WHEN SEUNGMIN awoke the next morning, he screamed in fright, for hwang hyunjin was looming over him so close that their noses nearly touched.

"ah! what the hell?" he exclaimed, rushing to push himself away from the wizard. although he was now officially a member of the house, he still didn't fully trust hyunjin. all of the rumors of him kidnapping people and stealing their hearts wouldn't leave his mind, so he made sure to keep his guard up at all times.

hyunjin chuckled and seungmin cursed him internally. how can someone's laugh be just as attractive as the rest of them? "i was wondering when you would get up, tailor. i've been waiting here for hours."

heat crept up seungmin's neck. "you...you've just been standing here for hours?" what if he saw me moving around? what if he heard me snoring? oh, lord, this is so embarrassing!

hyunjin nodded and seungmin didn't miss the way his lips curved up in an amused smirk. "indeed. your sleeping antics are rather...interesting." the tailor paled. "watching you repeatedly get up and walk around before laying back down was quite entertaining, and when i realized that you were in a sleep-like state the whole time, it was even more so!" he clapped his hands together and laughed, clearly finding it hilarious. seungmin was positively mortified.

"i assume you're in my room for another reason other than to poke fun at my sleepwalking," he said through gritted teeth, anxious to change the subject. he was pleased when hyunjin's laughter ceased, although he retained a little twinkle in his eye.

"of course. today is a very— how should i put it— a very important day. on the thirteenth of every month, all but two of us leave the household for the whole day to go on a little...excursion. and now that you and your friend live amongst us, you'll be joining us as well!"

seungmin frowned. "why do we all need to leave?" he asked. hyunjin just shook his head.

"sometimes, some questions are better left unanswered." his eyes darkened for a second, and seungmin swore that he could see something swirling dangerously in his green eyes. however, it was gone in an instant, leaving seungmin more scared— and more curious— than before.

"...alright," he relented, and hyunjin smiled.

"great! i've left you some clothes for you to change into. when you're finished, meet us in the sitting room. oh, your friend is downstairs baking, in case you were wondering." with a poof, hyunjin disappeared, and seungmin gave a small jump in surprise.

why is he so...strange? the tailor thought. when he had arrived at the castle, he was expecting to meet a savage, cruel, heartless creature that had bodies hung up in all of his rooms and sharp objects littered around. instead, he was met with a mysterious, quirky oddball who was far too trusting and seemingly opened his doors to just about anyone. he certainly is weird, seungmin thought as he grabbed his clothes, but i'd take weird over getting my heart stolen any day.

❂❂❂

when seungmin arrived on the first floor, everyone was gathered in the sitting room. he was surprised to see changbin there too, glowering from his place on the maroon chair. the fireplace was out, and glancing upward, seungmin saw that jisung had taken his human form. i guess everyone really is leaving for the day. but why?

hyunjin was discussing something with chan when he noticed seungmin, and the serious look on his face melted into a kind smile. "tailor! impeccable timing. we must be going now." he turned to the door, where a multi-coloured wheel with an arrow was hung. seungmin hadn't recalled seeing it before. hyunjin spun the wheel so that the arrow landed on a blue sliver and opened the door to reveal a bustling city.

seungmin gasped. didn't that door lead to the plains in front of market chipping? he thought, and judging from the look on minho's face, his friend was thinking the exact same thing. how is it possible that the door could open somewhere completely different?

felix's face lit up. "we're going to alberia today?" he asked hyunjin, who nodded. felix cheered, clearly ecstatic at this turn of events.

alberia was a large city in ingary known for its various tourist attractions and high-end shops. tailors like seungmin dreamed of being able to sell clothes in alberia, for only the best of the best were allowed to set up shop there. it wasn't a peasant town like market chipping; rather, alberia was where the rich went to spend their money without a care in the world.

seungmin had only heard stories about alberia, and by simply glancing out the door, he could see the stark contrasts from the city to his small town. their fashion is...interesting, he thought as a woman passed by wearing enough frills to drown a horse. he scrunched up his nose when a man walked past them looking like he was wearing the skin of a flamingo. very interesting.

when they exited the house, seungmin turned around and was shocked to see that the moving castle had transformed into a shabby two-story building that was nestled right in between a row of fancy houses. he noticed how the crowds of wealthy people looked at the house in disdain as if they couldn't believe that such a shoddy thing could ever exist. seungmin didn't know why, but a sense of protectiveness rose in his chest. they didn't know how amazing the castle truly was; all they cared about was what was on the outside.

"so, where are we headed?" minho asked, popping a crouton into his mouth. where he got them despite having no pockets, seungmin didn't know. "please don't tell me it's anywhere expensive. i've got no money."

hyunjin chuckled. "no need to fear, minho. we're going somewhere even peasants can enjoy: the fair."

seungmin couldn't help but gape at his words. no fair was ever hosted in market chipping, so he had never been to one before. he had been told many stories by travelers of flying contraptions and wheels that touched the sky, all of it powered by magic. the thought of it was astounding and seungmin never fathomed that he'd be able to one day experience it.

now he would.

as they walked, seungmin wondered how they must look to the civilians. a group of rag-tag people— two of whom were world-renowned magic users— strolling down the streets, pretending that they didn't notice how crowds parted when they came near. maybe it was hyunjin's intimidating aura or changbin's dark glare or chan's—

wait, where's chan? seungmin glanced around and found that he couldn't spot jeongin either. did we lose them somewhere? i thought we all left the house together!

he hurriedly tapped hyunjin on the shoulder. "i think we..." it was then that he remembered what hyunjin had told him earlier. on the thirteenth of every month, all but two of us leave the household. "...never mind," he muttered, and the wizard's green eyes crinkled.

"oh, tailor, were you going to inform me that we had arrived? because i can see that. i have eyes."

no, i wasn't, seungmin thought irritatedly, despite the wizard's teasing tone. he figured that his irritation must have been evident because hyunjin laughed and patted him on the head before turning around to face the group. spreading his arms, he announced, "welcome to alberia's signature fair! now, a few rules—"

"fair!" felix and jisung screamed in synchronization, and immediately sprinted through the gates. instead of chasing after them, hyunjin merely sighed and rubbed his temples. seungmin figured that things like that must happen a lot.

"this is exactly why i need chan," the wizard muttered; changbin (whose arms, seungmin noted, were bound behind his back) snorted at the comment. hyunjin closed his eyes and snapped his fingers, and suddenly jisung and felix appeared in front of them. the excitement on their faces quickly melted into ones of confusion when they saw that they were back where they started. felix yelped when he saw hyunjin glowering next to them and hid behind jisung, who was none the happier to be front and center to hyunjin's wrath.

"if you two attempts to do that again," he growled, "i'm sending you straight back to the house where you'll spend the whole day with chan and jeongin while they..." he quickly glanced at seungmin, minho, and changbin. "...do their thing. and i know neither of you wants that, right?"

the pair shook their heads rapidly. hyunjin smiled, his face filled with innocence and purity, as if he hadn't just scolded them. "good. now, back to what i was saying. since i am well aware that some people—" he stared straight at felix and jisung— "can't be trusted by themselves, i've decided to pair everyone up. jisung, you're going with minho, since he's far more mature than you will ever be."

felix snickered and jisung's jaw dropped. "what? i don't want to be paired up with him! he forced me into the fireplace for hours so he could bake!"

"and? that's your job!" minho snapped. the two of them glared at each other and seungmin could practically see the sparks flying between their eyes. was it really a good idea to put them together? they seem to hate each other.

"felix," hyunjin continued, seemingly indifferent to the fact that his first pairing was disastrous, "will go with me, seeing as i'm the only one that can keep him under control. so, tailor, you'll be with changbin."

i have to spend the day with seo changbin? seungmin thought incredulously. the one who got me in this mess in the first place? this has got to be a joke! he stole a glance at changbin, who didn't look any happier about the arrangement than he did.

"actually," felix's voice, uncharacteristically hesitant, piped up, "could i go with changbin instead? i..." he whispered something into hyunjin's ear, and a look of understanding crossed his face.

"i see. in that case, changbin will be with felix, and i'll take the tailor." a bright gleam shone in his eyes as he held out his hand. "well, tailor, i'm sure you're anxious to explore. shall we get going?"

well, seungmin thought, gently taking his hand, at least i know that he won't murder me in the middle of all these people. "we shall."