Yoongi groans as he's thrown against the cell floor, cold ground meeting him harder and faster than he'd expected. As he pushes himself up, he wonders if they treat all their prisoners like this—or if Jungkook told the guards to treat him worse. He thinks the latter, though knows the boy well enough to know that isn't the case. That's just him being dramatic, thinking he's more important than he is. And, as he sits on the hard, stone floor, he knows he's hardly important at all. He's just a lowly magpie.

The guards remain for a little while, half-heartedly watching him as they talk to each other. Yoongi sits against the wall, surveying his cell quietly. The front is entirely composed of bars, with the sides filled in with stone bricks. There is a door, locked by a key that hangs against the guard's pants, and a smaller gate that is probably to push food through. No windows, nothing else. For most people, escape would be impossible. But most people aren't Yoongi, a male who's life revolves around escaping.

He sits, and he waits. And all while he waits, he plans.

A guard approaches the captive male's door, a tray of food in his hands. Yoongi can't tell if the food is for him or a different prisoner but, despite being rather hungry, he decides to risk it. Now or never, he supposed, with the worry that his time already may be growing shorter. Who knows what Jungkook might have planned for him—what his uncle may have planned.

When the guard stands in front of his gate, Yoongi leaps forward. The tray is knocked from his hands on impact, clattering on the floor as food splatters across the ground. The man cries out as Yoongi grabs his clothes, clawing violently into him. He holds onto the other male like his life depends on it (it probably does), suffering through the pain as he's pushed against the bars. As the guard struggles against him, pushing him away and off of him, the magpie's grip shifts--but, even when he loses grip, he always quickly grabs hold again.

Eventually, after a few minutes of fighting through the bars, Yoongi allows himself to be pushed back to the ground. His arms ache, what will be bruises stinging against his skin, and feel so weak. He pants heavily, glaring up at the guard that spits at him; it pleases him to note that the other male doesn't look much better than him.

"Don't try anything like that again, magpie, or you'll be receiving a punishment so painful you'll wish His Majesty would just kill you." The guard growls, picking up the ruined tray. As he walks away, he mutters to himself, "Magpies are so rabid..."

Once the guard has left the area, and is definitely not returning yet, Yoongi allows a smirk to cross over his lips. He pulls the keys from beneath him, allowing them to jangle triumphantly as he looks up at them. Then, wasting no time in case the guard does come back, he scrambles to his feet and unlocks the door from the inside. As the door swings open, he squeezes through and begins to creep towards the door. But then he pauses, frustrated groan leaving his lips. He can't leave, not yet.

He turns on his heels, looking around the prison. There are cells lined up, all separated by thick walls. He begins moving down then, surprised to see that there are quite a few empty. Some are also occupied with more rabid birds, who growls or hiss at him and remind him of non-bird animals. But he ignores them, searching for someone in particular. None of the cells are protected enough, if Jungkook listened to him, to hold Taehyung, but maybe-- aha!

A boy sits in one cell, huddled in the corner with his wings wrapped around his body. His wings are still fluffy, but the distinct hawk pattern is beginning to show through the developing feathers. When he looks up at the older male, face full of fear, he bears similar features to Taehyung.

"Is your older brother Kim Taehyung?" The boy's interest perks at this name and he scrambles to his feet, instantly confirming Yoongi's suspicions.

"What do you know of my brother? Is he alright?" The boy hurries to the bars, gripping them as he looks hopefully up at the male. There is still a wariness to him, but the mention of his brother's name seems to have made him trust Yoongi.

"He is—he should be. But we don't have enough time to talk now, a guard will be back soon." Yoongi says as he pushes the same key in, hoping the one key unlocks all the doors. Thankfully, fate is with him and it does, allowing the door to swing open. The boy wastes no time escaping his cell, looking up at the magpie expectantly. Looking at him up and down, Yoongi attempts to size him up; he doesn't look strong, or fast, but he does look small. "We're going to have to run fast—the guards are going to want to lock me away and if you're caught, your brother's cover will be blown. Once we're out of this prison, you're going to have to jump up and hold onto me. I'll carry you. It'll slow me down, but reduces the chances of us being caught."

"Okay." The boy suddenly outstretches a small hand, "I'm Kim Taejoon."

Unsure, Yoongi shakes his hand, "I'm Yoongi. Pleased to meet you, Your Highness."

"You can just call me Taejoon." They begin moving after a small gesture from the older male. They creep back down the passage, constantly keeping an ear out for anyone that might stop them. At the door, Yoongi silently gestures for the boy to jump up—he is thankfully quick to obey, and wraps his arms and legs around the older male. Once he's securely held against him, Yoongi prepares himself and pushes through the door. Sure enough, two guards stand on the other side. Both startle at the sight of the pair, jumping to grab them. But the magpie sprints past them. The wind, so strong it clearly doesn't belong in the hallway, pushes him forward and the guards back. The Prince clinging to him even does his best to help—the small hand on his back warms for a brief moment and Yoongi feels adrenaline coarse through his veins.

More guards join the chase as the pair run past them. With such a large group behind them—a growing group too—Yoongi isn't sure they'll make. He nearly trips as he avoids one guard and the weight of the boy attached to him makes it hard to regain his balance. This gives the others an opportunity to reduce the distance.

"Taejoon, if I get caught, run and hide somewhere, okay?"

"If you stop talking and focus on running, both of us will get out." The boy scolds, his hand warming again. This gives Yoongi some more much needed energy. "But okay."

The chase continues into the courtyard, where Yoongi finally has the upper hand. He gives a brief warning to the younger boy before launching himself into the air, wind pushing him forwards. While not as fast as he could be as a bird, in the air—in his element, he's much faster than on the ground. He speeds through the sky, cutting through the wind that practically parts for him. Behind him, he can hear the voices grow fainter. He doesn't look back, not wanting to risk any loss of momentum.

It's only when the voices are really faint that he glances behind. The people are as distant as the sounds they make and he dives downwards. As soon as they land, he begins sprinting again, weaving through the busy crowd. He knows a safe house isn't far from here—a place to hide. He just has to make it there.

Yoongi all but barges into the house, nearly collapsing on the floor as the adrenaline and exhaustion from the escape overwhelm him. The young prince is smart enough to jump off, hopping out of the road of the tired magpie as he staggers to the ground. Heart pumping so hard he can hear it booming in his ears, he struggles to get a satisfactory amount of oxygen into his lungs. He keeps panting, desperately trying to recover oxygen, but all it seems to be doing is making him light-headed. There's a warm hand on his back, but that's not really doing a whole lot—poor prince's powers are quite strong enough for this kind of exertion.

Someone says his name—someone with a familiar, much deeper than a kid's voice. Yoongi has enough time to identify it as belonging to the man who runs the safe house before he really collapses, with the conscious world fading to black.

*  *  *

Jungkook wants to cry. He really wants to cry and stay in bed, but he's beginning to realise that isn't the best plan. Besides, his bed is beginning to remind him of Yoongi and all those times the older male comforted him, when all he wanted to do was hide in his bed and pretend the rest of the world didn't exist.

None of this fully makes sense to the king. He still can't comprehend that it was Yoongi trying to kill him all this time—or maybe he just doesn't want to accept it. No, he knows he doesn't want to, but this is still more than that. The magpie did a good job at tricking Jungkook, even now he can't help but see him as a friend—and more than that.

One thing that really remains an absolute mystery, with absolutely no explanation provided yet, is Taehyung. Which is why, to avoid moping, the king finds himself in the lower prison cell—a solitary cell, accessible through only one entrance that's constantly watched by two guards. It's the best cell for keeping someone in, and keeping others out.  After passing the guards at the entrance, there is another smaller room with the actual prison cell, watched by another two guards. Jungkook dismisses them, sending them outside the room, as he stands in front of the gate. His previous suitor sits on his bed, a thin blanket wrapped around his shoulders to protect himself from the cold.

"Yoongi ordered me to arrest you, put you in my best cell. Do you know why?" Jungkook asks, slightly uneasy as he wonders if the wingless male might be an accomplice. He wants to call the guards back, but doesn't—who knows what might be said during this, who knows who is a friend or for anymore?

"He was trying to protect me." The only person an assassin would protect is one of their own. Jungkook warily takes a step back; this is noticed by the older, who sighs softly. "I'm not going to attack you, if that's what you're thinking. I don't think I have the energy for it. The food isn't that nourishing, though I suppose that's probably the intent."

"Why was he protecting you? Who are you?"

Taehyung shuffles, turning his body so he faces Jungkook completely. He begins detailing the fight between the pair, explaining all that occurred—from the fact that he'd stolen the amulet, right to when he blackmailed the magpie. (The only thing he leaves out is his identify, not sure if he can trust the king fully just yet). With every hand gesture he makes, the blanket slips further off his back, til it lays forgotten on the floor. It's cold, but the brunette is too desperately trying to convince the younger, with his entire body, to care.

When Jungkook just asks him more why questions, clearly distrusting him even less, Taehyung just sighs. There's a moment of hesitation, as the older wonders if he should reveal yet another betrayal to the king, but he does, "Your uncle hired me—no, he didn't even hire me. He threatened me, used my love for my brother against me. That is what Yoongi was protecting me—protecting me and my brother—from, your uncle. He hired Yoongi too. In fact, I think he's probably hired everyone who made an attempt on your life."

"You lie." Jungkook mutters, voice barely a whisper as he digests all of this. Though, even he struggles to fully disbelieve—his uncle has clearly never been the fondest of him, hiding it behind cold affection. Still, he shakes his head, tears threatening to well in his eyes against. Must everyone close to him want him dead?

"I don't, and I think even you know it." Taehyung shuffles closer, voice softer as he approaches the delicate situation. "Jungkook, I have spent most of my time here watching and studying that man. I have done my best to find out everything I can, in the hopes that I could take him down rather than you. In all my investigation, I've found out that he's a bad man, Jungkook. I know he has an agreement with the Hawks—if they win the war, overthrow you, he'll become a king. That's what they plan. And that'll require you dying."

Jungkook shakes his head again, roughly. He doesn't know who to trust, who to believe anymore. It seems everyone just wants him dead...

"I know you don't want to believe me, but I can show you everything. My golems see all." Taehyung holds out a hand, palm facing the ceiling. From the palm, a golem begins to form, until it is too big and slides onto the ground; here, it sits disorientated, a blank. Pulling a chain from his neck, he reveals a small, purple azurite shard. He uses this to carve an 'K' into the golem, which causes it to stand instantly and amble over to the king. "Before, the 'K' made my golems watching anyone connected to you; now, it'll show you everything you want to see. It all depends on your intent, when you write the letter. Otherwise golems would get confused a lot more often."

Though still uncertain, Jungkook accepts the golem's outstretched hand. The contact immediately causes the world to swing, disappearing from him, before it's replaced with a vision of Yoongi. Oh, how it hurts to see him.

"I thought it was Jimin." Yoongi's voice is distant, as though he's hearing it through water. There's a slightly embarrassed frown on his face, an awkward shuffle. Jungkook could almost laugh, endearingly. The older male's distorts, as the vision shifts again. Taehyung announces that the kidnapper is Jungkook's uncle, and Yoongi's face brightens. He smiles so wide, clearly proud as he announces, "I knew it was him."

Then there's more fighting, the disembodied voice of Taehyung explaining their place, Yoongi accepting. It is clear, from their fighting, that the older has abandoned his knightly disguise—he fights with deadly speed, knives hidden within his clothes and wind used to hinder Taehyung but help him. Though both are still obviously playing. Every now and then, small smiles play across both their lips.

Yoongi wins, naturally. When the fight ends, both collapse to the floor and sit there, panting. There are scratches over the pair of them, small scuff marks, and they both look tired. But they also look happy, like this is the most fun they've had in a while. Yoongi's smile, growing wide each second, causes a pang to Jungkook's chest. He can't believe this male was hired to kill him.

"You care about Jungkook, don't you?" Taehyung asks, getting an immediate nod from the older male. "It's pretty obvious, to everyone. He cares about you too. Will you marry him?"

"No." The response comes as quickly as the nod. "He doesn't deserve me; I don't deserve him. I would happily protect him for the rest of my life, but I can't marry him. I can't let him find out who I am."

"A shame..." Taehyung sighs, but Jungkook doesn't hear anything else. The tears finally beat him, blurring his vision and running down his cheeks. The stone hand touching him gives him a small pat, possibly an attempt at comforting—or just showing him the change in vision.

It's his uncle, but younger. He's in a foreign castle, surrounded by hawks, standing before the hawk king. Two small boys sit by the throne, quietly playing as they pretend to be behaving.

"The King and Queen grow weaker." The younger version of the uncle announces, voice booming in Jungkook's head. "The poison is taking effect."

Jungkook sees and hears nothing else. Because that is all he needs to charge out of the cell, rage gradually bursting through his body with each step.

NOTE: I kinda see the past three chapters & the one to come as the one chapter split up into four, and I use that to excuse all the semi-cliff hangers

Was gonna give you a double update but that kinda fell apart so we'll see how things go