More than a week passed since the wedding, and the two brothers still remained under the care of Eulissah Nelson and her gypsy community.

Jin spent hours on his own, in one of the tents set for him. An unspeakable sorrow persisted in his mind. Despite the gypsies would occasionally take pity on him and invite him to their gatherings, he would always decline.

The light of the sun was unbearably bright. Its warmth vexing and distant. The sound of his own voice was heavy and onerous. All he demanded was darkness and silence, away from everyone.

Away from life.

He would drink in secret so he wouldn't have to hear his brother's rebukes, but with no result. Even the liquor was not enough to make him feel better anymore. Not even his dry eyes, now empty of tears.

What's the point? What's the reason, or the purpose? He would write in his diary.

~

In the meantime, Jimin and Eulissah did very little to hide their relationship. It did not take long before they became the gossip of the settlement.

Jimin would now brazenly sleep in her carriage, despite Eulissah's objections. Though now that they had finally reunited, she struggled to resist the urge to spend every moment she could spare with him. Because she was very well aware that she was soon to be parted with him again.

Nonetheless, she still held on to her anger about the tantrum Jimin threw at Seokjin. She believed that his harshness would only lead to regret.

"You are an arrogant prick, Jihmm!" Eulissah snapped one evening while preparing to sleep, "You still don't seem to want to see the bigger picture! He's punishing himself enough already!"

Jimin, laying in her bed, naked under the sheets, sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Ugh, can we please just drop this?" He whined.

"Bloody hell, you are so unbelievably irritating!" She yelled angrily, while she dropped on her bed next to him and pushed his arm off, "If you only knew what is awaiting you, you wouldn't behave like a bloody tinker!"

"Why don't you tell me then?"

He hovered over her shoulder and proceeded to kiss her neck up, all the way to her forehead. He refrained to touch her lips till he would have her permission.

Eulissah struggled to maintain her glare. She slightly closed in on him and her lips nearly reached his, but she averted instead.

"I can't tell you. I can't reveal too much of your future, remember?" She said curtly before turning to the side, her back facing him.

Jimin curled his lips in annoyance and mimicked her.

~

In the early morning of a snowy day, Jimin decided to finally pay a visit to his older brother, under the sharp threats of a very angry Eulissah. He sighed before crouching under the fabric serving as a door.

Seokjin was sleeping head down, drooling, empty whiskey bottle in hand, and reeking of sweat and vomit. He was emitting strange and incoherent sounds and words, caused by his recurring nightmares.

Jimin grimaced at the stench, and holding his nose he took the empty bottle and rolled his brother on his back.

"Hey, wake up already! It's noon!" He shook him.

Seokjin jerked out of his sleep. The abrupt awakening caused him violent nausea that sent him out of his tent to puke.

Jimin followed him outside, "Bloody hell..."

The sun was shining tenfold due to the snow reflecting the light like a mirror. Jeokjin stood up and coughed loudly.

"What the hell, brother?" Said Jimin with disdain, "Gods, you look like shit!"

Seokjin did not reply. He felt too sick to indulge his little brother. Jimin proceeded to lead him back into the tent, away from the embarrassment to be seen.

"Change," he ordered and tossed a new set of clothes on the ground, "And by the Gods bathe! I'm not traveling with you reeking of vomit and piss!"

"Wha-what? Where are we going?"

"We stayed here long enough. We must keep moving north, remember?"

"It sounds like you argued with Eulissah about this," he pointed out while unbuttoning his shirt.

"Never said such a thing," Jimin replied rudely.

"You never said it, but it sounds like it. Nowadays, you follow her orders like a lost pup."

The younger one was about to leave when he turned around to glare at him from the corner of his narrowed eyes.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Say that again, I dare you!" Shouted Jimin, anger starting to soar.

"I said you spend hours in her bed, all nice and comfortable, while I rot in this shithole!" Seokjin shouted back, grabbing another bottled and drunk from it.

Jimin's usual smiling eyes hardened, almost changing their shape.

"You shut your mouth!" Yelled Jimin entirely enraged, "Now pack your stuff, we're leaving in a few hours!"

He kicked the bottle on the ground to divert his violence away from his brother before it was too late to resist the urge to maul him.

"And why can't we just stay here, huh? Are leaving cause Eulissah told you to, or because you two finally got bored of each other?"

Jimin was almost out of the tent when the force of his fury pulled him back inside. His hand extended to grab his older brother by the collar, raising his fist.

"Go ahead hit me! HIT ME!" His tearful eyes flared, also grabbing Jimin by his shirt, pulling him closer, "HIT ME! HIT ME LIKE YOU WANTED TO HIT FATHER WHEN HE MURDERED YOUR WHORE MOTHER!"

Jimin roared like a wild beast. Seokjin's face distorted behind the tears overflowing the boy's vehement eyes.

The door of the tent swiped open and one of Eulissah's men lunged himself between them. It took two men to separate Jimin from his brother. Eulissah was standing outside with a rigid expression of scorn and disappointment.

Jimin wailed while he was held down in the snow. He jerked and hurled with all of his strength.

"LET ME GO!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Seokjin exited the tent wobbling. The gypsies around the camp gathered to witness the unexpected fracas.

"YOU BLOODY BASTARD!" Jimin attempted to release himself from the iron grip of the gypsy goons to try to attack Seokjin again.

The prince, unable to walk straight, fell on one knee, letting out a scoff. Everything blended in a spinning mixture of disconcerting emotions and sounds. He couldn't understand anything anymore. His head throbbed and his guts churned.

"You're the bastard...," he said and threw his bottle on the ground, just centimeters away from Jimin's feet.

"OH, YOU F---"

"THAT IS ENOUGH!"

Eulissah's voice echoed like thunder in the entire field. The two young men froze, and so did the rest of the gypsy settlement. Such a powerful authoritarian voice erupted out of such a small, pretty body.

"YOU STUPID FOOLS!" She yelled brutally, "GET UP!"

Her men immediately let go of Jimin, who sat up targeting Seokjin with hateful purpose. Eulissah stepped in front of him and blasted his face with a rough slap that made him lose his balance.

The boy gawked in shock, holding his cheek with his palm. Her strike stung like hot iron. She hit him with more than just rage, but with the temperament of a gypsy gangster, which somehow frightened him.

Then she turned and stomped towards the prince. She raised him by his armpits onto his feet and adjusted his almost ripped shirt.

"You! If it's a beating you're asking for, then I CAN HAVE THAT ARRANGED!" She yelled close to his face.

Now that she had both of their attention and away from each other, she went and stood between them.

"What the hell are you doing, huh?! HUH? Need I remind you what situation you're in?! NEED I REMIND YOU WHERE YOUR BROTHERS ARE AND WHAT THEY'RE DOING?! THE WHOLE BLOODY CONTINENT IS LOOKING FOR YOU, AND WHAT DO YOU DO? YOU'RE AT EACH OTHER'S THROATS?!"

She approached Jimin, who strumbled to step away, still holding his cheek.

"Is this how you protect your brother? IS THIS THE WAY OF BEING RESPONSIBLE?"

"So this is all up to me?" His voice trembled.

"YES, IT IS UP TO YOU!"

"But, he's the eldest!---"

"HE WAS BORN IN A PALACE WITH A SILVER SPOON IN HIS MOUTH! HE PROTECTED YOU FROM YOUR FATHER AND THE WAR AS BEST AS HE COULD!"

Jimin lowered his head. Eulissah addressed Seokjin.

"And you! You know very well what you must do! I know you're in pain, BUT YOU HAVE A GREAT RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS ALL OF US!"

Jimin frowned confused, wondering what she meant by that. The prince buried his face in his palm.

The gypsies observed and listened attentively, like an army to their general.

The girl then addressed both.

"YOU ARE ALONE! ALONE! Do you hear me?! I can't protect you anymore, don't you understand? My people understood who you are the moment you set foot in this place. How long do you think it will take for this information to travel around? Before you know it they will come for you, and I can't risk the lives of my people to protect you! ALL YOU HAVE IS EACH OTHER!"

The silence among them resonated.

Eulissah stepped closer to Jimin and eyed him from head to toe. Her tone softened, saddened. She blinked at the sting in her eyes and pain in her chest.

"I'm disappointed in you," she confessed.

The boy knitted his eyebrows. They looked into each other's eyes, their hearts aching with the desire to embrace. But their emotions had already marked a great distance between them.

After a few endless moments, with the prince slowly retrieving in the background, Eulissah cleared her throat and spoke.

"Hurry up and pack your things. You're leaving at daybreak."

Jimin opened his mouth and reached out his hand, but Eulissah was already walking off, followed by her men.

Seokjin watched as his little brother plunged into an overwhelming state of pain and confusion. As for himself, he felt nothing. A stubborn void. He turned and went to pack his belongings since that was the only thing he could manage at present.

~

At daybreak, the two brothers, without speaking a word to each other, nor exchanging a passing look, they mounted their stuff on their horses and proceeded to salute the gypsy community.

The old healer gave a warm tight hug to Seokjin, which he reciprocated willingly.

"My precious boy, I'm going to miss you dearly!" She said with a sob, cupping his cheeks.

"I'm going to miss you, too, madam. Thank you for everything. Please take care of your family," he replied softly.

"Don't fight, okay? Brothers don't fight!" She attempted to say.

Jimin shook hands and hugged everyone, but then he isolated himself by standing next to his horse. He wasn't listening to anything the gypsies were saying. His mind wandered around one and only thought.

He lingered, playing with the snow at his feet, and blowing out steam from his mouth. Snowflakes started falling from the sky. He reached out a hand and let them gently land on his glove.

"Jihmm!"

His heart kicked in his ribcage. He drifted abruptly and saw Eulissah walking towards him. He wasted no time and sprinted into her open arms.

They hugged as tightly as their bodies could handle. Eulissah tugged on his jacket as if fearing he would slip away from her grip.

"Jihmm...," she mumbled desperately, her sobs choking her words.

"I know," he whispered back.

They finally released each other only to entwine their lips in a deep, passionate kiss.

Eulissah pulled herself back before she would be unable to anymore. She whiped her tears and then stepped back.

"Farewell my love," she said with a side smile full of repressed pain.

"I-I...I'll...I'll come back for you...," he struggled to swallow.

"I know."

Jimin bit his lips and nodded. He turned around and hopped on his horse. Seokjin did the same.

They galloped away, without looking back, leaving the cheering gypsies behind them.

They ran ahead in the dark landscape without speaking to each other. What else was there to say, anyway?