Prince of Hearts

Chapter 11: Half-Blooded

Taehyung sank into his chair, his long fingers drumming against his chin as he regarded you with an air of curiosity. You shifted in your seat.

"It feels like things are going to change, Princess," he said, rubbing his hands together as his eyes glinted with mischief. "Now that you're here."

"What do you mean?" You asked. You had a feeling that you already knew the answer.

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs. His voice was suddenly breathy as if he was sharing an exciting secret.

"You are going to stir things up, I can feel it." He grinned. "Finally, a stone disturbs the placid lake."

He rose, his silk tunic shifting and catching the light as he moved. He picked up his book from the window and closed it with a decisive thud. Then he turned.

"You're welcome to visit me often, Y/N. I would love the change," he said as he thumbed the volumes in one of the shelves, sliding his book into the gap.  "Besides, we are more alike than you could ever imagine."

With one last look at your bewildered face, he disappeared into the maze of the bookshelves. You heard his footsteps, and then a whistled tune. As the sounds finally faded into silence, you knew he was gone.

↫↫↫↫↫ ~ ↬↬↬↬↬

"Eleanor, do you know a Taehyung?"

The question seemed to suck the colour from her cheeks.

You were sitting in one of the smaller parlours of the castle. One of the maids--Gwen--had lit up the fireplace for you.

It was just autumn. There was no reason for you to be so cold this early in the evening. But there was something about this place that was so frigid that made your bones chill, even under the shawl you had draped over yourself. The fire helped.

You clasped your hands together on your lap, rubbing them. Eleanor, unbothered by the cold, sat farther away from the fire in her light gown. She must be used to the cold, having lived in the palace ever since she was a child. 

You wondered what her life had been like. Taken as a foster-child by the Queen. Growing up with Prince Jimin for a brother. Loved. Pampered.

After a long, nervous silence, she opened her mouth.

"You met Taehyung?" Eleanor's lips curled in barely concealed disgust as she said his name. "You need to be careful of him, Y/N. He is bad news."

"Why?" You asked, somehow feeling offended on behalf of a stranger.

"You seem fond of that word," a voice stated as the door swung open.

You looked up to see Jimin leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest. Eleanor stood with a gasp. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek, her face flushed pink as she drew back. Jimin tousled her hair, smiling with a tenderness that you had never seen on him before.

He cleared his throat.

"Eleanor, would you mind leaving us alone for a while?" He asked, pointing between you and him.

She nodded before bouncing out of the room.

"You seem to be making friends here already." He walked over to where you sat, his smile fading.

"It's hard not to like her." 

"I'm not talking about her." He glared.

"Oh."