer!”
The peep hole slid open. As soon as the man on the other side got a glimpse of the girls, he exclaimed, “Ah! Just a moment!”
Briefly, they heard the rattling of chains before doors swung open. A small, elderly man dressed in grey servants robes popped out.
“There you are!” he said warmly, stepping out into the alleyway. “The young master has been waiting for you. Come in! Come in!” He ushered the girls and their guard through the doorway.
The villa was much larger than it appeared from the outside. Although the buildings were all a modest size, there were about a dozen of them scattered around a sprawling garden with a footbridge overlooking a frozen pond.
The girls were careful not to let their skirts trail in the snow as the servant led them through the garden to one of the back buildings. It was one of the few houses that still had lights on inside. Thick plumes of smoke spouted from an adjacent chimney, and a row of swords leaned against the wall by the entrance. Loud, raucous male voices filtered out into the night.
The elderly servant stepped up to entrance. “Master Kang,” he announced, knocking on the door. “The ladies from the House of Summer have arrived.”
“About time!” someone shouted from inside. “Send them in!”
As the girls removed their shoes, Jung-gon touched Jinyoung lightly on the arm.
“I’ll be posted outside if you need me,” he informed her. “If there’s any trouble, just say ‘white horses’ in a clear voice and I’ll come charging in to the rescue.”
Jinyoung shot him a grateful smile. He winked in return and stepped back.
The servant slid open the door, spilling light out into the dense darkness. Picking up her skirt, Jinyoung entered first, Taeyeon following closely behind her and Hyegyo holding up the rear.
Taeyeon barely made it past the doorway when she crashed into Jinyoung--the older girl had frozen in place. Before she could ask what was wrong, Jinyoung suddenly crumpled to the floor. For a frantic moment, Taeyeon thought she had fainted.
"Jinyoung! Are you okay?" She bent down to help the older girl, but Taeyeon soon realized that Jinyoung was not only very conscious, her entire body was folded into a deep bow.
Taeyeon wasn't able to tell whom she was bowing to because the next thing she knew, a stout, young man had come over and was tugging Jinyoung back to her feet.
"No need for that tonight, my dear." He grinned, his teeth very white against his tan. "Technically, he's not supposed to be here, so just treat him like any other guest tonight, alright?"
"Yes, my lord," Jinyoung replied, albeit a bit shakily
Taeyeon was confused. Including the one who had approached them, there were seven young men in the room, six of whom were seated on floor cushions around a long table. The surface of the table was littered with half-finished platters of snacks, cups, and bottles of wine. It seemed like they had been waiting for the evening’s entertainment for a while.
Once all the girls had shuffled inside, the man with the tan face introduced himself.
"I am Kang Changsoo,” he said, bowing with a flourish. He had a friendly, round face, though he already looked a bit flushed from liquor. “It is a pleasure to welcome such fine young ladies into my humble home.”
All three girls bowed in unison.
“I am happy to be of service to you gentlemen,” Jinyoung replied, seeming to have regained her composure and confidence. “My name is Park Jinyoung and these are my two attendants, Lee Taeyeon and Hwang Hyegyo.”
“Lovely names for a lovely group of ladies,” Changsoo said approvingly, rubbing his hands together. “Allow me to introduce my guests. This is Daejoong and Daehyun. They’re brothers, as you can probably tell.” He pointed to two remarkably similar-looking men sitting together on one side of the table. “That’s Jihyun and Sunghoon.” A slightly older-looking man with a pipe hanging between his lips nodded in greeting as did the reedy-looking man across from him. “And over there, that's Minwoo and Myungho.” On the opposite side of the room, an enormous man with a mottled scar running up the side of his neck waved cheerfully back. The slender young man on his left dipped his head towards them in a slight bow.
“Don’t be shy!” Changsoo urged. “Come join us!”
Jinyoung went with Changsoo to the head of the table. Taeyeon made an aborted attempt to follow her, but then she remembered that Sister Finch had instructed them to spread themselves out among the guests. She moved to the other side of the table and took the spare cushion she was offered, seating herself between Myungho and Minwoo. Much to her relief, the floor was heated and she sank down gratefully, letting her stiff, frozen limbs warm up.
“Well, aren’t you a pretty little thing,” Myungho remarked. He had a rugged, handsome face, but his nose was slightly off-center, as if it had been broken and reset at some point in his life. “How come I’ve never seen you before?” He glanced at his friend sitting on her left. “Have you ever seen her before, Minwoo?”
“I don’t think so,” Minwoo replied. He seemed to be the youngest in the group but he had a startlingly deep voice. Like Myungho, he was also handsome, but his features were softer and much more fine-boned. He had the biggest eyes Taeyeon had ever seen.
“Taeyeon joined the academy fairly recently,” Jinyoung said, busying herself refilling empty cups. Taeyeon admired how comfortable she seemed even with half of the room devouring her with their eyes.
“Oh, is that so?” Myungho took a closer look at Taeyeon. “Exactly how old are you?”
“Seventeen, sir.” Taeyeon kept her hands clasped neatly in her lap, willing herself not to squirm.
“Seventeen? Hear that, Minwoo? She’s even younger than you!” Myungho slapped the smaller man so hard on the back that he sloshed his drink all over his lap.
“So it would seem,” Minwoo replied noncommittally, wiping at his pants. Fortunately, his cup appeared to have been full of water rather than wine. Taeyeon handed him her handkerchief. "Thank you."
“Seventeen,” Myungho muttered, propping his head in his hand and staring closely at Taeyeon. She felt her face grow warm underneath his close scrutiny. “It’s a bit hard to tell. You don’t see many girls your age wearing their hair down." He chuckled. "Usually it’s only little girls.”
“And whores,” Hyegyo interjected.
Jihyun spat out his pipe. Minwoo choked on his drink, water dribbling down his front.
Everyone in the room stared at Hyegyo.
“What?” she demanded. “It’s true.” Then she added, almost as an afterthought, “But Taeyeon’s not a whore.”
Taeyeon felt like she was going to burst into flames with the force she was blushing. She had never been so mortified in her life. Later, she was going to beat Hyegyo to death with her own drumsticks.
A slight motion in the corner of her eye caught her attention.
Minwoo was leaning on the table, his shoulders convulsing. Taeyeon felt a flash of panic, terrified that he was choking. But then Minwoo lifted his head, and she saw that he was actually laughing. He was laughing so hard he could scarcely breathe.
“It’s not funny!" she hissed. Without thinking, she punched him in the arm.
“Taeyeon!” Jinyoung gasped.
Minwoo stopped laughing immediately. He seemed absolutely dumbfounded that she had hit him. Taeyeon tried to glare back at him, but her lips involuntarily twitched upward. With the way he was gawking at her, his eyes bulging in shock, he looked remarkably similar to a surprised frog.
The moment Minwoo caught her frown wobbling, he started to snicker. Before long, he was overcome with full-bodied laughter once again. This time, Taeyeon found her mouth quirking into a reluctant smile.
“At least I don’t look like I wet myself,” she muttered, though the venom was gone from her voice.
Next to her, Myungho let out a loud bark of laughter, slapping the table with his palm. It was infectious. Soon the entire room was in an uproar. Even though Jinyoung shook her head disapprovingly, she was giggling as well. The only exception was Hyegyo, who just crossed her arms and looked at everyone like they had lost their minds.
And just like that, the ice was broken. The thin veil of tension that had clouded the room since the girls had entered had lifted. After the noise finally died down, everyone seemed much more relaxed and at ease.
“Ah, Minwoo,” Changsoo said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. “I haven’t seen you laugh that hard in ages."
Taeyeon wondered why, but Jinyoung quickly broke her train of thought by bringing everyone’s attention to her with a loud snap of her fan.
“Gentlemen!” Jinyoung exclaimed. “Now that you’re all acquainted with my friend Hyegyo’s rather unconventional sense of humor, I think it's time for Taeyeon and me to impress you.”
Taeyeon only had a second’s notice before the other girl's fan flew across the room. She managed to snatch it out of the air right before it bashed Myungho in his already damaged nose. She flipped it from one hand to the other before tossing it back to Jinyoung. The men in the room whooped and hollered appreciatively.
Jinyoung gave their audience a coy smile. “If you’re impressed by that," she purred, her voice rich with promise, "just wait until you see what else we’ve got in store for the evening.”
~*~
In hindsight, Taeyeon wished that she hadn’t worried so much about their performance. Dancing, as it turned out, was the easiest part of the evening. Everything went smoothly and the instant she and Jinyoung finished their routine, the room filled with enthusiastic applause that had both girls faintly glowing with pride.
What was much more nerve-wracking was the part that came after. In all honesty, Taeyeon felt much more at ease balancing on a tightrope than dressed in fine clothes and forced to make smalltalk with strangers.
Jinyoung seemed to share none of Taeyeon’s anxiety. From Myungho’s bawdy jokes to Changsoo’s flirtatious advances, the older girl was able to take anything in stride. Taeyeon wondered how she managed to look so serene with one of Changsoo’s arms hooked around her waist the entire night. Even when he began nuzzling her neck, she just laughed and batted him away playfully with one of her fans. Taeyeon would have been jumping out of her skin if she was in the other girl's place.
Though she had spent the better part of three weeks dancing at Jinyoung's side, Taeyeon discovered that she actually knew very little about the older girl. Besides dancing, Jinyoung proved that night that she could also sing, recite classic poetry, and had extensive knowledgeable about everything from the principles of ancient calligraphy to the complexities of modern politics. While her beauty easily captivated the men in the room, it was her sharp mind that held their interest. Although she kept to Changsoo’s side, she made an effort to talk with all the guests, enchanting each of them with her quick wit and relaxed, effortless charm.
For the first time, Taeyeon truly understood why the Summer Sun considered Jinyoung to be a legitimate rival. The Summer Sun herself was like the cold fire of the stars, captivating but remote. Jinyoung, on the other hand, was a warm, shining presence that drew everyone around her into the glittering world she had created for the evening.
Hyegyo, much to Taeyeon’s surprise, was also a big hit at the party. She seemed totally at ease with the two Ryu brothers, who were both fascinated and frustrated by the prickly and unapologetically intelligent young woman sitting between them. Both scholars, they had leapt on her when she had dismissed one of their favorite musicians as a “complete hack”. However, Hyegyo proved to be more than capable of handling herself. She fired back with citations from obscure music treatises and left both brothers fumbling for a rebuttal. The three spent most of the evening in a fierce debate about music theory that left the rest of the room baffled.
Taeyeon was left to tend to Myungho and Minwoo. She supposed she was lucky because Myungho was a talker and didn’t need to be prompted to launch into a conversation. She was also relieved that she didn’t have to put any of Sister Finch’s active listening techniques to use because Myungho turned out to be a genuinely fascinating individual. An officer in the king’s navy, he had a seemingly endless repertoire of frightful and exciting stories about life on the high seas and run-ins with everything from giant eels to bloodthirsty pirates. Most of the other men seemed to have heard his stories more than once, so Myungho was delighted to be able to recount his scars to a new listener.
“And this one,” he said, drawing up his shirt to reveal a stretch of hard abdominal muscles and a long, freshly healed gash on his left side. “This one I got just last week. Bar brawl downtown. The filthy dog came at me with a damn fire iron. Can you believe that?” He chuckled. “You should see him now. I beat him so hard I doubt his own mother would recognize him.”
“Oh,” Taeyeon said, flustered by the amount of naked flesh being flashed in her direction. “That looks, er, dreadful.”
“Myungho, put down your shirt!” Changsoo shouted from the other end of the table.. “You’re going to blind her with your ugly!”
“Fuck you, Changsoo!” Myungho replied merrily as Taeyeon poured him another drink. He downed the contents of his cup in a single gulp, forcing Taeyeon to refill it again.
For a man who looked like he could break rocks with his bare hands, Myungho was surprisingly non-threatening. He was lighthearted and friendly and had a big, booming laugh that shook the entire room. He treated her with a breezy affection that was more brotherly than anything else. As long as she kept the wine flowing and an ear open, he seemed like he was having the time of his life.
It was much more difficult for Taeyeon to get a read on Minwoo, who was by far, the most reserved person at the party. He declined Taeyeon’s attempts to pour him wine, preferring to drink water even though the other men groaned and urged him to let loose a little. He also seemed embarrassed by his earlier outburst. She tried a few times to draw him into a conversation, but he merely responded to her attempts with small, polite smiles and short, evasive replies. Eventually, exhausted by his disinterest, Taeyeon gave up and focused on Myungho, letting her monopolize her time and attention.
The problem was that half-way through the evening, Myungho passed out.
“I’m just going to rest my head for a moment,” he hiccupped, looking rosy and smiling contentedly. He lay down, resting his head in Taeyeon’s lap. “That’s a good girl,” he said, patting her on the knee
“Are you okay?” Taeyeon was more than a little worried that he would vomit on her.
“Yeah, sweetheart.” He yawned. “Just need a few minutes to clear my head. Then I’ll tell you about that one winter I spent hunting ice bears up in White Plains. Got frostbite so bad they had to remove two of my toes. Can show you… if you want...“
He closed his eyes. Within seconds, he was snoring softly.
While Taeyeon truly did not want to listen to gruesome details about Myungho’s missing appendages, she also didn’t want to engage in awkward small talk with Minwoo. She looked to Hyegyo and Jinyoung for help, but Hyegyo was in the middle of a particularly scathing rant about flautists and Jinyoung was busy judging an impromptu poetry contest between Jihyun and Sunghoon.
A dense silence fell between her and Minwoo. Judging from the way he kept running his hand through his hair, he felt just as awkward as Taeyeon did.
Something on his right hand gleamed in the light.
Taeyeon’s mouth fell open. “Is that…”
“Hm?” He brought down his hand. On his right index finger was a gold band set with a large, midnight blue stone. The surface of the gem was broken up by a white, six-rayed star.
“A gods eye,” Taeyeon said breathlessly. She had only ever seen the stones in temples where they were often inserted into the irises of statues of the gods, hence their name. They were rare, scared objects, and she had never heard of someone wearing one on their person.
“Yes, it was my mother’s,” Minwoo explained. No wonder the band on the ring was thinner than usual for a man.
“Do they really change color?” She had heard that the stones shifted appearance from wearer to wearer.
Instead of giving her a direct answer, Minwoo surprised her by removing the ring from his finger. He took her left hand and slipped the gods eye onto her middle finger. It was a loose fit, but Minwoo had slender enough fingers that the ring wouldn’t fall off Taeyeon's hand unless it was forced.
They both hovered over the stone, waiting for it to transform.
A long minute passed. Then another, more excruciatingly long minute. The gods eye remained the same fathomless blue, the six-rayed star sparkling unchanged on its sruface.
Taeyeon’s anticipation soured into disappointment. “Um, nothing’s happening,” she pointed out awkwardly.
Minwoo frowned. “Usually, it only takes a minute. I don’t understand. It’s always changed before.”
“Why do they change in the first place?” Taeyeon wondered.
Minwoo's eyebrows crashed together in confusion as he contemplated the stone. “It's said that a gods eye changes to reflect the wearer’s heart. They never show the same color and pattern for two different people. Unless-“ He broke off, his eyes widening and his mouth growing slack. He looked up, and Taeyeon was taken aback by the expression on his face. He was staring at her with rapt, naked interest and even a little bit of awe.
“What is it?” Taeyeon asked nervously. She wondered if she had somehow broken the ring. Was it even possible to break a gods eye? And if she broke a holy object, would she go to hell?
Minwoo lowered his gaze, his expression becoming closed off once more. “Nothing,” he muttered, though he didn’t sound all that convinced himself. “It’s probably just nothing. What--what did you say your name was?" He smiled and it was a little different from the other smiles he had given her that evening. This time it was sweeter, with an unsettling undercurrent of tenderness.
“Lee Taeyeon.” For some reason, she knew that he would commit her name to memory this time, though she had no idea why he would care to know the name of a simple dancer--and one that was still a trainee.
“Lee Taeyeon.” His voice was soft and it felt strangely intimate to have her name falling from his lips.
Flustered, she pulled away. “I should give this back,” she said, twisting the ring off her finger. She dropped it in Minwoo's open palm.
Myungho chose that moment to interrupt by letting out a loud snort, startling them both. He yawned, rubbed at his eyes, and looked up at Taeyeon.
“Oh, you’re still here,” he said blearily. He sat up and cracked his spine. “Thought you would have left by now.” He smacked his lips and stole Minwoo's water, quickly draining the entire cup. "Now what was I talking about?"
“Bears,” Taeyeon provided helpfully, thankful that he was awake to eat up the silence.
“Ah yes,” Myungho said, lighting up.
While Taeyeon was not exactly enamored with the idea of listening to grisly details about amputation, she was grateful for Myungho for giving her something to focus on besides Minwoo, who kept twisting his ring around his finger and looking at her as if he was seeing her for the first time.
~*~
Extracting themselves from the party wasn’t nearly as challenging as Taeyeon had expected it to be. As the evening wore on, alcohol began to take its effect. By the time Jinyoung was ready to announce their departure, most of the men were too drunk to protest strongly. Changsoo himself looked like a merry, well-cooked lobster as he slurred his thanks to the three girls for coming to his party.
Taeyeon was more than happy to leave. Her legs were cramped from sitting on the ground and she could barely keep her eyes open.
She wasn't the only one who was exhausted. As soon as they climbed into the carriage, Jinyoung closed her eyes, leaned back in her seat, and let out a long sigh of relief
“Well, I think that went quite well,” she said, slumping back in her seat.
“I thought we’d never get out of there,” Hyegyo said. “And I was getting worried about you. What with Changsoo slobbering all over you.”
“He wasn’t that bad.” Jinyoung rubbed her neck. “Though I will say, that man needs a closer shave. His stubble itched like mad.”
As the three girls giggled, the carriage began to roll forward.
Taeyeon rested her head on Jinyoung’s shoulder, breathing in the faint scent of roses that still lingered on the older girl's clothes. Due to their late night engagement, Mistress Kwon had excused her from morning chores tomorrow. She was looking forward to a long night’s rest.
“Taeyeon,” Jinyoung muttered, her cheek pressing against the younger girl's head. “You should have talked with Minwoo more. He looked a little left out.”
“I tried,” Taeyeon grumbled, “but he wasn’t exactly cooperative.”
Hyegyo snorted. “You do realize that Minwoo is actually-“
“Oh!” Jinyoung jerked upright, startling the other girls. “Stop the carriage!” she leaned out of the window and yelled at the guards, “Stop the carriage!”
They heard Bo-kyung reigning in the horses. The carriage came to a halt.
Jung-gon opened the door. He looked quite beleaguered and more than ready for bed. “What’s the problem, miss?” he inquired.
Jinyoung opened her fan case. There was only one fan inside.
"I forgot the other one at Changsoo's," she said in a panicked voice. "Oh, Mistress Kwon will kill me if I lose it."
"I can get it." Taeyeon volunteered, hopping out of the carriage.
“Wait, where do you think you’re going?” Jung-gon growled. “You’re not going back there by yourself.”
“It’s okay. It's not that far.” She felt sorry for him. After all, he had just spent over three hours waiting for them in the cold. “I’ll save you the trouble and back run quickly.” Taeyeon could see the protests forming on his tongue, so she shot him a pathetic, pleading look.
“Fine,” he relented, “but try to be quick about it.”
Taeyeon had already picked up her skirt and was running up the street. “Don’t worry, I will!” she cried over her shoulder.
They had only moved a short distance down the alley. The servant had barely finished locking the gate when she came back. He seemed puzzled by her return but after giving him a hurried apology, she raced through the garden and back to the banquet hall. She could hear the men still carousing inside. Stepping up to the entrance, she knocked on the door.
“Who is it?”
“Lee Taeyeon.” She paused and added, “from the House of Summer.”
“Come in then!”
She opened the door, stepped inside, and bowed. Little had changed except for the fact that Myungho was now sprawled on the floor, snoring once again.
“Ah, it’s the cute one! Did you miss us already?” Changsoo teased.
Jihyun scoffed. “Who would miss your ugly mug?”.
“Shut up, you whore’s son!”
“Hey! There’s a lady in the house! Act like you have some manners,” Sunghoon stood up on wobbly legs and bowed. “How can we help you, young miss?”
“My sister left her fan somewhere in the room," she explained.
After a brief search, they found the fan under one of the cushions. Minwoo was the one who handed it to her. She took it graciously and turned to exit the room.
But before she reached the door, she was grabbed by the wrist and yanked down. She fell with a startled yelp into Changsoo’s lap.
“Lee Taeyeon!” he said, snaking an arm around her waist. “Why are you so eager to leave us? Are we such poor company?”
“Not at all, my lord,” she said through gritted teeth. “But I’m afraid I need to go. My sisters are waiting for me." She didn’t know how Jinyoung had managed to stand the man all night. His breath reeked of liquor, the very smell enough to make her dizzy.
“You’re as light as feather,” Changsoo remarked, changing the subject. “Don’t they feed you anything at that academy of yours?” He pressed his face closer to hers, and Taeyeon saw that Jinyoung was right; the man did need a closer shave. “So when’s your debut, darling?”
“I'm not sure. Not for another few years at least,” she replied, trying to subtly wriggle free. The man’s arm was like an iron bar though. “Please. I need to go.”
“Ah, but first, you must pay the toll.” He flashed her a rakish smile. “How about a kiss?”
“What?” Taeyeon squeaked.
“It’s just a kiss, love. No harm done. Haven’t you ever been kissed before?”
“N-no.” Taeyeon shrunk back from him.
“Changsoo,” Minwoo said with a sigh. “Let her go. The others will be wondering where she is.”
“Minwoo, you need to remove that stick up your ass,” Changsoo replied dismissively. He turned back to Taeyeon. “How about it? One kiss. And then you can go. Free as a bird!”
Taeyeon stared into his bloodshot eyes, panicked. She wished Myungho would wake up. Surely, he would help her out of this situation. But from the corner of her eye she saw that he was still dead to the world.
She guessed she only had one choice.
She stopped struggling. Casting her eyes down demurely, she said in her softest voice, “Alright. If it’s only a kiss.”
Changsoo seemed both surprised and delighted by her sudden complacency. Puckering his lips, he bent down to claim his prize.
When his face was a mere breath's span away from her own, Taeyeon jerked back abruptly and slapped him across the mouth with her folded fan.
“Ow, you bitch!” he cried, clutching his face.
The entire room erupted into laughter. Even Minwoo was trying to hide his grin behind his hand.
Springing free, Taeyeon shot through the door and closed it shut behind her, heart hammering in her chest.
“Lee Taeyeon!” she heard someone, probably Sunghoon, say from inside. “She’s got spunk! I’m keeping that one in mind for my birthday party.”
Taeyeon groaned inwardly, never happier that she was still a trainee and couldn’t be requested. With Jinyoung’s fan in hand, she traipsed wearily back though the garden. The servant let her out again and shut the doors of the villa behind her.
The alleyway was illuminated only by moonlight and the lamps surrounding the entrance to Changsoo’s villa. The darkness would have scared her but luckily the carriage was quite close, just around the corner. She kicked up powdery fine snow as she walked, her footsteps echoing along the walls that enclosed the narrow street.
She rounded the corner, expecting to find the telltale shape of the carriage and horses.
A bolt of terror struck her, rooting her to the spot.
Two figures, Jung-gon and Bokyung, laid sprawled on the ground. Neither of them seemed to be moving.
The carriage was gone.
“Jung-gon!” Taeyeon unfroze, dashing over to the closest of the guards. Gingerly, she flipped the big man over. He had a huge gash above his left temple. Blood was running into his eye and his face was a swollen, purpled mess. But to her relief, he was still breathing. He let out a hiss of pain as he was moved. One eye cracked open, and when he saw her face, he gasped out a single word.
“Run.”
~*~
A/N: I KNOW. I AM A LYING LIAR WHO LIES D:
Sorry for not posting this when I said I would. My weekend got really busy and work this week has been hectic.
Also, there is still a 2c on the way (I know, this chapter is huuuuuuuuuge). Yes, I had to divide the chapter again. But I assure you, 2c will wrap up chapter 2.
Genre: AU/Romance
Rating: eventually up to NC-17 (PG-13 for this chapter)
Pairing/Focus: het!2min (Taeyeon/Minho), het!Jongkey (Gwiboon/Jonghyun), Onew/badassery
Previous Chapters: 1, 2a
Chapter 2b:
Outshining the Sun
“There. You’re all set.” Sujin leaned back, surveying her work.
Taeyeon opened her eyes, blinking a few times. Whatever powder Sujin had brushed on her lids was weightless. She didn’t feel any different at all.
Hyegyo, who was sitting behind her, leaned forward to get a look. “She doesn’t look like an overgrown toddler for once,” she remarked, nodding approvingly.
Sujin snorted. “I’ll take that as a compliment.” She tapped Taeyeon on the knee with the end of her brush. “Get up. Hyegyo’s next.”
Taeyeon rose and let the other girl take her place on the cushion. Sujin picked out a round metal tin from the assortment of cosmetics she had laid out.
“What’s that?” Hyegyo asked warily. “You didn’t use it on Taeyeon.”
“Powder,” Sujin explained, shaking the tin. “Sorry to say, but you’re darker than a farmer.”
“Not everyone can have perfect baby skin like Taeyeon,” Hyegyo grumbled as she closed her eyes and relented to Sujin’s ministrations.
There was a sharp knock on the door.
“It’s me!” said a muffled voice from outside.
“Jinyoung?” Taeyeon rose and went to open the door.
Jinyoung entered in a flurry of rustling silks. She was wrapped in a dark purple skirt that fell from the tops of her breasts all the way to the floor. Over it, she wore a cropped black jacket embroidered with silver moons and stars. Her long braid was gathered at the back of her head in a thick bun and held in place by a long jade hairpin with one end carved in the shape of a dragon’s head.
“Taeyeon! Look at you!” She reached out and wound a lock of Taeyeon’s hair around her finger. “You look amazing!”
“You think so?” Taeyeon asked shyly.
In truth, she had been reluctant to let her hair out of its usual braid. After all, loose hair on a woman was often associated with loose morals, and like most girls, Taeyeon had worn her hair in a modest braid since she had turned thirteen. However, Sujin had bullied Taeyeon until she caved and let the other girl brush out her hair so that it fell in soft waves down her back. It felt strange and heavy hanging loosely behind her. As a final touch, Sujin had tucked a large golden clip in the shape of a sunflower above her left ear.
“Definitely. Here, look.” Jinyoung picked up the silver hand mirror they had borrowed from Mistress Kwon. She held it at arms length so that they could both see their reflections. “See? We match.”
The seamstress Mistress Kwon had hired had designed their outfits as a set. The cut was exactly the same, but Taeyeon’s skirt was bright, buttercup yellow and her jacket was deep red with a pattern of swirling, golden clouds.
Taeyeon’s makeup was also lighter than Jinyoung’s. Mistress Kwon had instructed Sujin to keep her look natural, so the older girl had groomed Taeyeon’s brows, applied a sheer shimmer to her lids, dabbed a soft pink color on her lips, and rubbed a bit of rouge on the apples of her cheeks so that she had a flushed, rosy glow. Staring at her reflection, Taeyeon had to admit that Hyegyo was right. She did seem a little more grown-up than usual, though her appearance remained fresh and youthful.
Jinyoung, on the other hand, looked like a young woman who had already discarded the wide-eyed innocence of her girlhood. Her brows had been darkened to give them a stronger arch, and her lips were painted a bright red that popped out against the pallor of her skin. Most striking of all were her eyes, which were rimmed in a smoky black that exaggerated their slant and made her appear both alluring and enigmatic.
Day and night. Light and shadow. Taeyeon and Jinyoung were a careful study in contrasts.
After Sujin was done with Hyegyo, Jinyoung and Taeyeon helped their partner into her outfit for the evening, a simple pale blue dress with fitted sleeves that wouldn’t get in the way of her drumming. Together, the three girls filed out of the readying room and made the short walk to Mistress Kwon’s quarters.
They found Mistress Kwon at her writing desk buried in a stack of papers. When they entered, she removed her reading glasses and watched as the girls bowed and arranged themselves neatly in a row for her final inspection. She rose, crossed the room, and paced up and down the line, pausing here and there to straighten a pin or adjust a ribbon. When she was satisfied with her assessment, she came to a stop in front of Jinyoung.
“You look ready,” she said, gazing down at her student with sharp, probing eyes.
“I feel ready,” Jinyoung replied.
“Hmph, I should hope you are.” Mistress Kwon went over to her desk and picked up a small blue box that was sitting on a corner. “According to the contract, your assignment starts at nine and you’ve been booked until midnight. However, as you know, these sorts of engagements tend run over. I expect you to be home late but not too late. Use your best judgment and choose an appropriate time to leave. If you run into any trouble, don’t hesitate to call for the guards. There will always be one posted within hearing range. Any questions?”
“No, mistress."
“Very well then.” Mistress Kwon opened the blue box in her hand and withdrew two black pearls suspended on silver hooks. It was customary for the house mistress to lend a piece of her own jewelry for her student’s debut. Gently, Mistress Kwon threaded a pearl through each of Jinyoung’s ears. The teardrop-shaped gems flashed with a purplish luster under the soft glow of the lights.
Next, Mistress Kwon went to her bookshelf and pulled down a glass jar brimming with a translucent, amber-colored fluid. Setting the jar on the table, she unscrewed the metal lid. The tantalizing, heavy aroma of honey filled the room.
Jinyoung had explained the ritual to Taeyeon beforehand, so she knew that as the youngest in their group she was expected to be the first to come forward. She kneeled, closed her eyes, and opened her mouth, letting Mistress Kwon pushed a generous spoonful of honey past her lips. The sticky substance coated her tongue with its dizzying sweetness. She savored the smooth, thick texture of it running down the walls of her throat as she swallowed. It had been a long time since she had tasted honey; it was a luxury most people couldn’t afford.
After Hami received her dose of honey as well, it was Jinyoung's turn. This time, Mistress Kwon tore a blank page from a notebook sitting on her desk and burned the sheet of paper with a candle. She blew out the fire before it could reach her fingers and gathered the ashes that had fallen into a small, metal saucer. She spooned a dollop of honey into the saucer, stirring it with the ashes. Jinyoung’s face remained impassive as she accepted the golden, grayish mixture Mistress Kwon fed her, though Taeyeon imagined that the concoction must have tasted foul.
Taeyeon had learned from Jinyoung that the reason why the debuting dancer had to eat both the honey and the ash was to remind her that life was full of both sweetness and bitterness. The ash came from a blank page because the future of the dancer remained unwritten. Each of the four dance houses had their own unique take on this rite of passage. Taeyeon heard that the House of Spring collected morning dew for their ritual while the House of Autumn preferred wine.
Jinyoung stood once more. Mistress Kwon placed her hands on the girl's shoulders, planting a light kiss on Jinyoung’s forehead.
“The guards are waiting for you with the carriage by the outer gates,” she said. “Good luck, ladies.”
The three girls bowed, and armed with their mistress’s blessing, headed outside.
It had stopped snowing. The air around them was quiet and still. Above, the night sky was an endless field of glittering stars. Taeyeon would have appreciated their beauty more if it wasn’t freezing as well.
"Gods, it's cold," Jinyoung said, wrapping her black cloak tightly around her. Her warm breath billowed into the air.
"Well, no point whining about it," Hami said, practical as always. "Let's get moving. The cold is going to damage my drum if we stay out here."
Together, they wound their way across the academy’s grounds. When they reached the main courtyard, there were, to their surprise, about thirty students shivering and waiting for them in the cold.
“Sister." One of them, a senior Taeyeon didn't recognize, stepped forward. She pulled down her scarf from her face, placed a soft kiss on Jinyoung's cheek, and pressed something into the other girl’s hands.
"We would have gotten you real flowers, but you just had to be the special one and debut out of season," the girl teased.
Taeyeon looked more closely and saw that she had given Jinyoung a star lily folded out of a sheet of pink paper. One by one, the other students--Dami, Seonyoung, and Jinju were in their midst-approached Jinyoung and handed her flowers as well. Soon, her arms were overflowing with a bright, rustling bouquet.
“T-thank you,” Jinyoung said, her voice quivering slightly with emotion. She appeared to be genuinely astonished by their support. “Thank you all, my sisters. I won’t forget this.”
“We love you, Jinyoung!” a student cried out. The rest of the girls joined in, chanting her name and cheering.
Jinyoung smiled brilliantly, waved one last time, and with Taeyeon and Hyegyo trailing behind her, descended the stairs leading out of the academy.
At the bottom, two guards were waiting for them with the carriage and horses. They were different from the men that Taeyeon had seen escorting the Summer Sun.
The taller one, a middle-aged man with a broad, smiling face that was partially obscured by a thick beard, took a look at Jinyoung and let out a long whistle.
“Well, what do we have here?” He grinned, displaying a few missing teeth. “All grown up now, are we? I still remember when you first got here. You were a wee thing.” He held his hand level to his hip. “About this big. Now look at ya!”
Jinyoung slapped him playfully on the arm. “I was taller than that!” she protested, laughing. "How are the kids, by the way?"
"Good, good,” he said brightly. "Though last week, my son got sent home from school for fighting. Of course, the wife gave me an earful for that. Luckily, my daughter isn't nearly as much trouble. She’ll be turning three soon. You should see her. Bet she’s the prettiest thing you’ll ever lay your eyes on. And sharp as a whip. Why the other day, I was playing with her and-“
“Jung-gon,” the other guard groaned, shivering in the driver's seat. “Hurry up. I’m freezing my balls off here.”
Jung-gon chuckled. "Pardon Bo-kyung’s language. We've been waiting out here for a while."
"Then we should probably get going," Jinyoung said.
After Jung-gon helped the three girls settle into the carriage, he went up front to join Bo-kyung in the driver's seat. The girls heard the snap of reins as Bo-kyung urged the horses forward. The carriage lurched and began to move.
"I can't believe this is finally happening," Jinyoung said distantly. "But you know what's strange? I don't feel afraid anymore." She looked down at the flowers gathered in her arms, her eyes shining. "I feel--I feel like I can do anything. Like everything’s going to be fine and nothing’s going to go wrong after all."
“Ah! Don’t cry! You’ll ruin your make-up!” Hami darted forward, dabbing away a stray tear with her handkerchief.
Jinyoung laughed. “Well yes, there’s always that.”
~*~
Taeyeon had been born in Aeyas and lived on its streets for years. However, from the carriage window, the capital looked much more impressive and spectacular than she remembered it being. Had there always been this many people? Had it always been so loud? It was like her seclusion in the mountains had made her hyper-sensitive to the pulse of the city. Its very streets seemed to seethe and overflow with life.
She wasn’t the only one fascinated by their surroundings. Jinyoung and Hyegyo also crowded the carriage window with her, the three of them drinking in the sights, sounds, and smells of a world that was for the most part, off-limits to them.
It was a thirty minute journey from the academy to the site of their assignment. On the way, they passed by landmarks such as the Eel’s Den, the city’s largest wet market. Although it was already closed for the evening, the area still smelled overpoweringly of fish and livestock. Later on, they drove past Food Street, a long stretch of restaurants that was lit up with strings of yellow lanterns. A group of drunken men stumbling around near the entrance arch hooted and hollered as they caught sight of the girls. Taeyeon and Jinyoung laughed as Hyegyo responded with a rude gesture that would have gotten her the switch if they had still been at the academy.
They headed to the northwestern margins of the city. Taeyeon recognized a broad avenue lined with ancient, gnarled cherry trees. It was the road leading to the House of Spring. While the trees were barren now, in a few months, the whole neighborhood would be covered in a blinding blizzard of pink and white petals.
As they neared Changsoo’s villa, the carriage broke off from the main road, proceeding down a labyrinth of winding alleyways, the streets growing narrower the deeper they traveled. Finally, they came to a stop in front of a pair of faded green double-doors leading into a walled enclosure.
“I guess this is it.” Jinyoung glanced over at the other girls. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” Taeyeon confirmed, gripping her fan case tightly in her hands. Hyegyo answered with a grunt of assent.
Jung-gon lent each of the girls a hand as they exited the carriage. Together, the group of four walked up to the entrance, leaving Bo-kyung behind to tend to the horses.
Jung-gon raised a mighty fist and banged on the door. Within moments, they heard the scuttling of footsteps on the other side.
“Who is it?” a raspy male voice called out.
Jung-gon bellowed back, “Delegates from the House of Summer!”
The peep hole slid open. As soon as the man on the other side got a glimpse of the girls, he exclaimed, “Ah! Just a moment!”
Briefly, they heard the rattling of chains before doors swung open. A small, elderly man dressed in grey servants robes popped out.
“There you are!” he said warmly, stepping out into the alleyway. “The young master has been waiting for you. Come in! Come in!” He ushered the girls and their guard through the doorway.
The villa was much larger than it appeared from the outside. Although the buildings were all a modest size, there were about a dozen of them scattered around a sprawling garden with a footbridge overlooking a frozen pond.
The girls were careful not to let their skirts trail in the snow as the servant led them through the garden to one of the back buildings. It was one of the few houses that still had lights on inside. Thick plumes of smoke spouted from an adjacent chimney, and a row of swords leaned against the wall by the entrance. Loud, raucous male voices filtered out into the night.
The elderly servant stepped up to entrance. “Master Kang,” he announced, knocking on the door. “The ladies from the House of Summer have arrived.”
“About time!” someone shouted from inside. “Send them in!”
As the girls removed their shoes, Jung-gon touched Jinyoung lightly on the arm.
“I’ll be posted outside if you need me,” he informed her. “If there’s any trouble, just say ‘white horses’ in a clear voice and I’ll come charging in to the rescue.”
Jinyoung shot him a grateful smile. He winked in return and stepped back.
The servant slid open the door, spilling light out into the dense darkness. Picking up her skirt, Jinyoung entered first, Taeyeon following closely behind her and Hyegyo holding up the rear.
Taeyeon barely made it past the doorway when she crashed into Jinyoung--the older girl had frozen in place. Before she could ask what was wrong, Jinyoung suddenly crumpled to the floor. For a frantic moment, Taeyeon thought she had fainted.
"Jinyoung! Are you okay?" She bent down to help the older girl, but Taeyeon soon realized that Jinyoung was not only very conscious, her entire body was folded into a deep bow.
Taeyeon wasn't able to tell whom she was bowing to because the next thing she knew, a stout, young man had come over and was tugging Jinyoung back to her feet.
"No need for that tonight, my dear." He grinned, his teeth very white against his tan. "Technically, he's not supposed to be here, so just treat him like any other guest tonight, alright?"
"Yes, my lord," Jinyoung replied, albeit a bit shakily
Taeyeon was confused. Including the one who had approached them, there were seven young men in the room, six of whom were seated on floor cushions around a long table. The surface of the table was littered with half-finished platters of snacks, cups, and bottles of wine. It seemed like they had been waiting for the evening’s entertainment for a while.
Once all the girls had shuffled inside, the man with the tan face introduced himself.
"I am Kang Changsoo,” he said, bowing with a flourish. He had a friendly, round face, though he already looked a bit flushed from liquor. “It is a pleasure to welcome such fine young ladies into my humble home.”
All three girls bowed in unison.
“I am happy to be of service to you gentlemen,” Jinyoung replied, seeming to have regained her composure and confidence. “My name is Park Jinyoung and these are my two attendants, Lee Taeyeon and Hwang Hyegyo.”
“Lovely names for a lovely group of ladies,” Changsoo said approvingly, rubbing his hands together. “Allow me to introduce my guests. This is Daejoong and Daehyun. They’re brothers, as you can probably tell.” He pointed to two remarkably similar-looking men sitting together on one side of the table. “That’s Jihyun and Sunghoon.” A slightly older-looking man with a pipe hanging between his lips nodded in greeting as did the reedy-looking man across from him. “And over there, that's Minwoo and Myungho.” On the opposite side of the room, an enormous man with a mottled scar running up the side of his neck waved cheerfully back. The slender young man on his left dipped his head towards them in a slight bow.
“Don’t be shy!” Changsoo urged. “Come join us!”
Jinyoung went with Changsoo to the head of the table. Taeyeon made an aborted attempt to follow her, but then she remembered that Sister Finch had instructed them to spread themselves out among the guests. She moved to the other side of the table and took the spare cushion she was offered, seating herself between Myungho and Minwoo. Much to her relief, the floor was heated and she sank down gratefully, letting her stiff, frozen limbs warm up.
“Well, aren’t you a pretty little thing,” Myungho remarked. He had a rugged, handsome face, but his nose was slightly off-center, as if it had been broken and reset at some point in his life. “How come I’ve never seen you before?” He glanced at his friend sitting on her left. “Have you ever seen her before, Minwoo?”
“I don’t think so,” Minwoo replied. He seemed to be the youngest in the group but he had a startlingly deep voice. Like Myungho, he was also handsome, but his features were softer and much more fine-boned. He had the biggest eyes Taeyeon had ever seen.
“Taeyeon joined the academy fairly recently,” Jinyoung said, busying herself refilling empty cups. Taeyeon admired how comfortable she seemed even with half of the room devouring her with their eyes.
“Oh, is that so?” Myungho took a closer look at Taeyeon. “Exactly how old are you?”
“Seventeen, sir.” Taeyeon kept her hands clasped neatly in her lap, willing herself not to squirm.
“Seventeen? Hear that, Minwoo? She’s even younger than you!” Myungho slapped the smaller man so hard on the back that he sloshed his drink all over his lap.
“So it would seem,” Minwoo replied noncommittally, wiping at his pants. Fortunately, his cup appeared to have been full of water rather than wine. Taeyeon handed him her handkerchief. "Thank you."
“Seventeen,” Myungho muttered, propping his head in his hand and staring closely at Taeyeon. She felt her face grow warm underneath his close scrutiny. “It’s a bit hard to tell. You don’t see many girls your age wearing their hair down." He chuckled. "Usually it’s only little girls.”
“And whores,” Hyegyo interjected.
Jihyun spat out his pipe. Minwoo choked on his drink, water dribbling down his front.
Everyone in the room stared at Hyegyo.
“What?” she demanded. “It’s true.” Then she added, almost as an afterthought, “But Taeyeon’s not a whore.”
Taeyeon felt like she was going to burst into flames with the force she was blushing. She had never been so mortified in her life. Later, she was going to beat Hyegyo to death with her own drumsticks.
A slight motion in the corner of her eye caught her attention.
Minwoo was leaning on the table, his shoulders convulsing. Taeyeon felt a flash of panic, terrified that he was choking. But then Minwoo lifted his head, and she saw that he was actually laughing. He was laughing so hard he could scarcely breathe.
“It’s not funny!" she hissed. Without thinking, she punched him in the arm.
“Taeyeon!” Jinyoung gasped.
Minwoo stopped laughing immediately. He seemed absolutely dumbfounded that she had hit him. Taeyeon tried to glare back at him, but her lips involuntarily twitched upward. With the way he was gawking at her, his eyes bulging in shock, he looked remarkably similar to a surprised frog.
The moment Minwoo caught her frown wobbling, he started to snicker. Before long, he was overcome with full-bodied laughter once again. This time, Taeyeon found her mouth quirking into a reluctant smile.
“At least I don’t look like I wet myself,” she muttered, though the venom was gone from her voice.
Next to her, Myungho let out a loud bark of laughter, slapping the table with his palm. It was infectious. Soon the entire room was in an uproar. Even though Jinyoung shook her head disapprovingly, she was giggling as well. The only exception was Hyegyo, who just crossed her arms and looked at everyone like they had lost their minds.
And just like that, the ice was broken. The thin veil of tension that had clouded the room since the girls had entered had lifted. After the noise finally died down, everyone seemed much more relaxed and at ease.
“Ah, Minwoo,” Changsoo said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. “I haven’t seen you laugh that hard in ages."
Taeyeon wondered why, but Jinyoung quickly broke her train of thought by bringing everyone’s attention to her with a loud snap of her fan.
“Gentlemen!” Jinyoung exclaimed. “Now that you’re all acquainted with my friend Hyegyo’s rather unconventional sense of humor, I think it's time for Taeyeon and me to impress you.”
Taeyeon only had a second’s notice before the other girl's fan flew across the room. She managed to snatch it out of the air right before it bashed Myungho in his already damaged nose. She flipped it from one hand to the other before tossing it back to Jinyoung. The men in the room whooped and hollered appreciatively.
Jinyoung gave their audience a coy smile. “If you’re impressed by that," she purred, her voice rich with promise, "just wait until you see what else we’ve got in store for the evening.”
~*~
In hindsight, Taeyeon wished that she hadn’t worried so much about their performance. Dancing, as it turned out, was the easiest part of the evening. Everything went smoothly and the instant she and Jinyoung finished their routine, the room filled with enthusiastic applause that had both girls faintly glowing with pride.
What was much more nerve-wracking was the part that came after. In all honesty, Taeyeon felt much more at ease balancing on a tightrope than dressed in fine clothes and forced to make smalltalk with strangers.
Jinyoung seemed to share none of Taeyeon’s anxiety. From Myungho’s bawdy jokes to Changsoo’s flirtatious advances, the older girl was able to take anything in stride. Taeyeon wondered how she managed to look so serene with one of Changsoo’s arms hooked around her waist the entire night. Even when he began nuzzling her neck, she just laughed and batted him away playfully with one of her fans. Taeyeon would have been jumping out of her skin if she was in the other girl's place.
Though she had spent the better part of three weeks dancing at Jinyoung's side, Taeyeon discovered that she actually knew very little about the older girl. Besides dancing, Jinyoung proved that night that she could also sing, recite classic poetry, and had extensive knowledgeable about everything from the principles of ancient calligraphy to the complexities of modern politics. While her beauty easily captivated the men in the room, it was her sharp mind that held their interest. Although she kept to Changsoo’s side, she made an effort to talk with all the guests, enchanting each of them with her quick wit and relaxed, effortless charm.
For the first time, Taeyeon truly understood why the Summer Sun considered Jinyoung to be a legitimate rival. The Summer Sun herself was like the cold fire of the stars, captivating but remote. Jinyoung, on the other hand, was a warm, shining presence that drew everyone around her into the glittering world she had created for the evening.
Hyegyo, much to Taeyeon’s surprise, was also a big hit at the party. She seemed totally at ease with the two Ryu brothers, who were both fascinated and frustrated by the prickly and unapologetically intelligent young woman sitting between them. Both scholars, they had leapt on her when she had dismissed one of their favorite musicians as a “complete hack”. However, Hyegyo proved to be more than capable of handling herself. She fired back with citations from obscure music treatises and left both brothers fumbling for a rebuttal. The three spent most of the evening in a fierce debate about music theory that left the rest of the room baffled.
Taeyeon was left to tend to Myungho and Minwoo. She supposed she was lucky because Myungho was a talker and didn’t need to be prompted to launch into a conversation. She was also relieved that she didn’t have to put any of Sister Finch’s active listening techniques to use because Myungho turned out to be a genuinely fascinating individual. An officer in the king’s navy, he had a seemingly endless repertoire of frightful and exciting stories about life on the high seas and run-ins with everything from giant eels to bloodthirsty pirates. Most of the other men seemed to have heard his stories more than once, so Myungho was delighted to be able to recount his scars to a new listener.
“And this one,” he said, drawing up his shirt to reveal a stretch of hard abdominal muscles and a long, freshly healed gash on his left side. “This one I got just last week. Bar brawl downtown. The filthy dog came at me with a damn fire iron. Can you believe that?” He chuckled. “You should see him now. I beat him so hard I doubt his own mother would recognize him.”
“Oh,” Taeyeon said, flustered by the amount of naked flesh being flashed in her direction. “That looks, er, dreadful.”
“Myungho, put down your shirt!” Changsoo shouted from the other end of the table.. “You’re going to blind her with your ugly!”
“Fuck you, Changsoo!” Myungho replied merrily as Taeyeon poured him another drink. He downed the contents of his cup in a single gulp, forcing Taeyeon to refill it again.
For a man who looked like he could break rocks with his bare hands, Myungho was surprisingly non-threatening. He was lighthearted and friendly and had a big, booming laugh that shook the entire room. He treated her with a breezy affection that was more brotherly than anything else. As long as she kept the wine flowing and an ear open, he seemed like he was having the time of his life.
It was much more difficult for Taeyeon to get a read on Minwoo, who was by far, the most reserved person at the party. He declined Taeyeon’s attempts to pour him wine, preferring to drink water even though the other men groaned and urged him to let loose a little. He also seemed embarrassed by his earlier outburst. She tried a few times to draw him into a conversation, but he merely responded to her attempts with small, polite smiles and short, evasive replies. Eventually, exhausted by his disinterest, Taeyeon gave up and focused on Myungho, letting her monopolize her time and attention.
The problem was that half-way through the evening, Myungho passed out.
“I’m just going to rest my head for a moment,” he hiccupped, looking rosy and smiling contentedly. He lay down, resting his head in Taeyeon’s lap. “That’s a good girl,” he said, patting her on the knee
“Are you okay?” Taeyeon was more than a little worried that he would vomit on her.
“Yeah, sweetheart.” He yawned. “Just need a few minutes to clear my head. Then I’ll tell you about that one winter I spent hunting ice bears up in White Plains. Got frostbite so bad they had to remove two of my toes. Can show you… if you want...“
He closed his eyes. Within seconds, he was snoring softly.
While Taeyeon truly did not want to listen to gruesome details about Myungho’s missing appendages, she also didn’t want to engage in awkward small talk with Minwoo. She looked to Hyegyo and Jinyoung for help, but Hyegyo was in the middle of a particularly scathing rant about flautists and Jinyoung was busy judging an impromptu poetry contest between Jihyun and Sunghoon.
A dense silence fell between her and Minwoo. Judging from the way he kept running his hand through his hair, he felt just as awkward as Taeyeon did.
Something on his right hand gleamed in the light.
Taeyeon’s mouth fell open. “Is that…”
“Hm?” He brought down his hand. On his right index finger was a gold band set with a large, midnight blue stone. The surface of the gem was broken up by a white, six-rayed star.
“A gods eye,” Taeyeon said breathlessly. She had only ever seen the stones in temples where they were often inserted into the irises of statues of the gods, hence their name. They were rare, scared objects, and she had never heard of someone wearing one on their person.
“Yes, it was my mother’s,” Minwoo explained. No wonder the band on the ring was thinner than usual for a man.
“Do they really change color?” She had heard that the stones shifted appearance from wearer to wearer.
Instead of giving her a direct answer, Minwoo surprised her by removing the ring from his finger. He took her left hand and slipped the gods eye onto her middle finger. It was a loose fit, but Minwoo had slender enough fingers that the ring wouldn’t fall off Taeyeon's hand unless it was forced.
They both hovered over the stone, waiting for it to transform.
A long minute passed. Then another, more excruciatingly long minute. The gods eye remained the same fathomless blue, the six-rayed star sparkling unchanged on its sruface.
Taeyeon’s anticipation soured into disappointment. “Um, nothing’s happening,” she pointed out awkwardly.
Minwoo frowned. “Usually, it only takes a minute. I don’t understand. It’s always changed before.”
“Why do they change in the first place?” Taeyeon wondered.
Minwoo's eyebrows crashed together in confusion as he contemplated the stone. “It's said that a gods eye changes to reflect the wearer’s heart. They never show the same color and pattern for two different people. Unless-“ He broke off, his eyes widening and his mouth growing slack. He looked up, and Taeyeon was taken aback by the expression on his face. He was staring at her with rapt, naked interest and even a little bit of awe.
“What is it?” Taeyeon asked nervously. She wondered if she had somehow broken the ring. Was it even possible to break a gods eye? And if she broke a holy object, would she go to hell?
Minwoo lowered his gaze, his expression becoming closed off once more. “Nothing,” he muttered, though he didn’t sound all that convinced himself. “It’s probably just nothing. What--what did you say your name was?" He smiled and it was a little different from the other smiles he had given her that evening. This time it was sweeter, with an unsettling undercurrent of tenderness.
“Lee Taeyeon.” For some reason, she knew that he would commit her name to memory this time, though she had no idea why he would care to know the name of a simple dancer--and one that was still a trainee.
“Lee Taeyeon.” His voice was soft and it felt strangely intimate to have her name falling from his lips.
Flustered, she pulled away. “I should give this back,” she said, twisting the ring off her finger. She dropped it in Minwoo's open palm.
Myungho chose that moment to interrupt by letting out a loud snort, startling them both. He yawned, rubbed at his eyes, and looked up at Taeyeon.
“Oh, you’re still here,” he said blearily. He sat up and cracked his spine. “Thought you would have left by now.” He smacked his lips and stole Minwoo's water, quickly draining the entire cup. "Now what was I talking about?"
“Bears,” Taeyeon provided helpfully, thankful that he was awake to eat up the silence.
“Ah yes,” Myungho said, lighting up.
While Taeyeon was not exactly enamored with the idea of listening to grisly details about amputation, she was grateful for Myungho for giving her something to focus on besides Minwoo, who kept twisting his ring around his finger and looking at her as if he was seeing her for the first time.
~*~
Extracting themselves from the party wasn’t nearly as challenging as Taeyeon had expected it to be. As the evening wore on, alcohol began to take its effect. By the time Jinyoung was ready to announce their departure, most of the men were too drunk to protest strongly. Changsoo himself looked like a merry, well-cooked lobster as he slurred his thanks to the three girls for coming to his party.
Taeyeon was more than happy to leave. Her legs were cramped from sitting on the ground and she could barely keep her eyes open.
She wasn't the only one who was exhausted. As soon as they climbed into the carriage, Jinyoung closed her eyes, leaned back in her seat, and let out a long sigh of relief
“Well, I think that went quite well,” she said, slumping back in her seat.
“I thought we’d never get out of there,” Hyegyo said. “And I was getting worried about you. What with Changsoo slobbering all over you.”
“He wasn’t that bad.” Jinyoung rubbed her neck. “Though I will say, that man needs a closer shave. His stubble itched like mad.”
As the three girls giggled, the carriage began to roll forward.
Taeyeon rested her head on Jinyoung’s shoulder, breathing in the faint scent of roses that still lingered on the older girl's clothes. Due to their late night engagement, Mistress Kwon had excused her from morning chores tomorrow. She was looking forward to a long night’s rest.
“Taeyeon,” Jinyoung muttered, her cheek pressing against the younger girl's head. “You should have talked with Minwoo more. He looked a little left out.”
“I tried,” Taeyeon grumbled, “but he wasn’t exactly cooperative.”
Hyegyo snorted. “You do realize that Minwoo is actually-“
“Oh!” Jinyoung jerked upright, startling the other girls. “Stop the carriage!” she leaned out of the window and yelled at the guards, “Stop the carriage!”
They heard Bo-kyung reigning in the horses. The carriage came to a halt.
Jung-gon opened the door. He looked quite beleaguered and more than ready for bed. “What’s the problem, miss?” he inquired.
Jinyoung opened her fan case. There was only one fan inside.
"I forgot the other one at Changsoo's," she said in a panicked voice. "Oh, Mistress Kwon will kill me if I lose it."
"I can get it." Taeyeon volunteered, hopping out of the carriage.
“Wait, where do you think you’re going?” Jung-gon growled. “You’re not going back there by yourself.”
“It’s okay. It's not that far.” She felt sorry for him. After all, he had just spent over three hours waiting for them in the cold. “I’ll save you the trouble and back run quickly.” Taeyeon could see the protests forming on his tongue, so she shot him a pathetic, pleading look.
“Fine,” he relented, “but try to be quick about it.”
Taeyeon had already picked up her skirt and was running up the street. “Don’t worry, I will!” she cried over her shoulder.
They had only moved a short distance down the alley. The servant had barely finished locking the gate when she came back. He seemed puzzled by her return but after giving him a hurried apology, she raced through the garden and back to the banquet hall. She could hear the men still carousing inside. Stepping up to the entrance, she knocked on the door.
“Who is it?”
“Lee Taeyeon.” She paused and added, “from the House of Summer.”
“Come in then!”
She opened the door, stepped inside, and bowed. Little had changed except for the fact that Myungho was now sprawled on the floor, snoring once again.
“Ah, it’s the cute one! Did you miss us already?” Changsoo teased.
Jihyun scoffed. “Who would miss your ugly mug?”.
“Shut up, you whore’s son!”
“Hey! There’s a lady in the house! Act like you have some manners,” Sunghoon stood up on wobbly legs and bowed. “How can we help you, young miss?”
“My sister left her fan somewhere in the room," she explained.
After a brief search, they found the fan under one of the cushions. Minwoo was the one who handed it to her. She took it graciously and turned to exit the room.
But before she reached the door, she was grabbed by the wrist and yanked down. She fell with a startled yelp into Changsoo’s lap.
“Lee Taeyeon!” he said, snaking an arm around her waist. “Why are you so eager to leave us? Are we such poor company?”
“Not at all, my lord,” she said through gritted teeth. “But I’m afraid I need to go. My sisters are waiting for me." She didn’t know how Jinyoung had managed to stand the man all night. His breath reeked of liquor, the very smell enough to make her dizzy.
“You’re as light as feather,” Changsoo remarked, changing the subject. “Don’t they feed you anything at that academy of yours?” He pressed his face closer to hers, and Taeyeon saw that Jinyoung was right; the man did need a closer shave. “So when’s your debut, darling?”
“I'm not sure. Not for another few years at least,” she replied, trying to subtly wriggle free. The man’s arm was like an iron bar though. “Please. I need to go.”
“Ah, but first, you must pay the toll.” He flashed her a rakish smile. “How about a kiss?”
“What?” Taeyeon squeaked.
“It’s just a kiss, love. No harm done. Haven’t you ever been kissed before?”
“N-no.” Taeyeon shrunk back from him.
“Changsoo,” Minwoo said with a sigh. “Let her go. The others will be wondering where she is.”
“Minwoo, you need to remove that stick up your ass,” Changsoo replied dismissively. He turned back to Taeyeon. “How about it? One kiss. And then you can go. Free as a bird!”
Taeyeon stared into his bloodshot eyes, panicked. She wished Myungho would wake up. Surely, he would help her out of this situation. But from the corner of her eye she saw that he was still dead to the world.
She guessed she only had one choice.
She stopped struggling. Casting her eyes down demurely, she said in her softest voice, “Alright. If it’s only a kiss.”
Changsoo seemed both surprised and delighted by her sudden complacency. Puckering his lips, he bent down to claim his prize.
When his face was a mere breath's span away from her own, Taeyeon jerked back abruptly and slapped him across the mouth with her folded fan.
“Ow, you bitch!” he cried, clutching his face.
The entire room erupted into laughter. Even Minwoo was trying to hide his grin behind his hand.
Springing free, Taeyeon shot through the door and closed it shut behind her, heart hammering in her chest.
“Lee Taeyeon!” she heard someone, probably Sunghoon, say from inside. “She’s got spunk! I’m keeping that one in mind for my birthday party.”
Taeyeon groaned inwardly, never happier that she was still a trainee and couldn’t be requested. With Jinyoung’s fan in hand, she traipsed wearily back though the garden. The servant let her out again and shut the doors of the villa behind her.
The alleyway was illuminated only by moonlight and the lamps surrounding the entrance to Changsoo’s villa. The darkness would have scared her but luckily the carriage was quite close, just around the corner. She kicked up powdery fine snow as she walked, her footsteps echoing along the walls that enclosed the narrow street.
She rounded the corner, expecting to find the telltale shape of the carriage and horses.
A bolt of terror struck her, rooting her to the spot.
Two figures, Jung-gon and Bokyung, laid sprawled on the ground. Neither of them seemed to be moving.
The carriage was gone.
“Jung-gon!” Taeyeon unfroze, dashing over to the closest of the guards. Gingerly, she flipped the big man over. He had a huge gash above his left temple. Blood was running into his eye and his face was a swollen, purpled mess. But to her relief, he was still breathing. He let out a hiss of pain as he was moved. One eye cracked open, and when he saw her face, he gasped out a single word.
“Run.”
~*~
A/N: I KNOW. I AM A LYING LIAR WHO LIES D:
Sorry for not posting this when I said I would. My weekend got really busy and work this week has been hectic.
Also, there is still a 2c on the way (I know, this chapter is huuuuuuuuuge). Yes, I had to divide the chapter again. But I assure you, 2c will wrap up chapter 2.