cassiopeia ꒱ markhyuck

fifteen

Cars, it seemed, were not something that had been invented yet in this world, which meant that they were traveling by horse drawn carriage.

Donghyuck looked up at it wearily, standing still as servants bustled around him and made last minute tweaks and adjustments to make sure it was ready for departure. He wasn't sure what he was expecting—maybe watching Disney princess movies one too many times had given him the false pretense that carriages were supposed to be plated with gold and covered in glitter—but the carriage was pretty simple. It was still painted to look regal, with a few gold accents here and there, but it was still just made of wood, and honestly paled in comparison to Cinderella's.

"Your Highness, the carriage is ready to board," a servant mumbled, stopping in front of him and lowering into a bow. Donghyuck nodded tensely, glancing around in hopes of spotting John, or Jeno, or even Mark. He hadn't seen one familiar face since Jeno had left to help the other soldiers prepare, and it was setting him even more on edge.

"Where... where is the king?" Donghyuck finally asked, slightly embarrassed. He honestly would have rather asked for Jeno or John, but he thought the servant probably wouldn't question why he was wondering about the whereabouts of his "soon-to-be mate".

"His Majesty is preparing his horse. He should arrive shortly to begin the voyage with you."

Donghyuck furrowed his eyebrows. "His horse? Is he not riding in the carriage with me?"

"No, Your Highness. The king thought you might be more comfortable if you had the carriage to yourself."

Donghyuck scoffed to himself. What kind of idiot gives up the opportunity to ride in comfort inside of a carriage and instead chooses to ride on a stinky horse for days on end?

The servant stiffened a little, nodding somewhere behind Donghyuck. "The king is approaching, Your Highness."

Donghyuck whirled around immediately, and sure enough, Mark was standing behind him with a horse's reigns in his hands, leading a beautiful mare with a shiny coat and a bejeweled muzzle over towards the carriage. The king spotted him and gave him a small smile, handing the horse off to one of the servants to put the saddle on its back before approaching Donghyuck and the servant.

"Your Highness. What are you doing out here? I thought you'd be sitting in the carriage by now, we're about to depart."

"You didn't tell me I'd have to ride in the carriage all by myself!" Donghyuck hissed, before pausing and glancing at the servant out of the corner of his eye. The servant looked between the two of them before quickly taking the hint, scurrying away and leaving them to talk alone.

Mark frowned, looking confused. "I thought you'd prefer to have the space to yourself. It would be quite awkward for us to ride together."

"Yeah sure, but I wouldn't be bored at least," Donghyuck whined petulantly. He really hoped that his petty reason for being upset was believable enough, because he really didn't want to have to admit the real reason he didn't want to ride alone—he was scared, and he didn't want to be left alone with his own thoughts for such a long period of time. He had been looking forward to at least having Mark as a distraction.

"I'm sure you'll find ways to keep entertained without me," Mark chuckled, "if you ever need anything, all you have to do is open the window and call out for one of us, and we'll pull over right away, alright? The ride might be bumpy, but we've padded the entire interior, so I hope you'll find it's quite comfortable."

Donghyuck chewed on the inside of his cheek, debating. As much as riding alone in the carriage sounded unpleasant and lonely, he also hoped that it might be nice to have a tiny bit of privacy for a while, something that he hadn't really experienced since he arrived in this world.