forum "How come you haven't run away from me yet?"//oxo//Closed

Started December 12, 2020 by @knightinadream group

tune

She took a quick look around. The city was much closer now, the source of the light now becoming clear. The main road that led into the city was some twenty feet away, with trees and a few lone houses surrounding it. Jimin could hear the hustle and bustle even from here, even the different smells all colliding. It was strange, not familiar to her just yet.
She turned and looked down to check on Kangdae. She smiled as he appeared from the ground, and adjusted the overcoat on her head. “No, though it was quite dark,” she chuckled. “Thank you, though. I’m glad we were able to take an alternative route.”
She looked back in the direction of the city. “I think I am. I’m excited.” She smiled back at him again. Even if the night was uncertain and new, this was a rare occasion. Jimin leaned against her lover for a moment, then took his hand. For a moment, she paused. Then, she moved forward, deciding to lead this time. It was easier to see now, of course, and why shouldn’t she make her own way in a place that she hadn’t been to in years? The borrowed overcoat hid her face as she took Kangdae through the trees, the lights of the city not far ahead. Her heart began to quicken slightly from anticipation, and anxiety perhaps. Would her uncle even be awake at this hour? Will they get to speak? She squeezed Kangdae’s hand and remembered to take a few breaths.

(Thank you for the bump on this and the others. For some reason I thought I had replied to them then forgot. I appreciate it.)

The crown prince smiled back, "Good, you should be. I look forward to having fun with you." Kangdae followed behind Jimin. Gently, he held her hand tight while eagerly moving along. When he was alive, he didn't notice how much others radiated certain feelings. From happiness to anger, it just seeped from their skin. Perhaps he never did. After all, he never recognized the fact till after he lost his humanity.

Jimin was radiating with eagerness, with hope. He knew it for he felt it. He felt it in the way she took his hand. The way she took every step made it clear. Just feeling it made him eager too but he knew that it was different for her. It was special. After all, it miss have been a long time since she last saw her uncle and the horse. He just hoped that everything would go as she expected. He hoped that she would have the time of her life.

The crown prince glanced ahead at the lights laminating the city. Already he can hear the hustle and bustle of the nightlife. He could feel the heartbeats of all the people nearby. Despite the myriad of sensations, he was more focused on Jimin and matching the speed of her steps.

Her feet took her further on, going down a path preserved in muscle memory. The city seemed to grow around them as they went further in, with more and more people walking around. Indeed, the capital had a thriving nightlife. Vendors sold things like candy and rice wine, people were out getting drunk or playing board games or whispering and making bets with others. Jimin saw mostly men about, but she caught sight of a beautiful woman near a busy brothel. Struck by the unfamiliarity of it all, she realized that she had only ever been out in the capital during the daytime. But still, her feet took her onward.
She looked up at Kangdae. “Is there anything you see that you want to do?” She asked.

Being in capital amongst the commoners was as strange as it was thrilling. Kangdae liked to hide amongst everyone. They only assumed him to be the son of some noble. They were unaware of his standing, of his abilities. In a way, it was calming. To hear the symphony of heartbeats with the mixture of chatter and laughter filled him with joy. No matter how much peace he had, there was that familiar gnawing feeling. All he would ever do anything he snuck out was hunt on a night like this, especially
when he had a variety of options to choose from. A travler. One of the many peasants. Maybe even a prostitute or a beggar. The crown prince already counted two beggars so far. No one would know if he went after one of them. Or both.

He tried to distract himself by looking at what vendors were selling. Some were selling beautiful pieces of jewelry. Others had pieces of clothing, bowls, or whatever little trinkets they made. But when observing failed, he decided to keep his head down for a while. Watching his footsteps was enough to keep himself at bay.

"Hm?" Kangdae lifted his chin, gazing back at Jimin. He took one look around before whispering, "Well, I am here with a fine lady that I wish to woo and I would like to buy her something…" The crown prince sighed as he puffed out his lips, "But would I get her? You see, I really love her. And yet there's so many fine necklaces, bracelets, rings, fans…I do not know what to do."

After a bit more looking around, she remembered that her uncle would not be here. They needed to go beyond the marketplace and to the more residential streets. Jimin tugged the coat more around herself, shivering slightly. She wanted to at least see him before it got too late in the night.
She looked back at Kangdae, and couldn’t help but notice how he seemed to look at the people around them with a hunger in his eyes. As if he was choosing who would be his prey. After he spoke, she blinked, her mind focusing on his words. The first thing she did was raise her brow. “Oh? You brought money with you?”

Kangdae could not resist losing himself in the moment, in the crowd amongst all of his subjects. Whether these people feared him for being their ruler or a blood sucking monster, that didn't matter now. They didn't know. Even the few officers or soldiers that passed by them, none blinked an eye at him. But he glanced at each and every one of them, taking in their appearance, the smell of the blood coursing through their veins, the side of their necks…He enjoyed being out here.

Looking over at Jimin, he whispered to her, "Everything in this kingdom is…or soon will be…mine but…" Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a little red satin pouch. It hung down as he held it by the handles. "I did bring some money with me for tonight," He grinned while shaking it. The coins clinked together even as he slipped the pouch back into his pocket.

"Is there anything your heart desires, my love?" He asked while looking around at the vendors' products, "Rings, bracelets, necklaces, combs, fans, earrings…" Kangdae shrugged as he continued to look at the things they pass by. "Is there anything that stands out to you?"

She now raised both brows in surprise. “Oh! Well, smart of you to slip that in. But…” she looked around at all the well-crafted accessories on display. “It’s been so long since I had the privilege of choosing from such luxurious items…”
Jimin bit her lip as she studied the items. Nothing immediately stood out to her, if she was being honest with herself. There had been a time when she had no trouble with choosing, but it was far in the past. She glanced up at Kangdae for a moment before returning to the accessories and jewelry.
“Perhaps… this?” She pointed to one of the combs. It was fairly small, with flowers and butterflies engraved into it. “It’s wooden, so it won’t hurt you.”

"It is alright," He smiled, "Take your time. There are many wonderful items here, but none are as wonderful as you." With his arms behind his back, he leaned over to see what she was pointing at. It was a pretty comb. He liked the artwork engraved into the wood. The comb wouldn't hurt him. Kangdae moved over to stand next to her. Looking around, he made sure that no one was glancing in their direction before quickly kissing Jimin on the cheek.

A set of jade rings caught his eye. He stared at them before looking back at the comb. After calling the merchant over, he turned to Jimin. "Alright, I'll purchase this for you." As he spoke, the sound of laughter filled his ears. In the distance, he saw a troupe of masked entertainers preforming. Kangdae gestured over towards them, "How about you go over and watch the clowns while I take care of this, yes? It looks fun."

Jimin let out a soft chuckle. “Well, I’m not an item, am I?” She muttered. She blushed faintly as she felt his chilled lips on her cheek. Her hands moved to pull the overcoat more around her head.
Following his gaze, she furrowed her brow at the jade rings before looking back at Kangdae. “Thank you, love.”
Could she wear the comb in the open without being noticed and questioned about it? She doubted it. Perhaps she would just wear it by herself or with Kangdae. The flower was innocuous enough, but a new comb, out of nowhere? It would be disastrous and embarrassing if it was discovered that she had snuck out of the palace.
Worry crept up inside her. Kangdae would have had to do more to get her attention; a touch of the shoulder or something similar. Once he did so, and she registered the presence of the performers, his voice managed to bury her thoughts.
Jimin hummed to herself. This was quite the novelty for her. Even as a child she didn’t recall seeing people doing tricks and pulling jokes like that. She looked back at Kangdae and sighed a little. It would be good to get her mind of things. She didn’t say much, but went over to investigate the masked performers.

Pretending to not think about or look at the rings, he gazed over at the merchant for a second then back at Jimin. "No, you are a dream. Sacred. A divine intelligent woman," He breathed while staring at Jimin. Kangdae stood still, watching as she walked away.

"You know, that brothel you keep staring at is full of spies paid by the Song family, Your Highness," a deep voice pointed out. "The blood isn't worth the troubles that that snake will put you through after this. Besides, their blood is riddled with things that will make you as mad as he is. Very very mad."

Kangdae blinked. The comb was gone and so were the two rings. Looking up, he met dark crimson eyes staring back at him. A slightly taller, pale young handsome figure wearing all black stood behind the booth. Kangdae assumed that this "man" appeared to be around the same age as him and Jimin, if not slightly older. Just above the man's collar, he could see two faint puncture wounds on the side of his neck. "Do I know you?"

The vampire shrugged as he finished making one necklace, "Perhaps. I've known you for quite some time." He smiled before starting the second necklace; it was oddly comforting in an eery way. "Look. Don't think about it too much, Kangdae. It's not necessary."

"What? Why are y-" Before Kangdae could say another word, the vampire placed the necklaces and comb in front of him then held out his hand. "Who are you? You are not the merchant…" He said while slowly reaching for his money.

The other vampire looked back over at the merchant drinking then said to Kangdae, "I know, but he's supper tonight and it's only fair that his family receives his earnings…" He just stared at the crown prince till he was handed the coins.

Gazing over at Jimin, Kangdae sighed. He took the two jade ring necklaces, shoved them in his pocket, then held the comb in his hands. Despite not fully seeing the other vampire, he could feel his gaze on him. "And to answer your question, Your Highness," He heard the other vampire whisper while leaning over, "My name is Wonho."

By the time Kangdae tried to look at the vampire, he was gone. For a while, his eyes scanned the surrounding area in an attempt to locate him and the merchant but neither were there. Still, he was able to find Jimin in the crowd. Slowly, he made his way towards her.

There was a small crowd forming around the performers. Jimin carefully weaved through to get a peek. Her eyes widened as she took it all in. One of the clowns looked to be very flexible, bending over backwards and forwards, doing the splits and such. Another was more of a magician, revealing coins hidden behind the ears of onlookers or making objects disappear. Another was juggling balls and throwing batons.
For a moment, she couldn’t decide where to look. The juggler with his spinning batons and balls caught her eye the most, so she focused on that for a while before looking over at the others. She tried to stay back, she didn’t want any attention on her. As Jimin watched the performance, she was able to relax and even enjoy herself. It was like she was getting a bit of her childhood back.
After a while her eyes drifted, studying the many common folk standing around her. A chill came over her, and she saw something in the corner of her eye.
A woman stood a few feet away, but her head wasn’t covered. Her hair hung long and loose, and was she floating slightly above the ground? Jimin strained her neck to look closer when the woman turned her head. Jimin froze, fear striking her heart.
She had no face. The woman seemed to face her straight on, yet with no eyes, no mouth, no nose. Jimin clapped a hand to her mouth to keep herself quiet, backing away from the crowd. Something brushed against her and she flinched, before looking up and realizing it was Kangdae. Without thinking she grabbed his robes, pressing against him and holding him tight. When she looked back, the faceless woman was gone.

Something in the air shifted. Kangdae could tell. If began long before, he only noticed it now. Nevertheless, the crown prince did try to enjoy these moments spent outside. He tried to smile as sincerely as he could while approaching Jimin. When he was right behind her, he saw worry in her as she grabbed his robes and pulled herself closer.

Feeling and sensing everyone's heartbeat around him was always so jarring to him. Sometimes he loved it, other times it felt like a nightmare to him knowing that his isn't the same. And yet, it was good. He had a better idea of what others felt. After all, he doesn't need to ask how one is; he just knows right away. At least that was one good thing about being an undead bloodsucking monster.

Jimin's was beating hard. He felt it rapidly going. Lifting his chin up, he looked around the crowd. Nothing really stood out to him. Did he miss something…or something? Aside from the clowns and the occasional soldiers, everything looked fine to him.

Gently, Kangdae wrapped one arm around her while using his other hand to stroke the back of her head. "Are you alright, my love?" He asked. Watching her look back, he gazed in the over in the direction she was. Nothing. There was nothing there aside from some commoners watching the performance.

"Here." He let her go then took a step back. It was hard resisting letting himself get another glance around. Something felt off. Kangdae could not tell if it was just his nerves getting to him or what. Feeling the brush in his hand, he scoffed at himself. "Jimin," He called while turning to face her, "Would you like to go now?"

“Dalgyal gwisin…?” Jimin’s voice was barely a whisper. She leaned into her lover’s touch as much as she could, hiding her face for a moment. Once the initial shock wore off, she took a deep breath.
She looked up at him once he let go. Despite there being an undead standing in front of her, she could not help but doubt what she saw before, now. She brought a hand to her head. “I… I think so.” Maybe she had simply imagined it. Maybe it was her mind playing tricks with the light. Nothing has happened, everything still seemed fine. Perhaps it was nothing.
Even so, she still felt on edge. Looking back at Kangdae, she stepped a little closer to him, then looked around.
“Yes, please.” She took another breath. “Um, down there.” She pointed down the street. “I think we can, uh, take a turn and that will take us to the residential area.”

Even such a faint whisper sounded loud in his ears. With a tilt of his head, he raised his eyebrows. Dalgyal gwisin? A ghost? Would such thing be possible to see? Kangdae had no clue; he never was all that fond of such things.

A small frown formed as he watched her. Perhaps the comb will cheer up. Better yet, the one necklace that was hiding in his pocket. Whatever it was, ghost or not, he regretted not being there the moment it happened. "We can discuss this later, my love, if that is something you want."

There was no time for them to lull around. Lingering felt wrong. Something just felt off. Glancing over in the direction she pointed in, he nodded. "It is getting late. We should make haste then, yes?" He tried to give Jimin a comforting smile while looking back into her eyes. "Here, let's go." Gently, he took her hand and led them through the crowd. He weaved through all the people, only looking back to check on Jimin.

The uneasy feeling continued to stir within him. It remained even when they reached the residential area. Kangdae gave Jimin's hand a squeeze before letting it go. He was not sure whether or not to ask her about what happened; he did not want such troubles to distract her from seeing her uncle.