Note: The Last Of The Cursed Princes :)

note: The last of the cursed princes :)

Soobin version / YeonGyuKai version

Taehyun loves stories. As a boy, he grew up with a higher reading skill than his classmates, devouring books faster than the school librarian could supply them. In his young adult years, not much has changed – wherever he is, there's a book in his hands, in his bag, or on his mind.

There's one story that Taehyun cherishes the most. It's a story his parents read to him when he was young, and he begged to hear it every night until they grew tired of it. This story is his favourite, one he knows by heart, his childhood copy so well-loved that its spine is as fragile as the pages themselves. There are several copies of the tale on his bookshelves; he's collected and procured special editions, different translations, most of which he can't even read. The story is important to him, and he feels a strong pull towards it, a connection he can't explain. It feels like a memory to him, or a recurring dream. He can see the tale play out in his head as if recalling life events, feel the emotions as if they were once his own. Sometimes it feels as though the story is real and his life is just a daydream.

While walking on a busy street one afternoon, he hears the name of the prince from his beloved book called out. Instinctively he turns towards the sound as if answering to his own name. But the caller is not seeking him. Instead he sees someone chasing after a dog that's gotten loose. The animal barrels into Taehyun, knocking him down. When he sees your face, he's certain he knows you. You’re as strangely familiar to him as the book he loves so much. The more time he spends with you as you two become friends, the more he remembers parts of the story that aren't written in any versions of his books.

How can he convince you that a fairy tale is really history, that you have known him before, and that your life is a fabricated lie to hide a curse that must be broken?

"he stands there, against the tree, watching as your eyes and smile light up his world. the sun of the world might be setting, but the sun of his world just greeted him."

woah

— confession under a cherry blossom tree..?

warning: soobin x gn!reader, beomgyu is mentioned, angst, just a lil thought i had

soobin standing under a tree in the middle of the field, going to lean back against the trunk, patiently waiting for you to arrive. 6pm you said, and he made sure to be there early. he didn’t want to have you waiting on him or anything like that. he checks the time on his clock constantly, as if it’ll magically be 6 within a second. after a while, he sighs, giving up on the act and going to stare up at the flowers.

it’s cherry blossom season.. the perfect season for confessions, but he still had no clue why you wanted to meet up with him. was it to confess? or was it to break off your friendship nicely? or maybe tell him you’ve met someone else? his heart races at the possibility of you becoming unavailable and he doesn’t notice you approaching, too caught up in his head.

you tap his shoulder and he turns around a bit startled but it turns to relief once his eyes meet yours. a beautiful color in contrast to the whites of your eyes, he could stare into them all day. he greets you and you smile at him widely before twirling as the wind catches onto the petals of cherry blossoms, making them fall onto the ground gracefully.

he stands there, against the tree, watching as your eyes and smile light up his world. the sun of the world might be setting, but the sun of his world just greeted him. he lets out a chuckle, one he only lets out when you’re around because it makes him vulnerable— its a small laugh of adoration that he’s never had the opportunity to give until now.

he isn’t prepared for when you open your mouth. and he wasn’t prepared to answer you when you finally spoke aloud.

“i think.. i think i want to start seeing beomgyu.”

beomgyu.

not him.. not soobin, but beomgyu..?

his best guy friend since his school days. you want to see him of all people?

soobin’s heart crushes. he can’t tell if its your words that do it to him, or the way you looked at him so naive, or maybe even the way he knows its his own fault. he should have made it clear to his friend that he was interested in you. he should have been more forward with you, more flirtatious.. literally anything that would have given you a damn hint.

but he stands there, soul ripped in two, with a smile on his face because he can’t ever gain the courage to say no to you.

“tell me more about it while i walk you home. it’s getting late, love.”

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞

note: here is the prince Taehyun drabble that won the poll but never got posted! now all of the members have a prince au on this blog :)

Prince Taehyun is hardly ever seen by his subjects, commoners and nobles alike. He attends official ceremonies and meetings only briefly, for just as long as he has to, before disappearing once again and having his counsel fill his place. It's far from customary. Certainly odd.

His subjects call him the Raven Prince, for the birds that frequent the top tower of the castle where the prince's rooms are said to be. Tales spread in the town that Prince Taehyun could himself see through the eyes of the birds he loved, could hear everything as though with his own ears. These ravens are his informants, they say, often seen quietly perched around the kingdom and surrounding areas, observing, or rather, spying. They go where the prince cannot - or will not. Beady black eyes following the goings-on of the people — the exact shade of black of the eyes of the prince himself. One renowned storyteller swore he'd once seen the prince fly through the dark of night riding on the back of a great bird, bigger than a horse.

A closed-off, withdrawn man who was an open book as a boy, they say, what does he hide? What is he hiding from? What would his parents, rest their souls, say if they saw him holed up in the castle day in and day out?

Behind the mysterious reputation he has acquired, there is only a man. As a boy, prince Taehyun rescued and nursed an injured raven that had flown over the castle walls, forming a special bond with the bird as it grew to trust him and heal under his care. Perched on the young prince’s shoulder during his lessons and being fed by the boy’s own hand, the raven became used to Taehyun’s company. Once it was healed and was able to fly free again, the bird was never gone for too long, always returning to the castle and the window of the prince’s chambers. Over time, a flock of ravens slowly formed as Taehyun’s raven found a place with its own kind and bore a family.

As the prince turned from boy to man, he began to see with new eyes the judgement and expectations of others. Things were not as easy as they had been in his early life. Lessons had been replaced by council meetings and responsibilities. He came to realise that everybody around him had their own agendas and demands. Taehyun had a keen intellect and a thirst for knowledge, and he missed the lectures and tutors that had been a part of his daily routine. He would rather sit and read or care for the ravens than attend parties and meetings with people fussing over him and examining his every move. His ravens seemed to harbour more understanding and loyalty than most of the humans he was forced into the company of.

That he enjoyed the company of the birds was one thing the gossip of the townspeople had right. They all said that he was a lonely soul, but he wasn't – he wasn't lonely, for he wasn't alone. The ravens could bring a genuine smile to his face with one simple quirk of their heads, or their wit in finding the dried fruit he hides around his desk. It was when he was surrounded by other humans that he felt truly alone.

I recently watched all of Bridgerton and just finished the Queen Charlotte series. I haven't cried at a show in a while, but Queen Charlotte tugs hard at the heart and makes me want to believe in love again

I'm literally incapable of working on one thing at a time

and if I've become a ningtori?