kingdom falling | gyuricky

twenty.

The nine of them reached the outskirts of Sunshower City by eveningfall of the second day, the reason a combination of two things; people like Gyuvin and Gunwook who kept daring each other to go faster, and the fact that they'd all been woken up bright and early at the inn they stayed in for the night by a coop of very insistently loud chickens. The city was already livening up in preparation of the festival the next day; the streets passing below them were brightly lit with strings of colored lanterns and enchantment spells in a myriad of colors dotted the paths, glowing bright when someone walked past. Other than the New Year, Gyuvin thought Summer Solstice was the time Sunshower City was the most alive.

They crossed the threshold of Meteor Court a while later, the grounds unfolding beneath them like a picture book; the heart of the Court, the Celestial Hall, alight like a sky full of stars, people milling around like ants as they descended into the inner courtyard. Other cultivators stopped to see who they were, and some of them waved enthusiastically upon recognizing Gyuvin and Hanbin.

"Gyuvin, you're back!"

Gyuvin turned at the sound of Junhyeon's voice cutting through the sea of noise. Junhyeon came running over, a stick of candied fruit in each hand, offering one to Gyuvin immediately. "I didn't know if you'd be back for the Festival. Who are all these people?"

Hanbin made short work of the introductions and left to look for Sect Leader Baek so he could greet him and let him know they'd arrived safely, entrusting the settling in of the guests to Gyuvin, who excitedly brought them along to show them around the grounds, talking a mile a minute along the way.

"Here's where we have all our meals," he said, gesturing widely as he walked past the vast hall. "It's officially called Eclipse Hall, because the ceiling is decorated with murals of the fable of the dog that ate the sun, but everyone just calls it Eclipse. And this," he said, walking fast, "Aperture Library. I go there sometimes when I'm being punished."

Gyuvin handed them off to the Court attendants to be shown to their rooms at the guests' quarters eventually, running off with Junhyeon to look for the others, who were probably helping out with the preparations for the Festival. They ran into Minwoo along one of the main corridors, the older man with laden down with stacks of glimmering pieces of individual evil-repelling talismans in his arms.

"Oh, you're back," he said, acknowledging Gyuvin with a little smile. "Sect Leader told me you and Hanbin were coming home for a while. Welcome back."

"Want some help with those, sunbae?" Gyuvin offered.

Minwoo narrowed his eyes at him and pondered the pros and cons for a moment, before handing the big stack over. "These need to be taken to the front gates, you'll see a little stand set up there with a lot of decorations around, that's going to be the welcoming point for people entering the Court for tomorrow morning's noodle-making. You'll see Dongyeol there, make sure to hand this to him," he finished, staring Gyuvin down. "Hand it to him physically. Don't just put it down somewhere, or I'll kill you."

Gyuvin nodded. "Okay, put it down somewhere. Got it."

He bounded off down the corridor before Minwoo had the time to say anything in return, laughing as he balanced his armful of cargo in his hands. The talismans were just one of the gifts Meteor Court was giving out tomorrow for the citizens who wanted to come by; they were simple evil-repelling talismans imbued with spiritual energy that commoners could wear anywhere on their person or place at the doorway of their homes to ward off evil. They were just a formality, really, since there were so few evil entities around during the summer, but the commoners always liked to feel protected nonetheless.

Gyuvin used qinggong and reached the gates within minutes, passing the stack of talismans to the senior he was supposed to look for and finishing off the last piece of candied fruit. It was past dinnertime, but the rest of the Court was as alive as ever. Most of them would be awake into the early morning making the final preparations for tomorrow's activities. They would be expecting to welcome hundreds of people into the Court for tomorrow's noodle-making and distribution. Gyuvin was sure Minwoo wouldn't be getting a single nod of sleep that night, and as much as Sect Leader Baek would coax him to, Gyuvin was sure the Sect Leader would be awake with him.

It was days like this where he felt like he was something more, like he was part of a bigger picture; there was something in him that fundamentally loved the act of sharing a common purpose. He spent the rest of the night running around the Court doing as many odd jobs as he could for Minwoo to take the load off his back. By the time he fell into bed it was close to midnight, and he was exhausted to the bone. He could still hear the noise and bustle of people outside his quarters and he placed a two-way silencing talisman over the door, blocking noise both from coming in and from going out. 

There was a communication array waiting for him. He hadn't realised it was sounding in his ear because of how noisy it was outside.

"I'm so sorry, I couldn't hear this earlier because it was too noisy."

"Don't worry about it. How are you doing, Gyuvin-ah?"

"They're going great. I'm so tired from today's activities."

"Oh? What did you do today?"

"A lot of travelling, mostly. How are you doing? I know you said you can't tell me where you are, but..."

"But?"

"I miss you, that's all. It's the summer solstice tomorrow. How long has it been since we've celebrated it together?"

"A long time. I miss you too, you know that?"

"I know. I wish I could see you."

"I'll do more than just wish, Gyuvin-ah. I'll come to you soon. Stay put and do your best for now, okay? I'll see you soon, I promise."

"Really?"

"You're really asking me that?"

"Heh...I guess not. I'm going to sleep now, I'm too tired to think anymore."

"Okay. Goodnight, Gyuvin."

"Goodnight."