Love the Moon

The General & The Consort

The sun begins to rise over the Kingdom of Feraveth enveloping everything it is in its warm embrace. Jongin welcomes the sun with a smile as the world begins to slowly wake around them. They'd travelled in mostly silence thus far, vowing to do so whenever the night fell as a precaution. It wasn't until day broke that the small conversations began. It started with Baekhyun who was soon joined by Chanyeol followed by Jongdae who couldn't keep his voice out of an interesting conversation. Jongin doesn't say much but he listens to them as well as he can while also listening to the carriage and the Kingdom around them. Needless to say it wasn't necessarily possible but the carriage was silent so Jongin assumed that they were still asleep. At least he hoped that they felt safe enough to sleep, though it was clear everyone was feeling a bit high on their own nerves and worries. Jongin could only hope that the journey would continue as such, they couldn't afford to make too many stops.

Jongin hoped that they would not be a needy bunch, needing to stop constantly or needing food every hour. It would delay their travel and deplete their resources immensely and then they would need to stop in a town on the way there. Jongin had been on his fair share of missions with people like such and it truly made things more difficult. Jongin sighs and he keeps his back straight as they pass one farm and enter another. It was a long road to the river but it was one they needed to take. Jongin wasn't unaware of where all of their food came from but it was always a wonder to see. After all, his own father had retired and became a farmer. The farmers woke early to make the most out of every day and they worked so hard to provide for the Palace and the town below. If Jongin could thank them personally he would but he couldn't risk revealing his identity or getting off of his horse so he could only give them a bow as he passed, hoping that would be enough to convey his feelings.

The curtain of the window on the carriage begins to rustle and Jongin looks to his side with a pause, blinking when it's ripped open. One of the maidens from earlier, one Jongin recognized to be... Seulgi stuck her face closer to the window and she smiled at him, bowing only to hit her head. Jongin returns the gesture and he urges his horse to go a little faster so that he is riding beside Baekhyun rather than the carriage. He didn't want to block her view of the Northern Feraveth farms and he could feel her curious gaze on his back, it made him a little uncomfortable to be honest. Jongin can hear a lively conversation on the other side of the carriage and he isn't surprised to see that Chanyeol is talking to one of the handmaidens clearly trying to charm her. Jongin notices that Baekhyun looks upset and tense, his knuckles white on the reigns of the horse.

"Such a womanizer," Baekhyun hisses under his breath. Jongin doesn't understand why he was so mad. It wasn't like Baekhyun didn't have his fair share of admirers as well because he definitely did. There were few in the Palace that did not know of the friendly guard with a bright smile and many stories to tell. But when Jongin recalls, there were few times when he would see Baekhyun in the Palace without Chanyeol. The two were usually always together.

"He has always been social, you of all people should know this Baekhyun," Jongin says and Baekhyun's expression sours, his mouth pursing like he'd just tasted something foul. Baekhyun and Chanyeol had both entered the palace together, Jongin could still remember the day as if it were yesterday. The two had come into the palace with their hands clasped, dirt on their faces and determined grins. Jongin's father, the former General, had found them utterly amusing and took them both personally under his own wing to be trained into the finest soldiers. Baekhyun and Chanyeol had been clear about their reasons to join the palace forces and that was to provide for their hometown, a very small and poor town that had little to nothing. It was a place Jongin hadn't even heard of before but their determination was strong and their friendship stronger.

"Chanyeol may be social and he may be charming however he has always been and will always be selfish," Baekhyun mumbles under his breath and Jongin doesn't reply. He knows the two personally but he has not connected with them the same way he has with Sehun. If he recalls, he can see that whenever the two are entertaining a crowd it was with each other's support. If Chanyeol was telling a story, Baekhyun would carry him through, if Baekhyun was telling a story then Chanyeol would aid in his reactions. However, once the story was done, Baekhyun would curl into himself and be still with a smile on his face while Chanyeol continued to engage in conversation. They were opposites in that aspect.