hi!

XIII: Jungkook 

"Your Grandfather is here."

I felt Taehyung tense, and his face which had been smiling only a moment ago was now filled with surprise and resentment. The knuckles of his hands grew white as he gripped the armrests of his throne so hard, I was afraid that the obsidian would crack. His voice was full of suppressed anger when he spoke.

"Is he? Then tell him to go. He's not welcome here."

Yoongi shuffled his feet, and for the first time since I had seen him, looked nervous. "I already told him that. And... well, he didn't like it. He insists on meeting you."

Taehyung muttered some words which were undoubtedly curses in a different language. "Fine. Let's get this over with, shall we?" He gently caressed my hair one last time, and I savored the feeling of his hands in my hair. The feeling ended all too soon as he removed his hands, and I took that as my cue to leave. Sliding off his lap, my feet touched the cold marble floor as I ran to Jimin who greeted me with a smile.

Rising from his seat, Taehyung walked towards the portal with Yoongi. His face was dark with thunder, but he sent me a fleeting smile as he stepped into the barrier. I smiled back. Then the portal swirled closed, and Jimin, Baekhyun, and I were left alone in the room.

Baekhyun rubbed his hands together. "I wish I could meet his grandfather. He's a legend, you know. Won so many wars that no one even counts them anymore. He also had an uncanny ability to evade death, and his soldiers worshipped him for it. Was a devil with the scim, too." He sighed longingly.

"Well, give it up, Baekhyun. Taehyung's not going to allow us to simply hear his private conversation." Jimin said, leaning against the metal railing. "I want to see him too, but I guess it'll have to wait."

"You guys haven't met Taehyung's grandfather before?" I asked, and Jimin shook his head. "Never. He barely ever visits Armad. He mostly spends his time at his castle in the mountains of Blackcliffe, which is far away from here. Besides, Taehyung and him have... a rocky relationship. They prefer not to see the other for as long as fate allows."

Baekhyun snorted. "That's an understatement. They hate each other. Of course, you can't blame Taehyung for that, but still... They would have slit each other's throat by now if they had to live together." He gave another half-hearted sigh. "What I would give to see his grandfather... and I know the perfect place to hide in too..."

Jimin raised a suggestive eyebrow. "You're not saying that we should spy on them, are you?"
Baekhyun shrugged. "I never said anything of that sort. It's just that, hypothetically, there's a perfect hiding spot behind the east wall of their room. If someone were to use it to eavesdrop on another's conversation, it would be the ideal place." He held his hands up protectively. "Not that I'm proposing anything of that sort. Just stating the facts."

"Huh," Jimin got a glint in his eye which made me a bit nervous. "I never thought of that. Hypothetically, if someone, let's say three people were to use it, would it be big enough to cover all of us? Just hypothetically, of course."

"Er... guys..." I tried to intervene, but both of them already seemed to be warming up to the plan.

"Sure. It would be perfect for the job." Baekhyun agreed. Jimin smiled. "Great!" He didn't even try and hide his brisk steps as he walked towards the portal. Flicking his hand once, the swirling mass of light returned, and we all stepped through it. I gritted my teeth as pain washed over me, but didn't complain. I could only hope that we didn't get found out when we spied.

Baekhyun led us quickly through the twisting hallways until we came upon a set of black doors, made of obsidian like almost everything else in the palace. Easing them open, Baekhyun stepped inside, his shoes making no noise as he silently tread towards a brick wall at the end. He tapped the center brick twice, and the bricks shuddered, before splitting open with a groan. I flinched at the grating noise, but neither Jimin nor Baekhyun seemed concerned.

Motioning for us to follow him, Baekhyun walked confidently between the opening, while Jimin and I followed a little more tentatively. The opening led to a small, cramped alcove just wide enough to fit all three of us. There were small holes ridded in the northern wall, so that we could see what was happening in the room in front of us. Baekhyun ushered us inside the alcove, and I ducked underneath the low-hanging ceiling of the wall, being careful to make as little noise as I could.

Once settled in, I peeked through the holes, just to see the figure of Taehyung and another man in the room. The air sparked with tension, which made me think that there had been an argument even before we arrived. Taehyung was pacing around the room shaking his head, while the other man, who I assumed was his grandfather, watched like a hawk. Baekhyun's eyes grew wide at the sight of the old man, and I could see why.

Taehyung's grandfather was a tall, powerful looking man with blue eyes as sharp as a scythe. The lamplight painted his thick mane of white hair gold, and a ceremonial sword hung at his side in a gilded scabbard. His face was etched with hard lines of disapproval which complimented his equally puckered lips. He looked like I had always imagined a vampire: strong and proud, but with a gleam in his eye which told me that he wasn't a stranger to death. A black, falcon headed cane glinted in his hand.

"Grandson," His voice was deep and grating, only bordering on distaste. "What have you done?"

"What have I done, Grandfather?" Taehyung spun around to look his grandfather in the eye, and I was struck by how similar they looked when angry. Their respective red and blue eyes flashed with equal ferocity, enough to make even the strongest beast cower. "I would like to ask you the same thing. You never visited for 300 years. 300! Your pride was so great that you couldn't even show up to my parent's wedding. Your own daughter died in a fire 200 years ago, and yet you acted like she had never existed. And now you dare come here and question my decisions? Get out!"

His Grandfather made a low growling sound, a noise that made me shiver from my head to my toes. "I have heard rumors about you, boy. Rumors that can bring down the Kim family name if they are true." His gaze seemed to rake across Taehyung, but my soulmate didn't flinch. He stared steely back, as if daring his grandfather to continue. "You've brought back a human, haven't you? A human who you want to marry. A human whom you believe is your soulmate."

"Not just believe, dear Grandfather. I know he is. I can feel it." The old vampire's eyes flickered at Taehyung's words. The only indication in his otherwise stony face that betrayed his surprise. "Well, I hope you rejected him is all I can say. A human cannot mingle with vampires. It is not the way."

"Then I suppose that the way must change," Taehyung said calmly. "I haven't rejected him. I can't. I love him too much to do such a thing. One day, he will rule by my side and be mine forever. I know it." I felt my heart skip a beat at his words. Did he really love me that much? He wanted me to rule with him? A warm fuzzy feeling enveloped my heart at the thought. But not for long.

His grandfather slammed his hand down on the antique entryway table so hard that a vase fell from it and shattered. "Foolish boy," he growled. "A human could never serve as queen of a vampire clan. Especially the Sirius. Soulmate or not, he's useless to you. He doesn't have nearly as much power as a girl of good ancestry could give you." I flinched at his words, and Jimin wrapped an arm around my shoulders.

"Power isn't everything, Grandfather." Taehyung snapped. "I love him, and that's enough for me. If other clans don't like it, then they can either accept it or die. You included."

His Grandfather gave a snort of contempt. "Rubbish! Do you think I married your grandmother out of love, boy? No! I married her simply because of the power her family line had. Love only gets in the way of things, the way of ruling. It mixes up your emotions, and makes you take rash decisions. Look at what love did to your parents! It destroyed them! If they hadn't been such odd ducks, and stuck to tradition, perhaps they would still be alive today." His eyes sparked with faint emotion as he delivered his trump card. Sadness? Hate? Guilt?

I didn't even hear the blade being drawn, but the next moment, his grandfather was up against the wall with a dagger at his throat. His falcon headed cane fell to the ground, the only sound in the hall besides the heavy breathing. Next to me, Baekhyun stifled a gasp. Taehyung's eyes were full of unhinged fury, staring at his grandfather like he wanted to gut him. Was this really the man who had kissed me so passionately just an hour ago?

"I dare you to say that again," Taehyung's voice shook with rage and malice. It scared me more than Lucius's voice ever had. "I dare you to insult my parent's memory like that again. Go on!" He pressed the blade harder into the man's neck. "I dare you."

His grandfather sputtered with anger, but even he seemed to understand that there was nothing he could do. Taehyung dug the blade in deeper, drawing out a thin line of blood. "What? Have you nothing to say?" He gave a short, mirthless laugh. "I would never have thought that the great Kim Yoosang would be at a loss for words."

"Fine! I take back my earlier statement. Now put that dagger away." His grandfather growled, throwing his hands up in the air. Taehyung gritted his teeth. "That wasn't the answer I was looking for. Any last words?"

"You strike a hard bargain, boy," the old man said sharply. "Very well. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I ever insulted your parent's memory. I won't do it again." Taehyung held the knife steady for one more second before putting it back in its sheath. "See that you do." He seemed to know how much the apology had cost his grandfather. "Now get out."

Silence seemed to stretch for eternity, the air turning cold after all the rage had been emptied. Neither side talked. Finally, the old man staggered to his feet, though his eyes remained cold and steady. "No matter how much you hate me, you can never escape from your past, boy," he said, grabbing his cane from the ground. There was no rage in his voice. Just tiredness, which surprised me more than anything. As if the fight had taken something out of him. "Death supplants everything. Friendship, love, loyalty. You've got killing in your blood, whether you like it or not." His hand strayed towards the thin red line on his throat. "And that's the only way you'll ever be able to beat Lucius. If you let yourself truly go. Think of that, my boy."

His grandfather walked towards the exit, stopping only once to lay a firm hand on Taehyung's shoulder. Taehyung stayed still as a rock, hand not even drifting towards his dagger. His red eyes looked straight ahead, expressionless if possible. Kim Yoosang stared at his grandson for a minute, an unreadable expression flickering across his blue eyes. "But you are wrong about one thing, Taehyung." He whispered, so low that I had to strain to hear. "I loved your mother. I loved my daughter very much. That's why I couldn't come to the wedding. I couldn't stand to see her smiling at her own demise. If love makes you happy, then I know I can't change your mind. I've witnessed firsthand what love does to people. And I know you have too. But be sure to know that it brings unthinkable consequences. That is all I ask of you, Taehyung."

Giving his grandson's shoulder one last hard pat, his grandfather left the room, shutting the door behind him with a powerful clang. The noise seemed oddly loud in the hall after all the hushed talking and silence. Taehyung stayed immobile for a long time, feet rooted in place. His body was here, but it was apparent that his mind was elsewhere as his crimson eyes seemed lost in the vacuum of the past. Staring down at the dagger in his hand, the edge coated with his grandfather's blood, he seemed neither happy nor prideful. Finally, he let out a ragged sigh, using his left sleeve to wipe the blood off the blade.

"All three of you. Come out from behind that wall. I know you're there."

Jimin stiffened, and Baekhyun muttered out a curse. But it seemed futile to keep hiding when Taehyung knew exactly where we were. Shuffling out with Jimin as the leader, we all walked straight into Taehyung's line of view, hanging our heads. The silence was deafening as Taehyung studied us, and I felt stupid and ashamed for eavesdropping. It felt like I had intruded into someone's personal problems and space by daring to listen to such a private conversation.

"Well?" He sounded tired, but the gleam in his eyes remained. "What have you to say for yourselves?"

"I'm sorry," the words burst out of me like a river. "I should have never tried to listen. I-I was an idiot. I didn't think about what would happen if I did." I forced myself to meet Taehyung's eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Me too." Jimin stepped forward. "But if you're going to punish us, you should only punish me and Baekhyun. We were the ones who thought of it in the first place. We kind of just dragged Kook along with us, so don't punish him. He didn't do anything wrong."

"I second that idea," Baehyun said, and I felt a warm feeling in my chest that these two vampires were sticking up for me.

Taehyung's lip twitched, almost like he was going to smile, but was too weary to do so. "What you three did were good battle tactics, but not something you should have done here. You all know that. So I'm assigning all of you to armory duty for the next two weeks." When Jimin started to protest, Taehyung held up a hand. "It's not a punishment. Think of it more like a chance to polish your skills with weapons. Swords, throwing stars, daggers, I don't care. You're going to need them all." His expression darkened by a fraction of a degree, but forcefully lightened again. "And I was meaning to teach Jungkook some basic battle skills anyway. This is simply an opportunity to do so. Perhaps you two can teach him some moves while you're at it."

Jimin sighed, but grudgingly agreed. Baekhyun nodded, so I nodded along. It would be cool to be able to wield a sword as well as Taehyung, so I wasn't complaining about our task. Maybe by the time the two weeks were up, I would be able to take an enemy down with just a throwing knife. Taehyung glanced at me, and I saw amusement spark in his eyes. "Don't get your hopes up Jungkook. It takes years to be able to swing a sword correctly. But this will be a good starting point." My shoulders slumped a bit, but I refused to get my hopes dashed.

"If there's nothing else anyone wants to say, you're all dismissed. Jimin, find Yoongi and Namjoon and tell them to come to my room in four hours' time. I need to speak with them privately." Taehyung's gaze raked the room before settling on me. His eyes softened. "And Jungkook," he waited until I looked at him. "Don't take everything my grandfather said too seriously. He doesn't have enough power to change my decision. I don't care that you're a human. You will always be my queen."
I blushed and nodded, my stomach exploding in butterflies when he gave me an all too brief smile. "Now, leave me, all of you. I... need time to think."

Jimin nodded, and herded us all out of the room, ignoring Baekhyun's ill-tempered, "I can walk by myself, thank you." The last thing I saw was Taehyung caressing his dagger and staring at the potted plant near the window as if thinking of the best way to sever the leaves from the stem. Then he abruptly turned and walked away, letting the shadows engulf him as he entered the northern corridor.