People in the kingdom whispered about a legend:
a man who is strong and powerful. They said he took up residence in the woods, hiding out while committing random acts of kindness, namely stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.
No one dared t...
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Taehyung
A chorus of overlapping voices flooded his ears, but he heard none of what the people around him said. Their words bubbled and dissolved, impossible to focus on, much less understand.
Luna. Her name was all he thought, felt, heard.
Taehyung's body strung itself as tight as his bow. His bow, which he swiped off the ground, along with his arrows. His bow, which he choked with his fist as he strode across the camp, passing the voices, then launching into a run, legs cutting across the ground, arms pumping until he reached his horse.
Unknotting the reigns, he leapt onto the animal's back, steered the creature around, and dug his heels into its sides, sending them catapulting through the trees.
The voices calling his name, shouting for him, trailed behind. His name, which didn't matter anymore, which faded from his memory.
He wasn't Taehyung. He wasn't Kim. He was her. All of her. Every part of him was her.
The wind whipped his hood against his back, but he wasn't going fast enough, not enough, not enough.
When he reached the main road, he leaned forward, bringing his chest closer to the horse, and snapped the reigns, increasing momentum.
The steed plowed down the path, kicking up leaves and puffing thickly. A vision of Seokjin face and hair poisoned Taehyung's mind, and he pursued that image.
I will kill you.
Crashing out of the forest, Taehyung eased up, slowing the horse from a gallop to a cantor along the boundary of the woods.
The castle's battlements rose over the hills in the distance, their grated edges reminding him of teeth.
He trained his gaze on the single red flag slapping the current above the keep, announcing to the whole of the kingdom a public execution scheduled for the following morning. Red as a rose. Red as blood.
Taehyung jumped off the animal, tethered it to a tree, and set out across the high grasses.
Something jerked on his hood and sent him flying back and landing on the ground.
