The Torn Flower's Bloom | Bang Chan x OC

Wolves, honor your winner!

The first half of the hunt is... done? Who won?

That seems to be the question everyone is asking themselves, which is probably why everyone gathers at the table where the winning prize lays. Even though Aura knows that His Majesty doesn't focus on this part of the hunt, she still somehow wishes to see his black furred companion emerging from the forest.

To her slight disappointment, it's a brown wolf that comes out from behind the bushes holding a fox between his jaws. The wolf belongs to a lord whose name the Duchess doesn't care to remember. She only knows it is not the same lord who placed the prize on display earlier.

The winning lord takes the fox out of his wolf's mouth and shows it around. After petting his familiar, he sends a smile in the King's direction. No one else but her seems to notice it- apart from the King himself, of course, who holds his gaze. He returns the smile, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes. It's almost a devious smirk that softens when His Majesty notices Aura looking at him. She tries to smile back, but her efforts seem to be in vain when his expression turns into a frown.

I don't even know if I want to get to the bottom of this. It's times like this that she remembers she is far from her home and from the people she knows she can trust with her life without worrying. She wonders how Minho is doing. He is almost definitely still spending every free second with Jisung. Do they worry about her sometimes? She hasn't got a letter from them in a while.

The loud cheers bring her back to the present. That's right, the hunt. Keep yourself in the moment, she lightly shakes her head.

King Chan slips the ring on the winning lord's finger while everyone claps and cheers, so the Duchess joins them with a polite smile.

Soon everyone, except for His Majesty, calls for their familiars with expensive specialized whistles. His Majesty whistles after everyone's companion is back and only with his mouth. Aura recognizes the tune from when she met Fenrir.

It only takes a couple of moments before said black wolf comes running out of the woods back to his patron. King Chan beams, showing off his beautiful dimples. With the way he pets Fenrir all over, the canine is clearly more of a loyal dog than a trained wolf. The whole scene is quite pure.

What is less pure are the scowling looks of noble men and women who judge His Majesty with their eyes while his back is turned, thinking he can't see them. Aura can though and she's disgusted with their behavior. She stubbornly approaches the two and with a smile kneels a few meters behind the King, who doesn't notice her.

Fenrir does however, and comes running to her wagging his tail, probably a bit overjoyed by the attention. The Duchess relishes in his joy, though, and scratches behind his ears, a genuine smile warming her face.

"He's taken quite a liking to you, hasn't he?" King Chan pulls her out of her playtime.

She looks up with big eyes. "I'm sorry Your Majesty, I didn't ask if I may."

He waves her off with a joyful look. "No need to apologize, My Lady. My friend here seems to enjoy your company, and I cannot be mad at him for that. Nor can I be mad at you for the same."

She gives him a relieved expression. "I do like him," she says, while Fenrir lays on his side and pants. "He is amazing. It must be great to have a friend like that. We don't have many dogs, let alone wolves in Cloudburst."

She doesn't seem to notice how widely King Chan smiles at them playing, so much that his eyes become two crescent shapes. "You don't have any pets back at home?" he asks.

"My brother has three cats, but I was always more of a dog person. When I was little, I used to feed the strays on our street, but they often disappeared after a few days. Someone either got rid of them or took them in."