Waking up to the sun glowing through the screen of his window, Seokjin sat up in his bed, yawned, and stretched, rubbing his eyes and lightly massaging his shoulders. Slipping a light robe over his bare back and a red cotton quilt over that, he fitted his feet into a pair of gold sandals and shuffled quietly towards the garden. It was a morning ritual for him to visit the gardens and watch the birds that would perch in the bushes. It was therapeutic for him to take care of animals -- something both he and the creatures enjoyed.

Quietly sitting in a corner of the garden, he watched as the little birds, almost as if on instinct, landed next to him and began to chirp.

"Hello to you too," Seokjin whispered, smiling at the birds. Wrapping the quilt tighter around his body as the cold morning air blew silently through the trees, he relaxed while enjoying the company of his feathered friends. Slowly holding his hands out, he petted a small oriole with his index finger and giggled quietly as it chirped in delight.

"You are so pretty," he said, admiring the bird's warm colored feathers.

However, the bird immediately flew away, and so did its fellow bird friends.

Any bird would've flown away upon seeing Sura's face.

"Well there he is," she said, looking down on him as if he were a roach beneath her shoe. Catching her drift, Seokjin immediately turned away from her, deeming her unworthy of a response.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue? Hmph! No one's here to save you now."

"I came here to watch the birds," Seokjin stated calmly. He wasn't about to lose his cool, and he's be damned if he let Sura get the best of him. "I don't have to speak to you to do so."

"How else will you explain yourself if you don't speak?" she hissed, flashing her glowing teeth.

"Explain myself for what? I've done nothing wrong."

Kneeling before Seokjin, Sura looked into Seokjin's eyes with glowing, venomous orbs.

"Listen here. I don't know or frankly care what your relationship is with His Majesty, but I'm marrying him. I'll have him no matter what. Did you hear what I just said? Or did it fly like the birds through one ear and out the other?"

Seokjin closed his eyes and breathed for a few seconds. Enjoying the silence after she spoke, he opened his eyes and trailed them over her head to the trees.

"Snakes eat small birds," he began, still refusing to look at her. "No wonder they flew away when they saw you."

Taken aback by the insult, Sura gasped in indignation. Seokjin stood, holding his quilted cloak around him. "Don't stay here too long, else you'll profane this place."

At that, Sura grabbed Seokjin's cloak right off his back and tore it in half, throwing it to the side. Unable to stop herself, she pushed an unexpecting Seokjin to the ground. Sliding on his hands, he groaned in pain as his skinned palms bled on the rocky floor. Sura would've kicked him as well, had she no sense of reason.

"If you love the damn birds so much, why don't you just die here? The crows and vultures would love to feed off your rotting corpse."

Sura walked away, smoothing out her dress.

Seokjin immediately stood up and brushed himself off, picking up his torn cloak and sighing in exasperation.

Sura definitely doesn't want to marry Namjoon. She wants to marry the money, the title, the luxury. Not him.

I want him.

"Lord Kim," someone called, shuffling up to him. A young girl in light blue robes came up to him and bowed quickly. "The king summons you to his chambers."

"Of course, young one," he smiled, making the girl blush. He held his hand out for her to lead the way, revealing the cut on his palm from his earlier altercation with Sura.

"My lord, your hand! Why don't we take care of that first, then we see the king?"

"O-Oh, I don't think we should keep him waiting. It's only a small cut, nothing major."

The young girl pouted a bit. "At least have me clean it, please, my lord. It's bleeding a little."

The girl's childishness made Seokjin feel happy. After taking it into consideration, he decided to give in. "Alright then. Go on, please."

Smiling, the girl pulled out a flask from her belt and poured some water on the cuts. Drying them with a handkerchief from her belt as well, she giggled as she put the flask and the cloth away.

"Thank you," he said, patting the girl's shoulder. Blushing madly, she led Seokjin to the stairs up to the palace.

"What's your name?" Seokjin asked.

"Rinji," she beamed, bowing again towards Seokjin.

"We shall meet again, Rinji," Seokjin said, grinning at his new friend. Smiling back, she skipped towards the servant's quarters.

Making his way up the stairs, Seokjin nodded at a guard, who walked inside the palace and kneeled before Namjoon. "Lord Kim Seokjin of the North answers your summon."

"Let him in," Namjoon said, standing to receive him.

Opening the doors, Seokjin entered the grand hall with tall red pillars, jade and silver statues, glowing cedar floors and a long, silk red carpet that led up to the golden king in his golden throne.

Stopping a good distance away from the throne, Seokjin knelt to the ground and touched his forehead to the floor. "Your Majesty summoned me," he murmured, letting his words lace the quiet air and magnify the sound.

"Seokjin, thank you for coming. I'd like us to talk for a little while." Namjoon said.

Not moving from his kneeling position, Seokjin sat up on his knees. "Of course, Your Majesty. I am at your service," he said. Suddenly regretting his words, he held back his next ones, realizing how euphemistic he sounded.

I could do a lot of services for you, Your Majesty.

"Thank you, Seokjin. Please, come with me to my room."