A Take For Two

Chapter Four

You're calculated, I got your number
'Cause you're a joker, and I'm a courtside killer queen
And you will kiss the ring, you best believe

💒

The journey is as awful as it gets with the harsh snowy weather invading his bones the closer he gets to the city of shadows. His body is protesting in pain as he drags his feet next to Misty who seems to be in no better shape than him. The sight of the forest greets him, and he takes a deep breath, telling himself that he could pass by the wolves in one piece if he's a true whisperer. If not, then he at least tried reaching somewhere safe and failed rather than staying nowhere and getting killed in his sleep. Wincing at the thought, he guesses that being killed in his sleep might have been a better solution than being eaten alive by numerous wild creatures. He shakes the negative thoughts out of his mind and marches with the little confidence he has left.

The eerie feeling he gets whenever he's inside this city never changes, and he shudders from fear and cold, grip tightening around Misty's bridle. Misty stops suddenly, refusing to go deeper, and Jimin turns to her with a frown, tugging on the bridle to get her to move forward but she keeps struggling against him.

"Misty, come on," he huffs. "We need to get going," he tries again but is met with her straying away from him, and the sudden fear haunts him the moment he hears a low growl from behind him. He slowly turns his head, finding the wolves starting to gather around them, and Misty seems terrified with how she keeps moving in all directions before he gets a hold of her again and tugs her closer. If he cannot convince his own horse which is trained, he surely cannot control the angry wolves surrounding him, and he exhales shakily, counting more than twenty wolves. Hwasa taught him how to fight multiple humans with a weapon or in hand-in-hand combat, and he wonders if she would have felt scared too being surrounded by mythical or non-mythical creatures. He has absolutely no weapon on him, and the bruises on his body still hurt, not adding the fatigue he feels from the long journey he took to arrive here. A wolf launches at him, and he flinches, shutting his eyes tightly and awaiting fangs or claws to reach him, but something lands next to his feet, and he reopens his eyes, finding an arrow penetrating the snowy ground, and the wolf simply retreats.

He inhales slowly, looking up to find three men approaching him, and his lips tilt up in a smile as relief washes over him, seeing the familiar eye-patch. The uncovered eye scans his body quickly, brows furrowed in the process, and he ignores the other two people as he literally runs to Black Eye and hugs him tightly. He feels warm already, but the feeling is soon replaced by an ugly one as he pulls back and looks at Black Eye.

"What brings you here?" Black Eye questions, tone harsh and unfriendly, and Jimin takes a step back. However, he did come with one purpose, and he needn't waste more time already.

"I came to see Jungkook."

"Haven't you two parted ways long ago?"

Jimin furrows his brows but he guesses Taehyung and Jungkook's marriage must have meant for everyone that he and Jungkook no longer exist. And the fact that they didn't even exchange letters must say they're no longer friends either. "We have," he confirms. "It was my choice."

Black Eye narrows his eye at him, and what seems to be concern is replaced by a defensive tone when he asks next, "and what do you want from the king?" Jimin takes a moment to appreciate that Jungkook is actually respected now from his people, but it seems that Jimin had lost a friend in the process.

Realizing that there is no going back, Jimin's shoulders sag. "I was forced to leave my home and now I have nowhere to go." Black Eye stares at him for a moment too long before he nods and turns.

"Fine. Follow me," he tells him, and Jimin sighs out of relief, grabbing Misty's bridle, and surprisingly, this time, she doesn't fight him and instead goes with him with no resistance. He wonders if the presence of people around her calms her down. That, and the fact that the wolves have scattered again deep within the forest. He glances at the two other people with Black Eye, and he doesn't know them, but it's rather surprising that Black Eye works with people now when he used to do everything solo. When their view clears, Jimin's brows furrow again, seeing Black Eye's home instead of the castle.