Deferto Neminem
Title: Deferto Neminem
Author: yunho_ism
Pairing: Yunjae
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Action, Drama, AU
Summary: When the moon fell in love with the sun, all was golden in the sky, all was golden when the day met the night.
A/N. This fic is heavily inspired by GRR Martin's A Song Of Ice and Fire. Certain elements like the setting, house sigils, and other terminologies are from the books and are therefore not owned by me. The plot however, is mine. Title is from Shakespeare's Hamlet and Kim Jaejoong's chest tattoo.
Prologue
When the moon fell in love with the sun,
All was golden in the sky,
All was golden when the day met the night.
-PATD
"How do they even manage to survive all the way up here?"
The question escaped the tall prince's cold lips, a small fog forming as the warmth left his mouth. He pulled his frosted fur coat tighter around his neck but it barely brought any comfort from the heavy snow falling around him and his caravan of a hundred men... Knights, soldiers, squires, cooks and servants all traveling either by foot or by horse made their way through the snow coated kingdom.
They have been traveling through the King's Road for almost 2 weeks now and it had been an arduous journey for him and his men ever since they passed by the mountains of rocks and ice, The Wall as they call it, that separated the two kingdoms.
The road was steep and treacherous and the relentless snowstorm made it difficult to see a thing. The prince had already lost three of his men from the perilous journey, one from a fall and the other two from high fevers. Up here it was all ice and snow. And it was cold... So very cold yet the captain of his guards informed him that it would get even worse now that they were at the heart of the North.
The prince's legs were starting to feel numb and he feared he'd fall off his horse before they'd even reach their destination. His hands were glued to the reins and he had already lost the feel of his fingers a few hours ago.
Yunho thanked the gods that he was born of the South, a land of summer and sunlight. Where he can spend all morning swimming naked in the rivers and lakes of the lush forests and climbing hills with the sun hot upon his back. Here it was all trees, tall snow coated trees that were oftentimes too thick, the sun can no longer pass between them. The rivers were all frozen and there had been no animals to hunt since the snowstorm started.
Yunho feared he'd probably freeze his balls off if he'd try to do as much as walk out of his tent naked. The land of winter was no place for a man like him... but the prince reminded himself that he had to go on his father's stead. The old king wouldn't survive a day of this journey.
"We're not very far now, My Prince... The castle gates are already before us."
Their caravan traveled another hour before the grounds of the Northern Castle welcomed them. Hundreds of wide blue banners of a mighty wolf, the sigil of the north, met their red banners of the dragon, the south's own sigil. Soldiers of the north went out to meet them and the prince was escorted up the hall with his knights, their horses led away to the stables, and their cooks and servants to the kitchens. Yunho knew they'd be fed and taken cared of properly.
It was significantly warmer inside the castle. The northern castle was grand, by far over triple the size of the one at the south. The walls seemed as if they were made of ice, yet they did not melt from the heat of the torches that hung on them. The hallway they passed through was as long and as wide as a river. To the prince's right was a line of century old silver armors, and the left adored with perfectly carved life-like ice statues. Yunho learned that these were previous kings of the north. He counted over two hundred of them.
"Hurry! Hurry up or the prince would have left by the time we reach the stairs!"
Seohyun, the youngest princess, aged 4, peeked out of her bedroom door, before running as fast as her short legs could carry her. Her sisters were already way ahead so she stopped her attempts and sobbed quietly as she was left behind.
"Don't listen to them, little one... The prince of the South can wait all day if he has to." The gentle voice of her elder brother came behind her before she was lifted up into his strong arms.
"Jaejoong oppa!" She squealed happily as he smiled at her. It didn't take too long for his long legs to catch up with their other sisters, who were already chatting excitedly amongst themselves.
"They're by the gates already! Oh I can't wait to see the prince."
"I heard he's the handsomest man in the south... Tall and strong yet kind and gentle."
"Will he chose a bride from amongst us? Oh I wish he'd pick me!"
"No, certainly he'll pick me... I'm the eldest."
"The eldest and the ugliest."
The rest of them giggled.
"I bet he's fat and ugly... and bald and stinky. I heard they sweat like pigs down there in the south." Jaejoong butted in as he interrupted his sisters.
"Would you marry a fat and grumpy prince, little one?" He teased his youngest sister and the little princess made a face. "No... I want someone like oppa!"
The prince chuckled. “It’s a good thing Prince Yunho isn’t here for a betrothal then… my little sisters are spared.” He added as he laid a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"Of course, oppa." A different princess replied. "The prince of the South may be the handsomest in their kingdom but there is still no one in the entire realm that could match your beauty."
This time, it was the northern prince's turn to frown. "That was not my point." He replied. The pretty lad hated it when people pointed out his features... Even though it was merely the truth.
Among the 10 of them, his 8 younger sisters and his only brother, the king, Jaejoong was deemed to be the perfect replica of his deceased mother. The former queen was a goddess both in beauty and kindness, and even the prince himself can attest to that.
Unfortunately, it was not a good time for his sisters to bring that up. Jaejoong's mood became sourer with every step he took towards the throne room.
The princesses continued their banter, trying hard to ignore the darkening aura emanating from the prince. "I wish we could travel to the south. I want to see it for myself... The flower beds, the streams, the colorful lands that are blocked from us by the wall."
Another sister spoke up. "I'd love to see it as well but I'd rather stay here than risk the journey. The mountains are full of riders! We'd be robbed and killed before we'd even get to touch the sunlight on the other side."
"Stupid wall.. I hate those mountains!"
"Nonsense!" Jaejoong hollered. "The wall draws the boundary between the North and the South, it protects us from the other side."
"But there's no need of the protection, oppa. The southerners are nice."
"How can you say so? Have you met any of them?!" The prince retorted. “Like their sigil, a three-headed dragon, southerners are greedy men.”
The sisters fell silent. It was pointless to argue with the prince when he was already feeling this heated. And it didn't help that they had to go down 3 flights of stairs from their bedrooms. The princesses continued their walk in silence until the throne room was already before them. The royal family took their respective places around the king, with Jaejoong seated at his older brother's right.
Soon enough, the large wooden doors of the hall opened for their dark-skinned visitors. Jaejoong held his breath as he took in the sight. Lines and lines of soldiers and knights all heavy with the weight of the outside snow and their armor flooded into the room.
The commotion continued for a few minutes until the Prince of the South stepped forward to introduce himself.
Jaejoong gulped. The prince was handsome.
| MASTERLIST | →
A/N. I've had this plunnie for a while now but I was too hesitant to post it knowing there are already 3 other fics (that i know of) that are Yunjae-ASOIAF themed. Still, I wanted to know if there are readers who are interested in this. I promise you, the plot is going to be complex. I have this outlined until chapter 10 but I'm still undecided if I should write this now... But I guess I'll focus on Leashed Puppy first.