haven - zb1

43

They awoke sprawled in the Solar Hall, which was a pleasant surprise, the spirits had even lovingly covered them with blankets.

Quanrui sat up with a start, then relaxed when he caught sight of their weapons resting against the wall in a corner.

Woohyun yawned and stretched as he rose, sleepily taking in the situation. Then, he suddenly asked, "Did we just collectively have a dream or..."

Zhang Hao was silent, perhaps still groggy as he slouched next to Woohyun.

"That...definitely was something," Taerae muttered, shuddering as he recalled the last scene they witnessed before everything crumbled away.

"He did not write that in his journals," Gunwook joked, but there was a tinge of seriousness.

"I still think he's just some guy," Quanrui interjected, but his tone was light and gentle.

"But...that's really crazy. The whole concept of another world with people so different from us," Woohyun marvelled, now slightly more refreshed.

"Even those loud metal things that went through us. They were pretty cool, I wonder if we could recreate them," Jiwoong wondered with a pensive expression, obviously itching to try a hand at experimenting.

The nine fell silent, Gyuvin bunched the blankets in his fists as he stayed in thought. Then he said, "Well? What's next? We've reached nova...now what?"

"Can we call it a day and go home?" Taerae suggested.

Quanrui considered for a second, before he leapt up, "Zhang Hao, we must spar again. One last time."

The water heir laughed brightly, "Not the last. There are many more to come, my friend." He scrambled to his feet just in time as Quanrui ran to the wall and tossed Zhang Hao his scabbard. "So excited," Hanbin chortled as he followed the excited duo out of Solar Hall.

"You'll still lose this time!" Zhang Hao teased, a wicked glint in his eyes. "Try me," Quanrui laughed back.

Woohyun joined Hanbin at the side of the furious match, the intensity way higher than the first time around. Water and fire swirled and entangled, clashing dynamically. They stayed there, relaxed and entertained, before Woohyun felt a tap on his shoulder. Yujin held his fan in one hand and Woohyun's scabbard in the other. "I want to go again," Yujin announced. Woohyun could only chuckle and grabbed his sword before pulling Yujin in for a half-hug, "You're on. I really won't go easy on you now, little one."

Yujin beamed, "But aren't I taller than you?"

"Okay, you little shit. Forget everything I ever said, I'll-"

Yujin ran towards the training grounds to avoid Woohyun's fervent blasts of icy water, the two laughing the whole way.

Those left in the Solar Hall were the earth heirs, Jiwoong and Gyuvin. Gyuvin had discovered a bowl of mixed nuts and was helping himself to them. Jiwoong leaned back on his elbows, taking in a slow, shaky breath. "Not gonna spar or run around?" Taerae asked the oldest, who scoffed lightly and said, "Nah. Even with all the work the water heirs did on me, I still have some way to go. I'll rest up and heal first. Then the first person I'll go against is, you, Gyuvin." Jiwoong now twisted to glance at Gyuvin, the older air heir's cheeks stuffed like a hamster.

Seeing that Gyuvin's mouth was too filled to reply, Jiwoong directed a question to Gunwook, "What about you? Not gonna challenge Hanbin?" Bashful, Gunwook rubbed his neck as he said, "I'll take it slow, get to know my limits and stuff. I still have a lot to learn, but I'll take that nose-bleed guy down one day." His cheeky comment was rewarded with a gentle pinch on the cheek by Taerae, who cooed on how different Gunwook was now.

Gyuvin finally set the bowl of snacks down, and sighed contentedly. Jiwoong then asked, "Not going to watch Yujin's match? I bet he's really different now."

Gyuvin wordlessly lay back down and summoned some air to form shapes with the leftover food in the air childishly. "He'll be okay, I know it. We'll all be okay."

-

Against their wishes, it was soon time to leave the Celestial Palace. The spirits made it known that their presence was not welcome for much longer, their chests were packed promptly overnight and even the foods offered at meal times were not customised to their liking.

After some discussion, they all agreed to leave in three days. "Isn't it crazy?" Gunwook thought out loud, "We've been here for a month."

"It's been too long," Yujin snarkily commented. "Get out-" Woohyun gestured dramatically at the door, eliciting peals of laughter from the group.

"But, in all seriousness," Hanbin cleared his throat as the giggles died down, "We've achieved our goal here at Celestial Palace, and now it's time for us to leave."

"We'll stay in touch, for sure," Zhang Hao promised, meeting every heirs' eyes.

"Of course we will," Quanrui grinned, "You still gotta treat Jiwoong."

"Are all the Houses doing the handovers after this?" Taerae asked. The fire heirs nodded in sync, Quanrui smiling proudly as he announced, "This guy's gonna be the boss and I'll be his sexy second-in-command."

"Please never say that combination of words in front of me again," Gunwook faked a gag and earned a smack from Quanrui.

Jiwoong shook his head at his childish second-in-command and turned to the water heirs, "What about you guys? Has it ever been discussed?"

Zhang Hao paused for a moment, then Hanbin immediately said, "Of course it's gonna be Hao. Jiwoong, you're gonna be treated by the head of the House of water-" Zhang Hao splashed Hanbin with a small jet of water, embarrassed but proud too, "It took some discussion but yes. I will be stepping up as head."

The air heirs confirmed that the decision was being finalised, since both of them were still relatively young despite already reaching nova.

As for the earth heirs, in Taerae's wise words, "Whatever will be, will be. We'll likely be co-heads. I don't fancy being the lone head, but the thought of this guy making all the decisions gives me nightmares."

"Hey! I would make a great leader. My first act upon-"

Everyone immediately busied themselves, ignoring Gunwook's outlandish suggestions. Gunwook offered a few select curse words, and everyone exploded in laughter, scoldings and joy.

AN: haven will be ending soon :")