𝕘𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕟-𝕥𝕒𝕜𝕖𝕟 | ᴇɴ-

𝟑

We sit by the piano, Niki and I. The game of hide-and-seek extended for several hours in the courtyard, and then someone brought out a ball. Another set of hours went by and we were left exhausted. The others are lounging in our room or taking a shower while I sit in the stool, studying the weathered sheets left by someone years ago in the music rack.

Our maknae stands beside me, still full of energy. He steps to the rhythm of the notes I play. Back at the castle the only one who saw him dance most of the time was Sunghoon, but he's not here. It's not that we didn't like to see Niki move seamlessly through the moves, but we didn't dedicate as much time as he did on our youngest. Watching him now, I regret not doing so before.

My playing is awful and out of tune and tempo. I'm only just starting to get the hang of where my fingers are supposed to be, yet he makes music on his own. He isn't putting everything into the dance, also just starting to get the hang of my terrible playing, but it's still enthralling.

"I'm glad to see you're adapting well."

We turn to see the Mistress smiling at us from the hallway.

"Your welcoming has been most helpful," I say. "It is a very warm place you've built."

"Oh, I didn't build this place. It was here long before I came, but thank you anyway." She regards us quietly for a moment before speaking again. "I apologise if I didn't give you a proper introduction, but I noticed Rui walking you around and figured he would do better than I."

"It's no problem. He was quite illustrative."

"And you are quite educated, young man."

"Oh, um, we had great teachers."

I suddenly become mindful of my choice of words. These people can't know who we are, or what our bloodlines signify. I need to go along with the story Heeseung-hyung built for us. Poor orphans from a neighbouring village.

"I'm sure you did," she comments, pensive. "Well, I came to tell all seven of you about some work that I needed your help with, but I see some of you aren't around."

"I'll tell them," Niki says and I nod along with him.

"Our friend—Rui, was it?—mentioned we were to aid in the dishes and such." I remember the shock we all tried to hide when he mentioned it. The castle seemed more far away than ever.

"That's right," she says. "I will need some of you in the kitchens, laundry room, and infirmary. You can split yourselves as you wish. The cook and nurses will ask for you when needed and you can decide then who will do what."

"Ok, I'll be sure to tell the others. Thank you."

"Get yourselves ready for dinner in an hour," she says before moving on to her other duties, whatever they may be.

I turn to Niki and see he is staring intently at where the Mistress had been standing.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." he says, coming back to his senses. "Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts for a moment."

"Anything you want to share?"

"No, it's alright, hyung. Keep practicing that thing, you need it desperately if you want my ears not to fall."

"YAH!"

His golden hair flies down the hallway as he runs away, laughing.

I smile at his retreating form until he is out of sight. In the now empty room, goosebumps rise along my arms.

It has been days now since I have been stable. The memory of my shaking and burning limbs a week ago are no more than that, a memory. The sickness is well gone, even though a lingering feeling is left behind. All seven of us seem to be in the same condition. The day we ran away, half broken under the moonlight, we made a silent vow to end with the curse. Since then we haven't mentioned it again. We are determined to be normal.

I glance over at the hallway where the Mistress had stood before turning to the sheets again. The silence is deafening even though the house is filled with young boys. The woman has a presence that demands respect, which is nothing out of the ordinary, but some instinct deep inside me says otherwise. It is the instinct I am trying hard to leave behind. The instinct that keeps "being normal" unreachable.

A/N
i know it's heeseung in the pic but i couldn't find one with niki and jay :(
anyway, things are going to get more spicy in the next chapters... 👀