"Sure!" Yunho enthusiastically exclaims when San has told the two tall men what his intentions are.

Yunho and Mingi are the ones who primarily work in the knights' stable, Yeosang is being told. They have known San ever since he came to Lectushire Fortress as a kid, and that is why they seem so close to each other. The tallest, Yunho, with his bright persona, is older by a couple of years and San tells him how he sees him as an older brother, despite his playful soul. San and Mingi are a year more than Yeosang, and the information has Yeosang wander through the ages of himself. Never has he imagined San to be more than a teen's age to his reasoning boyish looks in his eyes.

They are shown down the stable's mid-walk by Yunho who knows what they are seeking. Yeosang swallows and draws his eyes around at the majestic steeds they pass as the sound of San's laughter fills the somehow light air. At times thunder rumbles can be heard from the skies outside.

Suddenly a cheering voice pins his ears and Yeosang steps sideways as he watches San reaching forward to one of the stalls, "Hey my pretty girl!"

A gentle neigh answers him right before the head of a horse, peaks out and San buries his hand in the black forelock. The boy believes that this must be the mare San mentioned earlier and his confidence is only confirmed when San kisses the mare's muzzle dearly and looks around at Yeosang.

"Come and greet Calimorfis, my mare, and almighty destrier," he says and grabs Yeosang's arm when his feet are falling heavy to the ground.

His throat tightens as San leads his hand to the fur and lets his fingers spread into the softness. The eyes of the mare calmly glance into his and Yeosang feels the pressure of San's hand slowly disappear as he starts smoothing his own hand downwards the horse's head. Forth and back in a very slow manner. Yeosang has never had anything to do with horses, as his father never has wanted him to learn how to lead that kind of creature. Sure, he has touched one before, but that will only be a couple of times in his full life until now. So he cannot escape the feeling of fear that roots inside of him while he touches the destrier. Then he sees the existence nearing him from behind the horse and his eyes soften immediately.

"And this is Calimorfis' young daughter, a foal if I must use the rightful term for that. She is still without a name."

Yeosang is astonished by the young horse and does not know whether he shall reach out and let her smell his hand, or stay in place. But her tiny muzzle is quicker than his decisions and she curiously studies the smells that attach to his palm. The foal looks awfully much like her mother as the exact same eyes are staring up at him. Yeosang withdraws his arm and steps back, the movement causing San to grin and caresses the young mare.

"Come on San, I am sure that you will come back here later," Yunho says and grabs both San and Mingi, who now both pets the horses.

A playful whine escapes the blonde knight's mouth but Mingi just giggles at the statement and follows the older. They stop at the very end of the stable. Barely any light comes in from the windows, but Yunho seems like he has found what they are seeking.

"What do you think?"

The boy turns his head at the stable worker, who has his eyes drawn at him. He sees the smile pulling at his shaped lips but does not understand what is meant until he hears the flapping of something. Vigilant he turns his head the rest way around until another one is staring right into his soul. Yeosang holds his breath while he detects the black horse standing on the other side of its stall, nostrils enlarge and become smaller. Nervously his hands grip at his sleeves and a hand pushes him closer despite his stupor.

"Yunho are you sure that-"

"Yes I am, San. Do not worry, I think they will play well together," a voice interrupts from behind the boy, but he is already in the midst of having the horse stepping closer to him.

Yeosang is unable to breathe when the steed reaches out for his hand and he suddenly feels a wet feeling sticking to his skin. Someone is gasping and another one is laughing behind him, but Yeosang does not hear it as all his attention is drawn to the black horse licking his hand.

"See! Look, what is the boy doing to him!"

When he lets his hand stroke down the neck of the steed, it seems satisfied with the slight scratches he carries in the move. Rotating on his feet, Yeosang looks for Yunho to answer his questions.

"Is this..."

The stable worker nods his head, "Yes, Harmony will hopefully be your future destrier. He is a young stallion, and raw. No soul has dared trying to cooperate with his difficult demands, but it seems as if he actually likes you. That must be a first."

The boy draws in an unsteady inhalation and places his hand on the forehead of the horse as he tries to comprehend what is happening. Those people are giving him a stallion. He leans in closer to the horse.

"Hello there, let us be friends for a long time then," Yeosang whispers inaudible to any ear but the stallion's.

_____

Now, he is in possession of a crusader sword, he trains his coming destrier himself, and yet, Yeosang can still not beat an archer in a sword fight.

"Please, you can not possibly be worse at this than I am!" San yells at him.

It is effervescently provoking that this archer is still better than him, even though he has spent so many hours with a sword in his hand. San strikes at him again, and Yeosang strides forward and parries the weapon. His chest is heaving for air and he tries to concentrate on his thoughts on how to end this battle in a victory. But San is appalling fast, and always gets to hit the first. He averts the sword by jumping to the side, his own sword just accurately scratching against San's. This tiresome training has him exhausted and his legs give under before he falls to the ground. Wet gravel brushes his black hair when his head lays still. Yeosang looks up at the figure who gets closer to him before crouching down. San's blonde hair sticks to his forehead, but he still seems full of energy even after hours of training without any pause.

"I am sorry, I cannot."

The knight hums a tune and proceeds to sit beside where the boy lays. Yeosang blames himself for his bad abilities to steer a sword and closes his eyes regrettingly. Nothing of this has been easy, and it certainly is not working for him either. He has already fallen into war.

"Yeosang."

It has been so long since he last heard this voice, and he feels a pull in his chest. When his eyes shoot open, his mind plays him like a trickster and he is looking right into San's blue orbs. They seem tempting like the honey-brown ones always have done, and he leans forward to the laying knight without having any thought to the action.

That is when he is thrown into reality again when San is raising himself from the ground like a shot arrow. A slight hue is tinting his cheeks and Yeosang watches in terror as those honey-brown eyes turn out to be the same blue orbs as they always have been.

"I, uhm, go clean up before meeting me by the main entrance to the healers' quarters," the knight laughs off before leaving the ring hurriedly.

Still blinded by his lightly dancing mind, Yeosang gets up from the ground. There he spots San's sword abandoned in the gravel and he wonders if the knight would like him to take it with him to give him later. He decides to do so in the rush of cold blood in his body, and while he reaches down for it, he can not understand why he had heard the voice of Wooyoung instead of San.

_____

After Yeosang has bathed and shifted his dirty clothes for something clean, he meets San by the spot in front of the entrance to the healers' quarters. After he hands the forgotten sword to him, San thanks him brightly and they enter effortlessly. It is two weeks and four days since the troops of knights went to war, and this errand involves a haircut of Yeosang's hair that has gotten too long.

"Shall we get going?" the knight inquires with his hands gesturing for the door. Yeosang nods and trails after the blonde knight.

Today the fortress is quiet and Yeosang yearns to be kissed until his lips can feel no more and his skin is tingling with warmth. Desires that will have the cross hanging around his neck strangle him until those craves vanish. His eyes are drawn at San's figure in front of him, and he cannot stop his illusions of Wooyoung from appearing now and then. His hand is cold and empty and he watches silently how the knight holds around the edges of his cape as they move upwards the stairs. The boy wishes he could hold them instead, just for the touch-deprived state of mind he goes through. But Yeosang bites the inside of his cheek to keep himself from letting out words that never should be told around those lands. He has been to church every day since he came here, and still, he knows that those words of creeds will never be the cleansing of his soul.

Swiftly, San knocks at the door to his sister's chamber and takes a step back to leave space if the wooden door eventually opens. As they wait, Yeosang spends the time staring at the alluring side profile of the blonde Knights Templar, a sight that he has been granted with the last couple of weeks. The boy believes that San must be an angel instead of the cursed soul townspeople have named him to be.

His heart throbs rapidly into his ribcage when he reminds himself of that he earlier had leaned in and intended to kiss the knight on the damp gravel in the middle of the ring. He would have liked that to happen. Yeosang averts his eyes from San while a blush covers his face prettily. He does not attend all that happens next when he is placed down into a chair that stands against a desk where a tub filled with heated water stands. The back of his head is pressed gently down into the water until all his locks of dark hair are soaked with the calming substance. Yeosang closes his eyes dearly, and the shared words between the twins blur into background noises. Emma's hands carefully work into his wetted hair and scents of fagranting herbs and flowers swirl around his nose while she scrubs the nicely cleansing into his scalp. Slowly, the exhaustion pulls him under the surface of the dreamer's world, and Yeosang falls asleep. Somehow, he remembers the sight of the Knights Templar, Choi Jongho in his deep slumber.

_____

Colors blend together for his eyes and he rushes to heave himself up from the softness underneath him. It occurs bolting and suddenly, starting with the door slamming shut. Then, he hears the tumults happening from outside and anxiously lets his feet touch the floor of the chamber he lays in. Yeosang snatches his boots from the ground and forces his feet into them before he hurries out into the corridors. He can feel the tenseness even from in here, and a few other knights are following the way out.

The courtyard is packed with humans and horses, people who are helping each other and others who simply try to move out of the way. Yeosang widens his eyes upon the sight when he detects the different kinds of emotions spilling around the knights and horses, and of course, the healers. The chaotic place is brought to an end when an order is yelled out and most of the horses are steered to the stable, and left is the wounded knights who the healers desperately try to move indoors with the help of other men.

Yeosang stumbles backward with a loud gasp tearing his mouth apart when a man's corpse is lifted away from the courtyard and he can already feel the fright dripping down his back. He comes to realize that knights have died doing this trek, and that is something that does not settle well in his mind. He feels restless.

Even if his lungs do fail him to breathe, the boy pushes through the piercing pain and darts into the mass to find the person he has been thinking of.

When that said person is found, he can do nothing more, but stare at the knightly figure that roams his revealed eyes across him, as if finding the situation venerated. Yeosang senses the touch of pride attached to the other's self-esteem, and the beaming smile he is granted is something that he never thought he needed in his life.

"So, novice, I kept my promise. May you allow me to know your name."

⚔︎