Treasure | Ateez

| 25 |

"Non est vivere sed valere vita est"

- Life is more than just being alive

☾ ☾ ☾

"Did you see their faces?"

 Mingi's face gleamed in delight, one hand clutching onto the half emptied bottle and the other swung across Yunho's back as Seonghwa stood at a distance, a dazed smile on his face while San and Wooyoung told stories to each other about their antics. 

"It was funny" Aeris smiled at the thought, head spinning from the alcohol and hands waving in the motion of the way she had thrown her knives. "But the best part was when I went like -" she threw her arms, "And then I went- whoosh and then they fell and then-" 

Aeris waved her fingers in front of her face, earning an amused look from Yeosang who stood a little behind her and a laugh from Mingi and Yunho. 

"But the way you all understood what Hongjoon- I mean Captain was doing" her eyes lit up in wonder, sitting on the ground cross legged, "that was so cool I mean I never knew pirates could be this organised and everything because I-"

"We prefer the term adventurers" Wooyoung cut in, "pirates makes it sound so-" he thought for the word, ruffling his hair in confusion and snatching the silver bracelet placed on Jongho's wrist in the process. "Crass"

"Oh alright" Aeris nodded immediately, the earlier nervousness of making another misstep crowding her mind as she immediately changed her thinking process. 

Getting drunk had not been on her checklist this evening, it had certainly not crossed her mind as she had seen the triumphant celebrations thrown around and Hongjoong had entertained them for a while- before excusing himself to change his bandages. 

She had never gotten drunk before. The palace halls had her confined to one sip from a tight lipped glass before it was ushered out of her hands and into the sink and she was swept into another dance or conversation. 

'A princess doesn't drink' The maids had tisked when she had asked them about it, yearning for the elixir her mother had been addicted to for the past few years. 'A princess is defined by her behaviour, you must leave that to the rest of the lot'

But times changed. 

The game board had been discarded onto the floor, gold and silver glinting dimly below tablecloths that covered it from the rain that fell from above- thunderclouds bursting in violent cuts of purple and bruises of white that bled into the dark once again yet the bubble that encased the ten managed to keep them dry. 

San leaned against Seonghwa, scrunching his eyebrows at the board while Aeris closed her eyes in concentration. They were in a tight circle, having decided to enjoy the breeze outside while managing to keep the ship steady in the storm and Aeris had decided to sit in between the two safest options she could find- Wooyoung and Mingi. "What was this game called again?"

"I like to call it-" Mingi stretched his legs, running a hand through his bright red hair and snatching three golds from Yunho who gave a resigned sigh. "Make your neighbours poor"

"That is way too long to be a good name" Seonghwa sighed. "I thought we agreed on merchants and mercenaries?"

"And we are the mercenaries aren't we?" Aeris asked, hands brushing against her leg as she tried to keep herself steady in the turn of the hull. 

"Ofcourse we are" Hongjoong chuckled, making her look up to where he was sitting- legs dangling of the piled boxes with a half empty bottle in his hands and a cap that covered his hair with chains that glinted from his iron tipped boots. "We always are"