"I should have brought Jimin."
Jin curled his nose at your robes, adorned with red and gold embroidery. You smiled confidently as you attached the veil to your ear.
"I won't let them catch me," you said.
"They'll see how... inexperienced you are."
"My job is to make sure they don't see me at all. A boring hostess is better than a sexy one when your goal is to be a shadow."
"Don't get yourself killed."
You nodded solemnly. "Too many people would be affected if I did."
Jin cocked an eyebrow. "Thinking highly of yourself, are you?"
"No," you said, turning to walk towards the gate. "I'm done thinking of myself at all anymore."
You walked down the forest path, taking care to get on the main path in a way that made you look as if you were coming from the city road. Your heart hummed in your chest, not daring to pound. If the adrenaline took over, it was the end of you.
As you reached the gate, the guards held their hands out to stop you. One stepped forward.
"Your business?" the man asked.
You nodded politely. "From the Red House, my lords. A present for those damaged in the fire."
The men looked at each other. "Did Kana send you?"
You looked them in the eye, holding your hands still. "We have new management now."
You didn't know if they knew Kana was dead, but best to keep it simple.
They stepped back a little. "You're alone?"
"Last night was one of our busiest, or else I would have come with the others yesterday."
The men stopped to look at each other for a moment.
"I suppose today is a good day to celebrate with extra company," one of them said.
"Straight forward to the tower," the other told you. "You can't miss it."
You bowed again, stepping through the gate.
I can't... but I will.
You walked the familiar path, the burnt structures standing charred and ragged against the sky. Hoseok had burned the main prison, but there were parts of the prison untouched by the fire. Namjoon's house was still standing, but your gut told you that he wasn't there.
Where would they keep those for execution?
You followed the path, trying to remember the cells. You saw the flag of the emperor, still waving tall over the building.
It might as well have been a sign for death.
You went with your gut, taking the path to that building.
Eyes wandered towards you, but didn't stay long, the preparations taking up too much of the guards' attention. They ran from one place to another, a spring in their steps despite the destruction around them.
The death of Captain Kim Namjoon was a celebrated occasion among the ranks of the emperor.
Because evil always celebrated when good was being destroyed.
I never changed... I just had to change who everyone thought I was.
You realized that now. You realized that Namjoon was the same man he had always been. He really did have to be more dangerous than the wicked to survive. He had to be fearless, ruthless, and unwavering to live in this place.
But you...
You fight like fire. I need you to fight like water.
Fire didn't control itself. Fire didn't back down easily. Fire struck fear in people's chests.
But looking at the skeleton buildings around you, you understood.
Fire only knew how to destroy.
Water could bend. Water understood its surroundings. Water never gave up its strength or its serenity.
And in the end, water gave life.
The hum of your heart stopped as you reached the entrance of the cell. There was only one guard, but it was one guard you were not happy to see.
Shownu.
You wondered how he stood so tall with the whipping lashes against his chest and face.
Your biggest problem wasn't getting past him. It was not killing him as soon as you got close enough.
You stepped forward, bowing politely to him. "I've been sent for the prisoner. A gift from the Red House."
He laughed, raising his eyebrows. "Why should a man going to die in a couple of hours be treated so well?"
"Shouldn't the executed get one last pleasure before his death?" you asked. You cocked your head to the side. "If you like what you see, I can offer you the same services."
Your skin crawled as you said it. You were glad there was a veil to conceal how your lips curled, holding back your own vomit.
The man licked his bottom lip before biting it. "You're speaking my language, miss."
I know I am, you perverted snake.
He opened the door, allowing you inside.
"A gift for you, Kim," he called.
He was practically laughing as he said Namjoon's last name, happy to drop the formal title. But to be fair, Namjoon looked nothing like a captain in his state.
He was on his knees, his hands tied behind his back. Not that he could escape - there were no windows in his cell and no exits besides the one behind Shownu.
He looked up at you. He blinked, his forehead shifting back.
"Maybe now we'll see the noble captain crumble into humanity like all the rest of us," Shownu teased. "Facing death... do you still wanna act like the moral god among us?"
He shoved you forward.
"Show me what you got, woman," he said, leaning against the cell door. "Make sure I can see everything."
You nodded, glancing over your shoulder, then meeting Namjoon's eyes. "Get ready."
His eyes flickered.
You stepped forward and crouched in front of him. He swallowed. He didn't take his eyes off you as you ran your hand through his hair and down his chin, stroking his bottom lip with your thumb. With a hand clamped on his neck, you stepped behind him, leaning down and pressing your body against his back. He straightened, his feet shifting uncomfortably under him.
You ran your hands down his chest from behind, leaning in to inhale his scent for maybe the last time. The way his breath quickened, you could tell that he noticed.
As your hands ran down his arms and towards his back, you pulled Hoseok's dagger from under your robe. You calmly cut the rope with it, then tapped the handle against Namjoon's palm. He gripped it, the veins in his arms strong as venom.
"Get to the good stuff, lady," Shownu said, sighing. "Why don't you take off that veil and show me what you can do with that pretty little mouth of yours?"
"Oh, but sir..." you returned, sitting back on your heels. "I'm much better with my hands."
You barely finished your sentence before Namjoon was on his feet, across the room, holding Shownu by the throat against the cell wall. The man gurgled, his eyes going wide in terror. You saw him struggle for a brief moment before his eyes rolled back into his head. Namjoon dropped his body as it went lifeless to the ground, pulling the dagger out of the Shownu's throat as he went down.
Namjoon turned to you, and you tried to ignore the body on the side of the room. At least he hadn't screamed.
"You came for me?" Namjoon asked. "Do you know how dangerous --"
"I want you alive, goddammit."
You smiled behind your veil, hoping he could see it in your eyes.
"You saved me once," you continued. "I'm returning the favor. Then we can go our separate ways and forget each other."
He shook his head at you, eyes soft. "Then leave me here. Because I'd rather die than forget you."
You nodded to the door. "Just shut up and get out, stupid."
You both went to the entrance of the cells. He leaned up against the wall, looking out the window to the guards outside.
"There are six immediate guards we have to watch for," you said. "Two are about twenty feet from this building, in the east. Two in the west. One north, one south. After that, there are another dozen."
"And all of them would love to put a sword through me, I'm sure."
"There's only one way out of here?"
He nodded. "Just the front door."
You started to strip off your clothes. Namjoon stopped to look at you, swallowing again.
"Y/N... What are you..."
"Shut up."
You stripped off your red and gold embroidered robes to reveal another set of robes you had been wearing underneath of blue and silver.
Namjoon gawked. "What on--"
You threw him the red and gold robe, smiling. He looked down at it, raising an eyebrow.
You nodded at the fabric. "Time to play dress up."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SOUNDTRACK: As it Was by Hozier
Double update in honor of Namjoon's birthday. We had to have a scene with him in it, right?
Happy birthday to my ideal man and deepest parasocial relationship.
May my love for you always slightly alarm my mother.
Movie theater touch screen in Daegu for Namjoon Day
My poem for Namjoon:
He's the magic of possibilities
The hope for the ideal...
A secret I could never keep,
The dream I can watch
But never reach.