THE SWORD'S DANCE | HYUNBIN

❀lamenting lilypads❀

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ MORE GUARDS PATROL the festival grounds today. The last day's competition had been canceled because of the general panic and absence of the two top fighters.

Changbin views everything as a blur. Vision obscured by the bright white clouds scorching his eyes, he can't articulate the details of the festival. The aggressive heat fogs his mind and makes him irrationally fatigued.

The first battle he's put in blazes by. One minute he's standing in the dust, sword gripped tightly in his hand. He swings the weapon— and keeps swinging— and then the fight is over, his sword pointed at his opponent's clothed heart.

The next battle goes by even faster, despite the numerous scratches in his skin from the tip of his partner's sword.

But when Hyunjin is the person across from Changbin, time seems to stand still.

The dry wind bites at the ground today, swirling up the dust and dirtying every surrounding thing. But even with his clothes covered in muck and sprays of dirt across his cheekbones, Hyunjin looks pretty. Changbin hates that.

It was distracting. It had always been.

He remembers the first time he saw Hyunjin. Stepping into the castle for the first time, even surrounded by towering gilded walls and bejeweled chandeliers, the only thing he could see was the pretty boy his age talking to a servent. Then he was lead away with the rest of the knights in training, never to see the prince in the next year that would follow. But the memory still tainted his childish mind, roamed for hours when he couldn't sleep— because how could someone his age be so beautiful?

And then Hyunjin participated in the first lesson with the knights. Changbin's crush was instantly shattered. The prince was such a douche, ordering all of the other knights around like they were below him. Which they were, but he didn't have to flaunt his status that much.

Later that week, Changbin beat Hyunjin for the first time.

That's when the prince established their rivalry. It lasted for years— to this day— both of them fighting tooth and nail and sharpened iron to win.

But looking at Hyunjin now, as the wind musses with his bound hair, there was a certain element missing in his eyes. That gleam of revenge, of hatred, of pride— was gone. Absent, completely eradicated. There was still determination, but that dislike that had fueled him so heavily had departed.

Changbin hadn't hated Hyunjin in a while. He used to hate every shred of the blue blood running through the prince's veins, but the hate died off when he got older. Hyunjin was still stupidly arrogant, but his egotistical tendencies had toned down with his age.

He had no clue what Hyunjin thought, but in his own mind, they'd descended from enemies to rivals.

Looking at him now, Changbin suspected that Hyunjin didn't hate him now, either.

But that wasn't important, because right now they had to fight for the trophy. This time, Changbin was going to win.

Despite fighting with Hyunjin enough that the prince could probably replicate his style if he wanted, Changbin still decides to start strong. When the announcer signals the start, he's off and rushing towards Hyunjin.

The prince anticipates him, as expected. The clang their swords make reverberates through Changbin's bones.

It doesn't feel the same today. The light in Hyunjin's eyes is gone, the same way the dust and clouds obscures the sun.

It's the first easy fight he's ever done with Hyunjin.

Something was obviously wrong.

When Hyunjin stalks off after the judges announce the knight's win. Changbin follows him. Through the pine forest he walks, ten feet behind the prince. The spongey cover of layers of pine needles covers the sound of his footsteps.